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Jo brushed past him and walked toward the stable doors, saying over her shoulder, “As I mentioned before, I appreciate everything you’ve done for us, but you’re wasting your time trying to persuade me into taking on that colt of yours.”
Brooks lowered his head, patted Another Round’s neck, then strolled slowly behind her. “Nothing I’ve done—or will continue to do—for you, Earl, or Lone Oaks Crossing would ever be a waste to me.”
“And why is that?”
“Because, whether you agree to train or not, I still think we’d make a good team.” He picked up his pace, drawing nearer to her. “And I enjoy being around you.”
She stopped, her feet freezing in midstep before she turned to face him, her eyes seeking his. “We barely know each other.”
He stopped, too, the tips of his boots resting in the dirt mere inches from the toes of hers. “There’s more to knowing a person than just exchanging facts or whatever fictional details they choose to present to you. There’s a person’s disposition, their spirit, their concern for others. I’ve had an opportunity to see those things in you during the short time since we’ve met.”
He tilted his head, surveying the attractive features of her face, features that seemed all-too-familiar somehow. As though an ethereal ideal he’d harbored secretly in his heart all his life had been breathed to life in front of him. It was an odd feeling—this instant affection for someone he’d just recently met. He’d always dismissed it as a sentimental notion, but now found himself experiencing it firsthand.
“I told you the other day that I don’t have a family,” he said. “But I used to have one. I used to know what love, loyalty, and devotion should look like. Or at least, what I thought they should look like. I see the way you love and support Earl and Lone Oaks Crossing. You’re willing to relocate your life here to care for your grandfather and honor your childhood home.” He reached out and tucked a stray strand of her long hair behind her ear. “I’m well aware of who I am to you right now. A man with money. A helpful neighbor, at best. But I’m hoping . . . in time, we may become friends. No matter the outcome of any potential business we may or may not undertake together, I want to help you and Earl the way I wish someone had helped the family I had years ago. Call it old-fashioned nostalgia for the childhood I lost. Maybe you can understand that?”
She swayed in his direction, just a bit. Enough so that her soft cheek grazed his knuckles as he removed his hand from her hair.
“Yes,” she said. “I can understand that, and I know you’re going out of your way to help me.” She looked up at him, those dark blue eyes of hers peering into him. “Two boarders, Frankie and I can handle. But you’ve brought six and Another Round’s going to need daily attention. A set schedule to keep his heart and lungs strong—that is, if you still plan on racing him with another trainer?”
Brooks nodded. He had every intention of entering Another Round in the Kentucky Derby, but his plan only included Jo, and he’d hold on to hope that she’d change her mind . . . even if the end result was disappointing.
“Then there’s no way Frankie and I can be available to Earl every day and also care for Another Round and the other boarders you’ve brought. At least, not without extra help.”
Brooks smiled. Even if she didn’t realize it, she was offering him another chance to stick around. “I can fix that.”
She shook her head, a grudging smile curving her lips. “You seem to have a fix for everything, don’t you?”
“Yeah,” he said. When it came to her, at least. Unable to resist, he reached out and smoothed his knuckles down her soft cheek as he eased past her. “I’ll be here first thing in the morning, and as soon as it’s convenient for you, we’ll solve that problem. In the meantime”—he glanced over her shoulder as he exited the stable, savoring the somewhat dazed but friendly look on her face as he spoke his next words—“if you need me, I’m still at your beck and call.”
* * *
Call it old-fashioned nostalgia for the childhood I lost. Maybe you can understand that?
Jo, seated in the passenger seat of Brooks’s truck, stared ahead at the paved road winding in front of them. It was early, the sun rising high in the sky, just beginning to warm the chilly fall air. Brooks had driven up the driveway to Earl’s house right at dawn—just as he’d promised yesterday—and as Earl was still sleeping soundly in his bed, she’d left Frankie with him and climbed into the passenger seat. Now she tugged the light denim jacket she wore tighter around her shoulders and rubbed her hands together in her lap to ward off the early-morning chill.
“Cold?” Brooks reached out, adjusted a control on the dash, and tilted two vents in her direction. “Does that help?”
Warm air billowed over her chest and neck, and she eased back against her seat, sighing. “Yes. Thank you.”
She glanced at him, eyeing his chiseled jaw, the strong column of his neck and confident set of his broad shoulders. Yesterday, after he’d left Lone Oaks Crossing, she’d had difficulty getting him out of her mind. She’d tossed and turned in bed last night, the memory of his deep voice and handsome features, set in a warm, inviting expression, stirring delicious thrills within her as she’d stared up at the ceiling of her bedroom.
I enjoy being around you.
Her reaction had been ridiculous, really—more like a lovesick teen than a grown woman. The last thing she’d expected to stumble upon when returning to Lone Oaks had been a charismatic, wealthy bachelor like Brooks who had an overdose of charm. One who probably couldn’t recall how many women he’d entertained, much less remember their names.
But then again, the words he’d spoken in the stable yesterday had seemed sincere. Heartfelt, even. Like those of an honest, forthright man.
I’ve experienced a great deal of loss in my life, actually. More than most people assume.
What childhood had he lost? He’d mentioned he had no family now but had acknowledged yesterday that he’d had one in the past. One he seemed to have loved and missed quite deeply, if the sorrow etched into his expression yesterday had been any indication.
It was unsettling to think that of a man of his stature, wealth, and power could have experienced such keen loss and be alone in the world. But, having worked with youth in the public school system, she’d seen her share of children suffering through devastating losses at a young age. She’d consoled children who’d lost family, shelter, security, and their very hope for a successful future. Everything in life could change in an instant, and that daunting prospect was no different for children, no matter their youth and innocence.
She looked at Brooks again, a curiosity she hadn’t anticipated prompting her to speak before she could think better of it. “What happened to your parents?”
The question seemed to hit a nerve. His broad hands tightened on the steering wheel, his knuckles turning white. He smiled, the expression strained and insincere. “I see we’re beginning the day’s conversation with lighter topics.”
She looked away, giving him some space, and returned her attention to the road in front of them. “I don’t mean to pry, but you mentioned yesterday that you used to have a family. I just couldn’t help but wonder what happened to them.”
