A Man of Means

Turning his attention elsewhere, Rey gave a thought to poor Leo with his stitches and his headache, and another to Meredith Johns’s bruised face. Tomorrow, he’d have to deal with Leo’s request to see her, and he wasn’t looking forward to it. He wished he knew why.

Rey went to Meredith Johns’s house the next morning after he’d had breakfast. It took her a minute or two to answer the door, and for an instant, he thought that perhaps she might not be in any condition to answer it. She’d been badly bruised.

But she opened the door and peered up at him bravely, even though she looked like a refugee from a bar brawl. Her left eye was swollen shut completely now.

‘‘Leo wants to see you,’’ he said easily, noticing how the top of her blond head only came to his shoulder. She wasn’t tall. Even bruised, her face had a beautiful complexion. Her mouth was pretty. He shook himself mentally. ‘‘He wants to thank you for what you did. He remembers that you rode in on the ambulance with him. You didn’t tell me that,’’ he added with faint accusation.

‘‘I wasn’t thinking,’’ she said. ‘‘I was worried about what would happen when I came home late.’’

‘‘Have you heard any more about your father this morning?’’ he asked grimly.

‘‘They’re going to charge him with simple battery,’’ she said heavily. ‘‘I can’t afford a lawyer. He’ll have a public defender and he’ll probably have to stay in jail for a few weeks.’’ She looked up at him. ‘‘It will be a godsend, you know, because he’ll dry out completely.’’

He hated the compassion he felt. ‘‘Did your mother leave him?’’ he asked.

She averted her face. She couldn’t bear to talk about it yet. ‘‘In a way,’’ she said huskily. ‘‘Are you going to drive me?’’ she added, glancing at him over her shoulder. ‘‘The bus doesn’t run for another thirty minutes.’’

‘‘Sure,’’ he agreed.

‘‘Then I’ll get my jacket and purse.’’

She went into another room and came back quickly, leading the way out the door. ‘‘Is he conscious now?’’

‘‘Very,’’ he murmured dryly. ‘‘When I left him, he was telling a nurse what she could do with the wash basin, and how far.’’

She chuckled. ‘‘He didn’t seem like that kind of man,’’ she murmured. ‘‘I had him figured for a gentleman, not a renegade.’’

‘‘We’re all that kind of man,’’ he replied.

‘‘All?’’

He led her to the car and put her into the passenger seat. ‘‘There are five of us. The other three are coming up this morning to have a talk with the police.’’

‘‘I remember. You said that your brother was the attorney general.’’

‘‘He is,’’ he replied. ‘‘We tend to stick together.’’

Her eyes went to his hands on the steering wheel. He had nice hands, very lean and strong with neat, clean fingernails. He was a tough-looking man, like a cowboy.

‘‘How’s your face?’’ he asked unexpectedly.

She shrugged. ‘‘It still hurts. It will for a while, but I’ll be fine.’’

‘‘You should see that plastic surgeon.’’

‘‘Why?’’ she asked heavily. ‘‘My insurance won’t pay for cosmetic surgery, and there’s not much chance that they can do any major repair on tiny shattered bones.’’

‘‘You’re not a doctor. Stop giving yourself medical advice.’’

She stared at him for a long moment and started to speak, then lost the opportunity when he pulled up in the hospital parking lot, cut off the engine, and got out.

Rey waited for her and led her up to the floor where his brother’s room was located.

Leo wasn’t alone. Three other men were with him, one big and dark and missing an arm, the other lean and light-eyed and handsome, and a third big one with black eyes and a threatening face towering over both the others.

‘‘That’s Cag,’’ Rey indicated the black-eyed man. ‘‘Corrigan,’’ he nodded toward the light-eyed man, ‘‘and that’s Simon,’’ he finished, smiling at the one-armed man. ‘‘This is Meredith Johns. She rescued Leo.’’

‘‘Nice to see you and know who you are,’’ Leo said, alert now and interested as his dark eyes swept over the neat woman just inside the door. ‘‘Miss Johns, I presume?’’

She smiled self-consciously, because everybody was looking at her bruised face. ‘‘Yes,’’ she said.

Simon Hart frowned when he got a good look at her. ‘‘What the hell happened to you?’’ he demanded.

‘‘Her father,’’ Rey said for her. ‘‘She got in late and he beat her up.’’

Leo looked suddenly as intimidating as the other three. ‘‘Where is he?’’ he asked.

‘‘In jail,’’ Meredith said heavily. ‘‘For several weeks, at least, and he’ll have time to dry out.’’

‘‘Good.’’ Leo looked toward Simon. ‘‘Maybe you can find a way to get him into rehab before he gets out.’’

‘‘I’ll look into it,’’ Simon said at once.

‘‘And some counseling wouldn’t come amiss,’’ Rey put his two cents worth in.

‘‘I’ll see about that, too,’’ Simon replied. ‘‘Nice to meet you, Miss Johns. We’re all grateful for what you did for Leo.’’

‘‘You’re all very welcome,’’ she replied. She clutched her purse, intimidated by the group of brothers.

‘‘Come here,’’ Leo said, holding out his hand. ‘‘They’re big and they look tough, but they’re really marshmallows. You don’t have to feel threatened. I’ll protect you.’’

‘‘She doesn’t need protecting from us!’’ Rey snapped.

The others gaped at him. It wasn’t like Rey to act that way.

He cleared his throat. He didn’t want them asking themselves embarrassing questions about his attitude. He shoved his hands into his pockets. ‘‘Sorry. I didn’t sleep much last night,’’ he explained.

Meredith went to stand beside Leo, who took one of her small, cold hands in his and looked up at her with interest.

‘‘Have you seen a doctor?’’ he asked.

‘‘Your brother took me to the emergency room yesterday,’’ she said.

‘‘Rey. His name’s Reynard, but he’s called Rey,’’ Leo informed her.

She smiled. ‘‘You look much better today. Head hurt?’’

‘‘A bit, but my vision’s clear and I’m not disoriented,’’ he said, quoting the doctor. ‘‘I have a good prognosis.’’

‘‘That’s nice to hear. You were in pretty bad shape.’’

‘‘I’d have been in a lot worse shape, but for you,’’ Leo said. ‘‘I hear that you can’t work out in public for a while, until your face heals,’’ he added. ‘‘Can you cook?’’

She blinked. ‘‘Of course,’’ she said at once.

‘‘Can you make bread?’’

She frowned. ‘‘Bread?’’

‘‘More specifically, biscuits,’’ he added, and had the oddest expression on his face.

She shifted her purse in the hand he wasn’t holding. ‘‘Well, yes, those and rolls and loaf bread,’’ she said, as if everybody could do it.

Leo shot a glance at Rey, who was just staring at him without daring to say a word. He knew what was coming, and he couldn’t decide how he felt about it. He didn’t want to think about it.

‘‘How would you like a brief stay in Jacobsville, Texas, in a big sprawling ranch house where your only job would be to make biscuits every morning?’’ Leo asked with his best smile.

Rey and the other brothers were staring at her, waiting. She wondered why. And Rey was frowning, as if he didn’t like the idea at all. Probably he still secretly thought she was a hooker. He couldn’t seem to credit her with any sense of decency.

She thought about his attitude for a few seconds, and decided that it wouldn’t be a bad idea to take the job, and show him that you really couldn’t judge a book by its cover. It wouldn’t hurt that arrogant cowboy to be taken down a step or two, and she was just the girl who could do it.

She smiled. It hurt her face, but what was a little pain for a good cause? She turned back to Leo. ‘‘Mr. Hart, I think I’d like that job very much!’’

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