Hero in Her Heart

Chapter Three

Gabe couldn’t believe he was agreeing to this crazy idea. He also couldn’t believe he was responding to the happiness he saw shimmering in Nolie’s blue eyes. Or that he wanted to go on seeing it there.

He found himself leaning toward her, as if compelled to be closer. She smelled like soap and sunshine. “Nolie—”

“Am I interrupting something?” The clear, high voice from the barn entrance brought him abruptly to his senses.

A good thing.

“Claire. What are you doing here today?” Nolie’s voice had warmed in a way he hadn’t heard before. Apparently she only used her coolest tones on him.

The woman who strolled slowly toward them was Nolie’s opposite in every conceivable way. Hair a rich, deep auburn, mahogany-colored eyes that were expertly made up, clothes she probably thought of as country that were a far cry from Nolie’s shabby jeans and T-shirt.

She held out a perfectly manicured hand to him. “I’m Claire Delany. And you are?”

“This is one of my clients,” Nolie said quickly.

He thought her cheeks were slightly pinker than they’d been earlier. Because she’d recognized that insane moment when he’d leaned toward her? He hoped not.

“Does this client have a name?”

“Gabriel Flanagan.” He could speak for himself. As for whatever that moment had been—well, not attraction. Definitely not.

He shifted his gaze to the dog, finding it easier to look at Max than to meet Nolie’s cornflower gaze. “I’d better be on my way.”

“I thought we’d spend some time working with Max.”

“Your friend is here.” And besides, he didn’t want to. He wanted to be alone to figure out how he was going to handle this situation.

“Claire will wait.” She shot a look at her friend, who nodded.

A relationship between two such different women had to be an unusual one. He pushed the thought aside. He didn’t need to know anything about Nolie beyond the obstacle she represented.

“Tomorrow will do as well, won’t it? My sister needs to get back.”

Nolie nodded reluctantly, probably fearing that if he once got away from her, he wouldn’t be back. “All right, tomorrow. Is two o’clock all right?”

“Two it is.” He was already moving toward the door. He’d agree to just about anything right now that would get him out of there. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

When he saw Nolie tomorrow, he’d have figured out how to turn this into a stepping stone. Nolie thought they were stuck with each other, and maybe that was true. But if he had to do this, there had to be a way he could use the situation to get himself on active duty again, the sooner the better.

It took a half hour to drive home, and by the time they arrived, the pep talk Terry seemed compelled to give was wearing thin. She meant well, they all did, but nobody seemed to understand that he had to deal with this situation in his own way.

Seth and Ryan were playing one-on-one in the driveway, so Terry stopped at the curb.

“Thanks, baby.”

“Ryan’s the baby,” Terry snapped back automatically.

He grinned, a bit of his good humor restored. “I’ll tell him you said so.” He started toward his brothers.

“You’re not going to play ball, are you?” Terry asked, a hint of worry in her voice.

Ignoring the question, he kept on going. His family alternated between treating him as if nothing had happened and acting as if he were an invalid.

Ryan missed the ball, and he grabbed it.

“How about taking on some real competition?”

He read identical hesitation in both pairs of eyes.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Seth said. “I thought you weren’t supposed to get stressed.”

“You think beating you is stressful? Think again.” He dribbled the ball. “Or are you afraid I’m going to fall down on the driveway in a fit?”

“Of course not.” Ryan made an unsuccessful effort to steal the ball.

He dribbled past him and shot. The ball rolled around the rim and bounced out. “I’m out of practice.”

“You’d better take it easy on that leg, or Mom will be out here yelling at all of us.” Seth grabbed the ball. “How did it go today?”

He shrugged. “The net is closing. She claims she tried to get the foundation let her use someone else, but Henley wouldn’t.”

“The chief won’t back down, either. If Dad couldn’t budge him, no one will.”

“I don’t see a way out.” He’d snatch it like a loose ball if he did, agreement or not.

“Look, it won’t be so bad.” Seth was determined to look on the bright side, but that was Seth, everyone’s friend. “Even if you don’t need the dog, it won’t hurt to play along. You can use the time to get your leg strong again, so you can get back on duty.”

Ryan popped the ball out of Seth’s hands. “Bad advice. Good old reliable Seth, always playing it safe.”

Seth flushed. “That’s a lot better than taking stupid risks.”

He glanced from one to the other. Did that mean Ryan had been skirting the edge again at work? A firefighter couldn’t be paralyzed by danger, but he shouldn’t flirt with it, either.

“What have you been up to, Ryan? I keep hearing talk that you’re taking a few too many chances these days.”

Ryan shrugged, giving him a cocky look that said he thought he was indestructible. “Maybe I’m trying to live up to my brother, the hero.”

The flip words drove like a knife into his soul. “I’m not a hero.” If he really were a hero, he’d have found a way to save the men who’d died beside him. “Don’t you try to be one. We don’t need any funerals in the family.”

“Hey, lighten up. I didn’t mean anything. I just think you ought to risk turning on the famous Flanagan charm, that’s all.” Ryan grinned. “Believe me, a plain Jane like that woman would eat it right up. And a few words from her might sway the chief’s opinion about when you can get back on the line.”

Ryan might actually have a point, although he wouldn’t tell him so. Only there were a couple of problems with his scenario.

One was that he was no Ryan, able to turn on the Flanagan charm at a moment’s notice.

And the other was that Nolie Lang wasn’t plain. Somehow his image of her had changed over the afternoon. In her own setting, Nolie had metamorphosed. He saw again her tenderness as she worked with the child. Pictured the passion in her eyes when she defended her work.

No, Nolie was definitely not plain. But she was definitely trouble.

Nolie spotted the car pull into her lane the next afternoon as she finished her session with Danny. At least Gabe had come. And on time, so she could get on with her goal for the day.

Two goals, she amended. The first was to get him to bond with his dog—a professional goal, one she understood how to approach.

However, she also had a personal goal, and that was trickier. She had to stop herself from responding to his sheer animal magnetism.

Claire, of course, had picked up on that instantly the day before. Given how their friendship had begun, Claire could honestly say she knew more about Nolie than anyone, and she’d seen that betraying flush. Claire had insisted that Gabe felt something, too, claiming she could always tell.

Well, certainly Claire dated more than she did, but that didn’t make her an authority on someone like Gabe Flanagan. A lot of emotions welled up when an active, driven man like Gabe had to confront a life-changing injury. That didn’t mean any of those emotions had to do with attraction.

She hadn’t felt anything, and neither had he. That was what she told Claire, and what she kept telling herself. Unfortunately Claire hadn’t believed it.

And as for her—well, if she believed herself, why then was she wearing a knit sweater with her jeans instead of her usual T-shirt? And why had she bothered touching up her lips with lip gloss and letting her hair swing loose on her shoulders?

Claire’s acid comments about her everyday attire came back to her, making her smile.

If you won’t dress a little better for Flanagan, then at least have pity on those poor chickens. It’s a wonder they’ll lay a single egg, having to look at you in that ragged T-shirt every day.

Well, she hoped the chickens were happy. When Claire called later for a report on the day, she could at least say she’d taken her fashion advice.

“Nolie?” Danny tugged on her arm. “Do you think I could meet him?”

“I don’t see why not.” She waved at Danny’s mother, who waited by her van, then wheeled him toward Gabe.

He leaned against the car door, apparently talking to his sister, but he straightened at their approach.

Nothing. You feel nothing, remember?

“Hi. I have someone here who wants to meet you.”

Gabe’s eyes seemed to darken, and she remembered too late his reaction when she’d suggested he talk to Danny about his seizure disorder.

“Danny, this is Gabriel Flanagan.”

“Hi, Danny. It’s nice to meet you.” Whatever he felt, he masked it as he held out his hand.

It was a long moment until Danny got his muscles to cooperate so that he could extend his hand. To his credit, Gabe didn’t show by the smallest flicker that he noticed that. Gabe made some comment about Lady, and they talked dogs as she bent to the car window to greet Terry.

Gabe’s sister was on the cell phone, but she smiled and waved.

By the time Nolie had straightened, Danny’s mother was wheeling the boy away. She could tell by the boy’s beaming face that it had gone well.

Terry leaned across the front seat to get Gabe’s attention. “I’m sorry, but I’ve been called in to work. I’ll try and reach Mom to pick you up.”

“Mom’s going out this afternoon.” Gabe’s mouth tightened in annoyance, she suspected, that he had to depend on others for something as simple as a ride. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll manage.”

“You have to have a ride.” Terry obviously felt torn.

“I have to go into town later anyway,” Nolie said. “I can easily drop you off.”

She didn’t want to make the offer, and he probably didn’t want to accept it. Spending more time in the man’s company was hardly the best way to get over the random attraction she’d imagined she felt. But she couldn’t very well do anything else.

“Thanks, Nolie. That’s great.” Terry seemed to take her brother’s acceptance for granted. “Gotta go.” She barely waited until Nolie stepped back before she gunned the motor and went spinning out of the lane.

“Sorry.” Gabe waved goodbye to Danny as they drove by more sedately. “My sister seems to have left her manners at home.”

“It’s fine. I’m happy to run you by the house when we’ve finished.”

Another half hour in his company. Well, she’d figure out a way to deal with it. Maybe being around him would inoculate her against all that masculine energy.

“Thanks.”

The word came out reluctantly, and she thought she knew why. Gabe didn’t want to feel indebted to her for anything.

She started walking toward the training center, and he fell into step beside her. That faint limp was still there, audible if not visible to anyone who knew enough to pay attention to the rhythm of his steps.

“I hope you don’t mind my introducing you to Danny. He asked to meet you.”

“No problem. But why did he want to meet me?” He frowned. “You didn’t tell him—”

“I didn’t tell him about your seizure disorder.” She used the words deliberately, hoping frequent use might rob them of some of their sting.

“Then why?”

“Surely you’ve run into that before. To a little kid, especially one like Danny who can’t get around much, a firefighter is someone to look up to. I’m afraid he has a bad case of hero-worship.”

She felt his steps halt, saw the tension drive lines deeper in his face. “He shouldn’t,” he said shortly.

He’d reacted before to that word. Maybe she’d better bring this out into the open. If they were to have any sort of a working relationship, she didn’t want to keep tripping over things that bothered him.

“I’ve obviously said the wrong thing. Is it some sort of faux pas to refer to a firefighter as a hero—one of those things every firefighter knows?”

“No.” His eyes had gone so dark they were almost black. “But if you want to call someone a hero, make it one of the firefighters who died in that warehouse fire. They were the heroes, not me.”

Her breath caught at the pain etched into his words. He’d known those men who died, obviously. Still grieved for them. She reached toward him almost involuntarily, wanting to comfort him, not knowing how.

“I’m sorry.” Her throat went tight on the words. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

He shook his head, as if to shake off her sympathy. “Not your fault.” He grasped her hands in both of his suddenly, and the sensation of his touch traveled straight up her arms in a warming wave, wiping out all the rational things she’d been saying to herself about the attraction she felt.

“Still, I—” Whatever she might have intended to say seemed to get lost in a welter of reaction.

“Look, I’m no hero. I’m just a man with a job to do. If you want to help me, make sure I go back to work. I’m over this seizure thing. I’m ready.”

Her mind started to function again. He wanted her help, but not the help she was qualified to give.

“I’m sorry.” She pulled her hands free. “It’s not up to me. You know that.”

“It could be.” He didn’t attempt to touch her again, but the intensity of his gaze nailed her to the spot. “The chief might listen to you if you told him I’m okay. That I’m ready to go back on the line.”

He was grasping at straws, but she doubted he was ready to hear that.

“First things first.” She tried to manage a cool smile. “We’re here to do a job. Let’s get on with that and put going back to work on the back burner for a while.”

She thought he wanted to flare out at her, but he didn’t. Instead he gave her a look she couldn’t interpret. “I understand. You’re right. Let’s get started.”

He turned toward the training center. She had to hurry to keep up, because her mind was spinning with possibilities.

What if Gabe was right about himself? If his seizures really were a thing of the past, he was no good to her as a test case. She had to get a handle on his physical condition, and soon.

And then there was the personal problem. What on earth was she going to do with this totally inappropriate attraction she felt every time she was near the man?

He’d blown it. Gabe was still berating himself as Nolie put him and Max through a series of obedience exercises in the training center she’d set up in a converted garage. Her voice echoed through the wide space as she gave him directions. A barn swallow, apparently nesting in the rafters, swooped out the open door at the sound.

He shouldn’t have rushed into telling her what he wanted. He should have taken it easy, let her warm up to him. Rationally presented his arguments.

Instead he’d blurted it out, making it almost inevitable that she’d say no.

He didn’t intend to take Ryan’s advice and try to charm the woman. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to be friendly. Let her feel she was getting to know him. Get her on his side.

As for what he was going to do with that totally inappropriate blast of attraction he’d felt when he’d held her hands—well, that was probably a good thing to ignore. She wasn’t his type. And at the moment, she was a very effective barrier to his getting what he wanted most in the world.

He and Max reached the end of the obstacle course. He waited for her to tell him what totally useless thing she wanted him to do next.

“Reward your dog,” she reminded him in the same detached, calm tone she’d used the first four times she’d had to tell him that.

“Yes. Right.” He gave the dog one of the treats Nolie had provided and patted him.

Nolie crossed the concrete floor to join them, frowning slightly.

“What?” She obviously thought he’d done something wrong. “I’m sorry I didn’t remember.”

“It’s not that.” She fondled Max’s ears, and the dog looked up at her with a totally besotted expression of adoration. “Do you understand why I’m having you do obedience exercises with Max?”

He shrugged. He could hardly tell her again that he thought the whole thing was useless.

He thought she suppressed a sigh.

“Let’s go out in the sun and take a break. There are some things you need to understand about the training.”

Max stuck to Nolie’s heels as if he were attached. He followed woman and dog outside.

An old-fashioned porch swing hung from the branch of an oak tree at the corner of the training center. Nolie sat and waited until he took the seat next to her. The swing creaked gently, swaying a little.

Nolie rubbed Max’s head. “Max has already gone through obedience training. Haven’t you, Maxie?”

He gave her a wide doggy grin.

“So the obedience training is for me.” He said the obvious. She probably thought he needed a little obedience training.

A smile touched her face, softening it. The eyes he’d thought a pale, nondescript blue the day before had been turned to aqua by the sweater she had on.

“Not exactly. The training is for both of you. It’s to allow the two of you to get used to working together. More importantly, to let you bond with Max.”

He didn’t need to bond with the dog, because they weren’t going to be together that long. But now was probably not the time to say that. He ruffled the dog’s fur, and Max leaned against his knee.

“He’s a good-looking animal. Purebred?” He’d show interest, not agreement.

“Max is mostly yellow lab, but I wouldn’t venture a guess as to what the other part is. All my service dogs come from the humane society. They’re abandoned animals who need a chance to prove they can be useful.”

She said that with a passion he didn’t quite understand. There was a lot he didn’t understand about Nolie, come to think of it.

“So, once Max and I have bonded to your satisfaction, what comes next?” Supposing he had to stick around that long. “What’s your time frame?”

Worry lines creased her forehead. “We only have a month. Still, I’m usually working with children, and it should go faster with an adult. I’d suggest that this week and next week we do obedience work and then put in two weeks of intensive live-in training.”

“Live-in? Not in the cottage?”

He glanced toward the cottage she’d shown him the day before. White frame with black shutters like the house. It had rosebushes on either side of the black front door. A yellow rambler rose was already coming into bloom on a trellis over the walk. It looked like a kid’s playhouse.

“Yes, I know it’s small, but I’m sure you’ll do fine.” The brisk assurance in her voice said that this was non-negotiable. “You and the dog have to live together during the intensive training. That twenty-four-hour-a-day experience is crucial to the whole process.”

He got what she meant then, and he didn’t like it. “You mean you’re hoping I’ll have a seizure during that time, don’t you?”

“Not hoping, no.” Her brows furrowed, and she seemed to choose her words carefully. “I hope you never have another one. But if you do, that’s the test of whether Max will live up to my belief in him.”

“There’s no guarantee, in other words,” he said flatly. “This could all be useless.”

“It’s not useless. I can guarantee you that when we’ve finished training together, Max will do his job in protecting you should a seizure occur. The question is whether he’ll know the seizure is coming and warn you.”

Passion for her work filled her as she said the words, so strong he almost felt its heat. The face he’d thought plain was alive with enthusiasm. He wanted to tell her again that he wasn’t going to have another seizure, but she swept on.

“The foundation wanted scientific proof, and there isn’t any. But it happens. I’ve seen it happen. When the bond between dog and client is strong enough, the dog knows when a seizure is coming.”

He couldn’t help being moved by the strength of her conviction. No one could. He leaned toward her, his hand on her shoulder, feeling the passion that flooded through her for her cause.

Nolie wanted to be sure a bond formed between him and the dog, so that she could prove her theories to the foundation. He wanted to create a bond between himself and Nolie, so that he could get her on his side.

The trouble was that if he sat this close to her for another moment, he’d probably kiss her. What would that do to either of their plans?