One Cowboy, One Christmas. Kathleen Eagle

sure.” Good topic. “Bought her brand-new. Top of the line. She’s been good to me, I’ll say that.”

      “Until now?”

      “My fault.” He waved away any blame that might jinx Zelda. “Been runnin’ her ragged, not keeping up with the maintenance she deserves.”

      “Sally calls her wheelchair Ferdie. Ferdinand the bull.”

      She said it softly, with a wistful smile. Sure sign she was about to tell him something he didn’t want to know.

      “What about you? You got a name for your ride?”

      “Gas hog.”

      Keep her smiling. “Is it a sow or a boar?”

      “It’s an it.” Here it comes, ready or not. “My sister has MS.”

      Clearly a good citizen would know what the letters stood for right off, and Zach was reduced to raking his brain for words that fit. He knew the name of every bone and major muscle in his body, having damaged most of them, but he wasn’t planning on getting into diseases for at least another thirty years.

      “Multiple sclerosis,” she said, gently filling him in. “It affects the nervous system, and every case is different, so we really don’t know what to expect. During remission, sometimes you can hardly tell there’s anything wrong. But the last remission wasn’t quite as long as we’re used to.” She sipped her coffee. “This relapse has been harder than the last. More stubborn. Sally’s a strong woman, always has been. She doesn’t ask for help unless she has to. She thinks she should be looking after me.”