A Dad for Daniel by Janelle Denison

Author:Janelle Denison
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2011-06-14T00:00:00+00:00

Tyler stared at the sign on Daniel’s closed bedroom door, Enter At Your Own Risk, and wondered if he dared trespass any further. He’d never been any good at apologizing, but beyond this door was a boy who’d had this hopes dashed. He debated whether or not to wait until Daniel came out of hiding, but Daniel’s anger wasn’t something he wanted to let fester.

He raised his fist and knocked.

“Yeah,” came the hostile reply.

He rubbed the belt buckle in his hand, as if the polished gold would lend him support. “It’s your uncle Tyler. Can I come in?”

No answer.

Tyler tried the knob and found it unlocked. Opening he door, he peered inside the room. Daniel sat on a window seat, legs drawn up and arms wrapped around this knees. He continued staring out the window, even though Tyler knew he’d heard him enter.

Daniel had reverted to the same unapproachable kid he’d been when Tyler had first met him. Because of a vild impulse, all the headway he’d made with Daniel his first week on the ranch had been demolished.

Brianne was right. He’d thought of no one but himself. The realization was tough to swallow.

“Daniel,” he began, crossing the room cluttered with clothes and toys. “I’m sorry about this weekend.”

Daniel turned his head, looking at him with hauntingly familiar blue eyes. “It’s okay. I’m used to it. Boyd...my dad always made promises he didn’t keep.”

His words cut deep. Tyler didn’t especially like being compared to his half-brother. “I should have told you I was leaving for a few days, but I wasn’t exactly thinking straight when I left.” The excuse, as honest as it was, sounded lame even to his own ears. “It won’t happen again.”

“Sure.” Daniel glanced back out the window again, silently dismissing him.

This was going to be tougher than he’d thought. Sitting on the edge of the bed across from Daniel, he attempted to explain his reasons for his absence. “What I did, my leaving for the weekend, was very important. There’s a horse I want to buy, and I was hoping to win the extra money I needed at a reining expo in Eugene. I disappointed you,” he admitted. “I’m hoping you can give me another chance, Daniel.”

“Why should I?” he asked coolly.

Tyler braced his elbows on his spread knees. He turned the belt buckle over in his hands, thinking how something so valuable had cost him so much. “Because people make mistakes they regret. I made a mistake I regret.”

Daniel was quiet for so long, Tyler finally stood, knowing there wasn’t anything else he could do to make the boy forgive him. Maybe Daniel just needed time to digest their conversation. With a defeated sigh, he started for the door.

“Did you win?”

The abrupt question took Tyler by surprise. Stopping in the middle of Daniel’s room, he turned. Daniel watched him speculatively, a subdued glimmer of interest in his gaze. Tyler pounced on it. “Yeah, I won the purse. And when they gave me this belt buckle, the first thing I thought of was giving it to you.

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