“I don’t think the women staying at the women’s shelter are going to have too many places to wear couture evening dresses,” Jackson James said.

“The evening dresses are sold, and the proceeds go to the women’s shelter,” Lori told him.

“Admirable, but not economical,” he said without missing a beat. “If you want to keep donating all your dresses, then you need to hit some sales.”

The housekeeper entered the room carrying a brown package and several envelopes. “Morning mail, Miss Granger.”

“Thank you, Mabel.”

Jackson gave Mabel a nod of welcome, then continued. “Now we need to pare down this list of charities you contribute to on a regular basis. Cat and dog groomers for rescued animals? I wasn’t aware cats allowed anyone to groom them.”

The way he said it made it sound silly. “For some rescued animals, mostly dogs, grooming can be a health issue,” Lori said, determined to keep a defensive tone from her voice.

“At a hundred dollars a pop?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. “I don’t spend that much on a haircut for myself.”

Lori glanced at his hair and resisted the urge to point out that her stylist wouldn’t cut the top quite so short. “I can direct my resources toward one of my other charities for the time being.”

“And about this grooming for your dog? I think we can find something more reasonable than what you’re doing now.”

“Kenny gets nervous around water. He requires a special touch.”

“You can buy a bottle of dog shampoo and save five hundred dollars a month. Hell, I’ll give him a bath for five bucks a pop.”

She wouldn’t let him anywhere near her dog. He would probably drown Kenny.

“I’ll make other arrangements,” she said, picking up the stack of mail.

“Here’s a charity for cultural arts appreciation for preschoolers? Why would anyone want to take a two-year-old to the opera?”

“One of my sorority friends founded that charity. It sounded like a nice idea at the time,” she said, feeling more idiotic with each passing moment. The trouble was that everything sounded worthy and good at the time. She flipped through the mail.

“And what is this purchase of collectible teddy bears?” he asked.

Lori Jean winced. She’d gotten a little carried away with that one. “It’s a worthy cause. The fire department and rescue squads like to give children teddy bears when they have to be treated or taken to an unfamiliar place.”

Jackson James met her gaze. “Do the bears need to cost two hundred dollars each?”

Resisting the urge to squirm, she lifted her chin. “Of course not, but I sponsored an advertisement for that charity, and they needed some bears for the photo shoot.”

“For this price, you could have gotten real bears,” he muttered.

He was going to pick her to death, she thought as he continued. Mentally muting him, she caught sight of a return address on an envelope that snagged her attention. Virginia Dawson. Miracles in Motion Ranch. Lori tore open the envelope and read the letter. She felt a stab of grief at the news that Virginia ’s husband, Skip, had suffered a long illness and died. As she read on, a knot of distress formed in her chest. Virginia was going to have to shut down the ranch. She didn’t have the financial backing to continue. Miracles in Motion was a combination working/therapeutic ranch. Children with disabilities came to the facility to ride the horses.

Guilt twisted through her. She bit her lip. She hadn’t been in touch with Virginia or the ranch since her accident. Before her accident, she had spent two summers at the ranch to gain the practicum credit her degree required. She had loved working at the ranch, loved the people, the horses, the children. It had been one of the few places where she’d been valued and accepted for herself, not for her father’s wealth.

Another sharp pain stabbed at her. Another loss, she thought. She hated the idea of the ranch closing down. She’d witnessed the improvements children had made during their visits there. What a rotten time to get the news. Any other time and she could write a check without blinking.

Miserable and hating the overwhelming feeling of helplessness, she sighed.

“Miss Granger, this is important. Are you listening to me?” Jackson James demanded.

Blinking, she met his hard gaze and moved her head in a circle. “Yes,” she said with a shrug. “And no.” She fought a flurry of nerves in her belly at the dark expression on his face. “I just received some bad news. An old friend has passed away.”

His eyes gentled a fraction. “I’m sorry.”

“Me, too. And now Virginia is going to have to sell the ranch. I have to do something.”

“What do you mean you have to do something?”

“I mean I can’t let this happen.” She waved the piece of paper. “I can’t let Virginia lose the ranch because Skip died. I have to do something.”

Jackson James set down his pen and looked at her as if she were a couple cookies short of a dozen. It wasn’t the first time he’d looked at her that way. “Who are Virginia and Skip? And why do you have to do anything with this ranch?”

Restless, Lori stood. “ Virginia and Skip run-well, they ran,” she corrected herself and frowned. “They ran a combination working/therapeutic ranch where handicapped children came and rode horses. It was a wonderful place, the employees, the horses, the children. It would be a crime to let it fail. I can’t do it.”

“What do you have to do with this ranch?”

“I worked there for two summers during college break. I need you to help me find a way to help them.”

Jackson shook his head before she finished her request. “No can do. Between the teddy bears, the preschool visits to the opera, and everything else, you have to help yourself now.” His mouth settled into a firm, unyielding line. “I have to help you help yourself.”

Lori began to pace. “You really don’t understand. You can take away my shopping trips. I’ll wash Kenny myself, although someone else will have to trim his nails, because I refuse to hurt him. I can’t let this fail. It would be wrong.”

Jackson looked at her for a long moment and sighed. “This must be like an addiction or something to you. You find some needy cause and you have to shell out the bucks to-”

“This is not an addiction!” she shouted, rounding on him. Her heart raced with anger, fury pounded in her head. She felt her left eye begin to twitch. She glanced at the Waterford crystal vase of flowers and itched to throw it at him. She couldn’t remember when she had felt so strongly about something. Not since her father died. Maybe not even since her accident.

She could look at Jackson James and see that he didn’t respect her. She couldn’t really blame him. She wasn’t sure she even respected herself. But this was different. She really didn’t want to let Miracles in Motion go under.

She took a deep breath. “This is different. This was a very special place. They liked me and valued me, not just because of who my father was.”

“If they’re asking you for money now, how can you be sure of that?” he asked, reeking cynicism and disbelief.

At that moment, Lori really hated the man, and she couldn’t remember ever hating anyone. “It must be sad to be you, to never be able to see the good in people, or just the possibility of good in people.”

A sliver of surprise came and went in his eyes, and his jaw hardened. “This isn’t about my personal abilities. This is about your financial situation.”

“You’re right. You’re exactly right. Thank you for reminding me. And your job is to help me accomplish what I believe is important. And this is important.”

“Are you willing to fire your assistant and other members of your staff to accomplish it?”

Lori blinked. She hadn’t even considered that. “I-don’t see how. Merilee has a son in college, and Dena’s husband hurt his back, so he can’t work. She’s the sole support of their family.”

“Then where do you propose to get the money?” he asked.

Lori drew a blank. The truth hurt, but the truth was she knew much more about spending money than making it. “That’s part of your job, isn’t it?”

He raked his hand through his hair. “I’m gonna have to think on this. The general rule is you don’t expand expenditures when you’re short of cash.”

“There’s got to be a way. Maybe a loan.”

He shook his head. “Yeah, you need that like you need a root canal. There’s always the alternative condition your father left…”

Lori felt bitter disgust back up in her throat. “You mean that archaic, chauvinistic, insulting clause that if I get married and remain married until I’m thirty, then my husband and I can have more access to my inheritance, but my husband will have to approve major purchases.” She gritted her teeth. “I still think Daddy must have been mentally half-gone when he put in that provision.”

Not only was it insulting, it was also embarrassing. The ultimate no-confidence vote. Her father had loved her with all his heart, but he obviously hadn’t believed she was capable of looking after herself. The terrible question whispered in her brain like a hissing poisonous snake.

What if she wasn’t?

Before Lori Jean Granger drove him completely out of his mind, Jackson decided to drive his Chevy Blazer to a barren area past the outskirts of Dallas. This was where he came when he felt the corporate demands sliding around his neck to choke the life out of him. With his jacket already ditched, he tugged his tie loose and undid the top button of his shirt. It was still hot as hell outside, and even though he’d been wearing suits since he graduated from college, he’d never grown accustomed to it. No matter what brand he wore, he always felt as if he was wearing a straitjacket and a silk noose.

He got out of his truck and watched the sun ease down the horizon. Two hundred acres of scrubby land. The only good thing about the acreage was the accessibility to the highway. Anyone else looking at the expanse of barren land would see an ugly, useless plot of real estate.