“I’m sure you’ve noticed how refined he is. Rich, too.”
Refined, yes. Rich? Maybe Griff hadn’t said so in so many words, but he’d definitely suggested that he was pinching pennies—something with which Alexis was all too familiar. He hadn’t corrected her assumptions, at any rate.
And why did the size of Griff’s bank account matter, anyway?
It sounded as if Vivian was trying to set her up—as in matchmaking. Only in Vivian’s outlandish fairy-tale mind could a relationship between Alexis and Griff be even remotely possible. Honestly, any romantic relationship seemed out of Alexis’s grasp most of the time. No matter how many dates she went on, or how many times she got her hopes up, every attempt to find real love fizzled out into nothing. She was the girl a guy dated, not the one he put a ring on. And after kissing so many toads, she was taking an extended vacation from searching for a prince.
Alexis ignored the little twinges in her stomach, writing them off as feeling sorry for having to let her sister’s plans down. It wasn’t the first time Vivian had come up with a harebrained scheme and somehow involved Alexis in it, but this situation went above and beyond, even for her. Poor Vivian would be in for a shock to discover her fantasy future brother-in-law was actually dirt-poor and world-weary.
“I hate to have to be the one to break it to you, hon, but I don’t think Griff is rolling in dough.” The man’s net worth meant nothing to Alexis, but she knew a thick pocketbook was near the top of Vivian’s most-wanted list and therefore—in Vivian’s mind, at least—a necessity for Alexis.
Viv burst into giggles. “Did he tell you that?”
“Yes.” Alexis frowned, thinking back to her conversation with Griff. He had said he was strapped for funds, hadn’t he? Or had she put those words into his mouth? Either way, he hadn’t contradicted her.
“He’s pulling your leg, then, hon,” Vivian informed her in a know-it-all voice. “The man has money. Lots of it.”
Even though Vivian couldn’t see her, Alexis rolled her eyes. “And you know this because…?”
“Did he tell you what he does for a living? He’s a venture capitalist. A successful one, too. Trust me on this, Alexis. He’s loaded.”
Alexis frowned. So Griff was a successful businessman. That didn’t explain why Vivian had purposefully deceived him into coming to Serendipity, or why she thought Griff would have any interest whatsoever in her. “I still don’t see what that has to do with me.”
Vivian tittered. “I should think that would be obvious.”
It was. Patently obvious, unfortunately, though Alexis had secretly hoped she’d somehow mistaken Vivian’s purpose. “If this is some kind of cockeyed matchmaking scheme, you can forget about it right now.”
“You’re welcome.”
“So let me get this straight. You sent Griff here so I could meet him?”
“Well, I didn’t do it for my own good. Let’s review his résumé. Handsome. Rich. Sophisticated. What’s not to like?”
That was Vivian’s short list, not Alexis’s. She wasn’t even in the market for a relationship anymore. Redemption Ranch, her flailing ministry to troubled teenagers, took every second of her time and energy as it was. Who had time to pursue dating, never mind the time and energy for anything resembling a true relationship? But if she was looking—and that was a very big if—her list would read more like “a gentle, down-home cowboy who likes quiet nights at home and working outside with the horses. Those not in current possession of old scuffed boots and worn-out blue jeans need not apply.”
In other words, the complete opposite of refined businessman Griffin Haddon with his fancy scarves and designer jeans and spit-shined boots. Of all the brainless, clueless, obnoxious shenanigans her sister had ever pulled, this one took the prize.
“Vivian, you can’t just jerk people’s lives around this way,” she reprimanded, feeling like the more mature of the twins, even though she was only older than Vivian by mere minutes. “You sent Griff here under false pretenses!”
“Did not. He really is looking for land. I was trying to be nice,” Vivian explained, her voice taking on the hint of a whine. “I felt sorry for the poor man, okay? He recently got his heart broken. We’re talking epic crash and burn here. Like, so bad that he started talking about walking away from everything he’s built for himself—and he doesn’t really want to do that! He’s built himself a virtual empire here.”
Alexis hadn’t experienced that kind of major heartbreak, but she knew how it felt to have the urge to run away from her problems—as fast and far as possible. She could hardly blame the man for deciding to leave if he had the wherewithal to do so. Vivian leaned toward the overdramatic, but Alexis found her curiosity growing nonetheless. “Go on.”
“He needs to find somewhere to nurse his wounds and get back on his feet. I thought Serendipity would be perfect for him.”
“And so it may be,” she agreed. “I understand he’s looking to acquire a ranch?”
“Well, he thinks he is. Have you seen him talk about it? His eyes light up like a kid’s at Christmas.”
“What do you mean, he thinks he is? From what I could see, he seemed pretty determined to work his new plans.”
“Right now, maybe. Once he’s been in Serendipity for a week he’ll be bored out of his mind. He’s a serious type-A personality. He never sits still. So the slow pace of the town will drive him batty.”
“How do I fit into this, again? You don’t want me to help him look for a ranch? I thought that’s why you sent him here.”
“Oh—help him. Do. In fact, it would be really great if you could immerse him in some of the work around Redemption Ranch. A horse ranch is something he’s dreamed about since he was a kid. He has no idea what he’s truly in for. You should show him what a cowboy really does all day.”
“I suppose I could do that.” Alexis did know a lot about ranching—enough to know Griff wasn’t precisely what she would consider to be cut out for it. If she didn’t miss her guess, once he saw how difficult and physically demanding country work really was, he’d go running back to the city faster than he could say the name of his favorite designer. “Ranching isn’t the sort of thing a guy just decides one day that he’s going to do. Most of us are raised to be ranchers.”
“Exactly. He’ll see what dirty work it is and come running back to Houston—back to his real career.”
She could tell Vivian’s concern for Griff was genuine, but there was still a lot that didn’t make sense. The whole thing still felt to Alexis like subterfuge. If the whole point was to get Griff to return to Houston, it seemed to Alexis that it would make more sense to let him flounder without any help whatsoever.
Why did Vivian need Griff to return to Houston?
Alexis needed better answers if she was going to be any part of this scheme. She’d have to take valuable time away from her struggling ministry to lend Griff the assistance Vivian apparently thought was a necessary part of the equation. It wasn’t that Alexis was being selfish, exactly, but she needed every spare second to try to come
