Free Gold in the Fire and Light in the Storm by Margaret Daley

rider.”
    “Then you and Sean will have something in common. Sean’s only ridden a few times.”
    “I hope I don’t regret saying yes.”
    “Joshua Markham, you are a man who takes risksevery day in your job. Riding a horse is much easier than fighting fires.” Even as she said the last sentence, the image of Crystal in her wheelchair popped into Darcy’s mind. She shivered.
    “Cold?”
    “No, I just thought about Crystal Bolton.”
    “My point exactly.”
    “Accidents happen all the time, Joshua. You know that. We can’t worry about what might happen. If we did, we’d live in fear all the time and never get up in the morning.” Another picture flashed into Darcy’s thoughts: her mother locked in her bedroom with the drapes drawn all day long, sleeping and sleeping. She shook the memory from her mind, determined not to journey into the past. “You’re a risk taker and you love animals. Riding is perfect for you.”
    Joshua held up his hand. “Okay. You’ve convinced me. Why the hard sell?”
    “I need a referee. My father is determined to work with Sean and his horse. I’m going along to—” Suddenly she stopped, realizing what she was admitting.
    Joshua moved closer, until only inches separated them. “Why are you going along, Darcy?”
    “To protect my son.” There, she had said it.
    “From your father?”
    “He taught me to ride but he isn’t a very forgiving teacher. But Sean was so excited when Dad said something about it at breakfast, I didn’t have the heart to say no. My father is a hard man and Sean is so impressionable.” Joshua’s scent, with a hint of musk, teased her senses. She should step back. She didn’t. “Now that I’ve told you, do you still want to go?”
    His eyes glinted with humor. “Only if you promise to be my teacher.”
    His look mesmerized her. Her mind blanked—until someone behind her coughed, reminding her that she and Joshua were not alone.
    “Hi, Mike. It’s good to see you. Do you need something?” Joshua glanced over Darcy’s shoulder.
    “That spoon in your hand for the casserole if that’s not too much of an inconvenience.”
    Hearing the chuckle in the man’s voice, Darcy spun about, feeling the heat searing her cheeks. “I’m Darcy O’Brien.”
    “Shamus Flanaghan’s daughter?”
    “Yes.”
    “Sorry about that,” the man said belligerently before turning to spoon tuna casserole onto his plate.
    Stunned, Darcy opened her mouth to say something, thought better of it and snapped her jaws closed. Anger welled up in her. It was one thing for her to say something about her father, but she didn’t like anyone else to criticize him.
    “That’s Mike Reynolds, the assistant manager your father fired a few months back.”
    Joshua’s whispered words washed over her, sending a chill down her spine. Again his nearness caused her heart to speed up, something it was doing a lot of around Joshua.
    As Mike moved down the line, Darcy stepped away from the serving table to allow others to select their food. “Not a particularly friendly guy.”
    “I heard the Colemans let him go after the fire. He left in a huff.”
    “Could he be responsible for the fires?”
    Joshua shrugged. “He certainly doesn’t stay long at a farm. Soon it will be hard for him to be hired at all. He’s garnishing quite a reputation.”
    “How so?”
    “He’s too rough with the horses.”
    The tightness about Joshua’s mouth indicated he didn’t care for Mike’s techniques. “So that was the method my dad didn’t like.”
    “Probably. Mike gets results from his horses, but at a cost.”
    Her father might have been tough on her when he was raising her, demanding perfection, but he was always gentle with his horses—in fact, any of the animals at the farm. She could remember once when she was a little girl wishing she had been a horse so her father would love her. Hurt, buried deep, rose and threatened to overwhelm her.
    “Darcy, are you okay?”
    She blinked,