Irish Rose by Nora Roberts

with all the glass. Two weeks ago I was scrubbing Mrs. Malloy's floor, and now I'm looking at palm trees."
    He drove competently, without asking directions or checking a map. Erin realized this life wasn't new to him. Here she was babbling and sounding like a fool. She made one attempt to restrain herself, then gave it up. It didn't matter how she sounded.
    He hadn't realized he'd get such enjoyment out of seeing someone take little things and make them special. For a moment he wished they could just keep driving so that she would go on talking, laughing, asking questions. He'd nearly forgotten there were people who could still find things fresh and new no matter how often they'd been used.
    Traveling was a profession to him, and like most professional travelers he'd long ago stopped looking at what was around him. Now, with Erin pointing out white sand, young skateboarders and towering hotels, he began to remember what it was like to see something for the first time.
    They knew him at the track. Erin noticed as they walked over the green lawn toward the spread of stables that people nodded in his direction or greeted him as Mr. Logan. There were jockeys and trainers and grooms already preparing for the afternoon races.
    "Logan."
    Erin glanced over and saw a big, potbellied man in a straw hat. She saw the flash of a diamond on his finger and the light film of sweat the heat had already drawn on his face. "Durnam."
    "Didn't know you were coming down for a look-see."
    "I like to keep an eye on things. Your horse ran well last week."
    "At Charles Town. I didn't know you were there."
    "I wasn't. Erin McKinnon, Charlie Durnam. He owns Durnam Stables in Lexington."
    "Real horse country, ma'am." He took her hand and flashed her a smile. "A pleasure, a real pleasure. Nobody picks the fillies like Logan."
    "I won't be running any races, Mr. Durnam," she told him, but she smiled, judging him harmless.
    "From Ireland, are you?"
    "She's Adelia Grant's cousin." Burke spoke mildly, giving Durnam a straight look until he released Erin's hand.
    "Well, ain't that something? I tell you, ma'am, any friend of the Grants is a friend of Charlie Durnam's. Fine people."
    "Thank you, Mr. Durnam."
    "I'm going to go check on my horse, Charlie. See you around."
    "Take a look at Charlie's Pride while you're at it," he called after them. "That's a real piece of horseflesh."
    "What a funny man," Erin murmured.
    "That funny man has one of the best stables in the country and a roving eye."
    She glanced back over her shoulder and chuckled. "His eye can rove all it pleases. I can't imagine he has much luck on a landing."
    "You'd be surprised the kind of luck ten or fifteen million can buy." Burke nodded to a groom. "I'm running against him today."
    "Is that so?" Erin tossed her hair back and was sure the sun had never shone brighter. "Then you'll just have to beat him, won't you?"
    With a grin, Burke put his arm around her shoulders again. "I intend to." He walked by a few stalls. Erin cautiously kept on the far side of him. The smell of horse and hay was familiar, and so was the little knot in her stomach. Ignore it, she told herself, stepping up beside Burke as he stopped at a stall.
    "This is Double Bluff."
    She judged the dark bay to be about fifteen hands, broad at the chest and streamlined for speed. The beauty of him struck her first; then she froze when he tossed his head. "He's a big one." Her throat had gone bone-dry, but she forced herself to take one step closer.
    "Ready to win?" With a laugh, Burke reached up to stroke his nose. The colt's ears came forward in acknowledgment, but he continued to prance. "Impatient. This one hates to wait. He's an arrogant devil, and I think he might just win Three Aces its first Triple Crown. What do you think of him?
    "He's lovely." Erin had taken a step backward the first time the colt had looked in her direction. "I'm sure he'll do you proud."
    "Let's have a closer look, make sure the groom's done his job."