The Last White Knight by Tami Hoag

walker. This was a quiet neighborhood. There seemed to be little traffic, pedestrian or otherwise. He looked across the street at the tree-shaded house that was Elliot Graham’s home and wondered if Graham had had Regan Mitchell specifically in mind when he’d said Erik should meet the girls of Horizon House before making a judgment.
    She had certainly punched his button, Erik admitted with a rueful sigh. And his reaction to her had punched one of Lynn’s. He’d felt every defensive shield she had go up as she’d stood between him and Regan, and whatever ground he’d gained with her up to that second had been yanked right from under his feet.
    The screen door swung open behind him and Lynn stepped out. He looked at her over his shoulder, noting the way she held her arms crossed tightly against herself and the way her lush, pretty mouth turned down at the corners, and his heart sank a little lower. The lady was steamed.
    “I’ll try to keep Regan out of earshot when you’re doing your next little publicity appearance on behalf of our cause,” she said sardonically.
    “I’m sorry I lost my temper,” Erik said, pushing himself to his feet and turning to face her. “I didn’t like the way she was talking to you.”
    One winged black brow lifted in imperious question. “Really? And how did you think she would talk to me? She’s hurt and angry and bitter. Her parents have abandoned her, emotionally and physically. You’d probably love them. They’re very politically correct people. Their answer to every problem is to throw money at it.”
    “Oh, give me a break,” Erik said irritably. Hewas angry with himself for losing his temper, but he was equally angry with Regan for provoking him and with Lynn for putting up with the girl’s attitude and foul mouth. “What am I supposed to say here? Poor little Regan, her rich parents don’t pay enough attention to her? That gives her the right to act any way she wants? I don’t think so. I had it a lot tougher than her when I was a kid and I didn’t go around mouthing off to adults and running around doing God knows what all night.”
    “Well, good for you, Erik,” Lynn snapped. “That makes you better and bigger and stronger than the rest of us. You had a hard life and you came out shining like a champion. Maybe we should make you king of the world.”
    He heaved a sigh and rubbed a hand across the stubble on his jaw. This was working out just swell. He needed a shower and a shave and a chance to regroup mentally. “Look, maybe I was out of line—”
    “There’s no ‘maybe’ about it. My girls answer to me, Senator, not you. They don’t need you to hold up your high standards of conduct as something to measure themselves against, and they don’t need your disapproval.”
    Erik held his hands up in surrender. “I said I was sorry. I just have a little problem sympathizing withkids who have advantages and still turn out like Regan. Let’s not get into a big fight about it.”
    Lynn clamped her mouth into a tight line and glared at him. He stepped up onto the porch, taking away her height advantage. Hoping to take the edge off her defensiveness as well, he settled his big hands on her shoulders.
    “We’re on the same side, remember?” he said softly, giving her his most apologetic smile as he shuffled a little closer. “Partners. Friends.” He lowered his head, meaning to give her a little kiss, but she shrugged off his touch and stepped back.
    “My father was a professor at Notre Dame,” she said, her voice tight and husky with some emotion she wouldn’t let show. “I made Regan look like an honor student. Advantages aren’t everything.”
    Hands on his hips, Erik hung his head and gave another long, defeated sigh. “I really stuck my foot in it, didn’t I?”
    “Right up to your ankle.”
    “You know, I wasn’t very good at being a teenager,” he said candidly. “I think I have a few things to learn. Maybe you could teach me?”
    It was