Her Only Hero Read Online Free PDF

absolutely would not feel pleasure at the sight of him.
Still, when his smile lit his deep-blue eyes, it was hard not to, especially
when he came directly to her.
    “Laura, hi. Well, what do you think?” He waved toward his
family. “If you can stand all these people talking at once, you might be able
to get through a Sunday supper at the Flanagan house.”
    “Stop teasing, Ryan.” Siobhan swatted at him affectionately.
“You make Laura feel welcome, now. I’ve got to get back to the roast.”
    “Can I do something—” she began, but Siobhan was already gone.
    “This is your first time here,” Ryan said. “Relax and enjoy
yourself. It’s Mary Kate’s family’s turn to help this week, anyway.”
    “You do this every Sunday?”
    “Terrifying, isn’t it?” His grin negated the words. “If the
weather’s nice, we go out to Gabe and Nolie’s farm instead, where the kids can
run. Mandy would like seeing the place. Lots of animals.”
    Was that an invitation? She wasn’t sure, and maybe it was safer
to ignore it.
    “I thought maybe you were working tonight.” That suggested she’d
been looking for him, and she wanted the words back.
    “We all try to get off Sunday when we can. These get-togethers
are important to Mom. Besides, Pastor Brendan would get after us if we missed
church.” His eyebrows lifted. “I thought maybe we’d see you there this morning.”
    Apparently the Flanagans didn’t intend to let her forget that
she’d once belonged to their church. A little flicker of annoyance went through
her. “I’m not sure Mandy would feel comfortable there.”
    “Why not?” His eyes were fixed on hers, seeming to demand an
answer.
    “It’s difficult when she can’t understand what’s going on.” And
why won’t you leave it alone?
    “Nolie’s always in church school. I know she’d be glad to sign
for Mandy.”
    He was crowding her on the subject, and she frowned at him. “It’s
hard for her to interact with hearing children.”
    “Really?” He nodded toward the corner of the room. “She seems to
be doing fine at the moment.”
    She’d thought Mandy was still at her side. Instead she was clear
across the room, sitting in front of a tower of blocks with the other children.
    She made an instinctive movement toward them. “I’ll just go
and—”
    Ryan stopped her with a touch on her arm. “Why don’t you let
them play? They’re okay.”
    Irritation scraped along her nerves. Ryan didn’t know anything
about raising a hearing-impaired child. But she watched as Shawna handed Mandy
a block, clapping when she put it on top of the tower. Mandy’s solemn little
face broke into a smile.
    Laura’s throat tightened. That was what she wanted for Mandy—to
see her playing normally with other children instead of being trapped and
isolated in her silent world.
    “Laura, it’s grand to have you back in Suffolk.” Ryan’s father
approached with an outstretched hand. She probably would have known Joe
Flanagan any-where—he still had that square, bulldog face and friendly smile,
although only a few tinges of red showed in his now-white hair.
    “Thank you. And thanks for all the help from your family with
the fire clean-up.”
    He shrugged. “Firefighters enjoy seeing things put back to
rights after a fire. You know that all of us Flanagans are involved with the
department now, don’t you?”
    Ryan groaned. “Please, Dad. I’m sure Laura doesn’t want to hear
about our old family traditions.”
    His father’s face tightened, as if he were about to issue a
reprimand.
    “I have every reason to know about Seth and Terry and Ryan,
since I met them on the job,” she said quickly.
    Joe nodded. “I guess you did at that. Sorry I wasn’t there. I
never thought I’d be stuck at a desk job in the department, but it makes me
proud to know that those three are out there on my old team.”
    She nodded, glancing at Ryan, and was struck by the expression
that crossed his face at his father’s