He turned to her parents, who still looked astonished at his sudden arrival in the middle of a Virginia cabbage field. “I’ve never met anyone like the two of you. Maude, you walked into a room of cynical military officers and knocked them for a loop. And, Roy, I know what you sacrificed to send Annabelle to college. Your two daughters may be short in stature, but when it comes to courage, they are both giants. And I would very much like to visit the place where Annabelle and Elaine were raised.”

Her parents both gaped at Gray, uncertain what to say. They looked at each other, and Roy found his voice first. “You’re welcome to visit the farm.” He stood and gestured for Maude to stand as well. “I think my wife and I would like to go explore this fine train we’re riding on. I heard there’s a lounge car up ahead.”

Gray’s laugh was nervous, but his voice was grateful. “Two cars ahead.”

“All right, then.” Maude shot Annabelle a beaming look of encouragement on her way out the door.

Gray stepped back inside after her parents left the car. He rubbed his palms on his pant legs as he took the bench opposite her.

“Why are you really going to Kansas?” Annabelle asked.

For the first time, a hint of amusement lightened his face. “Do you really need to ask that?”

Yesterday she had stood in a government lobby with her heart in her throat as he shook hands with her to say good-bye forever, so it wasn’t an unreasonable question. “I’m asking.”

He sobered and reached for the pot of tea. His hands trembled as he poured them both a cup.

“I’ve always viewed myself as a protector,” he said after setting the teapot down with a gentle click. “It was my duty to provide for and protect my family. Building our company sent me all over the world, and I lost sight of some things. I thought that by providing for my family, everything else would fall into place like vines growing on a trellis. Things didn’t turn out that way. By the time I got home, Caroline and Luke had both chosen their own paths in life. They didn’t want or need my protection.”

She looked away. Luke and Caroline were her two least favorite subjects on the planet. One she had betrayed, and the other was the only enemy she had in the world.

Gray reached out to cover her hand with his. “Annabelle, I let you down,” he said urgently. “When you were pigeonholed into an impossible position, instead of being your protector, I abandoned you. That was wrong, and I’m sorry.”

She met his gaze and immediately felt the weight on her chest ease. She hadn’t even realized it was there.