She shook her head. "TheHales?"
"That's who I stole from. Tengrand."
Her expression revealed her genuinesurprise.
"Don't you gossip at all?" he asked, half exasperated. It would've been easier if she'dknown.
"I like to make my own judgments." Her gaze wassteady.
Fine. Make him lay it all out forher.
"I'm addicted to gambling," he explained slowly. "I got myself in a heap of trouble, and when I couldn't pay back what I owed, I stole it from the Hales' bank account. They found out. I went toprison."
"They let you come back to work for theranch?"
He still couldn't quite believe ithimself.
He exhaled noisily again. "They said the slate was wiped clean, but if it is, why do I feel like the guilt is suffocatingme?"
Her eyes were luminous in the fallingdarkness.
He needed to douse the fire and get the kids out of here before the mosquitos carried themoff.
"You're trying to pay them back," she said. "That's why you can'tleave."
He bared his teeth in a semblance of a grin. Of course she'd figured it out. "That, and my parole's not up. Takes a long time to earn ten K on a cowboy'swage."
Megan saw morethan Dan probably wanted her to know. Yes, he was eaten up by guilt, and he'd admitted his weakness for gambling, but she also saw the man now fighting to do what wasright.
Before she could figure out a way to put that into words, a cry rent the peacefulevening.
"Aunt Megan!" Julianne's shout had Megan whirling and running back toward the fire. Had someone fallenin?
Dan outpacedher.
But it wasn't a burn that they returnedto.
Brady had both hands on his throat, face white, breathing noisily. His eyes were wide and frightened. His cheeks were pouchedout.
"He's choking!" Megan cried toDan.
As she went to Brady, she barely registered Miles standing slightly behind her nephew. Scarlett was cryingsoftly.
Julianne sounded near tears. "We were pl-playing a game. Seeing who could fit the most marshmallows in ourmouths."
"He just started grabbing his throat and breathing funny," Milesadded.
Marshmallows. They could melt in your throat, couldn'tthey?
She didn't have her medical bag, none of hertools.
But she reactedanyway.
Megan used the fingers of one hand to pry open Brady's mouth. With the other hand, she swept her fingers through his mouth, clearing wet, white blobs of sugar, letting them fall to the ground. She cleared as much as she could reach, but when she let go, Brady still struggled for breath, bending at thewaist.
His lips were turningblue.
Dan was there, his hands coming around Brady’s midsection from the rear. The Heimlich. Yes. Two pumps of his strong arms and Brady hacked and then spit another white blob onto theground.
