Conall's Legacy Read Online Free PDF

dear?”
    “Peachy.” Luisa rubbed at the throbbing in her temples.
    “I must see you soon,” her mother said. “I’m coming out next week.” The woman’s voice broke, and Luisa thought she heard a sob.
    Silence fell between them and mushroomed as Luisa fought the conflicting emotions racing through her. Her mother apparently needed her, but the woman had deserted them. Why did she care that her mother’s voice reflected such pain?
    “Luisa?”
    May as well get it over with, Luisa thought. “Yes, all right. I’ll see you then.”
    She carefully put the receiver into the wall cradle, and then leaned her forehead against the cool, yellow tiles beside it.
    What had happened to her beautiful day? Why did her mother suddenly want to come to the place she had always hated? Luisa sucked air deep into her lungs and squared her shoulders, pushing away unwelcome memories. She was an adult now, this was one more challenge for her to put behind her, nothing more. She’d get through this and perhaps feel better for finally telling her mother what she thought of her desertion.
    “Come on, Rooster. Time for you to take a short run before bed.”
    The dog bolted out the screen door and disappeared into the darkness encircling the house. Luisa followed him out and stood on the porch.
    Lights shone from the bunkhouse, rays spilling from the windows into the yard. They cast her temporary neighbor in silhouette where he stood in the dark. He appeared frozen in time as he peered into the dark. Luisa couldn’t tell what he was staring at in the dim light, but she doubted he could see much anyway.
    What was he looking for? Something had him on the run, she was sure of it. She’d seen the look reflected on her own features time and again over the last few years. What secrets did he carry?
    God knows, she thought, but it’s not for me to figure out. His problems were none of her business.
    Luisa whistled and waited. In a couple of minutes, Rooster burst out of the underbrush and raced up the porch steps and through the door she held open. Luisa glanced toward Drake one last time, then subdued her questions and went into the house, letting the screen slap closed in her wake. Luisa wanted nothing more than her privacy. She could certainly give Drake Forrester his.
    #
    The minute she stepped onto her porch to let her dog out, Drake knew it. Her presence vibrated with a life of its own. In the dim light, he could see the wind lift her hair and fan it around her face before she pushed it aside.
    As the dog charged off, the woman stared in Drake’s direction, probably wondering what bad fortune brought a guy like him to her doorstep. The last thing he needed was to get mixed up with a woman, but this one sure was easy to look at. Being hot and tired when he finally drove in today didn’t stop him from appreciating a good-looking woman.
    He remembered the hint of red in her dark brown hair, the hazel eyes that had sparked when she’d told him he’d frightened her horse. And the way she walked, hips swaying. Well, that defied description.
    He scoffed at the image of him scaring the beast she called Royal Knight. The massive animal towered above them both. Drake had to admit his trailer must have made a terrific racket bouncing over the never-ending dirt drive with all that loose metal inside. He conceded it had been loud enough to frighten a fire-breathing dragon, especially if that dragon was a horse.
    The contrasting quiet of this place unsettled him. The scurry of unseen animals through brush and the call of owls were a long way from honking horns and blaring sirens.
    The dark here--impenetrable depths came to mind--was beyond comprehension. No moon graced the sky tonight and the stars cluttering the vast expanse offered little light. He looked skyward again. Those stars ... My God he had never seen so many. And the Milky Way stood out as bold as a Los Angeles freeway cutting through the suburbs.
    The lone ranch light beside the barn