Darling Jenny Read Free Page B

rebuke in her voice. 'How long has my sister known you?'
    He laughed lightly.
    'Quite a while. Eric was my best friend. As a matter of fact, we both met Sheila at the same time. Your sister is a very beautiful woman. We both tried to date her, but Eric won. I couldn't make it to the wedding, or I probably would have met you. When Sheila moved out here, I naturally made a point of seeing her and the children. Little Eric is quite a man despite his seven years and Cindy tries very hard to emulate him.'
    'You must see them quite often,' Jennifer commented, wondering if his interest was in the children of his best friend or her sister who had once spurned him in favour of another.
    'I do. Your sister has a very admirable sense of independence, but once in a while she finds it convenient to have a man around to lean on. Paul and Katie, Eric's parents, have a tendency to spoil the children, which is only natural for grandparents, so I step in occasionally as a father figure to them. I serve as a steadying influence on them and keep them from demanding too much from Sheila.'
    'You're a regular "big brother",' Jennifer commented sarcastically.
    'What's that supposed to mean?' he asked with ominous quietness.
    'That's what you are, aren't you? With your—er—anxious regard for my sister and her family,' she retorted, her eyes widening in false innocence.
    'How long has it been since you visited her?' His eyes narrowed as he glanced at her.
    'I saw her when she was home this past spring, but if you're referring to coming out here, this is the first time.'
    Jennifer tossed her red-gold hair out of her eyes with a defiant movement of her head.
    'You haven't seen her spend an afternoon with the children, and then work till all hours of the night on the things that she should have done during that time. Or the way she looks wistfully at her sketchbook and dreams of the ideas in her head being put on canvas. You haven't seen Eric and Cindy vying for her undivided attention during the precious moments they're together. Or the way they act so adult so they won't be a burden to her. It wouldn't matter if I'd never known her husband, I would still be interested in doing everything I could to help her. Now, you can turn up your nose and call me "big brother", but it isn't going to stop me.'
    Jennifer flinched under the piercing censure of his glance. She had meant to provoke him to show her dislike and disdain for his interest in her sister. But she had disturbed the still waters of his easy-going outwardness and revealed the hidden and possibly treacherous depths of his indomitable character.
    'I should have known it was impossible for there to be a second person as selfless and sincere as Sheila,' Logan muttered.
    Jennifer realized she had asked for that put-down. At least now she knew just how much of a help she could be to Sheila, and not just an extra piece of baggage on an already heavy load.
    The jeep fishtailed slightly as she started to apologize. One look at Logan's face was enough to tell her that now wasn't the time for talking. The few feet of road visible in front of them was a glaze of ice. Then ahead of them, the road began to curve.
    'Hold on, Jenny. I don't think I'm going to make this turn.'
    Silently, intently, she could almost feel him will the jeep around the corner. For an instant it looked as if he was going to make it, then a spray of snow flew on to the windshield as they careered off the road. They bumped and bounced to a halt, the snow on the windshield being slashed away by the pulsating beat of the wipers until again the smoky white world outside could be seen.
    'Jenny? Jenny, are you all right?' Logan's hand was brushing the hair away from her face while his eyes examined her intently.
    'I'm f-f-fine,' she managed in a shaky voice. With a nervous laugh, she added, 'I was scared out of my wits, though.'
    'So was I,' he smiled. 'Nothing's broken? You didn't hit anything?'
    'No,' she reassured him with a smile. His