After lunch, Maria immediately stood up and offered to help clear the table. Lillian shook her head. “No, you go and work with Ephraim and Michael. Hunter and I will take care of this, and then we’ll cook all afternoon.”

Hunter grinned, obviously feeling like the chosen one because he got to do housework instead of working outside. Maria didn’t understand it, but she sure couldn’t question it. This family worked, and there was love apparent.

Ephraim led the way out of the house, calling over his shoulder, “Thanks for feeding us, Mom! See you tonight!”

“Be careful!” Lillian called after them.

When they got outside, Michael looked over at Ephraim. “What are we doing this afternoon?”

“We have to finish cleaning up the surgery, and then we want to check on the cats. There’s a cow who has seemed sick lately that I want to check out, and there will be the usual barn-cleaning chores that come with helping me out for a day.

Michael nodded, obviously not bothered at all by his assignment. Maria remembered how he’d always complained about any chores he was assigned at home, but here he was, working hard with a grin on his face.

“It’s hard to believe he’s the same boy he was when he came here,” she said softly to Ephraim. “You guys must be some kind of miracle workers.”

“Love is the miracle. That’s all it takes to turn a juvenile delinquent into a productive member of society. Now, I’m not saying Michael was bad before he came here, because I know he wasn’t. But when he first arrived he wasn’t exactly volunteering to do work at the ranch.”

She grinned for a moment, then laughed full out. “You’re right. He wasn’t the type to do his chores without a whole lot of complaining.”

“And now, it’s what he lives for. He really has made great strides here. We’re all proud of him. I know he wants a scholarship, but he’s got that already.”

“He does? How?”

“In Texas, any child in the foster care system has a free ride to any state school. College will happen for him. At least a four-year degree will, if he wants it. We don’t always tell the boys about it, because we want them to work hard for good grades and put everything they have into the things they do. If he thinks he has to work hard for a football scholarship or an academic scholarship, then he’ll work harder at both of those things.”

“Oh, trust me, he wants it.”

Ephraim laughed. “No matter how much you want it for him, he has to want it as well.”

“I know that.” She looked over at Michael, who was walking along happily, his cheeks a bit red from the chill in the air. It was only in the fifties, which was cold for that part of Texas. “Thank you.”

Ephraim looked at her. “For what?”

“For letting me spend the day with you so I could see what the ranch is all about. I don’t think I ever would have really believed that everything was all right without being here.”

“I’m glad you came. It was nice to get to know you a little. Michael has been talking about you for years, and I really can’t believe I never met you until yesterday.”

Maria glanced over at him, following along beside him. “I’m sorry I thought you were a monster.”

He laughed, petting Jasper, who was nudging against his hand. “I’m glad you finally see that we really are here to help the boys. It means a lot.”

“Can you talk to me a little about what’s going on with Hunter now?” she asked. “I would like to be able to research it, so I know what I’m working with when I see him.”

“He’s been having digestive issues, and Daniel noticed it. The boys always complain that he disappears into the bathroom after a meal and doesn’t help clean up, and he always says he can’t help it. So they did a biopsy of his small intestine yesterday, and he has a really strange condition called lymphangiectasia, which I thought was only in dogs.” He sighed. “It’s rare in dogs, but it’s even more rare in humans.”

“So what does it do?”

“It’s basically a pathologic dilation of lymph vessels of the intestine. Basically, his body is incapable of processing fats, so it dumps them, causing diarrhea and sometimes vomiting. So he is going to need to be put on an extremely low fat diet but a very high protein diet. The protein has to be high quality protein, and as low fat as possible. He has been told this, but I’m not sure he quite gets what it means for him. Daniel and I discussed that we probably want the whole house on the diet to begin with. It will help him adjust better until he learns to make the correct choices for his body.”

“So you really want me to work with him, but also create a diet for the entire houseful of boys?” She shrugged. “That works for me. I’ll enjoy working closer with you.” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she realized how they sounded, and she felt the heat rising into her cheeks. “With all of you.”

Ephraim caught her slip of the tongue, but he didn’t respond to it. His dad had given him a look, confirming that she was the woman who he was destined to marry, if he married at all. It was odd, but their dad could always see the perfect person for them to marry. No one else was quite right for them. The chosen one still had the ability to say no, of course, but so far that hadn’t happened. Not long term, anyway.

The family believed that a woman had to understand exactly what she was getting into before a proposal, so they always knew about the powers apparent in their family.

“What are you doing for Christmas?” he asked softly.

“Christmas?” She shrugged. “I’ve spent it alone since my parents died. I didn’t think it was right for me to try to intrude here.”

“Spend it with us this year. We’d love to have you. Daniel is marrying Sunday evening, and he and Claire will disappear for a bit. We’d love to have you come over Christmas morning.” His parents were planning to come and help out as well. The bad thing about them marrying was that it messed up the living arrangements for them.

“Really? I wouldn’t bother anyone if I came?”

Well, you’d bother me, but not the way you mean. “No, we’d all love to have you. The boys like looking at pretty girls, and I sure like having you around.” His family had always taken dating very seriously, because there was no point in just running around getting close to people they’d never marry. He had little experience with girls as a result, and none with someone he wanted to marry. How could he?

“You think I’m pretty?” She felt like an idiot as soon as she asked. She wasn’t twelve years old anymore, and she didn’t need to be fishing for compliments.

“I think you’re the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen, and if it wouldn’t be awkward for you, I’d like to take you out. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable though, so you just let me know.”

Maria felt the heat rising into her cheeks. She’d always been so focused on school that she’d done no dating at all. “Why don’t we see how tonight goes? We’ll pretend we’re there together, and if it doesn’t make either of us uncomfortable, maybe we can try a real date.”

He liked that idea a lot. “Sounds good, but I have to warn you. Around here, a date usually means a couple of boys going along as chaperones.”

She laughed. “I couldn’t imagine Michael chaperoning anyone.”

“Oh, they don’t actually chaperone. What they do is more like heckling.”

“Oh my. And you allow them to go on dates with you anyway?”

“Well, we have this ratio thing to worry about. One of us can’t have more than four boys unless they’re all sleeping. So if I go on a date, unless Daniel has some help, I have to take at least two boys. It’s a mess, but it’s worth it if the girl is as pretty as you.”

“I’m not sure how to respond to that.” She was attracted to him—oh, boy was she attracted to him! But what would her brother think if she started dating his…what exactly what Ephraim to him anyway? A counselor? She didn’t know, but whatever it was, she needed to find out if it would bug Michael. Because if it didn’t, she had a feeling she was all in. And she wouldn’t have to have the diabetic conversation with him, because he’d already figured it out. How had he figured it out?

“Can I ask you something?” she asked, her mind going down a different path.

Ephraim looked at her, opening the barn door for her. “Sure. What’s going on?”

“How did you know my blood sugar was crashing before I did?”

He sighed. “Jasper told me. I read animals better than anyone you’ve ever met.”

“But you didn’t even know he was an assistance dog.”

Ephraim frowned. “You know, this is a conversation we need to have in private. Without Mr. Big Ears over there listening in.”

“I don’t have big ears!” Michael responded from across the way.

She frowned but nodded. “As long as you plan to tell me whatever it is that told you what was happening. I need to understand.”

“There’s a lot you need to understand if you’re going to date me. We’ll talk as soon as we can.” When that would be he had no idea. He wondered if he could sneak out after lights out that night…or maybe he could beg her to visit him there in the house. That might work. “Do you have to be home at a certain time?”

She shook her head. “No, I’m an adult. The elderly couple who I’m renting a room from really don’t seem to care when I come or go as long as I pay the rent on time. Don’t get me wrong, they’re nice people, but they’ve raised their kids.”

“Would you be willing to talk to Daniel and me after lights out tonight? I have a feeling Claire will be there visiting as well, and it might take all three of us for the conversation we need to have.” He thought about inviting Frank as well, but rejected the idea. Frank had a calming aura that he projected when the boys were getting upset. He’d stopped many fistfights. It was going to be easy for him to eventually tell his girl, because he could just calm her.

“Yeah, I can do that.” Maria looked at him, trying to figure out what he wasn’t telling her, but she couldn’t think what it could be.

Michael walked over. “We’re wasting daylight, Ephraim! What are we going to do next?”

Ephraim laughed. “Let’s check on the cats, and then we have a sick cow. Well, someone told me she was sick, and I haven’t had a chance to check on her yet.”

“All right.”

The three of them went over to the cats that had been spayed and checked on them, noting that they were both still sleeping. “It might be another hour or two before they wake up,” Ephraim told them. “Now let’s check on our cow.”

He walked over to the only cow in the barn at the moment, looking at her, focusing all of his energy on speaking with her. “What hurts?”

The vision she sent back was a leg injury, and Ephraim knelt down beside her, putting both hands on her leg, trying his best to heal her with his touch. It didn’t always work, but usually with animals he could at least make them better.

Michael copied his motions and knelt at her other side, his hands going to her other leg. Ephraim was surprised by Michael’s movements, and about to tell him to stop, but the cow kicked back at the boy, knocking him down.

He calmed the cow as Maria went to her brother. “Is he all right?” he asked.

“I don’t know!” Maria said, her voice panicked. “He’s unconscious, and his head is bleeding!”

Before even looking at the boy, he was on his phone calling for Daniel. “Get someone to cover you. Michael’s hurt! We’re in the barn.”

“On my way!” Daniel hung up, but there was no doubt in Ephraim’s mind his brother was on his way.

“Let me look at him,” Ephraim said softly. He didn’t have the healing touch with humans that he had with animals, but thankfully Daniel did. He knelt down at Michael’s head, his fingers probing the cut on his head. “Michael? Can you hear me?”

When there was no response, he saw that Maria was crying softly. “He’s the only family I have left. I can’t lose him.”

“You won’t. Trust me. Daniel’s on his way, and you’ve never seen a better doctor.”

“I hope he hurries!” Maria knelt beside Ephraim, her hands holding one of her brother’s.

Daniel walked in to see them kneeling that way, and his eyes met Ephraim’s. “I have to do what I have to do.”

Ephraim understood and nodded. “Everything will be explained tonight. Remember that please,” he said, his eyes on Maria.

Maria frowned, but she watched as Daniel put his hands over her brother’s forehead, and the small cut not only stopped bleeding, it disappeared completely. She put her hand over her mouth in surprise, but she said nothing.

Daniel kept his hand over the injury and within a minute, Michael was waking up. “Did that stupid cow kick me?”

Daniel laughed. “She sure did. Sit up slowly now. How are you feeling?”

Michael sat up, shrugging his shoulders and moving his head. “I’m good. No real pain.”

“Good. You want to get back to work? Or do you want to have a Lillian day with Hunter?”

Michael seemed to consider the question for a minute. “I don’t want to infringe on Hunter’s Lillian day when I’m not really even hurt. I think I just fainted cuz I was scared, which makes me feel like a real dork, but I think that’s what happened.”

“All right,” Ephraim smiled, getting to his feet. “Run to the surgery and get me one of my blue cloths I use for wiping stuff up so I can use it on the cow. And bring me some hand sanitizer.”

“Sure thing!” Michael ran off toward the room reserved for Ephraim’s surgeries.

As soon as he was gone, Maria looked at Ephraim. “What did I just see?”