"Really?" That surprised Jim and he didn't bother trying to hide it.

"Really," Caleb said. "I know Mel or Selene or Edie would be great with them, but Kara...Kara's special. She loves kids. She's a born nurturer and she's great with the twins."

If true, that would just about seal it as far as Jim was concerned. God, could she really be the one? The woman Tyler needed to make his life complete?

"But we didn't come here to ease your mind about Kara. We came here to ease ours about you," Caleb continued. "She's sensitive, Jim. Easily hurt. And just starting to come into her own. A heartbreak right now could set her back a whole bunch. Maybe send her crawling right back into her cocoon, you know?"

He nodded slowly. "I don't plan to hurt her. That's not my intent."

"Yeah, well, intentions don't count for a hell of a lot, my friend," Wade said. "Don't hurt her. Just don't."

He nodded. "Okay. I won't."

The men nodded, and the kid brought their coffee and delivered Tyler's hot apple pie with a scoop of ice cream melting over the top.

Kara was about to knock when Tyler yanked the door open, grabbed her hand, and tugged her inside, all the while holding one crutch under his arm. "Daddy's making lasagna! It's his best supper."

She took off her coat, hung it on a peg near the door and couldn't keep from smiling at Tyler's enthusiastic welcome. Then she closed the door behind her and followed Ty into the kitchen, where the smells made her mouth water almost as much as the sight of Jimmy Corona standing at the counter, tossing a huge salad, did. She couldn't take her eyes off him and suddenly she wished she hadn't taken her kid sister's advice to dress down. She wore jeans-nice jeans, but jeans all the same-and a small T-shirt with the Dixie Chicks across the front. She'd pulled on a milk chocolate-colored cable-knit sweater over it, in deference to the winter chill. Her hair was in a high ponytail, and she wore no makeup. She hadn't gone so far as to pull out the old tortoiseshell eyeglasses, thinking that would be too obvious. But to make up for it, she'd dressed her feet in ankle socks and running shoes.

She thought she must look pretty lame. Especially in comparison to Jimmy. He wore jeans, too, but on him they were delicious. She was staring at the way he filled them out in back when his voice startled her out of her state.

"I saw that," he said, looking over his shoulder at her.

She jerked her gaze up to eye level. "Saw what?" She was waiting for his face to change. For his shock at her appearance to show in his eyes. But it didn't.

"You were going to knock. I can't have you knocking at your own door, Kara."

"That's silly. Of course I'm going to knock."

He shrugged but didn't argue. "Lasagna will be ready in ten minutes. Table's set and ready. Get comfy, hon. I get to be the server tonight."

Nothing. Not a word about her lack of makeup or the ponytail or the sneakers. As she followed Tyler into the dining room, she glimpsed her reflection in the tall windows and looked again. She hadn't completely reclaimed her former persona. She wasn't half running or tripping over her feet or slouching. She was standing up straight, looked almost poised. God, Edie was good. She should open a charm school for awkward girls.

Tyler was calling her. "Right here, Kara. That's where you'll sit," he said. She looked up to see a fall dandelion lying beside the place setting he indicated, and her heart melted into a warm puddle.

"My goodness," she said. "Somebody put a beautiful flower at my spot. Who could have done that?"

Tyler grinned wide. "Me!"

"You? Wow. That's just the nicest thing." She went to the wilting yellow blossom, picked it up and brought it to her face as if to smell it. "Thank you, Tyler."

"You're welcome."

He made his way to his own chair and got into it, then dropped the crutches on the floor beside it. Just in time, too. His father came in bearing a pan of lasagna large enough for three meals. He set it on hot pad, eyed the dandelion and held up a finger. "Be right back."

He vanished and returned with a glass of water. "A vase for your bouquet," he said, holding it toward her.

She stood the flower in the water glass, and Jim placed it carefully in the center of the table. Tyler beamed, clearly proud of himself.

"I forgot the rolls. One sec," Jim said.

Kara leaned back in her chair. "So what did you do today, Tyler?"

"We had fun! We went shoppin' and we got some liberry books. And then we had pie and ice cream with...um...oh, you know. Them guys from your house."

She lifted her brows. "Guys from my house?"

"Uh-huh. And I rode the pony. Two times!" He held up his fingers. "'Course, it wasn't a real pony. It's the kind you have to put money in to make it go. But it was fun anyway."

Jim returned with a basketful of warm rolls and set them on the table. Then he sat down with them. "Dig in!"

Tyler reached for the rolls, took one and handed the bowl to Kara. His father cut into the lasagna and scooped a piece onto his son's plate. "We'll let this cool while we have our salad, okay, Ty?"

"Okay."

"So I hear you ran into Wade and Caleb today," Kara said. She put a piece of the luscious-looking lasagna onto her own plate to cool, then filled her salad bowl.

"They told you?"

"Not exactly." She slanted a look toward Tyler.

"Oh." Jim filled his own plate. "Yeah, we saw them in town. Stopped at that cute little place on the corner for coffee."

"And pie!" Tyler reminded him.

"Pie with ice cream," Jim corrected.

She watched Jimmy Corona's eyes, knew darn well he was keeping something from her-and she was sorely afraid she knew what it was. "They gave you a hard time, didn't they."

He only smiled at her. "Now what would they have to give me a hard time about, Kara? We had a nice chat, and the coffee was great."

"So was the pie," Tyler said.

"Did they try to warn you away from me?"

He lowered his eyes. "They love you, Kara. They're worried I'm going to break your heart and they wanted to let me know they'd have something to say about it if I did. It was all perfectly civil."

She snorted, suddenly wondering where her appetite had gone.

"Is there somethin' wrong with your heart, Kara?" Tyler asked.

"No, honey. My heart's just fine."

He smiled. "That's good. You don't gotta worry. My dad hardly ever breaks anything. And I'll try hard not to break you either."

She looked at that child, at the genuine concern and the promise in his big blue eyes, and thought her heart was under siege and falling fast. Then she drew her gaze away and fixed it on Jimmy. "I'm a big girl. I can make my own decisions, take my own risks. I don't want anything those overprotective louts said to get to you."

"You get to me," he told her. He held her gaze for a long moment, until she had to look away, her cheeks flooding with heat.

When she managed to look up again, he was focusing on his meal. But after he'd chewed and swallowed, he said, "And I told your brothers-in-law that I have no intention of doing anything that might hurt you."

"You shouldn't make promises you can't keep."

"Don't worry, Kara," Tyler said. "Dad always keeps his promises." He munched lasagna, his salad barely touched. Then he took a big gulp of milk. "Dad, can we go to that pie place again tomorrow? I wanna ride the pony again."

Kara saw Jim's face change. Saw a cloud come right over it. "Well, tomorrow we have...something else we have to do, son."

"What?" The little boy shoveled in more food. Chugged more milk. He'd already nearly cleaned his plate.

"Well, you remember I told you that just because we were going on vacation it didn't mean we could take a vacation from everything. Right?"

Tyler stopped with a bite halfway to his mouth. He looked up at his dad, his eyes wide and pleading. "Not PT, Dad."

"It's the only way you're gonna get better, Ty."

"But I don't wanna!"

"I'm sorry, son. But we have to. It's in the next town over, called Tucker Lake. It might be really nice there, Ty."

"No!" Tyler cried. "No, it's not fair!" He dropped his fork, and tears welled in his eyes. "I hate it. I hate it! I hate it!" He flung himself out of his chair but fell to his knees, off balance.

Kara jumped up, but Jim was beside his son in a heartbeat, gathering him up, trying to hug him even though Tyler wriggled. "Let me go! I can do it myself!"

"Ty, babe, I'm so sorry. I know you hate physical therapy. I hate it, too."

"It's not fair."

"No. It's not fair."

The child was sobbing, hiccupping.

Kara came around the table, put a hand on Ty's shoulder. He immediately hid his face from her.

"I wanna go to my room."

Jim met Kara's eyes over the boy's head. His were damp, and her heart tied itself into a hard knot. "Go on, Jimmy," she said. "Take as long as you need."

He nodded. "Don't leave, okay?"

"I won't."

Hugging his child tightly, he carried him to his bedroom.

Kara had completely lost her appetite, and doubtless Jimmy had, as well. Poor Tyler. No child should have to go through what he was going through. His entire day ruined by a single sentence from his father. She started to clear the table and she racked her brain for some way she could help ease the pain from little Tyler's eyes. If only she could think of something fun to do in Tucker Lake. Something to take his mind off the PT or even make it worthwhile. Something he would love so much that he would be willing to get through his therapy just to get to the reward on the other side.

She hit on something while loading the dishwasher.

She finished her task, then grabbed her phone from her purse and called the Corral. No one would be home at the house. Her mother answered on the third ring, the din of the evening just warming up around her.

Kara poked her head in the bedroom door just as Jim was finishing up one of Ty's library books. Ty wasn't asleep yet. He'd brushed his teeth and put on his pajamas, been tucked in and read a story, but he was still agitated at the thought of the day to come. He would probably wake up crying tonight, Jim thought. And it made him ache down deep to know there was nothing he could do about it.

It wouldn't be the first time Tyler had lost sleep while dreading another round of physical therapy. His eyes were redrimmed, and Jim knew he was embarrassed to have cried in front of Kara. He almost waved her away, but Tyler glimpsed her in the doorway and gave her a halfhearted smile.

"I'm really a good boy most of the times," Tyler told her.

"I know you are, Ty," she said, coming inside. "Such a good boy that I wanted to do something nice for you. Something that would make physical therapy into the most fun day you ever had. And I think I figured out just how."

His lower lip quivered. "Nothing could make it fun."

Jim almost told her to stop, not to get his son's hopes up, but she went on before he could form the words.

"Oh, I think this will. See I have a friend...well, she's a friend of my mom's, really. Her name is Barbara. She has a farm in Tucker Lake. That's the same town where you have to go for PT."

"A real farm? With animals and stuff?"

Kara nodded. "Uh-huh. And I'll bet you can't guess what kind of animals."

"I don't know," he said. His tone was sulky, his shoulders were slumped. "Cows, prob'ly. Or chickens."

"Ponies." Kara dropped the word into the middle of Tyler's dark mood as if she were dropping a glowing light into a dark cave.

Tyler's head came up and his eyes widened. "Ponies?"

"Miniature horses if you want to be technical about it. I just spoke to her on the phone. And she said that after your physical therapy session tomorrow we can come over. And you can see the ponies. You can feed them and brush them, even ride one if it's okay with your dad."

Tyler sat up in the bed, his tears forgotten. "Can I, Dad? Can I ride a pony? Oh, please, can I?"

It was an effort for Jim to tear his eyes away from the face of the angel standing in the bedroom doorway, but he did. His son's face was transformed. Animated, excited, happy. "Of course you can."

Tyler's smile lit up the room.

"So what do you think, Ty? Would that make PT day a better day for you?" Kara asked.

He nodded hard. "I still don't like it, but...I can't believe I'm gonna get to ride a real pony! I can hardly wait!"

Jim looked at Kara. She was blinking back tears. He thought the almighty must have performed a miracle to put this woman into his path. Every doubt he had about whether he was doing the right thing for his son was obliterated tonight. She was the one. She was almost too good to be true.

My God, he was going to do this thing. He was going to marry this woman.

"It's settled then," Kara said. She focused on Jim. "What time should I tell her to expect us?"

"Around noon." His voice came out hoarse.

"Perfect. I'll call her back and let her know." She ducked out of the bedroom quickly, probably because those tears in her eyes were getting near to flood stage.

Jim watched her go, then turned to his son. "Think you'll be able to sleep now, Ty?"

"Uh-huh. I'm gonna dream about my pony."