a confident, serene smile on her face as she approached the table, stopping beside Colton and sparing a quick look at her brother before offering her hand to the woman behind the table.
“Hi,” she said. “I’m Verity.”
“So I’ve heard,” said the woman, ignoring her hand and sizing her up with a sour expression, “but there is no way you worked as a server at Medieval Times. You’re far too small.”
Verity’s eyes shot to Colton’s, widening with surprise at his lie. She’d never said that she worked at Medieval Times. He drew his bottom lip between his teeth for a moment before releasing it and narrowed his eyes at the lady behind the table.
“Didn’t say she was a server. Said she worked there, Lynette. You were a, uh, a cashier, weren’t you?”
Before Verity could answer, Lynette snapped, “Well, I wouldn’t have told them to come over if I knew that. Don’t have a cashier job open.”
“Sure you do,” countered Colton, glancing down at the applications on her desk. “You said you did before.”
“It’s an ADA job,” said Lynette, frowning up at him. “If I don’t hire a disabled person for the job, we don’t get the tax credit.” She flicked a look at Verity. “And you don’t look disabled, honey. Small, yes. Wheelchair, no.”
At the mention of the Americans with Disabilities Act, a lightbulb went off in Verity’s head. She twisted her neck to catch Colton’s eyes, and he nodded just slightly at her—enough for Verity to know that he’d planted the idea in her head and now was her chance to run with it.
“. . . so, I’m sorry,” Lynette was saying, “but I don’t think—”
“This is my brother, Ryan,” interrupted Verity, stepping aside so that Lynette could see him clearly.
Ryan, who heard his name and knew his line, stuck out his hand and grinned at the woman sitting in annoyance behind the table. “I’m Ryan. Pleased to meetcha.”
“Ahhh, yes. Nice to meet you,” said Lynette, taking his catcher’s mitt of a hand in her own and pumping it once before letting go. She eyed him warily, then looked down, shuffling the papers on her table. “Now, I’m sorry, but—”
“I’m Ryan’s guardian,” said Verity quickly. “His legal guardian.”
Lynette looked up, her expression caught between confusion and surprise. “O-kay.”
“He’s legally incompetent,” she continued, trying her best to keep her voice steady and her hopes reined in, “which means that he could fulfill your ADA requirements.”
“Huh,” said Lynette, cocking her head to the side and giving Ryan a shrewd look. He smiled at her, rocking back and forth and offering a small wave. Finally she turned back to Verity. “Don’t get me wrong. He seems real sweet, but can he . . . I mean, can he handle a cash register in a busy gift shop?”
Verity’s hopes plummeted. There was no point in lying. “No.”
The HR woman looked at Ryan, answering his wide grin with a reluctant but sympathetic grimace. “I’m sorry, honey, but—”
“Joe needs help in the stable,” said Colton from beside Verity. He took a step closer to her, and she could feel the height and breadth of his physical presence behind her, filling her stomach with critters but making her feel so much less alone. “Scooter left two weeks ago. You need to hire a replacement to help with the horses.”
“We’re not recruiting for that job today,” said Lynette, her tone leaving annoyance and heading quickly toward frank irritation.
“I like horses,” said Ryan, nodding enthusiastically.
“He does. Been around ’em for most of his life too” said Verity. Lynette sighed loudly, tilting her head to the side with exasperation. But she didn’t say no, which made Verity continue. “And Ryan’s real good at taking directions, ma’am. He’d be on time every day. I’d be sure of it. He doesn’t take breaks. He doesn’t waste time. You give him a job, he does it. You give him another job, he does that one too. Best employee you’d ever have. I promise. If you’d just give him a chance to show—”
Lynette held up her hands. “I wish I could, but it’s just not—”
“Come on, Lynette,” said Colton, his gravelly voice rumbling as he gestured to the older woman’s bosom. “Ain’t there a heart somewhere in there?”
Lynette jerked her face toward Colton’s, her expression murderous. “Come on, what? Joe would have my hide if I hired someone without his say-so. He’s been in charge of the livestock at the castle for fifteen years—ever since the Atlanta location opened. You think he’s going to