years ago, when Christina had stumbled onto some information that had proved a client of Olivia’s innocent, the two women had become fast friends. And when Christina had decided to go into the private investigation business, Olivia had encouraged her to get an office in the same building as the firm’s. As a result, Christina picked up many of the investigative jobs the firm often required.
“So tell me about the place,” Olivia urged. “Is it anything like you expected?”
Christina settled back in the leather desk chair. “Not exactly. It’s much larger than I imagined. If you drove forty miles in any direction you’d probably still be on Sandbur land. In fact, the ranch is organized into two divisions. The one with the house and working ranch yard, where I’m staying, is called the Goliad Division, and the western half of the property is the Mission River Division.”
“Incredible. What’s the house like?”
“Grandeur, but comfortable. It’s a two-story hacienda and so large that I couldn’t begin to count the number of rooms it has.”
“Sounds like a lot of old money.”
“It is. But these people are very unpretentious and laidback, Ollie.”
“That would be a relief for me.”
Yes, it was a relief that the Saddlers weren’t snobs. But maybe it would have been easier on her state of mind if Lex had been a snooty sort of person, she thought. Picking up a pencil, Christina began to doodle in a small open notebook. “So far they’ve treated me very nearly like family.”
“Lucky dog,” Olivia replied. “None of this sounds like work to me. I’ve always wanted to visit a big working ranch—just to see if those cowboys look as good in the rough as they do in pictures.”
Christina bit back a sigh. She should be thanking God for this cushy job, which had virtually fallen into her lap, but this morning she wasn’t at all convinced that she should be here. Not because she doubted her ability to find the cause of Paul’s questionable death, but more because of the impact Lex Saddler was having upon her. She couldn’t get the man out of her head.
“Believe me, Ollie, this case is not exactly simple. I’m going to have my work cut out for me.”
“So you don’t know how long you’ll be staying on the ranch?”
She began to draw a horse, then a man wearing a pair of chaps. “No longer than necessary. I want to wrap this thing up as quickly as possible.”
There was a long pause, and she could hear a frown in Olivia’s voice when the other woman finally spoke.
“Is anything wrong? I’ve never heard you talk this way before. Normally, you’re happily willing to invest whatever time it takes to wrap up a job.”
Christina glanced at the open door to the office while wondering if any of the maids or family members might be within earshot. To be on the safe side, she lowered her voice to nearly a whisper. “Ollie, I’m just not comfortable here. Ms. Saddler’s son is not at all what I expected. In fact, he’s been—quite a shock.”
“Oh?” Olivia sounded intrigued. “What’s wrong with the man?”
Christina pressed the fingertips of her right hand to her forehead. She’d hardly gotten four hours of sleep last night, and the lack of rest was already catching up to her. “If you don’t count single, sexy and flirtatious as problems, then he’s okay. I thought he was going to be a businessman, Ollie. And he is—but he’s not exactly the desk sort. He’s a cowboy. He wears boots and spurs and gets sweaty and dusty just like the other cowhands.”
Olivia chuckled. “My, oh my, that sounds like a handful of assets to me.”
Christina rolled her eyes. “You would think so. But I’m trying to keep my mind on business.”
The other woman let out a disapproving groan. “You always have business on your mind. Maybe this—what’s his name?”
Christina smiled in spite of herself. “Lex. His name is Lex Saddler.”
“Maybe this Lex will remind you that you’re a young, beautiful woman ready for a new man in your life.”
Christina didn’t know if she’d ever be ready for another man, but she wasn’t going to waste time rehashing the old argument with her dear friend.
“I’ve got a ton of work to get started on, Ollie. I’ll see you later in the week. I think I’ve got a handle on your missing witness, so I might be able to give you his definite whereabouts then.”
“Great. We’ll talk more when you get back to the city. But before you hang up just remember this—Mr. Lex Saddler isn’t a police officer.”
Christina grimaced. Olivia ought to know there wasn’t any need for her to bring up good-time, no-commitment Mike. A woman didn’t ever forget a mistake like him.
“As if that makes any difference,” Christina said dryly, then quickly told her friend goodbye and folded the cell phone together.
In the back of the house, Lex was in the kitchen, dancing Cook across the tiled floor as an old country song played on the radio.
“What are you doing here in the kitchen again?” Cook, demanded. “You’ve already had your breakfast. You should be down at the cattle pens.”
He twirled the aging but agile woman beneath his arm. “Yeah, I should be. Matt had to pull Lester off the fence building crew to take up my slack ‘cause I’ve got other duties this morning,” he said with a grimace. “I’ve told Mom that I don’t want her fretting over Dad’s case, so I’m going to be dealing with it and Ms. Logan. And this morning, she needs my assistance.”
Cook’s sly smile spread her ruby-red lips. “Ms. Logan, eh? Well, that ought to make you a happy man. So why aren’t you smilin’, and why are you wastin’ time in here with me?”
He grinned. “What man wouldn’t want to start out his day dancing with his sweetheart?”
She snorted. “I’ve known plenty.”
Lex chuckled. “Then they weren’t worth knowing.”
Cook pinched his shoulder. “Be serious and talk to me.”
Her order came just as the song ended, so he led the woman over to a long pine table bracketed with benches made of the same wood. After she was seated, he poured two cups of coffee and carried them over to the table.
“I’m not going to beat around the bush, Hattie, I’ll come right out and say that I think Mom has slipped a cog. Or that damned senator has brainwashed her!”
Clearly disgusted with his analogy, she said, “What are you talkin’ about? Geraldine is as sharp as a tack.”
He eased down next to her. “Hattie, when she first talked to me about hiring a private investigator, I wasn’t wild about digging into Dad’s death. But I could see the whole thing was important to her, so I went along with her wishes. If Dad’s death wasn’t an accident, then we need to know it. But last night…well, I got the impression from Mom that she’s doing all of this just to prove
