by Holly Rayner
Most of this was said through tightly gritted teeth as Lee made a poor effort at civility. Anne-Marie watched him with fascination as he finished and stared at her impatiently.
Kaled picked up his glass of lemonade and glanced back at Lee.
“Please wait outside, Lee. I won’t be much longer, I assure you.”
Lee’s eyes darted to his colleague, and he glared at him for a moment before half-stomping out of the room and slamming the door behind him.
Kaled seemed entirely unaffected by this childish behavior; he just took another sip.
“This lemonade is delicious!” he said, as though they hadn’t just been so rudely interrupted. As if they were simply enjoying a nice lunch together rather than sitting at a standstill in a business acquisition.
“Thank you. I grew the lavender myself.”
“I thought that was lavender. Very tasty. Thank you for sharing it with me.”
His tone was pleasant, and for a moment Anne-Marie thought she could like him for more than just his looks. Then she remembered that he had a motive to be nice to her, and that any show of kindness was likely just a way to get the land he wanted.
Why couldn’t they have met under different circumstances?
Kaled stood, then, and Anne-Marie followed suit. Their sandwiches had remained untouched.
“I have your word that you will consider my offer, yes?”
“You do,” Anne-Marie said, though her tone indicated it would not take much more thought for her to shut him down again.
Kaled’s gaze was challenging as he locked his eyes with hers. Unable to glance away, Anne-Marie stared at him, drinking in the sight of his face as only a woman who had been in a desert of loneliness for far too long could. She would likely dream of him that night, simply for a lack of anything else to dream of. Her life had been so bland for so long. He was the first interesting thing to happen in years.
“Would it be all right if we return tomorrow and continue negotiations?”
Anne-Marie almost said no. She almost told him that he was wasting his time, that he might as well move on to the next little ranch, twenty miles away. His check was still on the table, a ray of afternoon sunlight beaming across it as though the heavens were telling her to accept it.
Sometimes, even the heavens could be wrong.
“Yes. That would be fine,” Anne-Marie said.
The truth was, she wanted to see him again. She wanted to breathe in his warm scent and bask in the light of his eyes. She wanted to sneak peeks at his muscular arms and think about what it would be like to be wrapped between them, her head nestled against his strong chest.
Realizing the direction of her thoughts, and the fact that they were staring at each other, Anne-Marie cleared her throat and held out a hand for him to shake.
“Nice not doing business with you, Mister Al-Qarali.”
Kaled gave his head a minute shake, and Anne-Marie wondered for a moment if he too were captured by the spell that seemed to exist between them before dismissing the thought. Kaled probably dated supermodels before casting them aside. Wasn’t that what the handsome and wealthy did? They certainly had more interesting prospects than a sad, lonely ranch girl, anyway.
“Please, call me Kaled,” he said, placing his hand in hers and letting it linger there for a moment too long before pulling it away. “It was nice to meet you, Miss Benson.”
“Anne-Marie is fine,” she replied, taking his lead.
They were friends now. That was likely how he wanted it. He was playing his game to earn her trust through a softer route than bullying. Anne-Marie fought to remember that as his sincere expression remained in place. He nodded a farewell to her before making his exit, and Anne-Marie watched from a window with her arms wrapped around her as the convoy of cars drove off into the distance, leaving only a trail of dust behind.
She stared at the path until the dust settled and all she could see was the thin black line of the horizon. She ran her fingertips along the palm of the hand he had touched, and her skin tingled with the memory of it. Of course, the Sheikh very likely closed many deals with people because of his good looks. It was common knowledge that attractive people were able to get away with more. Would she be played for a fool just because she could be moved to action by a handsome face?
Anne-Marie turned back to her lunch, though her appetite had dissolved. She sat down on the couch, her fingers pulling the check to the edge of the table where she could get a better look at it.
The truth was, he wasn’t playing her for a fool. He was being beyond generous with his offer, which was well beyond the actual value of the ranch. His handwriting was neat, even though he had written fast and on an uneven surface. That was the level of control he had, evident even in something so small as a series of written letters. For the first time, Anne-Marie seriously considered the offer.
Could she do it? Could she move on from this place and start a life of her own? So much was tied to this spot, this house, the land around it. It had defined every part of her throughout her entire life. She knew nothing else. How could she move on knowing she would lose such a big piece of who she was?
And who would care for the horses? Who would look after them, make sure they were safe and properly cared for? Kaled had been in no way specific about his motives for buying the land, and his explanation had been lacking justification on far too many levels. There was something he wasn’t telling her. No land was worth the price he was offering just because it was “interesting” or whatever.
Anne-Marie stood, pacing around the house and glancing at the photos on the walls. There were pictures of her grandparents, even paintings of her great-grandparents. This ranch had been in her family for so long, but how long could she maintain it by herself?
Kaled hadn’t been wrong on that point, either. The place was dilapidated, and she was struggling to keep it afloat. How long before something broke that she couldn’t afford to fix? How long before she couldn’t afford the hay for her horses to live on?
Sighing, Anne-Marie looked at an old clock on the wall. Somehow, the afternoon had melted away, and it was time to prep the horses for the night.
Stepping out onto the porch, she could feel the air cooling ever so slightly as she headed down the steps and out toward the fields. It would take some time to round them all up, but to Anne-Marie, it was worth it. Many of the animals had been locked up for so long, they deserved to have as much freedom to roam as possible. If that meant a little extra searching on her part, so be it.
“Meow!”
Buckle darted out from the barn and trotted over to her, rubbing himself around her legs as she went to find a bridle to bring the horses in with.
“Long time no see, little buddy! You have a good day napping in the hay?”
Buckle’s green eyes blinked blearily in the sunlight, and Anne-Marie grinned.
“What do you say to spending the night in the big house with me tonight, eh?”
Buckle continued his purring as he sought more affection, and Anne-Marie finally had to stop, pick him up, and pet him for a few minutes before he would allow her to go about her business.
“Nah. You’re not the type, are you? You need that freedom, too.”
Buckle closed his eyes and purred loudly as she scratched under his chin one more time before finally setting him down.
She sighed. “Looks like it’ll just be me in the house again.”
Scooping up a bridle, Anne-Marie spent the rest of the afternoon tracking down horses, cleaning out their shoes, giving them a good brush, and putting them in their cozy stalls for the night. After a thirty-minute search for her last tenant, she was able to make sure everyone was in and ready to sleep just as the sun began to set.
Anne-Marie’s legs were aching, and her mind was weary from thinking so much about Kaled and his offer. She plopped onto the old rocking chair on the porch and watched the sun set, knowing she would be asleep within the hour, ready for another early start, and another, a
nd another.
FOUR
Anne-Marie was sitting at her kitchen table when she heard the car pulling up the road. Her stomach erupted in butterflies, and she reminded herself that there was no reason for them. Just because Kaled was handsome and seemed nice was no reason to buy into his game. He was very likely playing her, and today she was ready to call his bluff.
Palming her mug, she stepped toward the front screen door and pressed it open as a solitary black car pulled up in front of the house. With the windows still blacked out, it was impossible to see where Kaled was until the driver’s door opened and he stepped out, once more immaculate in a tailored, pressed suit. Shielding his eyes from the glaring sun, he saw her and gave a small wave before heading up the stairs.
“Ready to reopen negotiations?” he asked, his lips twitching ever so slightly.
This was a game to him, wasn’t it? Anne-Marie was convinced it was one she could play.
“I believe so. Please, come in. Are you hungry?”
“I’m fine, thank you,” he said.
Anne-Marie noticed that was the second time he had refused food she had offered. She wondered if he skipped meals, and that was why he was so lean and strong. She felt a strong urge to feed him, to take care of him, but she knew that was just her motherly instincts talking. She had always wanted to care for others. It was why she loved having all the animals at the ranch, and why she didn’t mind all the work that went into running it.
Most of the time, anyway.
Anne-Marie led the way back to the living room, which she had dusted the night before. Not that it had done much good. The room was still deeply aged, but it had a homey feel to it that still left one feeling comfortable.
Kaled took a seat exactly where he had the day before, and Anne-Marie followed suit. There was a pause as they both considered how to open the conversation.
“I trust you slept well?” Kaled said.
Anne-Marie laughed. “I run a horse ranch by myself. I always sleep well.”
“Is it that exhausting?” he asked.
She shrugged. “It’s a lot of work; I won’t deny that. Still, it’s a labor of love.”
“Have you ever considered doing anything else?”
She shook her head.
“These horses need me. Some of them have led terrible lives, and this is the first freedom and joy they know. I have one mare that’s just about to foal, and she was given up when it was discovered that the stud was the wrong breed. People don’t think about the fact that these animals have lives, too, and they need to be cared for.”
Kaled had been studying her face as she spoke. He seemed to do that a lot, like she was a puzzle he was trying to solve. He thought on her words for a moment before speaking.
“You know they could travel with you. I’m offering more than enough for you to transport them to another location.”
“Ah, straight to business then, is it?” Anne-Marie said, tilting her head at him. “Very well. I did take some time to consider your offer, and I have to ask myself why a man would throw so much money at me over something trifling like governmental interest. Don’t you think that sounds a little weak? Almost like a lie?”
She watched his expression carefully. His gaze did the same tiny dart it had the day before, though when he looked back at her, his eyes narrowed minutely.
“Fair enough. I can tell I’m not dealing with an amateur here, so here it is. It has come to my company’s attention that your little ranch is sitting right on top of a huge oil spring, completely untapped. We would like to get a rig in here as soon as possible so we can make use of that supply.”
Anne-Marie stared at him for a moment. How had she not put the pieces together before? Kaled Al-Qarali…as in Qarali Oil. It was a sign she’d seen a hundred times and never thought twice about. Oil barons were a dime a dozen in Texas, anyway. How could she not have guessed that was his motive?
She suddenly had a vision of her house being torn down, replaced with an enormous, chugging oil rig that tore deep into the earth, spewing hot smoke into the air, polluting everything around. The beautiful, clean air turning smoggy, the ground vegetation completely destroyed.
“I see. And how much pollution will this rig produce, exactly?” she asked.
Kaled weighed his answer, pursing his lips slightly as he considered how to respond.
“Some, though it certainly won’t affect you. You’ll have more than enough money to move anywhere in the world you’d like. Heck, I’ll even ensure that you have extra to fund another horse ranch wherever you want, complete with transportation of all your livestock and whatever supplies you desire. Really, this is all entirely in your favor here.”
“Of course, if you look at it that way. Now let me tell you how I look at it,” Anne-Marie said, standing as she began to pace around the room.
“This ranch has been in my family for centuries. There is a legacy here, ties deeper than you could possibly imagine. It may not look like much to you, but this land is everything to me. Why would I give that up so a billionaire can add to his already massive pile of money? How can you ask me to destroy this land and the environment as though it’s nothing?”
“Anne-Marie,” Kaled began, his tone placating, but she held up a hand to stop him, struck by an idea.
“No. Wait. Hold on a second here. You have no concept of the value of this land. That much is clear. To you, it’s a hole to dig in the ground to make you a profit.”
Kaled stood, facing her. “Now hold on just one minute—”
“I will not. I’ve got a counter proposal for you, Mister Al-Qarali.”
“I thought it was Kaled,” he said.
“It was, until you lied to me and then tried to buy my land just to destroy it, thinking me a simpleton who couldn’t see past a large check. Now, will you let me continue, or are you going to keep interrupting?”
Kaled stared down at her in surprise as she stood up to him, unwilling to back down. She might be able to save the ranch and get the help she desperately needed, and not a moment too soon.
“I want you to come and work the ranch with me.”
Kaled’s eyes widened.
“Excuse me?”
“That’s right. I want you to come stay on the ranch, so you can truly understand what it is you’ll be destroying if you put a rig up here.”
Kaled watched her in stunned silence, and Anne-Marie wondered if he could see that she was making her plan up as she went along.
“For two weeks. Stay on the ranch for two weeks, and if you still want to build your rig after that, I will agree to your terms and sell up for the amount you have offered. That is my counter proposal.”
She had thought about it a little, of course, before she had laid it out. She hadn’t considered asking for two whole weeks, though. Perhaps that would be enough time to change his mind. It would also be two weeks with another human being to talk to, which was something she desperately needed on top of all the help.
After a moment, Kaled relaxed the shock from his face and grinned.
“You can’t be serious, Miss Benson. I’m a terribly busy man, if you haven’t picked up on that, and I don’t have two weeks to go on a ranch-style vacation when I have deals to close and work to do. I simply cannot,” he said, swiping his hand across the room as though his statement were final.
Anne-Marie shrugged and turned away. “Your loss,” she said, heading toward the kitchen where she began to clean up the dishes she’d been too tired to wash the night before.
She waited as Kaled collected himself in the other room, trying to regain control of the situation. She knew she had taken it from him, and a small part of her celebrated that fact even as she waited to see what he would do next. She could feel him approach the kitchen, the back of her neck tingling at his proximity.
“I’ll double it.”
Anne-Marie turned. When she faced him, Kaled’s eyes looked a little wild as he attempted, once again, to solve the problem by throwing money a
t it. Would the man never learn?
“Double what, exactly?”
Kaled’s eyebrows lowered, and Anne-Marie got her first taste of his smolder. It was absolutely stunning. Her heart began to race a little, even as she told herself that all he was doing was pouting handsomely.
“I have already offered you a sum that far outweighs the value of this land. I will double it.”
“And yet you just admitted to me that there is an untapped oil supply under the ground. Even by your estimates the money you offered me is a bit low, don’t you think?”
“Triple, then,” he said through clenched teeth.
Anne-Marie found she was actually quite enjoying winning this battle. Kaled was outrageously attractive, even when he was frustrated, and though she was the object of his frustration, in no way did she feel threatened. For some reason, she knew that no matter what, she was safe with Kaled.