The Secret Agent's Surprises. Tina Leonard

Maybe it was the absence of light in his life—and why that miserable thought made him think of Miss Manners, the wonderfully elusive and prissy Priscilla Perkins, he wasn’t sure.

      “W ONDERED IF YOU’D ever get around to visiting me,” Josiah Morgan said to Priscilla two days later, his eyes gleaming. “You’re wanting to hear my plan, I expect.”

      “Mr. Morgan, I might just be paying a call on you to be kind. I could have a business proposition for you myself.” She seated herself in the massive den of the Morgan house, located just outside Union Junction. It was different here now that Josiah had taken up residence—the house felt more like a home. Last month, he’d been living in France. He said he’d sold his knight’s templary for a handsome profit and moved back home to spend time with his new grandchildren. But while he’d been in France, Priscilla, Cricket and Suzy had spent lovely days vacationing in this house, helping Suzy keep distance between herself and Dane.

      Instead of keeping their distance, Suzy and Dane had gotten married, and the women’s friendships had grown stronger. Priscilla hadn’t known Suzy and Cricket as well then as she did now, and the time spent together was a memory she treasured. They’d baked cookies, played with Suzy’s kids, teased the Morgan brothers. “We never did get the new curtains done for this house,” Priscilla said. “We meant to. We were on the way to the fabric store when we saw Jack—”

      She stopped, remembering the bad blood between Josiah and his oldest son. Josiah’s gaze sharpened.

      “You saw my son?”

      “Well, it wasn’t an intentional meeting,” she said hurriedly. “Now, back to your plan—”

      “How did you see him? Where was he?” Josiah demanded.

      “He was hitchhiking. We only saw him for a moment, truly. However, I didn’t come all the way out to Union Junction to discuss Jack,” she said, injecting impatience into her tone to try to move him off the personal topic she knew was painful. “Shall we get back to the purpose of your earlier visit to me?”

      “How did he look?” Josiah asked, ignoring her pointed request.

      “Handsome,” she said simply. “Ornery. Full of life. Not interested in talking to us once he found out we were living here. He wasn’t in the car long enough for us to learn much.”

      Josiah sighed. “So much like me.”

      “Handsome? Or ornery?”

      He winked at her. “You’re a bit of a minx, aren’t you?”

      “Flattery won’t hurt if it gets you away from worrying about your sons. And I may as well hear your proposal. I admit to some curiosity.”

      “Which killed the cat, but in this case, there happen to be extra lives.” Chuckling, he waved a hand to indicate that she pour the brandy sitting on a crystal tray between them. “Miss Perkins, there are four children in the county who are going into foster care. Their parents died last week in an auto accident. Very sad.” He looked distressed.

      “I’m sorry to hear that.” She met his gaze. “Did you know them?”

      “I only met the parents once when Ralph Wright came out to buy a steer from me. They lived on a neighboring ranch, you know, more homesteaders than ranchers. Young couple, big dreams. Wanted a country life for their children. They’d been trying for a child for years, it seemed. Ralph mentioned that his wife Nancy, had surgery that helped. He beamed just talking about her pregnancy. They were very much looking forward to their new family, as you might imagine.” He swallowed thickly.

      “That is very sad,” Priscilla said, her heart breaking for the children who had lost their parents. “It’s going to be very hard on the poor babies.”

      Josiah’s expression turned crafty. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way, Miss Perkins. I would be interested in helping you adopt the babies.”

      “Me!” Priscilla’s mouth dropped open. “What would I do with four children, Mr. Morgan?”

      “Give them the home they need. As sad as their lives are now, I think it would be sadder to be split up in different homes, and so on and so forth.” He shook his head. “Life is going to be hard enough for them.”

      “I don’t see,” Priscilla said, trying to breathe through her shock, “how you ever came to think that I would be a suitable person to adopt four children.”

      “As I said before,” Josiah said, “I’d heard by way of a little birdie that you might have a soft spot for my son, Pete.”

      She blinked. “Oh, I see. You’re going to do to Pete what you did to Gabe and Dane. Tie them to women with children to increase your family name.” She stared at him. “Don’t you think you’re presuming a lot? First, that Pete would want to marry me, second, that he’d want four kids and, third, that the child-welfare agency would consider me suitable parenting material?”

      “You and Pete,” Josiah said. “Whether or not Pete would want to marry you wouldn’t be the issue. Second, four kids will be a shock to his system, but talking care of that many babies would be no harder than being a secret agent. You did know that’s what he does for a living, didn’t you?” He watched her carefully.

      “No,” Priscilla said, “and I’m not sure that child-welfare services will find that comforting, either. But go on. I’m riveted by how you not only move your sons like pawns, but anyone else you decide you need.”

      “You’re amazed that I would play God to this extent,” Josiah said equitably, “and I don’t blame you. But when a man has nothing left to lose, he may as well shoot for the stars. At least I do.” He took a healthy swig of the amber liquid she’d poured in his glass. “Have some. It helps sometimes.”

      “I need clear, focused wits around you, thank you,” she shot back. “You’ve stunned me.”

      “It’s simple enough,” Josiah said. “Pete needs to get married. I doubt you would be able to sleep knowing that four little newborns are going to be without parents when you could do something about it.”

      “Newborns?” Priscilla straightened. “How young are the children?”

      “Sadly, only a month old.”

      “They’re quadruplets?”

      Josiah beamed. “I did mention Nancy’s surgery, didn’t I? Worked like a charm.”

      “Are they still in the hospital?”

      He nodded. “That’s how I learned about them. I was visiting the hospital, and the nurses were talking about the accident. So, so sad.”

      “Not to be rude, but do you just troll the hospital nursery looking for children and unwed mothers?” Priscilla asked.

      “No,” he said, laughing, not offended at all. “It’s just that this time, I thought of you.”

      “You know nothing about me at all. I could be a horrible person.”

      “It’s not hard to find things out in small towns.” Josiah raised a glass to her. “Your parents raised you well, educated you, loved you a lot. You’re very close to them, which would mean extra grandparents for these little ones. You’ll need a lot of help, you know.”

      Astonishment held Priscilla nearly numb. “Did you have my tea shop and home business reevaluated?”

      He looked at her. “What do you mean?”

      “I got a notice that my home is worth less now.”

      “That’s happening a lot in this economy. Banks don’t have as much money to lend, so they’re weaseling a bit.” He shook his head. “No, I would never have anything to do with devaluing a property. I’ve made my money in commercial and private real estate around the world. I’d be the last one who would ever want to see property values depreciate.” He looked at her.