Page 35 of Her Cadillac Cowboy
“Like Chile, Borneo, Australia.”
“And Alaska.”
“Yeah, Alaska.”
“Those places are all about as far away as you can get mentally and physically from Luville.”
“I suppose.”
“So why did you come back?”
“My dad needed me.”
“He had Donny. You didn’t have to come back.”
“Yeah. Right.” She sniffed. “Maybe I wanted to come back. Maybe I got as tired of strange people and strange food as you did of having bulls part your hair.”
“Maybe, just like me, you found out how hollow all that excitement was,” he suggested.
“Maybe we should just find another topic of conversation.” She stared at her salad.
“Now who’s issuing vetoes?”
“So it’s my turn. You asked me here to discuss Will. Let’s discuss him.”
“All right. Judge Ryerson ordered me to take care of him and you to provide some training. Will needs to work off his debt, but he needs to do it with someone who has the patience and understanding to train an at-risk kid. Who’s the most patient person on your staff?”
“Our old friend, Steve Chavez, but he’s already refused the job. The only manager on my staff willing to take Will on is Miss Beadle.”
“The dragon lady? I thought she retired.”
“She did. Just before Dad’s heart attack, our last office manager took a job in Ft. Worth without notice, so Beadle is filling in until we can hire a replacement.”
“Does she still breathe fire?”
Sara nodded. “She’s added thunder and lightning.”
“You can’t put Will with her. He’ll bolt or worse.”
“Look, my staff does not consist of a bunch of babysitters and therapists. Beadle’s the only one available, so Beadle is who he gets.”
“If Will runs true to form, the first time she fires off at him, he’ll steal or break something. The kid doesn’t know any other way to handle his feelings.”
“He wouldn’t be the first of the McKinley clan to steal from a Carson.”
“What is that crack supposed to mean?”
“You know good and well what I mean. Your uncle used legal trickery and stole the Caddy from my father.”
“That’s ridiculous. Your mother signed that car over to my uncle, fair and square.”
“So he said, but since Mom disappeared before telling Daddy, who can say.”
“The court says, since Uncle Sam had the pink slip with your mother’s signature on it.”
“And no witnesses. Sam McKinley was a lawyer. He knew better. Even if Mom had given it to him, he knew better than to accept it.”
“The car was given in good faith in lieu of legal fees because Gloria didn’t have any other assets to pay for the divorce. And she didn’t have the assets because your father poured all his income back into his business at the neglect of his family’s needs.”
