Free Faith Hope and Love (A Homespun Romance) by Geeta Kakade

huge ring.  "I lived in L.A. because my work demanded it.  I had to travel so much, it was convenient to be just a few miles away from LAX.  As long as I can continue to do the work I want to, I would rather live at the Diamond Bar than anywhere in the world." 
    He didn't mention how tiri ng constant traveling had become, how impersonal hotel rooms isolated one in a well of loneliness, and business dinners every night became more of a chore than raking out a stall.
    He wanted more out of life than that now.  A permanent home, a woman to share it with, Gordie, maybe some more children.
    "Your lawyer said that you gave up a vice-presidency to be with Gordie.  Do you think that after a while that might begin to rankle?"  Rachel bit her lip.  She was beginning to sound like an interviewer on a talk show.
    Luke steepled his fingers and leaned back in his chair.  "I put thought into a decision before I make it, weigh all the pros and cons, thrash things through in my mind.  Once it's made, I never look back or indulge in what ifs."
    That he was strong she already knew.  That he didn't fit the picture of men she carried in her mind, Rachel was beginning to find out.  There was something else she had to say.  Best get it over with quickly.
    "I..I'm sorry I took you to court over custody of Gordie."  Luke's head shot up.  Despite the pounding of her heart Rachel held his gaze steadily.  "You and the Diamond Bar are what are best for Gordie."
    "Why did you do it, Rae?"
    One shoulder rose in a slight shrug.  "I thought I would repay Chris for all her kindness and affection by bringing up her son."  She raised her chin.  "I also did it for myself." 
    The tinge of defiance in her voice wasn't lost on Luke.  From where he sat the sheen of Rachel's tears turned her irises into islands.  Dark, mysterious, enchanting.
    "For your....?" The telephone rang, cutting him off.
    "Excuse me," he reached out to pick it up, irritated by the interruption.  It couldn't have come at a worse time. 
    Rachel heard him talking to Juan as she slipped away and went to her room.  What had come over her?  For a minute there she had been about to tell him what she hadn't shared with anyone in her whole life.  Rachel put a hand up to her head.  The call had saved her from making a fool of herself.  Luke Summers didn't need to be dumped with her personal problems.  He had plenty of his own.
    A frown creased her forehead.  Ra e.  The way he'd shortened her name so casually had tied her up in knots.  She couldn't explain the way she felt.  Keyed up, excited, alive. 
    She doubted if she had asserted anything in the study.  There was a certain aura around Luke that overpowered her senses, invited her to take off her suit of armor and forget the battles she had fought.  Rachel shook her head as a red light began blinking in her brain.  This visit was just a punctuation mark in her life, a temporary pause before she went back to her work.  She would have to be more careful than ever not to make a fool of herself in the days that followed.
    It wasn't till much later Rachel remembered she hadn't paid Luke.  She would write out a blank check and ask Marie to place it on his table in the study.  Going back herself would be hazardous to her health.
     
     
    Woken by the sunbeams flinging themselves on her Rachel recollected she hadn't drawn the curtains last night.  She had wanted to look out at the stars as she lay in bed.  The two large windows opposite her bed framed the sky beautifully.
    Turning on her back, Rachel linked her fingers under her head and allowed her sleepy thoughts to wander.
    It was forty eight hours since the trip to Santa Barbara with Luke.  Yesterday Hannah had insisted she take it easy for one more day and stay in bed.  Surprisingly a strange feeling of weakness had made her give in to the advice and rest all morning.  In the afternoon, horrified by how long she had slept, Rachel had showered and got ten as