Kitabı oku: «The Single Dad's Virgin Wife», sayfa 2
“Do you space out often?” he asked, his voice laced with surprising humor. “Should I worry for my children’s safety?”
Her eyes were dry from not blinking. “You won’t regret that your brother hired me,” she said, wondering if it was true.
“David may have done the prelims, but I hired you. And my children. If any one of us had objected, you wouldn’t be coming back.”
“Of course,” she said, then shifted into reverse. “Until Sunday.”
He backed away, but he was still standing in the driveway when she looked in her rearview mirror before she turned onto the road. Maybe she’d been lying when she’d told him he wouldn’t regret hiring her, because he may well be sorry. She was pretty sure she was different from any other teacher he’d hired before.
And she knew he was different from any boss she’d had.
Chapter Three
Standing in the kitchen, Noah watched his children say goodbye to Jessica, who had been their nanny for several months. Usually a changing of the guard, as Tricia had called it, was cause for moping and silent recrimination from the kids, but not this time. This time they said their goodbyes and let her leave, rather than following her outside to wave to her as her car pulled away.
They always liked their nannies. That was never the issue. The problem was that the nannies didn’t usually like him. It hadn’t been any different with Jessica, apparently, although she’d never indicated any problem before quitting. Even then she’d told his brother, not him, that she was leaving.
Noah knew he had a problem dealing with his help. He’d been giving it a lot of thought the past couple of days, analyzing the situation, trying to figure out how not to lose another nan—teacher. He should get used to calling Tricia that, since she seemed to prefer it.
He wondered why none of the other nannies had said anything about the job title. Maybe because they’d just graduated from college and hadn’t taught in a classroom yet. He liked that Tricia had classroom experience. If she could handle twenty kids at one time, she must be able to handle four. Especially four, quiet, easygoing, uniformly bright children.
Not that he was biased or anything….
Margie would’ve liked her. Probably would’ve been a little intimidated by her, too, but his late wife would’ve liked Tricia’s easy way with the kids and her refusal to back down—something he wasn’t sure he liked. He was used to being in charge, at work and at home. There was room for only one boss in any situation. He didn’t tolerate clashes of authority.
“She’s gone,” Adam announced, looking out the window as the car disappeared, then he glanced at Noah. “When will Miss Tricia be here, Father?”
Father jarred Noah now, since Tricia had brought it up. “She said five o’clock.”
Which meant he had to figure out what to do with his children until then. Well, technically after then, too, since she wouldn’t be on the clock. He hadn’t even planned dinner.
He realized all four children were watching him, waiting. “Did you have something to say?” he asked, his gaze sweeping across them then landing on Ashley.
“We would like to have a family meeting,” she said, her expression serious.
He shifted into head-of-the-family mode. “All right. Why don’t we go into the family room?”
Their footsteps sounded behind him, seeming loud in their conversation-free trek. Even Adam was quiet, a rarity.
Noah sat in what was considered his chair, an oversize lounger that faced the television he rarely had time to watch. Each child took his or her usual seat on the sofa and other chairs.
“What’s on your mind?” he asked the room at large.
“We think it’s time for some changes around here,” Ashley answered, all business.
“What kind of changes?”
“We counted up the nannies we’ve had. Seven.”
That many? He knew there’d been a lot. And that didn’t include his mother-in-law coming to stay for the first few months after Margie died.
“We’re kind of tired of figuring out someone new all the time,” Ashley said.
“I understand that. What do you think can be done about it?”
“We think you should smile more,” she said without smiling.
“Smile more?” he repeated, confused.
“Not at us, Father. At Miss Tricia. Miss Jessica was scared of you.”
Scared? Really? He liked order but was surprised he was feared. “I’ll try,” he said, adding it to his mental list of things to be aware of if he didn’t want to lose Tricia as an employee. “What else?”
Ashley continued. “We want Miss Tricia to eat dinner with us, not in her room like Miss Jessica and the others.”
Noah was fascinated with this new, mature daughter of his. “Why?”
“Because we think if she feels like she’s part of our family, she’ll be happier.”
“You like her that much?”
“She seems okay. We just don’t want another change.”
“Yes, I know you’re tired of it all.”
Her hands folded in her lap, Ashley sat up a little straighter. “We also don’t think you should argue with Miss Tricia about anything.”
An improvisation, he decided, trying not to smile. “I can’t guarantee that. We are bound to disagree on some things. And you are my children, not hers. I know what’s best for you.”
They all looked at each other. Had they always done that or was it something recent? They seemed to be more attuned than before. Each set of twins shared a connection that had always been obvious, but not in combination with the other set. He figured they must be desperate, to face him like this, presenting a united front.
“Then please be nice and smile at her when you argue,” Zach said, fixing Noah with a stare.
Laughter rose inside his chest. He couldn’t let it escape or they wouldn’t believe he was taking their concerns seriously. “I’ll be nice.”
“Thank you.”
Noah leaned his arms on his thighs and looked at each of them until they each looked back. “Now. Is there something you’d like different for yourselves, not for Miss Tricia?”
Zoe raised her hand. “I want a swimming pool.”
“Basketball court,” Adam added.
Noah did smile then. How easily their focus changed. “Nice try.”
Zach jumped out of his chair and raced to the window at the sound of a car coming down the driveway. “She’s—Nope. It’s Uncle David.”
“Alone?”
“No. Valerie and Hannah, too.”
Three of the children raced off to greet their uncle, his fiancée and her eight-year-old daughter, Hannah. Ashley lingered, moving more slowly with Noah toward the kitchen.
“Something else on your mind?” he asked.
She shrugged.
“Talk to me,” he said, stopping just outside the kitchen door, his hand on her arm to keep her there, too.
“Can we watch the videos of Mom again sometime soon?”
“You know where they are. You’re welcome to watch them anytime.”
“I mean as a family.”
He didn’t know if he wanted to bring back all that pain. He’d stopped watching the videos when he realized they hurt more than helped. “Do the others want to watch, too?”
“Not Zach.”
Which didn’t surprise Noah. Zach kept the most inside.
“Okay. We’ll do it tonight.”
“Not tonight,” she said in a hurry as the kitchen door opened and everyone came in, talking and laughing. “I’ll tell you when, okay?”
“Sure.” He was grateful for the reprieve.
Suddenly the kitchen teemed with people, then the kids all took off upstairs with their cousin-to-be Hannah in tow.
“We brought dinner,” Valerie said, as David set a covered casserole in the oven and a bowl in the refrigerator.
“I chauffeured. Valerie brought dinner,” David said. “She made everything.”
“Thanks,” Noah said, surprised. “But why?”
“To welcome your new nanny,” Valerie said.
“Teacher,” he corrected, looking over David’s head to try to see what was in the bowl, guessing it was salad. David had lucked out when he’d hired Valerie through At Your Service. She was the calm, competent woman Noah had been looking for, too. He didn’t think that description applied to Tricia. Well, competent, maybe. But calm? Probably not. Lively. That was a better word. “I hope you’re staying for dinner, too,” Noah said.
David made clucking sounds.
“What’s that for?” Noah asked. “I’m not a chicken.”
“You don’t want to make small talk with your help.”
“So? I’ve never liked to. It’s no different with Tricia.”
David stood. “She’s just your type.”
“She’s on the other side of the world from being my type.”
“Leave him alone,” Valerie said to her fiancé, slipping her hand into his, firing a heat-seeking caution look with her eyes. “Yes, we’ll stay for dinner. That was our goal, although David was supposed to call and alert you. I want to meet Tricia myself. I expect we’ll become friends.”
“She’s here!” came a shout from upstairs, followed by the rush of footfalls scurrying down the staircase. As a group they ran through the kitchen and out the back door, Hannah grinning as she came last—following just to follow, Noah supposed.
“That’s quite a reception,” David commented, wandering to the window to watch.
Noah went to take a look. Ashley and Zach got up close to her. Tricia hugged Ashley, her face alight with pleasure, and said something to Zach that caused him to smile then look down at the ground. Adam and Zoe didn’t allow her close enough to hug. She held out a hand to Hannah, an outgoing, happy girl who was just as caught up in Tricia’s arrival as the rest of them.
Tricia opened the back of her SUV and started passing things to each child, then they marched toward the house like safari porters, carrying bags, boxes and garments on hangers, with Tricia bringing up the rear with the largest box.
“Aren’t either of you big, strong men going to help her?” Valerie asked as the back door flew open and the children tramped through.
Criticized into action, Noah met Tricia at the back door and took the box from her.
“A welcoming committee. How fun,” she said. “Hi, Noah. I’m glad to see you again, David.”
“I’m more glad to see you,” he said with a grin. “Tricia McBride, this is my fiancée, Valerie Sinclair.”
The women shook hands. “Hannah must be yours. She looks just like you. She’s darling.”
“Thank you, yes, she’s mine.”
“They brought dinner,” Noah said, balancing the box on the edge of the counter.
“Oh, how nice of you. And since you’re not running off, would you mind if I excuse myself for a few minutes and go make sure the children haven’t just heaped all my clothes on the floor?”
David and Valerie encouraged Tricia to go.
“Be right back,” Noah said, then trailed her up the stairs. As he eyed her from behind he started to rethink the idea of putting in a pool, as Zoe requested. Getting a chance to see the teacher in a skimpy bikini—
“Maybe you should just come up beside me,” Tricia said, stopping and turning around.
He kept his expression blank. Okay, she’d caught him. He was a healthy male who’d been without female companionship for three years. So sue him for admiring her very sexy body.
“I got it!” a child yelled from down the hall.
“I brought it up here!”
“I think the troops need a mediator,” Noah said, hiding his surprise at the fact any of them were yelling, something that almost never happened. They all got along eerily well.
Tricia’s mouth tightened, but she continued up the stairs again, and he allowed himself the pleasure of watching her hips sway until they reached the landing.
She stopped there instead of heading toward the yelling down the hall. “Do we need to have a discussion?” she asked him.
“About what?”
“Appropriate employer/employee behavior.”
“I’m familiar with the laws,” he said. “But why do you ask?”
“You know why.”
“Enlighten me.” He figured she was only speculating that he’d been eyeing her rear as she climbed the stairs. He’d painted her into a corner. Either she had an accusation to make or she didn’t.
“I’m telling Father!” Zoe came charging out of the room. “Ashley won’t let anyone help.”
Noah moved past Tricia and Zoe. When he reached Tricia’s bedroom, he set the box on the floor and looked around. The closet door was open. Clothes hung neatly on the racks, with shoes lined up like little soldiers on the floor below. Ashley and Adam were elbowing each other trying to put books onto shelves. Zach was perched on the bed, thumbing through a photo album. Hannah sat cross-legged on the floor, out of the way, wide-eyed. As an only child, she hadn’t been exposed to sibling rivalry.
The tension was abnormally high, each child intending to make Tricia feel at home, but being pushy about it.
“Miss Tricia can put away her own things, and, in fact, probably prefers to. Everybody out,” Noah said.
“But thank you for your help,” Tricia added from the doorway.
Zach hadn’t lifted his head. Noah slid the photo album out of his son’s hands and pointed toward the door. Before Noah closed the album, he caught a glimpse of a photo of Tricia and a man wearing an army uniform, their arms around each other. She looked young and in love.
He set the album on the dresser. “I apologize for my children,” he said to her. “They’re trying to help. Obviously they went a little overboard.”
“It’s no problem.”
“It is as far as I’m concerned.”
She waited a beat. “You’re the boss.”
He remembered how Zach had told him to be nice, and how Ashley said he needed to smile. He wasn’t doing what he’d promised his children he would. And none of them could afford to lose Tricia.
“I apologize,” he said, purposely relaxing his shoulders, trying to seem more accessible. “I wanted them to be on their best behavior for you. All of us, actually. Myself included.”
“Why?”
“It’s your first day. We didn’t want to scare you off.”
She laughed. Her face lit up when she smiled. Green eyes sparkled. “I’m not easily intimidated.”
“Good. Is the room okay? Big enough?”
“It’s beautiful. Since my time here will be limited, it’ll do just fine.” She hitched a thumb toward the door. “The children have put most of my things away, so we can get back to your guests. How long has your brother been engaged?” she asked as they left the room.
“Less than a week. He hired Valerie through At Your Service as his housekeeper and administrative assistant about two months ago. He’s also adopting her daughter.”
“How nice for all of them.”
“Yes.”
She cocked her head. “I hear a but….”
Should he voice his concerns out loud to someone he barely knew? Would she keep quiet about his reservations or tell David? Something about her invited trust. “They haven’t known each other long, that’s all. And David has said forever he wouldn’t get married, so it’s hard to feel comfortable about his decision.”
They’d almost reached the bottom of the stairs. Tricia leaned close to say, “But they’re just engaged, right? They’ll have more time before the wedding to learn more about each other. They could change their minds.”
He’d been prepared to hear her say the opposite—something about him being too jaded, or not a romantic or something. Instead she’d seen his point about how little David and Valerie knew about each other. He liked that she seemed practical.
He also liked how her hair smelled….
“We’ve been waiting for you,” David said as they came into the kitchen, a hubbub of conversation. Everyone held a glass of something pale and bubbly. David passed Noah and Tricia champagne flutes. Noah assumed the children’s flutes held sparkling cider.
“What’s going on?” Noah asked.
“I’m making a toast.” David lifted his glass toward Valerie. “To my beautiful bride-to-be—for agreeing to marry me, and for not making me wait. You’re all invited to our wedding, two weeks from yesterday.”
Chapter Four
Tricia exchanged a look with Noah as they sipped the celebratory champagne. After a moment, he shrugged, apparently accepting the inevitable. She decided to make it a point to get to know Valerie and see for herself that Noah could relax about the quick marriage. She considered herself a pretty good judge of character.
Valerie shooed the men and children off to the family room while dinner was reheated.
“It’s a good thing they’re not depending on me to cook,” Tricia said as Valerie opened a couple of loaves of buttered sourdough bread and put them on a baking sheet.
“You don’t enjoy it?”
“My mom and I opened cans exceptionally well. And I make a mean PB and J sandwich.” She smiled at Valerie, who smiled back.
“The reverse is true for me. My mother was a housekeeper and cook for a family in Palm Springs,” Valerie said. “She taught me everything.”
“Does Hannah cook?”
“She’s not quite as into it as I was, but yes. But, you know, I couldn’t do what you do, Tricia. Teachers amaze me.” She gestured to a cupboard. “Plates are up there.”
Tricia grabbed plates, salad bowls, glasses and silverware and carried them into the dining room. “Tablecloth or place mats?” she called out to Valerie.
“Take your pick. They’re in the hutch.”
As Tricia set the table, she could hear the men and children playing video games in the family room. “They’re having a good time,” she said to Valerie, who was grating fresh parmesan cheese. Tricia leaned against the kitchen counter. “Can I ask you some questions about Noah?”
“You can ask, but I don’t know a whole lot. I haven’t spent much time around him.”
“Do you know if he’s always so serious?”
“I think I can safely say yes to that. According to David, Noah’s a workaholic. He never takes a vacation. He’s pretty much in charge and in control at all times. Doesn’t have a great deal of patience. Very action oriented. And he doesn’t like change.”
“Yet I heard he’s had a whole lot of nannies for the children. That’s change.”
“That’s where the lack of patience comes in, I think. The whole interviewing and hiring process is too tedious, so he takes the quickest route.”
“Does he date?”
“Not that I’ve heard.” Valerie had just taken the salad out of the refrigerator and set it on the counter. She half smiled at Tricia. “These Falcon men are hard to resist, aren’t they?”
Tricia straightened. “What do you mean?”
Valerie peeked around the doorway, making sure they were alone. “I started falling for David the first day I worked for him, too.”
“‘Too’? Oh, no. Not me. Uh-uh.” Tricia held up both hands. “I’m out of here in three months.”
Valerie frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I’m temporary. David hired me to buy time for Noah to find someone who will be permanent.”
“Does Noah know that?”
“I’m sure David told him.” And she’d mentioned she was selling her house, and that her room here was fine for the short term. He hadn’t flinched at either point. “So, tell me. What’s this about you falling for David on the first day?”
“I didn’t want to, but there it was. He makes me very happy. My daughter, too.”
“Why the rush to get married?”
Valerie took out the fragrant, bubbling lasagna and slid the bread under the broiler. Almost immediately the pungent scent of garlic filled the air. “Why wait? It’s right, and we both know it. Plus I won’t move into his bedroom until we’re married. I want to set a good example.”
“You mean, you haven’t slept together?” Tricia couldn’t keep the surprise out of her voice.
Valerie laughed. “Well…David often works from home. And Hannah does go off to school.”
“Oh. Okay. Good.”
“Good?”
Tricia nodded. “I’ll tell you why some other time.”
“I hope you’ll come to the wedding.”
“I’m not going to be here on the weekends.”
“Make an exception, please? I don’t have many girlfriends here. I’d like for us to become that. I’ll introduce you to my friend Dixie, too. She’s my maid of honor. You’ll love her. And there’s the bachelorette party, of course. You have to come to that.” She poured dressing on the salad. “Maybe you could tell the gang that dinner’s on? I’m sure it’ll take them five minutes to actually get to the table.”
Tricia stopped just outside the family room door and observed the activity. Noah sat with his back to her, watching David and Adam play a video game, complete with hoots and hollers and threats of maiming. Ashley and Hannah were intent on a second television, but Tricia couldn’t see the screen, so she didn’t know what held their interest. Zoe bounced a soccer ball from knee to knee, not an indoor activity, but Noah wasn’t objecting, which seemed odd.
Then there was Zach, who sat cross-legged at his father’s feet, not communicating with any of them, but taking in everything.
He spotted her and smiled. She smiled back. “Dinner is served,” she said to the room at large.
“You’re doomed!” Adam shouted to his uncle, who shouted back, “Not yet, I’m not!”
Noah got up. Ashley stood right away, too, and turned off the television. She and Hannah made their way to the door, grabbing Zoe by the arm and pulling her along. Zach held back, putting himself between Tricia and Noah.
“Dinner smells good,” Zach said.
“Looks like your uncle got himself a chef in the bargain. Do you like lasagna, Zach?” Tricia asked.
He nodded.
“We eat a lot of pasta dishes and casseroles,” Noah said. “It’s an easy thing for Cora to fix that will keep and reheat well. Sometimes my other brother, Gideon, comes over on the weekend and we barbecue.”
They came into the dining room. It was obvious Noah sat at the head of the table, with David at the other end for tonight. Zach found his place farther down. Which left one empty seat, next to Noah.
Tricia expected at least a small amount of chaos with so many people, but it was all very…civilized. As an only child, Tricia had craved the noisy family dinner table she observed at some friends’ houses. Here there were five children and four adults and little conversation. David asked questions, and the children answered, but no one took it further.
After the dishes were done, Tricia excused herself to put away her things and then to look over the children’s past work. The third-floor classroom was huge. Each child had a desk. A computer workstation held two computers, but only one was connected to the Internet and was password protected so that the children couldn’t log on privately. Areas were set aside for art and music, and worktables for science projects or other messier tasks. The room was tidy and spotless.
The view was spectacular, as the room was made up almost entirely of windows that faced the surrounding woodlands, and no neighbors in sight.
After a while, Ashley came up the stairs, dressed in her pajamas.
“We’re going to bed,” she said. “If you’d like to say goodnight,” she added hesitantly.
“Yes, I would, thank you.” She put an arm around the girl’s shoulders and walked down the stairs with her. “I’m looking forward to starting class tomorrow. Do you enjoy your schooling?”
“Sometimes. It kind of depends on the teacher.”
“I’ll do my best to make it interesting and fun, Ashley.”
“I know you will,” she said with a smile as they walked into her bedroom. Zoe emerged from the bathroom, her strawberry-blond hair damp and tousled, a dab of toothpaste above her lip. She hopped right into bed and pulled the blankets up to her nose.
“What time do you get up in the morning?” Tricia asked Zoe.
“When Ashley pulls the covers off and won’t let me have them back.”
Tricia smiled. “Who wakes you up?” she asked Ashley.
“My head. I wake up early on my own around seven. Then I wake up everyone else. We go to the classroom at eight. Zoe’s usually the last one there.”
“Do you make your own breakfast?” Tricia knew that Cora didn’t come until eleven-thirty.
“I don’t like breakfast,” Zoe said. “It makes me sick to my stomach.”
Ashley rolled her eyes. “We eat cereal or peanut butter on toast. And a banana or apple. We fix our own.”
“What time does your father leave for work?”
“He’s gone before we get up.” Ashley climbed into bed and settled the bedding over her.
Tricia leaned down for a hug from her, then moved on to Zoe, whose body language said, “Don’t come too close,” so Tricia just smoothed back her hair and said good-night.
She encountered the same situation with the boys. Adam hugged her. Zack retreated from contact. She wondered where Noah was. She couldn’t hear any sounds within the house.
How did he spend his evenings? Working? Watching television? Should she track him down and find out?
She decided to return to the classroom and finish reviewing the children’s previous work. Thank goodness none of them were in high school yet and taking chemistry or something else she hadn’t studied in years.
After a while she heard someone coming up the stairs, the footsteps heavy enough to be only Noah’s. He called her name, alerting her that he was about to enter the room.
“How’s it going?” he asked, standing at the top of the staircase, his hands shoved into his pockets.
She leaned back in her chair. “I’m making headway. At least it’s early in the school year. They seem to stick to a fairly rigid schedule.”
“That’s my preference.”
So, it was his doing that the children’s class work was so highly structured. “I’ll make an appointment to see their—What is the title of the person who oversees the children’s schooling?”
“Educational Specialist, but everyone calls her an E.S. Cynthia Madras is her name.”
“Thanks. I’ve read the rules and regulations on homeschooling, but I’d like her input on the children individually.”
He dragged a chair closer to her desk and sat. “She’ll tell you that Ashley is a visual learner who studies more than the others and worries if she doesn’t do very well on tests. Zoe and Adam are kinetic learners who have a hard time sitting still and like to have a noisy environment, which drives Ashley crazy. And Zach is an auditory learner with an exceptional memory. He studies the least and absorbs the most.”
Tricia liked that he knew so much about his children’s learning styles. “I appreciate the summary.”
“I keep a close watch on their education. I meet with each of them individually every evening to—” He stopped, hesitated. “I used to meet with each of them. I’ve been working so late the past year that I haven’t gotten home in time most nights to have one-on-one time with them.”
“So, you’re not home for dinner?”
“Rarely.”
“I see. Well, maybe you’ll be able to incorporate the individual time into your schedule again soon.”
“Maybe.”
A long pause ensued. She knew she needed to change the subject. “Who cleans up the dishes at night?”
“No one. Cora takes care of it when she comes in.”
“Do the children have any chores to do?”
“School is their job.”
She decided not to start an argument with him on the value of responsibility through chores. Not yet, anyway. “Your future sister-in-law and I had a nice talk,” she said instead.
He was obviously happy about the change in subject, because his expression smoothed out. “What do you think?”
“I think Valerie is head over heels about your brother, and yet very down to earth. I like her a lot. I expect I’ll learn even more about her when I attend her bachelorette party.”
His brows went up. “I’m sure you will. I guess as his best man I need to figure out a bachelor-party plan myself.”
“Definitely. Next weekend. You don’t want to have the party the night before the wedding. Saturday night, since Friday is Halloween.”
“Right.” He stood. “You’re all set here, then?”
“Yes, thanks.” A little nervous, but excited. “Are you ever gone overnight? For work,” she added, realizing he might think she was wondering if he had a girlfriend or someone he visited when he had…needs.
“Not for the past few years.”
“Good.”
“Why?”
“I’ve always lived in the city. Being so isolated out here is kind of creeping me out.”
He watched her for a few long seconds. “Come with me,” he said, then he went down the stairs.
She followed because he gave her no choice. He waited at the foot of the last staircase, then they walked into the dining room, through the kitchen, into the utility room. He grabbed two jackets from the rack there, passed one to her, then he held the door open. She went down the stairs, putting on the jacket as she went. His jacket; she could tell from how the cuffs hung past her fingers.
The night was quiet and dark. Moonless. She couldn’t see the lights of another house or building, just stars. Millions of stars. She hadn’t paid attention to them Friday night, hadn’t paid attention to anything but him, and how he talked about his father.
Gravel crunched beneath their feet as they walked down the driveway to the four-car garage. She’d seen him drive a fancy black sports car, but had no idea of the brand. She figured it was his commute car. A large SUV was also parked in the building, a Cadillac.
“I’ll give you a garage door opener,” he said. “You can park in the garage. I want you to use the Caddy to drive the kids around.”
“Okay.” She tugged her collar up against her neck. “I don’t even know what you do for a living, except that you and David are in business together.”
“We own Falcon Motorcars, custom-made automobiles. We’ve been strongly in the European market for a long time but are moving more toward American business now. It’s a big transition for us—David’s brainchild, so that he can stay stateside more.”
“So that shiny sports car you drive is one of your own?”
“The latest model. At this point we only produce the two-seater sports car, a four-door sedan, and made-to-spec limos. I’d like to incorporate an SUV, but that’ll be a few years down the road, I think. We’re headed to the American LeMans circuit first.”
“You’ll be making race cars?”
He nodded, then cocked his head as they heard a noise. “That’s an owl.”
