A Texas Ranger's Family (5 page)

His neighbor passed through the French doors to the sun porch as Dana made the introductions. “Grandma Verne, you already know Candace, right?”

“Yes, hello again,” LaVerne greeted the newcomer.

“Nice to see you, Mrs. Stabler.” Candace addressed
his mama but her eyes immediately settled on the stranger in the room.

Dana offered her grandmother the open tin, then perched on the edge of the chaise. “And Candace, this is my mother, Erin Gray. You've probably heard of her, because she's a famous photographer.”

Erin lowered her chin and closed her eyes for a brief moment. Then she turned a smile of embarrassment toward Candace. “It's nice to meet you, and please excuse Dana's exaggeration. She will be less inclined to brag on me once she figures out most people have no idea who I am.”

“They may not know you by name, but you're fooling yourself if you think people don't recognize your work,” Daniel insisted.

He reached toward a stack of
National Geographic
magazines, took one from the top and flipped it to a dog-eared page.

“I read where they receive over a million submissions every year. This one made the editor's top pick and then went on to be selected for a global refugee campaign.” He was proud of Erin's accomplishments but couldn't help wondering if her accolades could ever make up for their losses. The personal cost of her success had been high for all of them, especially Dana. Daniel's years of praying for the grace to forgive Erin had never been fully fruitful. Constant reminders of their splintered family made it impossible not to know moments of anger, days of regret.

He pushed aside his selfish thoughts and handed the magazine to Candace. Her gaze softened as it brushed the face of an orphan in Darfur. The toddler stood amid the horrifying evidence of genocide.

“Of course I've seen this. How could anyone forget those eyes and that tiny child clinging to her family?” Candace placed the pages in Dana's waiting hand, and then it was her turn to duck her head. “That sure shines a light on the triviality of my cookin' shows.”

“Please don't take it that way,” Erin insisted. “Your reaction is exactly why I don't like a personal fuss over what I do. People start making comparisons and end up feeling bad instead of being moved to act, which is the point of my work. That picture is just one example of the tragedies I've witnessed in this world. Most folks can never understand loss and abandonment unless they're confronted with it face-to-face.”

Dana stood, tossed the magazine to the bed and moved toward the door. “You'd be surprised how much some of us can get our heads around loss and abandonment.”

D
ana stomped from the room as Erin's stomach plunged like a runaway roller coaster topping the first hill.

What a tragic choice of words!

From the looks on the faces of Daniel, LaVerne and Candace, they not only read Erin's thoughts, they echoed them.

“Let me see you to the door.” LaVerne pushed herself up from the love seat and guided the visitor from the solarium. The pretty blonde knitted together beauty queen brows to show Daniel her concern and then turned her attention to the real power behind the man. His mama.

Daniel closed the French doors after the two women so he could speak privately. While he settled in a nearby armchair, Erin braced herself for the lecture that was sure to come. He arched his back, rubbed both hands through his short-cropped hair, and then leaned toward her with his elbows resting on the knees of his dark-wash jeans.

“Erin, I don't know where to start.” His voice was heavy with exasperation.

She held out her left palm and lowered her eyes in defeat. “Daniel, I'll understand if you want to start by packing me off to a local rehab center. Or maybe it would be easier on you if I leave with J.D. when he shows up tomorrow. He can arrange to get me back to New York.”

Daniel thrust his chin forward and squinted, angled one ear toward her like he hadn't heard clearly. “You just got here. Why would you want to leave already? And what's this about J.D. coming to Houston?”

“You heard what a stupid thing I just said in front of Dana and you saw how she reacted. It's bad enough that I'm disrupting your lives and keeping your mother away from her ranch. Upsetting Dana like that was never my intention and I don't want everybody walking on egg shells thinking I'll choke on my foot again at any moment.”

Daniel slumped back into the chair. He looked more relaxed now.

“Erin, listen to me.” A note of understanding mingled with the frustration in his voice. “Dana's a sixteen-year-old girl. She
looks
for reasons to be upset. That's what girls her age do for entertainment. So, don't be too tough on yourself.”

“You mean you're not angry with me?”

His forehead wrinkled as if he were pondering the simple question.

“I'm tryin' real hard to keep
angry
from being the right word. Look, I'm a daddy raising a daughter on my own with no help and no game plan other than God's. That's not a complaint, just a statement of fact,” he insisted. “Occasionally, I hit a home run but lots of days with that kid are strikeouts. You're gonna have to figure her out for yourself but I'll advise where I can.”

“I'm listening,” Erin encouraged him to continue.

“For starters, you need to choose your words more carefully when Dana's around. Mostly 'cause she's got a memory like a bear trap and she'll snare you with your own comments when you least expect it. What you just said was insensitive, that's for sure. But it doesn't justify puttin' you out on the street, if that's what you expected. Not tonight, anyway.”

The last words were tacked on with humor but there was warning in them just the same.

“Got it.” Erin made a mental note. “What else?”

“Oh, there's plenty more but we'll take it as it comes. Mostly be prepared that even though she's agreed not to press you, she has about as much self-restraint as a wolf in a butcher shop. She won't lay back and wait on your lead for long.”

“I know.” Erin fixed her eyes on the putty in her hand, grateful for the valuable guidance he was giving. “Thank you, Daniel.”

“You don't have to keep sayin' that. I know you're out of your element, and for Dana's sake I'll support you whenever I can 'cause it's the right thing to do.”

Relief wrapped Erin like the warm blanket LaVerne put over the bed each time she turned down the thermostat. The certainty of Daniel's help was unexpected and comforting, but Erin felt sure his good graces had limits, as well.

“So, what do I do now? I don't have any experience making amends with a teenager.”

“Trust me, you're gonna get plenty of practice. I'll go talk to her and I wager you dollars to doughnuts she makes some excuse to come back down. You pray about
it in the meanwhile and you'll know what to say when the time comes.”

She nodded. The man was kind, supportive and as handsome as any country western star. It was no wonder the pretty neighbor lady was hot on the heels of his fancy boots.

“All right, then.” Daniel slapped his palms on the tops of his thighs and leaned forward as if preparing to stand.

“If I could just say one more thing.” Erin interrupted his effort to leave. “I owe you for so many reasons, not the least of which is raising Dana in a Christian home. That means a lot.”

“I always hoped you'd feel that way. There were times during our few months together when you gave me the impression you had a foundation of faith.”

“I did, but it wasn't by design. It was because the foster parents dumped us kids off for vacation Bible school at every church in the area. I'm sure we went to five or six programs each summer. Every home I lived in did the same thing so it seemed like common practice. You didn't have to be very old to figure out it had nothing to do with providing a Christian environment. They were just unloading us for the day.”

“Did knowing that bother you?”

“Not after a while. The church volunteers showed us kindness we wouldn't have gotten any other way. And the food was a nice change.” She smiled at one of her few pleasant memories of those days. Hot dogs and s'mores always made her think of Jesus. “The summer I was fourteen, I got baptized in a little limestone sanctuary near San Marcos. They gave me a certificate with the date on it but I lost what few keepsakes I had in all
the moves. I forgot the name of the church, but I always wondered if it was still there.”

“It's pretty easy for me to find out if you really want to know. There's not much I can't dig into.”

She felt a razor-sharp point of pain low in her back and winced away from the sensation. Daniel noticed and without a word he was on his feet, moving her efficiently from the chaise to the bed, casually tucking a pillow beneath her knees. He lowered the headboard to shift her weight then pulled the bedclothes over her hospital garb. Lastly, he injected the evening dose of meds into her IV port.

Erin couldn't help but mull over all Daniel had sacrificed and continued to do for her. She knew it was because of what she meant to him as Dana's mother and had nothing whatever to do with who she was as a woman.

And just as well, since it would complicate a situation that was already a big honkin' psychological mess.

 

Daniel was relieved to see Erin once again comfortable now that he'd settled her on the hospital bed and positioned things as he'd been taught. Following instructions was second nature on the ranch, but his years as a city detective had put him on the giving end of orders. It was good to realize he was not such an old law enforcement dog that he couldn't pick up tricks of a new trade if the situation required it.

“So tell me about J.D. coming for a visit,” Daniel recalled her comment.

“He phoned earlier, said he'd made plans to layover in Houston on his way to the West Coast and wants to stop by. He has something for me.”

Daniel dropped back into the nearby chair. “J.D. seems like a good man, and I get the impression he doesn't have much downtime. So whatever it is, must be important.”

“I just hope it's not a pink slip that has to be delivered in person.”

“No way.” Daniel scrunched his face at the very idea.

“Well, think about it logically. Most businesses these days are looking for ways to cut costs, not add to them by carrying the salary of a disabled employee on the books. Especially one who may never be able to perform at peak level again.”

“And what if you can't, Erin? Would that be such a tragedy? Couldn't you take your experiences and use them in speaking or teaching? You saw how eager Ken was to have you talk to our college-bound students.”

The shake of her head was adamant. “I'm not even going to entertain a thought like that, not as a career anyway. One way or the other, I'll get back into the field. If World View doesn't want me, I'll go freelance.”

She won't even try. She's still so caught up in running that she can't conceive of an alternative. For all the years that have passed, she really hasn't grown up at all.

A light tapping caused Daniel to turn from his thoughts. Dana was peering through one of the door's dozen panes of glass. Her face sagged with self-pity. He waved her in to join them.

“Hey, darlin' girl. I was heading up to see you right after I got Erin settled and squared away with her meds.”

Dana stepped across the threshold but remained near the door. “I'm supposed to help with all that.”

“You can do it tomorrow after we whip up a big
breakfast. It'll be an exhausting day for Erin with her therapy starting in the morning and then J.D. coming for a visit in the afternoon.”

“When are you going back to work, Dad? Won't the Captain be expecting you soon?”

“I haven't been out of touch, just out of the office. I can get most of my stuff done from here and then go in a couple of times a week to hook up with the team.” Daniel reached out, encouraging her to come closer. “Why do you ask? You tryin' to get rid of me?”

“Not even,” she admitted shyly as she stepped into the curve of his arm. “Having you around all the time is not so bad.”

“Well, that's the nicest thing anybody's said about me all day.” A quick squeeze and jostle produced a self-conscious giggle.

Dana pulled free and slipped to the foot of the bed, careful not to bump Erin's legs.

“Can we talk about what happened before?” she addressed her father.

“Do you really want to talk or do you just want to lecture,” he teased, having been on the receiving end of many a
talk
with his child.

“Daddy, you're not making this any better.” She was as stern as a sixteen-year-old can be with Barney-colored hair, black fingernails and a dozen jangling bracelets.

“Okay, let's hear it.” He glanced at Erin who'd been so quiet he thought she might have fallen asleep from the effects of her meds. But her eyes were wide with interest as she spoke up.

“I'd like to be the one to start by apologizing to you,
Dana. I was on my soapbox, all high and mighty about making the world sensitive to the plight of people in other countries. And what I said was insensitive to a person right here in the room. And not just any person, either.”

Daniel held his breath, wanting Erin to acknowledge Dana as her daughter but fearful the aftermath would shake his already unsteady turf.

“You're a very insightful girl who understands some of the things I talked about firsthand. And you don't need my photos to show you how it feels. Maybe someday when we know each other better, I'll explain and you can forgive me for forcing you to learn such difficult lessons.”

Maybe someday?

Maybe someday
Erin would share more when the time was right? Incredibly, his child who always pushed him for an answer seemed to accept Erin's lack of one. His gut churned for his daughter and his pride winced with the unfairness of his position.

He watched as Erin rotated her left wrist, stretching open her fingers. Dana understood. As she slipped her hand into her mother's, she ripped away a small piece of his heart. What could he do but let it go?

“All better?” Daniel asked, speaking casually to disguise his pain.

“Only halfway.” Dana turned smudgy dark eyes on him and narrowed them like she was looking down the sight of a weapon. She was the windshield and he was the bug. This was not gonna be good. Dana pointed to the
National Geographic
on the bed. “How can you have that magazine just lying around the house like it's a phone book? How can you treat something so casually
when it would be precious to me? And how could you know my mother's whereabouts all this time and still lie to me about her?”

“Now, hold on, little lady.” Daniel straightened on the edge of the chair but resisted the urge to jump to his feet, the preferable position a man takes when defending his honor. “I may have withheld the answers to your questions, but I've never lied to you.”

“What about the time I asked if you knew what happened after she left us and you said you lost all touch once the custody papers were signed.”

“That's true. We never had any further contact.”

“Maybe
she
never had any contact with
you
, but you've been keeping track of her career. You've known where she was for years and you never told me.”

“Dana, that wasn't his fault,” Erin intervened. “Your father is an honorable man. He stuck to the agreement I insisted upon.”