Charity frowned. She hadn't considered that angle. "I...I'm sure he'll be just fine," she said uncertainly.
But he'd shaken her confidence. What if Mason were right? What if she'd saddled herself with some monstrosity?
Mason hooted. "I'm sure he won't!"
Charity glared at him. "But as you said, it's my prob lem, isn't it? You won't even be here to help me get through the mess you created."
He grinned, shaking his head. "I wish I could stay and see this," he chortled. "It'll be the Three Stooges revis ited. But Paul Lomax is coming by at around two, and we're heading for the airport."
She shook her head. "Yes, Chile is so lovely in winter," she said sharply. "Give my best to the current dictator."
He turned palms up again, giving her the boyish, inno cent smile that had captivated hearts all over the world.
"I think they've moved on to a democracy," he noted. "Hey, can I help it if the best skiing is in South America this time of year? I gotta go where the action is."
"A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do." Charity's sarcasm was softened by the tousling she did to her brother's hair as she passed on her way to the kitchen. "And a woman's gotta stay behind to pick up the pieces."
He rose, actually helping her take dishes to the sink. "But you're so good at it," he said in what was supposed to be a soothing tone. "You always were the one to fix things for us."
He went on talking about the arrangements he and Paul had made for their trip to Chile, but Charity wasn't listening. His last words echoed in her mind.
You always were the one to fix things....
Twinges of rebellion stirred inside her. She swept a stack of dishes into the sudsy water and began to rub them vigorously with a dishcloth, but she couldn't clean away her thoughts as easily.
It was true. Though she was the youngest of three chil dren, she'd always been the one with the level head, the one the others turned to as an anchor in the storm. Mason, being the male and two years older than Charity, should perhaps have been the natural leader of their little family, but it hadn't worked that way. Mason was a thrill seeker. He didn't believe in caution. More than once, Charity had been forced to pluck him from the jaws of sure disaster- or the local jail.
Their sister Faith was the oldest by another two years. Tradition said that the oldest should be the wisest and most responsible. Tradition had never dealt with Faith.