Free Gift of Fortune by Ilsa Mayr Page B

finally registered with him.
    "Am I in danger of losing my hair and my teeth? Did
my ... did Jack Bolton lose his?"
    "No, but my mother always served a balanced meal."
    "Mine was glad when she could put enough tortillas and
beans on the table." Though he had his back to her, he
sensed her shocked expression. "I didn't mind. I thought
everybody ate beans instead of meat."
    As proud as he was, she guessed that Quint hadn't meant
to tell her that sometimes he'd gone hungry. Quickly she
said, "According to research, beans are better for you than
red meat." She smiled ruefully. "Oops. I suppose as the
half owner of a ranch, I shouldn't have said that."
    "No, you shouldn't have. It's bad for business."
    Aileen paused, a celery stalk in her hand. "It just occurred to me that you might not know what
your...what Jack Bolton looked like."

    She rushed into the den. Moments later she returned with
two photos in her hand. She placed them on the counter
next to Quint. "This one was taken three years ago at a
horse show." Aileen looked at the back of the other photo.
"In this one he was about your age. You look a lot like
him. And it's not just the green eyes."
    Quint didn't say anything, but she saw his lips tighten.
Aileen resumed preparing the relish tray. From the corner
of her eye, she thought she caught him stealing glances at
the photographs.
    Aileen set the tray on the table. Then she sorted through
the junk mail and disposed of it. The rest she set aside when
Quint brought their filled bowls to the table. She ate a third
of her chili before she spoke.
    "This is really good. I appreciate your having dinner
ready. It's nice to come home and not have to rush into the
kitchen to cook."
    "When it looked like it would rain hard all day, I decided
that we would work around the place and fix things. That
gave me a chance to start dinner. I'm glad you like the
chili."
    When Quint realized how much her compliment, her
smile, warmed him, his mood sobered. It didn't pay to get
too attached to anyone or anything. Every time he did,
something happened and he had to move on. Except not
this time. Now he was no longer a nobody. If he was tenacious enough, he could grab a foothold and put down
roots. Deep roots.
    "Speaking of fixing things, could you some time go with
me to my mentor's house? She's on sick leave this semester
and I noticed this morning that the latch of her screen door
is broken again. I tried to fix it several weeks ago, but
obviously I didn't do it right."
    "Sure. No problem. What's she like?"

    "Dora's a tough and demanding teacher but fair. She's
quick to praise and encourage. The kids respect her. They
learn a lot in her classes. She's the reason I became a
teacher."
    "You like her a lot," Quint observed.
    "Yes." Aileen put her spoon down. "So, what did you
fix around here?"
    "Checking up on me?" Quint asked, trying to keep his
voice light.
    "No, but I like to know what's going on."
    "How's that different from checking up on me?"
    "Maybe it's not," she admitted. "We're partners, though,
and I don't want to be excluded again. Please remember
that."
    The fact that Jack never consulted her still rankled. Quint
could understand that. "We worked in the tack room,
moved the remaining hay to the front of the loft, and tinkered with several machines that we'll be using."
    "Which ones?"
    "The tractor and everything we'll need to plant alfalfa
and clover." Seeing her surprised expression, he added
quickly, "It's a lot cheaper to grow your own feed."
    "I know that. I'm not criticizing your idea."
    "Bob told me that years ago part of the south range was
cultivated. I looked at it. Having lain fallow for so long,
we should harvest a bumper crop of hay."
    "You're full of surprises. Do you know how to plant and
harvest?"
    "We did it on the spread where I was the foreman. Do
you have any objections to me doing this?"
    "No, of course not. Go for it."
    "I will."
    "I remember Mom talking about