“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 toward the surrounding forest.
“Just don’t go too far. There really are bears here and you do tend to get lost.”
“I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
Miranda wandered around the area, never going too far as she looked for wild herbs. But it wasn’t easy to keep her mind on anything. The Colorado mountains were so beautiful she kept stopping to look around her. It had been years since she’d had any time off.
Unfortunately, the lack of huge amounts of work was giving her time to think. She remembered Mr. Taggert’s assessment of her life with a mortgage and an ex who thinks money is a game. She sounded a bit pathetic. What would it be like to be fabulously wealthy?
The thought made her smile. If she had any sense, she would go running back to Mr. Taggert and tell him yes. But the thought of trading her little house and laughter with her son for houses where all the towels were in exactly the same place gave her cold chills.
She found wild onions and thyme but not much else. But then, she wasn’t looking very hard. Her mind was too full of her thoughts.
When the first drops of rain hit her, she looked up in surprise. At this high altitude, she knew that the rain would be icy. She looked about for shelter but saw none. She should go back, but the truth was that she wasn’t quite sure which way the cabin was or where the stream ran.
The rain was beginning to come down harder. Just a few drops so far, but it was increasing. A clash of thunder rolled across the mountains.
She got under a clump of trees but they were pines and aspens, neither of which gave much shelter. The temperature dropped by degrees and she shivered. How did she get back?
There was a quick flash of lightning and Miranda wasn’t the least surprised to see Mr. Taggert standing between two tall pines. At the moment he looked as tall and as big as the trees.
He didn’t say anything, just held his big flannel shirt open. With her head bent against the rain, she ran to him and ducked inside his shirt. She put one arm around his waist and the other held on to his shirt. Together they quickly walked through the trees to the campsite.