Deep in the Heart (11 page)

“
Oh, it’s beautiful.” They were the only words Maggie could think to say when the horses approached the waterfall. The shelf of rock high above dropped the water over its edge like a hand dropping pearls. In the bright sunlight the water glinted and glimmered like a thousand tiny diamonds.

Her gaze stayed on the falls as she got off and pulled Isabella down too. “Oh, baby girl. Look at that. Look how pretty.”

“
P’itty,” Isabella said, and happiness burst through Maggie. She nosed her face into the soft blonde curls.

“
You are the cutest thing ever. You know that?”

“
Come on, you two,” Keith said, tilting his head and smiling at them as he stood there, the picnic basket in one hand and Peter’s hand in the other. “You’re wasting daylight.”

Through the calf-high flowers, Maggie stepped over to him and followed him right up to the second shelf of rock which stood between the fall above and the pool of water below. Carefully she sat down. “This is incredible. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“
One of the hidden treasures of the place,” Keith said. “The drive up is murder on vehicles, so most people don’t bother to come out here.”

“
But the horses didn’t have much trouble,” she said with concern.

“
No. Luckily they’re open access to out here.” Kneeling, he started laying out the picnic—sandwiches, potato chips, and little silver bags of juice.

Maggie wondered if he would die of starvation before they got back. She’d seen him eat, and this didn’t look like nearly enough. “You come out here a lot?”

“
Not much anymore. I used come out here a lot.”

She helped him and then set Isabella on her lap and tore her a piece of sandwich off. “What happened to that?”

He shrugged. “I got busy. Things to do. People to see. Places to go. You know how it is.”

“
So, they keep you pretty busy, huh?” She took a half sandwich for herself.

“
Always something. They’ll be taking Q-Main to Del Mar in a couple of weeks, and we’re trying to get Transistor and Dragnet ready too.”

Maggie laughed. “Where do you come up with these names? They sound like some kind of sci-fi aliens or something.”

Keith smiled. “Some come with their own names if we buy them somewhere else. Some we come up with on our own if we’ve bred them in-house.”

“
In-house?”

“
From our own stock. You breed them so the mare’s qualities compliment the stud’s and hopefully you get a racehorse that’s fast as lightning and strong as an oak.”

He was feeding Peter. She was feeding Isabella.

“
That’s not always easy I take it?” she asked, fascinated by the topic and by his apparent knowledge on the subject.

“
No. It’s not that easy. Sometimes instead of the best of both worlds, you get the worse of both worlds. Then you’ve got a nag that has the manners of a spoiled brat.”

She laughed. “You’ve had a few of those I take it.”

He scratched the bottom of his chin. “More than our share, but we’re learning.”

“
We’re?”

“
Me and Ike, the trainer.”

She lifted her chin in recognition of the name. Ike, the fifty-something guy who although way out of her age-bracket was still the gentleman every girl dreams about snagging. “You guys get a long pretty well, huh?”

“
He’s like a second father to me.” Keith’s gaze faded from her out onto the falling water as he chewed his sandwich. “I loved horses, couldn’t get enough of them, and Ike took me under his wing and showed me the ropes. He still does.”

“
You’ve been here awhile then—at the Ayer’s estate?”

He smiled. “Yeah, awhile.” His face slid through the memories. “I graduated from A&M when I was 24. I’ve been here ever since.”

“
And how long is ‘ever since’?”

His gaze came back to her. “Five years.”

She nodded, doing the math in her head. “And you like it here?”

This smile was more wistful than the others. “Yeah. I love it here.”

The day passed like none had ever past before for Keith. When the sun got hot, they found a cool shade near the falls and let the kids take a nap. Lying on the ground, Isabella next to her and Peter’s hand in hers, Maggie looked like she belonged nowhere else. She never complained even when he knew she must be uncomfortable having been in the same position too long. Every move she made, every effort, every word came with the question of what was best for the kids clearly in mind.

“
You’re good with them,” Keith said when they were both asleep, and he had ambled back over to the little group from his trip to check the horses.

“
Yeah, well. They’re easy to be good with.” She twirled one finger through Isabella’s curl.

Keith sat down and wound his arms around the backs of his knees which were Indian-style under him. “You wouldn’t believe the nightmare those two have been through. Those other nannies were…” He exhaled his disgust.

“
Yeah, I figured as much.” Her gaze fell to Peter.

“
What does that mean?”

Maggie’s gaze came up to his, and Keith didn’t like what he was reading there at all. “The other day… yogurt day. Peter kept cringing away from me like I was going to hit him.” Her gaze fell. “I’ve seen that look before with kids that have grown up being beaten.”

Real, honest concern swept through him. “You don’t think they’ve ever…”

She shrugged slightly. “I wouldn’t be surprised the way he was acting, and he’s so quiet. He’s terrified to get dirty. Any little wiggle throws him into terror.” She exhaled. “Lots of signs. Lots of pieces, and when you put them all together…”

Somehow Keith had never realized this could be a possibility. Yes, the kids weren’t treated like kids but beaten? That wasn’t something he’d ever thought was happening to them.

“
You should’ve seen him petting the cat the other day,” she continued. “It was like he was petting it with one hand, and watching out of his eye for the reprimand he knew was coming. They have them on such a tight schedule. You get chewed out for being two minutes early. I don’t know. They’ve got everything, you know. The playhouse, the toys, the nice house, but they aren’t allowed to be kids.”

Deep in the middle of his heart, at that moment, Keith made the solemn promise to himself that whatever he had to do to keep her here, he would do it. For their sakes. They deserved that much.

“
Having everything isn’t what makes you feel loved,” she continued although his heart already felt like it was overflowing like the falls. “It’s knowing that you’re loved just because you’re you.” She slid her fingers over Peter’s hair. “Every kid deserves that.” The words stopped so she could take a breath. “I wish I could give that to every kid alive. Just the solid, unshakable knowledge that they are good enough just the way they are, that they are loved for who they are. Just that much… it could change the world.”

Had the world quaked out of existence at that very moment, Keith couldn’t have moved. Finally he understood the attraction of her. She cared—not about the money and the cars and the status. She cared about the person.

“
Well, I for one, hope you get that chance,” he said softly.

Her gaze slid up to his, and she smiled gratefully. It was the most perfect moment of his life.

“
It’s about time you get back,” Ike said, stepping up as Keith put Buck into his stall.

Instinctively Maggie backed away without really moving. She cradled Isabella a bit closer and reached down to shield Peter as well.

“
I took the day off. I told you that,” Keith said, and there was a bite to his words.

“
Well, the operation didn’t. Hodges’ truck showed up, and they only have half the load.”

Not really understanding but wanting to not get in the way just the same, Maggie shrank back. If she could’ve thought of a way to get the kids back to the mansion without riding in the pickup, she would have done it.

Keith exhaled. “Fine.” He turned to her slightly. “This’ll just take a minute.”

“
No problem,” she said so softly, she wasn’t sure he’d heard. Keith and Ike started to the office, and Maggie followed with the kids, very cautiously and hanging back as much as possible. She considered telling him they would wait in the pickup, but he and Ike were in a heated discussion, and she didn’t want to break in and add more stress to the already tense situation.

At the office, Keith yanked the door open and stomped inside. Ike followed him but stood at the door with it open. Maggie, careful to shield the children, stood ten steps back and faded against the shadows next to the hard, gray wood of the barn.

She could hear the angry voices rising as the tension stretched over them.

“
Maggie, why is Keith so mad?” Peter asked at her knee.

“
Shh,” she said, pulling him closer. “Don’t worry. They’re just trying to get some things settled.” How do you explain something you don’t even understand?

“
I’m sorry, Mr. Ayer,” the young driver said, backing past Ike out the office door. “It won’t happen again.”

“
You darn right it won’t happen again. Tell Hodges we get jerked around one more time like this, and we’ll find a different supplier permanently.” Keith whacked the clipboard into the young man’s chest. “You understand that?”

“
Oh, yes, sir. Yes, sir, Mr. Ayer. I’ll tell him.”

“
Good. Now get off my property.”

The words spun through Maggie’s brain in a whirlwind of concern and incomprehension. Mr. Ayer? Why did he keep calling Keith that? And why had Ike let Keith handle that when he was obviously the most senior of the two? Mr. Ayer. Mr. Ayer. The name twisted through her, and she pulled Peter closer to her, trying to make time run backward even as she swayed under the reordering of the world around her.

“
They’ll do it again,” Ike said when the young man was gone. He put one hand on his hip where his brown belt went through the loops just so.

“
I know they will.” Keith looked so mad, Maggie wasn’t sure what he would do next. “Get Mac on the line and tell him we’ll start buying from them on Friday. Then call Hodges and tell him they’re out.”

The glance that Ike sent in her direction did nothing to settle Maggie’s nerves, which were in knots inside her. “What about your dad?”

“
Let me worry about Dad. He doesn’t have to put up with this junk every day like we do. Friends don’t jerk friends around like that. Hodges just barked up the wrong tree.” Keith stomped back into the office, and Ike followed. Once inside, the voices were too indistinct to make out, and with her head pressed against the barn wall, Maggie fought to block them out altogether.

Keith was Mr. Ayer’s son. Mr. Ayer, Conrad Ayer was Keith’s father. Her breathing became shallow to the point of being non-existent as her heart broke through that understanding. Slowly her mind traced through the last week. Over and over again, she had humiliated herself in front of the boss’s son. She had leaned on him when her own stupidity caught up with her. Worse, she had told him things, things you didn’t tell people who could get you fired.

She felt like the biggest idiot on the planet. Her eyes fell closed against the thoughts. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Tears came to her eyes, stinging and harsh, but she beat them back. Sniffing, she squared her shoulders. He must think she was the most gullible imbecile to grace the planet. Yeah, right, he worked so hard out here. What a joke. He was the crown prince of a billion dollar estate!

At that moment the voices approached the door, and Maggie sucked in the emotions swirling around her. She wouldn’t let him win. He would never know that she hadn’t known. More than that, she would never let him so close again.

He was Keith Ayer. She was the hired hand, and for her heart and her sanity—not to mention her job, she’d better remember that.

“
I’ll be up at the mansion ‘til morning,” Keith said to Ike who followed him out. At the office door, Ike stopped, holding the door open with his back. “Dad and Vivian will be back bright and early tomorrow.”

His voice had a hard edge to it that pulled up fear in Maggie’s chest, and it wasn’t only her. Peter’s fingers dug into her jeans in a crunch. Isabella whimpered at her chest, and Maggie pulled her closer. “Shh. Little one. Shh.”

“
Maggie, you ready?” Keith asked, looking past Ike.

“
Oh, y-yeah.” Her voice cracked, and she shook her head in aggravation at herself.

He turned in the direction of the pickup, and Maggie stepped that direction as well. When she passed Ike, he looked at her with a mix of disgust and revulsion she couldn’t miss. She ducked her head, lest he see the tears in her eyes. Hurt piled over hurt the farther she walked. When they walked out of the barn and she saw Keith standing at the truck, her heart cracked in two.

She closed her eyes and then pulled them back open, fighting the hurt with everything in her. “We’d better get back. I’ve got to give the kids a bath before dinner. They smell like horse.” At her side Maggie opened her door and then Isabella’s, but Peter never moved from her knee. “Patty Ann will toss me out on my ear if she gets wind of them.”

“
Pete, come over here,” Keith said, his anger dissipated.