Expecting His Secret Heir(7)

She could see on his face that there wasn't a right answer. He did want  that, but it meant spending time with her. Though the reality made her  chest ache, she had a job to do just as much as he did. With just as  much at stake.

Through clenched teeth Zach brushed her off. "I don't have time to mess  with you right now. The fire marshal is here. Just go back to the B and  B."

As he stalked across the parking lot, she couldn't help needling him a  little more. "I can get some exteriors, though, right?" she called.

He might as well have flipped her the bird, considering the glare on his  face. But he held his temper in a gentlemanly way, at least in the  midst of the crowd of people he now walked through.

Sadie chuckled, simply because crying in front of everyone wasn't an  option, either. She'd suspected that coming back here would be tough,  but she could never have imagined the roller coaster of dealing with her  own emotions while matching wits with Zach.

Ever comforted by her camera, Sadie set off around the perimeter, once  more trying to capture the compound from angles that showcased both the  tragedy but also the potential for rebuilding, because that was exactly  what people needed to see.

Just a few minutes in, a bell sounded. Glancing around, Sadie saw  numerous soot-covered men exit the site and make their way across the  parking lot to a couple of huge tents that had been erected along the  far edge near the fencing. Must be lunchtime.

After taking a few shots of the men, she edged away from the crowd. Her focus here was pictures, not food.

"Hey, there," a voice said from behind her a few minutes later.

Sadie sighed but finished up her shot before easing her camera down from  her face. Had Zach sent another security guard to escort her away  today? If so, he was going to have a hell of a fight on his hands.

Turning without any rush, she eyed the man behind her. There was no  badge attached to his clothing, and he didn't look dirty like most of  the men here. A buttoned-down shirt and Dockers weren't really  appropriate attire for a disaster site. But at least he looked friendly.

"Hi," she said, her unease calming down a notch.

"Is that a Canon Mark III body?"

Warmth spread through her. A fellow photographer, maybe? "Yes, with a custom lens. You know it?"                       
       
           



       

"Ah, I admire from afar and spend my budget on paper and ink instead."  The man grinned, looking young despite his thinning hair, and held out  his hand. "I'm Lance Parker, editor of the local paper."

She met his hand for a firm shake. "Nice to meet you, Lance. I'm Sadie."

"You must be getting some good pictures, then."

Pulling the camera from around her neck, she clicked on the picture preview and turned the screen so they both could see.

Fifteen minutes of talking cameras and photo composition and lighting  fed Sadie's artistic soul. None of her family were interested in  photography. She had few friends because of all her responsibilities,  but she had managed to join an artists' group near home that she tried  to go to once a month. Sometimes it worked out, sometimes not. But she  tried to get her fix in when she could.

"Would it be possible for me to use a couple of these in the newspaper?"  he asked. "We'd compensate you, of course. These are wonderful and my  two photographers are busy with the cleanup, which keeps them from  snapping away right now."

Sadie barely had a chance to think before another voice cut in. "Hey, Lance. How's it going?"

She looked over the newspaper editor's shoulder to see Zach's sister, KC, approaching them. Lance smiled as she arrived.

"As good as can be expected, I think." He gestured to Sadie. "Just  trying to convince Sadie here to share a few of her pictures with the  community. They would be a great accompaniment to the recovery stories."

KC studied Sadie for a split second, but then her lashes swept down,  shielding the expression in eyes so like Zach's. "That would be cool.  So, Sadie, what do you think?"

That I don't like being put on the spot... "Yeah, I'll come by and we can look over them again. Tomorrow?"

"Great," KC said, as if she'd decided the subject was closed. "Now y'all want some lunch?"

Lance agreed enthusiastically, but Sadie shook her head. "I'm still full  from the breakfast spread my landlady puts out, but I'd be happy to  volunteer, if you'd like?"

KC's raised brow and hesitant "Sure" didn't make Sadie feel better. She  knew it didn't really matter what KC thought of her, whether she  approved. Sadie wouldn't be sticking around Black Hills long enough to  make real friends...or sisters-in-law. Somehow that didn't stop her from  wishing differently.

Although KC might be hesitant for completely different reasons. Had Zach told her about Sadie? How much did she really know?

* * *

Zach made his way back across the parking lot to the food tents KC and  Christina had installed. He tried to keep an eye out for Sadie along the  way, though he desperately wanted to curse himself for caring where she  was in the first place. He could tell himself all he wanted to that it  was about suppressing her plans, but deep down he was afraid there were  far deeper reasons than that lame excuse.

He didn't see her until he was closer to the tents, and that fiery red  hair came into view as she scurried behind the serving line. It wasn't  entirely clear from this distance, but it looked almost as if she were  in charge.

"Kind of amazing, isn't it?"

Zach glanced to the side to see his little sister approach, her arms  filled with a box. He automatically reached for her burden, taking it on  himself as he nodded his head in Sadie's direction. "What's going on  here?"

KC didn't look at the other woman but continued to watch her  brother...making him very uneasy. "She volunteered to help after saying  she wasn't hungry. I could tell she wasn't thrilled with the setup when  she joined us, but she didn't say a word."

One side of KC's mouth lifted in a slight smile. "I wondered if she  would, but she never did until I started asking for help. It took a few  minutes to get her to open up. As soon as she realized she wouldn't  offend me by making suggestions, she took the lead. We were whipped into  shape in ten minutes and served hundreds in less than half an hour." KC  shook her head. "She's good."

Very good. But Zach didn't want to think of that in front of his sister.

"She told me before that she made a living as domestic help, but never  went into specifics," he mused as he watched Sadie navigate the chaos  with the calm demeanor of a woman who had many pots on the fire but  wasn't worried about losing one. He glanced at his sister, only to find  her still studying him.

He was in trouble now.

"So you knew her before, as in before this trip to Black Hills?"                       
       
           



       

Why hadn't he just kept his mouth shut? "Hmm..."

But KC wasn't buying the noncomment. "Did you meet her while you were in the military?"

No, but those days right after he came home had been a blur of  nightmares and worry over his mother, his family. He hadn't known how to  tell them he was falling in love. After she disappeared without a  trace, he'd been glad he kept Sadie to himself and not made her a  thing-that thing he had to explain to friends and family, pretend not to  miss, or realize hadn't been as real as he'd thought. He had happily  done most of that without public scrutiny.

Now, though, he could talk about Sadie without having to get into all  the ugliness of regret and pain. He'd never been a liar, but he kept it  brief, strictly answering the question that was asked. "No, she's been  to town before."

KC slapped her hands to her hips, making him wish he hadn't been  gentlemanly enough to take the box. "She was here before, long enough  for you to talk to her about her job, and you never mentioned her. Was  she a customer? Or-"

"What's for lunch, my lovely?" Jacob's voice interrupted his fiancée's, much to Zach's eternal gratitude.

"Barbecue and fixin's," KC said, giving Jacob a big smile.

"What?" her fiancé's voice boomed over the lot. "Barbecued meat, a  pretty lady and a cold beer? All I need is our son and it'll be heaven."

"Christina's got him at the manor," KC said, giving Jacob a quick kiss  on the cheek. "Your mom started running a fever this morning, so she  stayed home and offered to keep him, too."

Zach saw the flash of concern that crossed Jacob's expression, and knew  that even the slightest bug could be very harmful for the Blackstones'  mother, who had been in a coma for many years. But KC gave him a  reassuring smile.