She was petite, with red hair and too many freckles. He recognized her immediately. Her name was Denise and she’d been the first kid he’d ever had at the ranch.

Aaron rushed past him, shrieking like a girl. “You made it. I wasn’t sure you would.”

They hugged.

“Made it” as in she was invited? Nick looked at Aaron. “What’s going on?”

“A nice surprise to help you remember you’re one of the good guys.” Aaron hopped in place as he beamed at Denise. “I haven’t seen you in forever. You look fabulous.”

Denise laughed. “So do you.”

Nick moved toward them. “Hi.”

“Hey, Nick.” Denise smiled at him, then looked past him to the crowd. “No one said there was a party.”

“Nothing big. It’s a barbecue for friends.”

Denise had been a sullen, withdrawn teenager whose mother had been in and out of her life for years. When Denise had been fourteen, her mother had taken her out on the streets to bring in money as a prostitute. Denise had endured for nearly six months, running away time and time again, until she was picked up by the police and turned over to foster care.

It wasn’t the drinking and drugs that had made her caseworker nervous. It had been the cutting. When things got too bad, Denise cut herself.

She’d been in therapy about a year when she’d shown up as his first kid. He hadn’t known what to do with her, but Rita had stuck her on a horse and Aaron had talked boys and fashion. She’d stayed a long weekend, then had returned half a dozen times. Nick had written her a letter of recommendation to college and paid her tuition. Scholarships had funded the rest.

“You have friends?” Denise teased. “What happened to solitary guy?”

“He’s growing,” Aaron said, hugging her again. “We’re all so proud. And look at you. I love your haircut. It’s perfect.”

“I learned everything I know about fashion from you.”

Aaron waved his hands in front of his eyes as if trying not to cry. “I need to get a glass of water.” He moved away.

Nick turned toward Denise. “Everything okay?”

She grinned. “Better than okay. Aaron e-mailed me a couple of weeks ago, just to say hi. He suggested I stop by. I couldn’t get the idea out of my head. Mostly because I should have come to see you before. I wanted you to see this.” She pulled a small card out of her back pocket.

He took it and stared at the ID. It was for Denise, showing her to be a student at the UCLA medical school. He felt a flush of pride. “Good for you.”

“I’m going to be a doctor. I’m leaning toward specializing in trauma. It’s grueling and I should be back there studying, but I couldn’t stop thinking about you, Nick. How you helped me.”

He handed her the ID card. “You did this yourself.”

She shook her head. “I don’t just mean that you paid for most of my college. I never told you before, but that day you came and got me…” She looked down, then back at him. “I couldn’t do it anymore. I couldn’t stand hurting myself, but I didn’t know another way to manage. I’d decided to kill myself. I’d figured out exactly how to do it. Then you showed up and made me come here and everything changed.”

Her green eyes were bright with hope and promise. “I wanted you to know you saved my life.”

Her praise made him uncomfortable. “Like I said, you saved yourself.”

“Still not taking credit for what you do?” she asked. “Maybe I should go into psychiatry and figure out why.”

“No, thanks.”

“Typical guy.” She stepped forward and hugged him.

He hugged her back. “You did good, kid. You earned your way out of hell. Don’t ever look back.”

“I won’t. I just wanted to say thank-you. For the chance. For dragging me out here. You make a huge difference here. Aaron tells me you’re still having kids out. Don’t ever stop. You never know who you’re going to save.”

He didn’t know what to say to that.

Denise giggled. “If you could see your face.”

He desperately wanted to take a step back, turn and run. “That’s really, ah, sweet of you. Do you need anything? Can I help pay for medical school?”

“I’m fine. I have grants and scholarships and if all goes well, I won’t even need a student loan.”

“Come to me before you get a loan. I want to help.”

“I know. That’s why you’re one of the good guys.” She glanced at her watch. “I need to head back to the airport soon. I’m doing a one-day turnaround and want to drop in on a few friends. I just couldn’t stop thinking about you.”

They hugged again, then she waved and left. Nick watched her go. When he turned back to the picnic, he saw Aaron talking to Izzy and her sisters. Skye and Lexi were staring at him with identical “that’s so sweet” expressions. Izzy simply smiled.

He knew what they were thinking, but that was going to change just as soon as he told Izzy the truth about Garth. He’d already put it off too long-he knew that. But he’d wanted to wait until after the surgery. As soon as the bandages came off, he would tell her. Better to hear it from him than Garth. Because if the man he’d once thought of as his friend believed it would help his cause, he would tell Izzy himself. Former friendship be damned.

But however she heard it, she would be devastated. And not just her. Aaron, who was a better friend than he deserved, and Izzy’s family would be hurt. The information would wound them all and there was nothing he could do to make it better or easier for anyone.

IZZY TRIED HER BEST to keep still in the chair, but it was difficult. “Will I know right away? Is it going to hurt? Do I have to wear dark glasses?”

Dr. Greenspoon gently unwound the bandages from around her head. “We’ve dimmed the lights so don’t worry if everything isn’t as bright as you’d like. It will take a few minutes for your eyes to focus. Try to relax.”

“You didn’t tell me to stop talking.”

“I didn’t think that was possible.”

Izzy tried to laugh at the joke, but she was too scared. The week was over, the moment was here. In a few seconds she would know if she could see or not. Her entire life would change based on the outcome of the surgery.

“I’m going to throw up,” she whispered.

“No, you’re not.”

The last of the bandages fell away, as did the pads that had been pressed against her eyes.

She sat in the exam room, terrified of opening her eyes and learning the truth-that she was blind forever. That she was going to have to learn to be strong and resourceful in ways she didn’t know were possible.

She wasn’t that kind of tough. She was…

Izzy realized she wasn’t in total darkness anymore. There was a hint of light. Slowly she opened her eyes and blinked several times. There was a second of blurriness, then the room came into focus. She could see Dr. Greenspoon, the equipment and just beyond that, Lexi and Skye standing together, hands clutched, their faces locked in identical expressions of hope and dread.

Izzy’s gaze dropped to the light tan Coach handbag Lexi had over one arm.

“Great bag,” she said. “Is it new?”

Lexi and Skye both shrieked and rushed toward her. Izzy jumped to her feet as they grabbed each other.

“I can see! I can see!”

“I knew it would work,” Skye said. “I knew it had to.”

“I was so scared,” Lexi admitted. “This is the best.”

More than the best, Izzy thought, practically floating with happiness and relief. She could see. She could see!

The three of them turned to the doctor, a delightful man in his seventies, then took turns kissing him on the cheek.

“I don’t know how to thank you,” Izzy whispered as she hugged him. “You’re a miracle worker.”

He smiled at her. “That’s what I like to hear.”

Thirty minutes later, they stepped out into the sunny morning. Izzy had on sunglasses, but the light didn’t bother her at all. In fact, it was amazing and the world was a beautiful place.

Okay, she was looking at a parking lot, but the sky was blue and the cars were so pretty. She could see.

“I didn’t know if this was going to happen,” she admitted as she walked next to her sisters. “I’m relieved.”

“Us, too,” Lexi told her.

“And happy,” Skye added.

Izzy couldn’t believe it. She had no restrictions. Just eye drops to use three times a day and a follow-up visit in a couple of weeks.

They turned down a row of cars. She came to a stop. A familiar red GT Mustang convertible was parked next to Skye’s SUV.

“You brought my car,” Izzy said, feeling her throat tighten.

“We weren’t going to tell you if it hadn’t gone well,” Skye said. “I called the doctor’s office a couple of days ago and they said you’d be able to drive so we wanted it here.”

Izzy took the keys Lexi offered. “I have wheels.”

“You have an engine and tires, too,” Lexi said with a grin. “Oh, and I believe this is yours, too.”

Izzy frowned as Lexi pulled something small from her pocket and held it out. Izzy took it, then laughed when she recognized the swirl of tiny diamonds.

“I still think piercing your belly button is beyond strange,” Skye said with a sniff. “They took it out while you were unconscious at the hospital. I wanted to sell it at a pawn shop and donate the proceeds to charity.”

“Of course you did.” Izzy grinned. “But as I haven’t had the benefit of your elegant finishing school education, I’m happy to have it back.”

She would put it in later, then flash it at Nick.

Thinking about him made her both excited and nervous. She was finally going to see what he looked like. Would seeing him be okay? Would she feel weird about it? Would he?

“Want to get coffee?” Lexi asked. “There’s a Starbucks around the corner.”

“I’d love that,” Skye said.

“Me, too.” Izzy wanted to spend a little time with her sisters before going to the ranch.

When they’d ordered their lattes and were seated at a corner table, Izzy took a minute to simply look around. The store was just like all the others. Light and bright, full of delicious smells and friendly conversation. She could see the colorful labels on the bags of beans for sale. The fall shades of the mugs, the print on the newspaper left abandoned on the next table.

She turned back to her sisters and saw them both watching her.

“Sorry,” she said with a laugh. “Just enjoying the miracle. I feel like Scrooge on Christmas morning. I’ve been given a second chance.”

Skye’s eyes filled with tears. “I’m so happy for you.”

“Me, too,” Lexi said, not nearly as emotional. “What are you going to do with it? Any big changes planned?”

“Like not piercing your belly button?” Skye asked.

“I won’t get it pierced again,” Izzy promised. “But if I can fit this back in…”

“That’s tacky.”

“I know. I’ve been given a second chance, not a new personality.”

The sisters smiled at each other.

Izzy sipped her latte. “I’m going to get a job and start saving for college.”

Skye nearly choked on her coffee. Lexi’s eyes widened. They both stared at her.

Lexi recovered first. “College?”

“Community college. I have to get my brain in working order. Then I’ll transfer to a four year. I want to study psychology. Specifically for children. We’ve had a few at the ranch. There was this one girl, Heidi. She’s been through a lot. I want to help and college seems like the place to start.”

More tears filled Skye’s eyes.

“Maybe you should go see Dr. Greenspoon,” Izzy muttered. “I’m going to college, Skye. Not curing world hunger.”

“But it’s so great.” Skye dabbed at her eyes. “Don’t get a job. I’ll release your trust money.”

Izzy did her best not to react. The trust was from the money their mother had left Skye when Pru had died. Skye had taken a percentage of it and put it in trust for Izzy until she was thirty. It would more than pay for college, along with living expenses.

“You don’t have to do that,” Izzy told her. “I can work.”

“But it will be easier to focus on your studies. Izzy, that money was always for your future. Now you know what you want it to be.”

Which all sounded great, as long as Izzy didn’t think too much about the fact that her own mother hadn’t bothered to mention her in the will.

“I appreciate that,” she said at last. “Thanks.”

“College,” Lexi said. “You going out for cheerleading?”

“Very funny. I’m not the one who tried out for the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders.”

Lexi winced. “We agreed not to talk about that again.”

“You agreed,” Izzy teased. “Me? Not so much.”

Izzy spent an hour with her sisters, before heading back to the ranch. She put the top down on her convertible, cranked up the CD player and loved every second of the long drive.

There was so much to see. The sky, the other cars, the strip malls. Life was good and she planned to enjoy every minute of it.