Texas Proud and Circle of Gold (Long, Tall Texans #52) - Diana Palmer Page 0,30

that’s so nice! I hope it’s a boy this time.”

“They already have two girls,” Bernie told Mikey with a smile.

“I like little girls,” Mikey said. “Little boys, too. Kids are sweet.”

“Not all of them,” Agent McLeod said coldly with glittering silver eyes.

“Oh, that’s right,” Paul commented. “That family you were looking after had a kid who stayed in juvie hall most of his life. What was that he painted your car with?”

McLeod eyes narrowed. “Skull and crossbones.”

“And you couldn’t touch him, because he was in protective custody.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that,” McLeod replied. “I had a long talk with his probation officer. He’s getting visits at school, at home, at his part-time job...”

“You vicious man,” Sari chuckled.

“Maybe the skull and crossbones was more accurate than we know,” Murdock commented.

“Watch it,” McLeod said, “or I’ll buy myself a ninja suit and a pickup truck.”

They all burst out laughing.

“Well, come on into the study,” Paul said to the men. He glanced at Sari.

“Bernie and I will be in the kitchen, discussing world politics,” Sari replied.

Bernie looked up at Mikey with soft, pretty green eyes. “See you later.”

He smiled slowly. “You will.” He brought her fingers to his mouth and brushed them with it before he followed the men into the study.

Bernie had to be prompted to follow Sari into the kitchen. She was spellbound.

* * *

“If anybody had told me that Mikey would fall all over himself for a small-town Texas girl, I’d have fainted,” Sari teased. “Honestly, you’re all he talks about when he and Paul get together!”

Bernie flushed. “He’s all I talk about at the boardinghouse. I’ve never met anybody like him. He’s so...sophisticated and charming and sweet.”

“Sweet?” Sari’s eyes were popping.

Bernie laughed. “Well, he is.”

“I suppose people bring out different qualities in other people,” Sari said philosophically as she made coffee. “I owe Mikey a lot. So does my sister. He helped keep us alive.”

“I heard that you were threatened, because of your father,” Bernie said quietly. “Not the particulars, of course, just that Mikey helped your husband with the investigation.”

“Mikey put us in touch with a gentleman who saved Merrie’s life,” Sari said, without going into any detail. “She was almost killed.”

“I did hear about that. Some crazy man ran into her with a pickup truck, and then died in jail.”

Sari nodded. She waited until the coffee perked and poured two cups of it. She put them on the table. She knew from the office that Bernie took hers black, just as Sari did.

Sari sat down across from her. “We lived through hard times,” she recalled. “Our father was a madman. There were times when I thought he was going to kill us himself.”

Bernie stared into her own coffee. “My grandfather had an unpredictable temper,” she said. “You never knew which way he was going to jump. One time he’d laugh at something you said, and the next... Well, Mama and I had to be very careful what we said to him. So did my father.”

“Your grandparents lived in Floresville, didn’t they?” Sari asked gently.

Bernie’s face clenched. She met the other woman’s concerned blue eyes. “You know, don’t you?” she asked.

Sari nodded. “From a former sheriff who moved here and had dealings with our office. But you know I don’t gossip.”

Bernie smiled. “Yes, I do.” She put both hands around the coffee cup, feeling its warmth. “My grandfather wasn’t a bad man. He just had an uncontrollable temper. But he could be dangerous. And he was, one time too many.” She grimaced. “We lived out of town on a ranch, but gossip travels among country folk. After it happened, Dad lost his job and wasn’t given references, so we came back to Jacobsville. I was only ten. Dad and I were targeted once by one of the victim’s relatives.”

“I’ve been through the wars myself, you know. But I don’t blame people for what their relatives do,” she added firmly.

“Neither do I. But there was some gossip even here. Fortunately, there wasn’t so much that Dad couldn’t find work. He went to Duke Wright and got a job. He never got like Granddaddy. I used to think if only somebody had forced my grandfather to see a doctor and get on medication. If only we’d realized that he had mental health issues,” she said huskily.

“If. There’s a horrible word. If only.”

“Yes.” Bernie nodded. She looked up. “You won’t tell Mikey? I mean, I’ll tell him eventually, but it’s early days yet and—”

“Mikey has secrets, too,” Sari interrupted. “He won’t