by Jayna Morrow
“By this time, you’re usually getting ready for whatever adventure you’ve planned for the day. Anything I should know about?”
“Nope.”
“Is your nephew causing problems again?”
“My nephew never has been a problem for me.”
“Don’t get upset. Let me clarify, he’s causing problems for his father. His father is your older brother, right? Your family is so large, I get them mixed up.”
“It has nothing to do with Slade at all.”
“I see we’re engaging in a game of twenty questions. OK, I’m up for it. What could be bothering the rich, powerful, tall, strikingly handsome if I may, CEO who has everything? Has something happened to your brother?” She wasn’t giving up until she’d weaseled the truth out of him. “Is that why you’re leaving all this grandeur for two weeks and driving to...what’s it called again? Sugar Shack, Texas?”
“Sweet Home.”
“Right...Sweet Home. That’s near Bison, Texas.”
“Bishop.”
“Yes, Bishop...where the buffalo roam.”
“Close enough. And no, there’s nothing wrong with Gabriel or Garrett. My older and younger brothers are taking their families on vacation to Hawaii.”
“And they can’t afford someone to check on the house?”
“I should have known you’d want more information. Gabriel owns a large dairy farm, amongst other things. He wants me close by to look after Irelynn, his office manager. He’s got complete faith in her, but she has doubts about her abilities.”
“Incognito, huh?”
“Should be a nice change of pace.” He swiveled his legs over the piano bench, and a wicked grin spread across his face. “Why don’t you buy a pair of boots and come with me? Enjoy the sights and sounds of Sweet Home.”
“And what sounds would those be—crickets chirping?” Her eyes grew wide. “You couldn’t pay me to endure a trip like that.”
“I do pay you.”
“What, oh...wait. I may be your personal assistant, but crickets and roughing it are not in my job description. Why don’t you get one of your buddies to accompany you?”
“They’re not much for roughing it either.” Not an accurate description, but close. His friends were Dallas elite, and while they would jump at the opportunity to hunt big game in Alaska or Africa or climb a mountain, they would never go for two weeks or even two days in a rural Texas town with no first-class amenities or real adventure.
“You don’t have to stay there the entire two weeks. You could fly over every few days to check in, couldn’t you?”
“I could.” He glanced up and caught her staring at him as if he’d grown a second head. “But I haven’t been back to Sweet Home for a real visit since I left home. I’ve been everywhere. I’ve seen everything, done everything. I thrive on new challenges. But this is what I need in my life right now.” Sweet Home held his fondest and worst memories, his heart and his hurt.
“So this is kind of like a project for you. A challenge.”
“Yep.” His line of business was a far cry from challenging. Hearth Holdings, Inc. happened by accident, and he’d stumbled into more wealth than he could ever dream of without doing much. Except what he loved, what he hid from the world. Not even his assistant knew how he made his first fortune.
And it had started in Sweet Home. Years of public torment that led to private triumph.
He was like a superhero who kept his true identity a secret. There were days when all he wanted was to soar into downtown Sweet Home, land with a thud that shook the ground and sent cattle stampeding, rip off his mask, and declare, “Behold, it is I, Holden Hearth, the one who...”
He shook the thought away. There wouldn’t be a great unmasking, but he’d still like to walk the streets of Sweet Home undetected. Now that the opportunity presented itself, he was a little unsure about it. He’d have to face people from his past, good or bad.
Still, the prospect of a new challenge fueled him forward.
“Goodness, you are so out of sorts,” Amber commented. “Now I’m thinking this might be therapeutic.”
He knew where this conversation was going. If she wasn’t willing to travel with him and work, that meant she had another destination in mind.
“And you know what would be good for me?”
Here it comes. She had that wistful look in her eyes.
“Two weeks on a beach in Cozumel. I mean, if you’re not here, there’s nothing essential for me to do.”
“I knew it. Go ahead and book it. You’ve earned a trip. Have fun in Mexico. I’ll be sure to send you a postcard from...Sugar Shack.” The girl worked hard and racked up the unused sick days. She worked crazy hours, performing whatever tasks he assigned to her. She deserved a vacation every now and then.
~*~
Irelynn added a bit more shading to the sketch she was working on and then held it back to critique it. “Is it any good?” she asked and turned it around for a better view, her arms shaking as she did so. “Be honest.”
The brown and white dairy cow twitched its nose before returning to its grain.
With a sigh, she moved the sketch from the top of the clipboard to the bottom and returned to her work. Cows made terrible critics. Of course, the positive side was that they never complained or pointed out her mistakes. Their general disinterest bothered her the most. She was convinced they meant well, and most days took their indifference as a sign of satisfaction with her work.
There were many benefits to having cows for co-workers.
They didn’t care if she showed up at work without makeup and her hair pulled up in a messy bun, or if she spent her days lost in thought without speaking a word unless necessary.
Of course, by not dressing up and interacting with people she was selling herself short, just as Gabriel had claimed. She didn’t put herself out there professionally. She was content in her bubble.
Her chances of remaining in that bubble for the next two weeks were slim to none. Already, she’d had a brief meeting with Randy Overman and had spoken to at least one person in every department on her first rounds. Fumbled, mumbled, and bumbled over the daily task list so much she left them more confused than when she had arrived. If she could manage everything from the safety of her office, maybe venture out to the rotary milking parlor a time or two, then everything would be perfect.
Gabriel’s last-minute vacation, she decided, glancing at the number tags in the cows’ ears and checking them off her list, had both elements of design and disaster. Sink or swim, she remembered. She was in charge.
She...was...in...charge.
Suddenly, the idea hit her that, for the next two weeks, she alone was in charge. If she didn’t feel like making rounds and having meetings, she didn’t have to. She could assign the task to someone else. She’d still go by Gabriel’s homestead and take care of his personal property, but operations here at the dairy were about to change.
She reached out to the nearest cow and scratched her behind the ear. Then she bent down and peered right into her big brown cow eyes. “Now I need to find that perfect person to handle all the tasks I don’t want to do.”
3
Picturesque was the perfect word to describe Sweet Home. A serene little town with brick streets, stone buildings of various textures and colors, and pastures, trees, dinky lakes, and ponds sprinkled around.
A landscape and portrait artist’s dream, she’d sketched every inch of this town from the time she was old enough to hold a pencil. She still made time to sketch here and there, but her day job came first. It paid the bills.
Irelynn parked her sedan, which sported Hearth’s Dairy Farms logos on the two front doors. Gabriel paid for her gas and mileage to run errands for the business since it was marked as a company vehicle. Now her car sat right beside his work truck at the head of the driveway. Micara’s landscaping company had tended the property recently. Mowing lines striped the lawn and the flowerbeds sported a fresh layer of wood chips. She gr
abbed her checklist and a pen and alighted from the car. It didn’t take long to verify the house or outbuildings hadn’t been broken into overnight. Now it was time for another day of rounds and paperwork and decisions at the dairy. She couldn’t put it off any longer.
She turned to make her way back to her vehicle but something shiny caught her eye. She squinted at the luxury sports car sitting in the driveway of the house next door. Garrett’s rental property and Sparrow’s former home should have been vacant. She tried not to panic.
A man emerged from the house, and concern for her own safety prickled the hairs at the nape of her neck. Tanned, toned, and handsome in his running clothes, he stretched on the porch.
Frozen where she stood, she pleaded with her body to scramble into her car without making noise that would draw his attention. She could do this. Surely, the man had a reason for being there. After all, squatters didn’t wear designer workout clothes and drive sports cars. She needed to read through Gabriel’s notes again. She had to have missed something about Garrett’s property.
She’d sort it out back at the dairy. There had to be some employee who could take time out of his busy schedule to run over there and check the property in her place. She was in charge, so she could assign this to someone, too. She had convinced herself she was quite smart about the whole thing, managing her time wisely. She’d think on it later.
Right now, she needed to get out of here and call Gabriel. Immediately. She took a few shaky steps that were met with crunching gravel further down the drive.
The mystery man was on the move. He was jogging in her direction, and their gazes met.
She picked up the pace. If only she could make it to her car before he did... No more worrying about schedules and checklists and workload delegation. She had a bigger problem at hand. Making it to safety before this strange man reached her.
She fumbled with her keys before yanking the driver’s side door open. Even as she lunged into the seat, praying to God to help her, strong fingers brushed across her shoulder before she slammed the door.
The man cried out in pain and jerked his hand back.
Irelynn locked the doors.
He shook his injured hand and then brought the tip of his pointer finger to his mouth, glaring at her through the glass.
“Sorry,” she mouthed, cranking the engine. She shifted into reverse and backed out. Then to herself, she mumbled, “Go find another victim, buddy.”
“Wait!” He waved his uninjured hand and took several steps back to give her space.
Was he trying to show that he meant her no harm? She pressed the brake and glanced again at the shiny sports car. Awfully flashy for someone out looking for trouble. She cracked her window a tiny bit.
“I’m not going to hurt you. My name’s Holden. I’m one of Gabriel’s brothers.”
Perfect. She’d injured her boss’s brother. Talk about a mental smack to the forehead. “Holden Hearth from Dallas?” A clear picture bubbled to the surface of her mind.
He nodded.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t recognize you, and I thought you were a squatter. That house is supposed to be empty.”
“The only squatting I do is in the gym with weights.” Then, he remembered his injured finger, held it up for her to view.
She rolled the window down a bit more and squinted.
“The nail’s already turning black, but nothing is broken. I think my chances of survival are above average.”
“Again, I am so sorry.”
“And I’m sorry for frightening you. I should have identified myself before approaching. It’s just that I already knew who you were and...”
“You know who I am?” She rolled the window down the rest of the way and let him approach. Her fear subsided, and now she had the chance to examine him closely.
He was as tall as Gabriel was and had the same rugged handsomeness but with none of the cowboy side. This Hearth brother had a corporate edge. While Gabriel’s muscles were farming muscles from hard work, Holden’s muscled body was built at a gym. He had to be in his thirties. There were four Hearth boys altogether, all in their thirties. He looked much younger though, even with the slightest touch of gray at his temples.
“Irelynn Rafferty, right?” he asked.
His dark eyes twinkled as he talked. If she had her sketchbook handy...
“Don’t let me keep you from your work. If I know my brother, he’s left you with a list a mile long.”
She still hadn’t found her voice.
“Are you OK? I didn’t scare you that bad, did I?”
“Oh, no.” She scolded herself for acting so dumb. “I’m at a loss for words.”
“It’s OK.”
He was trying to be understanding. She appreciated that. “Yes, Gabriel left me with his entire workload.” She let her head drop and cast her gaze downward. “I’m afraid he has large shoes to fill. This will be a real learning experience for me.” When she looked back up, she stared right into a pair of the brownest eyes she’d ever seen, right next to a grin that caused her heart to palpitate. She was in trouble now.
Her hair was thrown up in a messy bun. A style that was practical for work, but she regretted it right now. And she never had been the type to wear anything more than powder, mascara, and lip gloss. At the moment, she had one of the three on, a wisp of mascara before she zipped out the door to start her day much earlier than usual. She wasn’t the only one staring.
He looked at her as if he saw something amazing in her eyes. The way she’d always hoped a man would look at her one day. Surely, she was misreading his intrigue, but the way he leaned in with his lips slightly parted told a different story.
“You’ve got an eyelash...right...there...” He brushed away the fallen lash with his blackened fingernail.
Yes, she’d misread him. But what a sweet gesture. She had a long way to go in her life before she’d be fit for any man. She didn’t see that happening anytime soon. If Gabriel accused her of self-loathing when it came to her love life, then she’d punctuate the sentiment with the fact that Emerson was nowhere near asking for her hand in marriage. Emerson. She hadn’t managed to secure his adoration at all in the few months they’d been dating. She blinked away the thought. “Thank you. Well, I better get going. The dairy can’t run without me.”
“I’ll let you get on with your work, but try to relax. Work should be enjoyable.”
“Really? I thought work was work.”
“If you’re passionate about what you do, then it isn’t work. I heard that somewhere, and it’s excellent advice.” He gave her a cheesy salute and then stood with his arms crossed.
She backed up and turned the car around. If she followed her true passion, she’d starve. What did he know? She pressed the brake once again and rolled down the passenger window. “Speaking of work? What brings you to Sweet Home?”
He pulled his head back. “I’m on vacation.”
“A vacation to Sweet Home, Texas?” She couldn’t resist this moment of sarcasm. He’d set himself up for it. “You must have been drawn in by the bright lights and big sights of the Sweet Home metropolitan area.”
His lips twitched slightly. “If by bright lights you mean stars that shine brighter than anywhere else and the big sights are those of the wide-open countryside, then yes. Exactly.”
She blinked several times before choosing her words. “Um, well then, enjoy your vacation.” She didn’t wait for his response. She released the brake, pressed the gas, and steered away from him. Once her car rounded the corner, he disappeared from view.
4
“Oh, no,” Irelynn whimpered as she listened to the voice messages in her office. Randy Overman had called in sick. Her second day on her own, and already she’d have to call Gabriel to make good on his offer. At least now she had a proper excuse to call in for help. She took in a deep breath that stretched her lungs to max capacity, and then called him up on her cell phone.
“Hi, Mr. Hearth. It’s Irelynn. Good
morning.” When he didn’t answer, she tried again. “What’s that noise in the background?”
“It’s Raven. We think she has jet lag. She’s been up all night screaming. We rescheduled our activities for today to give her time to rest and adjust to her new surroundings.”
Irelynn understood. Her brother’s kids had been sick occasionally when they were babies. It had caused sleepless nights and worn out parents. “I’m sorry to hear that. I hope things get better for y’all.” The last thing he needed was bad news. Still, this was his business, and he needed to know. She broke the news with care, but Gabriel understood the gravity of the situation. In all the years she’d worked for Hearth Dairy, Randy had never missed a day. It had to be serious. “I hope you won’t be disappointed, but I’ll be needing you to call in that help.”
“Yes, I couldn’t expect you to do your job, my job, and Randy’s. I’ll get you some help.”
Pressure released in Irelynn’s body, like the sky bursting forth a torrential, yet cleansing rain. Her job description included many duties—chief organization specialist, rotary milking parlor supervisor, paperwork and filing—but she was only human. She couldn’t handle the workload of three full-time employees because she’d have to be three places at once: in the office, on the rotary parlor floor, and all the outbuildings of the facility. She’d drop a ball eventually. Hearth Dairy was a humane facility. They couldn’t afford for any balls to be dropped when it came to the health and safety of the cows.
Anyone in her situation would want help. She wasn’t giving up. Sure, she’d thought about it, but now, with Randy out with what he’d explained was pneumonia, she really, really needed it. “Thank you.”
Now she would get the help she needed and not fumble like a failure.
“You can expect your help later today.”
~*~
Holden dug his cell phone out of his pocket at the sound of cows mooing, Gabriel’s ringtone. He pressed the answer button and sat down in a wooden rocking chair on the back porch.