Page 27 of The Cowboy’s Reckoning

“There was something about this deal that felt off from the beginning.”

What about the deal hadn’t he liked?

Lil went with the probable answer. “Do you think someone was messing with us on purpose? Giving us reason to leave?”

Late at night, when she couldn’t sleep, she wondered about the culvert and the potential road washout. The problem hydrants and the barn troubles. If someone cost them enough money, they’d have to accept a buyout and move.

“Don’t know.” He frowned at the ground. “There were other concerns that killed the deal.”

He hesitated, then asked, “Do you have enemies? Pissed anyone off lately?”

“Meg has a jerk of an ex, and he has no great love for me either, but he’s in Alaska.”

His gaze sharpened. “You’re sure?”

“Positive.” Lil crossed her arms over her chest. “I don’t leave the ranch often enough to make an enemy.” Just the occasional night out with Meg and Aubrey. “The last time I left, I hazed loose cattle.”

He coughed. “Right. Don’t know anything about that.”

“I really have to meet this Burke person.”

“At your own risk.”

She gave a short laugh, then sobered. “I have no enemies that I know of. I haven’t been here long enough to make any.” She pulled in a breath, debated about confessing the Shane-stalking-Meg matter, then let it go.

Shane wasn’t even in the state; she trusted that Meg was correct and he was in Alaska.

“Keep it that way,” he said.

“I’ll do my best.”

They both fell silent. Lil raised her eyebrows, hoping to trigger something from him. All she got was a raise of eyebrows in return. Damn but he was good-looking with his dark eyes and chiseled features. The broken nose only added to the package.

He smiled as if reading her thoughts, which kind of horrified her.

She brought her hands together in front of her in a loose clap. “How about that beer?”

“I could use one.”

“So could l,” she murmured.

Lil led the way into the house, took the unexploded beers out of the fridge, opened them, and set one in front of each of their places at the big kitchen table. Jordan held out his bottle for her to tap with her own, then took a drink. She took a longer one. Like she’d said, she needed it. She wiped the moisture away from her lips with the back of her fingers, noting that his gaze followed the movement.

“You’ll still be trying to sell?”

“To someone who understands the terms of the lease.” Jordan set the bottle on the table. “How did your sister come to work for Jordan Enterprises?”

Lil shrugged, imagining that he’d come up with some theories of his own. “Through a mutual acquaintance in Missoula where she went to law school. I don’t know the particulars. Networking, I guess you call it.”

“Did you go to college?”

Lil glanced toward her boots for a split second as the familiar pang of regret shot through her brain. Touchy subject for her, but he had no way of knowing that.

“I had to drop out after three semesters because of the ranch situation and never had a need to go back. But Meg finished her education degree and now she has a teaching position, which starts in August.”

“Leaving you to manage the ranch alone.”

She cocked her head. “Do you know any small ranches where one of the partners doesn’t work an outside job?” He thought, then shook his head. “Right. And now that school is out, we have a helper. Dakota. He’ll come three times a week. It’s enough to get things done that need to be done and not break the bank.”