Free Change of Heart by Jude Deveraux Page B

everything. All this was Eli’s doing, not his brother’s.
    Frank tried to regain his calm. “Is this the son I’m to send to school?”
    “Oh, heavens!” Miranda said. “I forgot about that. I’m sorry I said that. I was just so angry I couldn’t think clearly. You asked what I most wanted in life and that came out. But it’s absurd to even think you’d pay for my son’s schooling.”
    “My company gives scholarships. Is your son smart enough to qualify for one?”
    Miranda picked up a nylon pack full of gear and put it on her back. “Eli is smart enough for anything. He’s being offered a full scholarship, but . . .”
    “But what?” Frank opened the door and they went outside to the trail.
    “I can’t bore you with my life story. What about you ? Your life must be very interesting.”
    “It is. Since my last board meeting, I’ve been worried about something. The Hong Kong market is volatile right now and I’m concerned about my stock in one of my minor companies. I can’t decide whether to go public or not. What’s your opinion?” He turned to look at her.
    “I, uh . . . Uh . . .”
    Frank started walking again. “Right. There’s nothing in my mind that would interest anyone not in a business suit. So what were you saying about your son’s future? Eli. Was that his name? And the girl was Sheila?”
    “Chelsea. They are the most incongruous pair you’ve ever met. She looks like a girl who’d only care about her nail polish, while Eli . . . Well, to me, he’s beautiful, but he didn’t inherit my ability to put on weight.”
    “I should turn him over to my relatives. Two of my brothers, Kane and Mike, power lift.”
    “What’s that?”
    “It builds muscle.”
    “Is that where you got yours?”
    Frank was in front so his grin was hidden. “Me? They think I’m fat and flabby.”
    “You’re not!” Miranda said. “And it wasn’t very kind of them to say that.”
    Frank was smiling broader than he had in years. It was sinking in that this was Eli’s mother and it looked like she was as sweet natured as he’d said she was. It wasn’t easy, but Frank was beginning to get over his deep embarrassment from last night. Joy was replacing his discomfort. Eli had done this. Like Frank, the boy had seen what he wanted and went after it. Frank could only marvel at all the boy must have done to arrange this meeting between his mother and his friend. And Frank couldn’t have been more proud!
    Behind him, Miranda was talking about how Eli and Chelsea did things they weren’t supposed to. “Sometimes I’m afraid to find out what those two are doing.”
    Again, Frank hid his smile. Twice his company had been contacted by men wanting to know about a letter they’d received. The men weren’t paying child support. Each time, Frank had turned the problem over to his lawyers, who’d contacted the police.
    “You’ve not mentioned your son’s father,” Frank said. They’d turned down a side path. When Miranda stumbled, he took her hand and helped her down the steep hill.
    At the bottom was the wide, cold stream, a flat, graveled area beside it. There were big overhanging rocks nearby.
    “This is beautiful. Eli would like this.”
    “Would he?” Frank asked, glad to hear it.
    “I’ve talked too much about me. Tell me more about your family. Are they all like you?”
    He put his pack on the ground. “You mean cold, unfeeling, and dedicated to money?”
    Miranda winced. “We certainly did get off on the wrong foot, didn’t we? I’ve never before said anything like that to anyone.”
    “And I’ve never made a proposal of marriage, so we’re even. At least yours wasn’t ridiculous.”
    “I thought it was sweet,” she said.
    He didn’t comment on that. “Are you one of those women who baits her own hook or one who squeals at the thought?”
    “Neither. I’m the one who cleans the fish and cooks it. Mind if I look around for some wild herbs I can use?” She nodded