âAnd what does his annual gross have to do with anything?â
âHeâs way out of myââ Laura broke off, unable to recall the word she wanted to use.
âLeague,â Etta supplied. âAnd thatâs pure nonsense. Youâre an intelligent, beautiful young woman. You have a lot to offer any man, Isaiah Coulter included.â
âRight.â Laura could no longer even say intelligent without her tongue getting tied into knots. Men like Isaiah wanted female companions who challenged them intellectually, women who were smart, beautiful, and successful in their own fields. What was her fieldâcleaning toilets? âPut it out of your head, Gram. It wonât happen.â
The moment Laura said the words, the hair at the nape of her neck started to prickle. She remembered how surprised sheâd been the night before last, when Mary Coulter had called her about a job possibility at her sonsâ clinic. Then she recalledIsaiahâs words to her yesterday: If I let you leave without at least talking to you, my mom will have my head. Heâd obviously been pressured into giving her an interview.
âOh, Gram,â Laura murmured shakily.
âWhat?â Etta asked innocentlyâa little too innocently for Lauraâs peace of mind.
âAre you and Mary hoping that Isaiah and I mightââ Laura broke off, her tongue suddenly as dry as cotton.
To Ettaâs credit, she didnât prevaricate. âAnd why not? Heâs handsome, successful, single, and needs a wife. He just hasnât met the right lady yet. Whoâs to say you arenât exactly the kind of girl heâs been looking for?â
âOh, Gram. I was so glad to get this ch-chance, and now I f-find out itâs a sch-scheme you and Mary hatched?â
âLaura, sweetie, calm down. Youâre starting to stammer.â
âHow could you do this?â
âDo what? Laura, listen to me. This is a great opportunity for you, and itâll benefit Isaiah, too. He and Tucker have a terrible time keeping good help in the kennels, and youâll be wonderful at the job. Mary and I are just hoping that something more may come of it. Thatâs all.â
Laura wondered if Isaiah realized that his mother and her grandmother were trying their hands at matchmaking. Oh, God. Of course he realized. He wasnât dumb. She was the one whoâd taken forever to catch on. How would she ever face him?
âI n-need to go,â Laura said tautly.
âSweetheart, donât be this way. You want the job. Thatâs all that really matters. The rest is . . . well, a wait-and-see kind of thing. Maybe heâll never look twice at you. If so, youâve still got the job.â
Laura had a very bad feeling that Isaiah had already looked twice at her and thought she was pathetic. Heâd probably realized all along what his mother was up to and had played along only to please the woman. No big deal, from his perspective. If Laura was foolish enough to harbor any hope that he might be interested in her, he could quickly disabuse her of the notion by ignoring her. In the meantime, heâd be doing a good turn, giving a handicapped person a chance at gainful employment.
Lauraâs cheeks stung with embarrassment and no small amount of anger. She didnât want to hang up on her grandmother, but she was too upset to continue the conversation. It felt as if a noose had tightened around her throat.
âItâs not as if Isaiah knows anything about it,â Etta went on. âThat part is just between Mary and meâand now you, of course. Thereâs really no reason for you to beââ
Laura ended the call. Then she pulled over to the side of the road, turned off the car engine, and stared blindly out the windshield. So much for her wonderful new job. She closed her eyes, her sense of disappointment so crushing it was hard for her to breathe. After the