“Not on paper, no. Archer’s work is hard to argue with. I have my suspicions, though.”
Eden waited, wiping her palms on her skirt. “Suspicions?” Why was she encouraging the woman? She should ignore her and pretend that the pile of invoices in front of her was riveting. But she waited, holding her breath, to hear what Renata Boone had to add.
Renata smiled. “Chalk it up to being the only girl in a house of men, but I think it’s a personal thing. Am I assuming a lot here? Yes, yes I am. But my mother had hinted that things weren’t good between Mr. and Mrs. Monroe, that Mr. Monroe and my father had a falling-out, that she’d stayed here to clear her head. Maybe now that his wife is gone, he wants to remove painful reminders?” She shook her head. “I could be way off. I’ve never met the man. He could be great and one hundred percent behind Archer, just like his wife was. For all we know, Archer is sweating over nothing.”
Eden tapped her pencil on the pile of papers in front of her. She and her mother had been close, sharing secrets and dreams. But Eden hadn’t known any of this. Her mother had come here to clear her head? When? Had her parents fought over the refuge? Her death had robbed them all of closure and healing. Where there had been happiness and merriment, now there was only anger and resentment. Her baby girls would never know the beauty of their grandmother’s smile or her infectious laugh. It had been three years since her passing but sometimes Eden missed her so much, the pain was inescapable.
“Sorry. Too many television movies or epic family novels. You should have stopped me before I went overboard.” She shook her head. “I should have said the name Monroe puts Archer on the defensive and left it at that.” She laughed, her blue eyes inspecting Eden closely. “I’m thinking you’re not a country girl?” Renata asked, reminding Eden where she was and what she was doing here.
“No, I’m not.” Eden shook her head. What the hell was she doing? She had a plan, one that didn’t need to get muddied by the unfounded speculation of a stranger. But Renata’s words eased some of Eden’s guilt over lying. Being Eden Caraway would make her job easier. And that was why she was here, period—to find justification to pull funding from Boone Ranch Refuge.
Renata seemed to be waiting for additional information—
“Renata?” Disapproval colored Archer’s tone. Not as sharp as when he was speaking to his employees, but definitely not welcoming. “She’s working. You’re interrupting.”
Archer seemed incapable of speaking to a human without condescension. But somehow, Renata didn’t let it get to her.
“You caught me.” Renata stood, holding up her hands in mock surrender. “I had to see the new recruit. People are talking, bets are being made, big brother.”
Archer’s blue eyes were glacial.
“Bets?” Eden asked, watching their interaction with interest. “What sort of bets?”
Renata glanced back and forth between them, smiling. “How long it’ll be before he chases you off.”
Archer continued to stare down his sister. “Is it too much to ask for a little professionalism, Renata?”
It was easy to empathize with him. His sister had come in and shared far too much information with her—a complete stranger. It was hard working with family. Even harder if one of them gets all chummy with the new employee, undermining authority. She knew exactly how that felt. Her brother, Greg, had tirelessly pursued Loretta, her first assistant. And once they’d gotten close, it hadn’t been pleasant.
She took in the pinched look around Archer’s blue eyes, the tightness bracketing his mouth, the posture that was anything but relaxed. Something about his stance resonated with her—a defensiveness, a vulnerability.
“Try?” One word, an order—and a plea. When he wasn’t being rude, he had a very nice voice.
Eden slid her reading glasses on, using them to shield her inspection of the man. The man on paper was so different from the man in front of her. The man on paper was well-researched fact, and countless achievements. An academic with years of fieldwork and expertise. The man in front of her was broad and thick. Muscled yet lean, appearing more inclined to do the labor than study or research. Clearly he was capable of both. Which was something new. The men in her life were more likely to pick up a phone and call a repairman instead of picking up a hammer and making the repair themselves.
“Fine.” Renata laughed. “I admit it, I heard about Fester and my curiosity was piqued.”
Archer’s blue eyes slammed into hers. He had piercing eyes that were...unnerving.
Hopefully he’d missed her thorough head-to-toe inspection. “What?” Her voice was tight and wary.
Archer shook his head, once.
“He didn’t even try to bite you?” Renata was watching her just as closely.
Eden glanced back and forth between them. “He followed me.” She shrugged. “And when I stopped, he’d push me forward with his nose.” Whether or not that was relevant, she didn’t know. Fester had seemed interested in her well-being. And after the initial fear had subsided, she’d appreciated his companionship.
“That’s all?” Renata asked.
“He...he clicked his teeth at me,” she mumbled.
Archer ran a hand over his face. “Clicked his teeth?”
“He did?” Renata’s surprise was obvious.
She nodded. Clearly it meant something. “Is that bad?”
Archer crossed his arms over his chest and stared at her. The silence, and Archer’s unflinching gaze, had her shifting in her chair. She hadn’t done anything wrong. I lied. Well, not where the horse was concerned, so why did she feel guilty?
“What did you do?” Archer’s voice was surprisingly soft. “When he clicked at you.”
“I...I talked to him.” She stared at the yellow invoice on the table.
“Talked to him?”
She glanced up at him. He seemed lost, working through some foreign concept or equation. When his gaze met hers again, his hostility was gone. But there was something equally unnerving in its place. Something warm and vibrant and heavy. She stared blindly at the papers in front of her.
Renata laughed. “I told you he’s a woman’s horse, Archer.”
“No,” Archer argued. “You’re a woman. He bit you.”
“Then maybe Fester has a crush.” Renata tapped the table. “Which means you, Miss Caraway, just got yourself a horse.”
Eden looked up then, startled. “Me?” That was the last thing she needed—more responsibility. Between her work, her family and her kids, she was shouldering enough. “No, thank you.”
“She’s teasing, Miss Caraway.” Archer was using that soothing tone again, and it was having an odd effect on her.
“I am. You’ll get used to it,” Renata agreed. “But now I have to run. Fisher and Kylee are finally going on a date and Tandy and I have twin duty. Can’t be late. Knowing Fisher, he’ll
