by Ivy Jordan
Jill stepped out of the car, her red hair burning her head like the sun to my eyes. She was dressed to the nines, of course, her heels higher than the pedestal she sat on, and her white suit as out of place on the ranch as she was.
I grabbed a beer from the cooler near my feet, my sixth one that day. She talked to the man; whatever they said, I couldn’t hear. Going over to greet them wasn’t in my plans, so I stood there, leaning against the outside barn wall, just watching.
Her laughter screeched my ears like an owl’s talons, scratching, digging, irritating and painful. As she approached with the mystery man in tow, she smiled, happily. I thought about shoving her smug face in the dirt, grinding it in Queen’s fresh pile of manure not yet shoveled from the stall, or better yet, stomping her into the compost pile I’d been working on for months.
“James, I didn’t know you’d be here,” Jill cooed as she stood herself right in front of me, too close. The state of Texas was too close.
“I live here,” I smirked, and took a large swig of my beer.
My eyes glared towards the man. He dressed in a tight dress shirt, one so thin you could see his undershirt through the material. His shape wasn’t that which should be displayed in such a tight shirt, but there he stood, pot-bellied, love-handled, and awkward as he tried unsuccessfully to break eye contact with me.
My tongue pushed the inside of my jaw, bulging my cheek with each push. I quickly worked phlegm from my throat with a quick growl, spit it towards the man’s brown leather shoes, and then changed my piercing glare towards Jill, the real thorn in my side.
“Well, we won’t get in your way,” she hissed.
“What exactly are you doing here?” I demanded.
“This is Robert. He will be listing the property. I thought it was a good idea to get it on the market quickly,” she declared.
“I bet you did,” I jabbed.
Jill’s eyes rolled as her lips puckered into a tight asshole shape. I spit again, this time towards her feet, barely missing her white heels, designer no doubt. She quickly stepped back, gasped, and then turned in haste. I watched her round ass bounce against the thin material of her suit as she walked away, her camera in hand, aiming and clicking in every direction, click, click, click.
“It’s good to meet you,” Robert extended his hand towards mine.
I didn’t respond. I took another swig of my beer.
“The market is not great right now, but I think with the right approach, we can find a buyer willing to pay the asking price,” Robert babbled.
“I’m afraid you may have more trouble than you realize; see, this town, the people in it, they aren’t too keen on having someone new come in, possibly trying to change things,” I maintained.
“I see,” Robert stammered.
“I’m not sure you do see, Robert,” I chuckled as I finished off my beer.
“Well, regardless, I’ll do my best to get top dollar for the place,” he gushed.
I watched his beady little eyes shifting back and forth as I stared at him, his forehead start to bead up with sweat, and his cheap toupee flop over his head as the wind picked up.
“Doesn’t matter to me; I’m leaving soon, and the money doesn’t come my way,” I smirked.
The awkward man fidgeted, obviously uncomfortable by his misunderstanding. Somehow, Jill neglected to fill him in on the details of the sale. I chuckled as he nervously checked over his shoulder, looking towards Jill like he expected her to save him. She was far too busy snapping pictures and seeing dollar signs through the camera lens to notice Robert’s discomfort.
“Hell no!” I shouted towards Jill as she took her first step up the porch steps to my house.
“I need to get pictures of the inside,” she insisted, continuing her strut towards my front door.
“I’m afraid if you take one more step towards that door, my streak of never hitting a woman will be over,” I threatened.
She stopped, her eyes rolling again like a bratty teenager’s. My fists clenched so tight, my fingers dug into my palms, sinking into the calloused flesh. My eyes locked onto hers as I stopped my stride towards her, still, waiting for her to make a move. A part of me wanted her to defy me and put her hand on the doorknob. I knew I’d never hit a woman, and never wanted to, but I also knew this time I did want to, and there was a damn good chance I would. What did I have to lose? She’d already taken my home, my future, my dreams, everything I ever loved. Even Evelyn would be out of my life after all this was said and done. She wouldn’t have any use for a man without a purpose, without some type of future to share. My pain had caused me to shut down, hide out, and there was no doubt in my mind that after almost a week of distance, her pain had turned to anger. It was better for her to be angry. I couldn’t stand to think of her in pain, especially knowing I caused the pain.
“Whatever,” Jill breathed, turning to walk down from the porch.
“You can go inside once I’m gone,” I snarled.
“I’m afraid that’s not how this works, James. The thirty days are a legality, but that can be fixed with one call to the judge, so consider it more of a courtesy. The ranch will be listed tomorrow morning, and if any interested parties should decide to come inspect the place, they will go wherever they please,” she chortled.
Now I could dump her in the compost pile without further reason, her attitude enough to justify my actions by anyone’s means. My nostrils flared, pushing hot breath down onto my tightened lips. There was no way in hell I was staying here with her gallivanting around the place, traipsing every Tom, Dick, and Harry through my home, my barns, my garage. My chest tightened as I realized it wasn’t my home, my barns, or my garage. The only thing I had to take with me was my clothes, my computer, and my truck. If I could stop her from entering the barn to take inventory, I’d take Queen and Gulliver with me as well.
Robert had taken over the pictures, now standing in the field aiming his camera towards the house.
“You know what, Jill…do whatever the fuck you want to; I couldn’t give a shit less. But, you should be really proud of the way you’ve disrespected your dad once again,” I growled.
Her freckled skin wrinkled around her nose as her eyes squinted in my direction. The sun was at my back, a painful hot pile of fire to stare at this time of day, giving me great pleasure to know she suffered discomfort in her efforts to glare at me.
“Say what you will, James, because dear dead daddy meant as much to me as you do,” she sneered.
I chuckled at the sad excuse for a woman in front of me, shaking my head in disgust as I moved towards where she stood. She flinched as I got close, but wouldn’t move from her spot. She was a tough bitch, that was clear, but added with her uninteresting appearance, growing fat ass from sitting on it all day long, and her cold heart, I got some comfort in knowing she’d live a life without love, maybe not alone since she had money, but without love. She was incapable of loving anyone, or being loved if she truly didn’t care for Martin Jasper, her father. He was a good man. He loved his children, but he wasn’t in the game of handing things over to people who weren’t deserving, no matter who they were.
“Have a good life, Jill,” I smiled, offering up pity in my tone.
“Robert, install the lockbox and let’s go. I want to get this listed tonight,” Jill scolded towards the realtor that she’d brought along.
I watched him nervously nod, and then head to his gold Buick. He shuffled things around in the back seat, and then emerged holding a square silver box.
“What’s that?” I asked.
“It has a key to the house, so any realtor can show the property once it’s listed,” Jill smirked.
I wanted to punch that smile right off her face.
“They can get into my house?” I rebuked.
“It’s not your house anymore, James,” she gushed.
Robert quickly moved past me, nervously galloping up the steps to my front door. I watched as he placed the keypad box on the handle, loc
king a key inside.
“Let’s go, Robert,” Jill ordered, rushing him from my porch.
“It was good to meet you; sorry about the misunderstanding, and-uh, s-sorry about all this,” Robert lamented as he tried to extend his hand one more time.
I nodded, not accepting his handshake for a second time. He quickly scurried away, like a little squirrel chasing after a nut, the queen nut at that.
As soon as they pulled out, I locked up, grunting at the box that was in my way now, and jumped in my truck. My first instinct was to drown my sorrows at the pub, drinking so much that maybe I’d call Evelyn again to come get me, only this time I was certain she wouldn’t.
Instead of beer, I decided to drive through town, looking at options for places to rent in the area. I didn’t really want to stay, to be close enough to watch the fate of the ranch, but I’d need to be, at least for now, if I wanted to find a place for my horses, and wanted to keep Pedro and Kyle working until the place was sold.
I laughed as I thought about giving them a huge bonus and severance package before the financials were no longer in my hands. That would burn Jill’s fat ass cheeks for sure.
I pulled my truck over in front of a rundown white house. It was small, possibly only one bedroom, but it was all I needed. The paint was chipped, the short sidewalk that led to the front porch was cracked, and several posts from the railing on the porch were missing. It was ugly. It was old. It was a hell hole.
A sign in the front yard with a realtors name and number made that hell hole the best option I had for finding a cheap place to stay. It was close enough to the pub that I could walk, and without a ranch or any type of work to keep me busy, the pub was most likely going to be my new residence anyway.
I dialed the number, figuring the office would be closed, and readied myself to leave a voicemail as an elderly woman answered.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t think you’d be open,” I stammered.
“We are usually closed, but I stayed behind to finish up some paperwork. What can I help you with?” the woman’s voice chirped cheerfully into my ear.
I gave her the address of the house that I’d parked in front of, and her cheerfulness increased tenfold. It was obviously a dump, and I was certain no one was beating down their door to buy the place.
“I’ll head that way now,” she exclaimed far too eagerly.
We hung up, and I sat there in my truck, staring at the worn out house, aching in my heart, sick in my belly, and feeling sorry for myself knowing that I would have to move from the ranch, the only home I’d ever known, to that ugly house.
Before I could change my mind, a car pulled up behind my truck, and a woman with bluish-black hair emerged. I greeted her as she rattled the keys in her hand.
“Let’s check it out,” she smiled.
The inside was as bad as the out, but the furniture was still intact and came with the place. That was a plus since I wasn’t allowed to take anything from the ranch, not even the bed I’d slept on since I was a teenager.
She gave me the price, which surprisingly was lower than I’d expected, even for that dump. I had enough in my account to buy it outright, not having to worry about a mortgage payment for a while.
I thought about my other options, living in an apartment complex with people above, below and beside me, leaving my horses behind since I didn’t have a trailer, skipping out on Pedro and Kyle to leave town now, or staying at the ranch while Jill pranced around on her high horse with potential buyers shoving their noses up my ass.
“I’ll take it,” I blurted.
A quick shake and she was out in her car gathering papers for me to sign. Sickness filled my gut as I signed my name, wrote a check for the down payment and set the date for closing. Since it was on the market so long, or the fact it was a dump, or possibly that I was paying cash for the place, she said she could have the closing done in the morning, and have me moved in right after. Fuck.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Evelyn
I was shocked to see the ranch already listed, just a week after the court ruling in the kids’ favor. My banker pulled up the listing, showed me the asking price, and warned me that it wasn’t a good investment.
“It’s not the land I’m investing in,” I insisted.
“Well, the asking price is ridiculous for the market right now,” he stated.
I nodded, agreeing that the price was too much. I knew the kids were eager to sell, and to have money lining their pockets, especially John, who had the judge to pay off, not to mention plenty of gambling debts.
I dialed the realtor's number as I left the bank, everything all squared away for me to make the purchase. The man who answered sounded anxious as he greeted me, mispronouncing his own name and quickly making the correction. I tried not to giggle, figuring Jill would’ve had to been eager to get the place listed if this guy was who she ended up hiring.
“I’d like to speak to you about JJ Ranch,” I spout.
“Are you interested in looking at the place?” he queried, his voice rising in pitch as he spoke.
“No. I’m interested in buying it,” I replied.
Silence fell between us, and then a rustling of papers sounded on his side of the phone.
“So, when would you like to see the property?” he stammered.
“I would prefer to meet with you somewhere else if that’s okay,” I insisted.
More silence. More papers shuffling.
After clearing his throat, he responded, stating that he was fine with wherever I wanted to meet. I gave him the address of a diner just outside of town, at least far enough away that I wouldn’t be spotted talking to the man. I wanted this to be a surprise, and the town was too small to guarantee not being spotted, and word getting back to James.
I sat in the back booth and watched out the window as I sipped on a cup of coffee. My stomach flipped and flopped with anxiety, worried that James would be offended, and refuse to accept my gesture. I’d quit trying to call him, deciding that he would call me when he was ready. I only hoped that I wasn’t making too large of a gesture, that I wasn’t right when I felt his rejection, and that what we had maybe was just sex, and that his feelings were nothing similar to mine.
I pushed back against the booth, deciding that I could handle whatever came my way. If he wasn’t interested in anything serious, then I’d simply sell him the ranch for what I paid, allowing him to pay me as he would any bank.
A growl rolled from my stomach as I thought about that possibility. I wasn’t truly sure I could handle losing James, but that was something I couldn’t control.
A gold Buick pulled up, and a man stepped out, looking around the parking lot before heading towards the front door. He was older than in his picture on the website, but I was certain it was the listing realtor.
I sat up in my booth, back straight and firm as he entered the front door. My arm lifted in the air as he scanned the place, waving him over to where I sat. Nausea rolled through my belly, my throat watering, and then my mouth. I sipped the coffee again, took a deep breath, and swallowed my nervousness down with the caffeine.
I introduced myself to the man, Robert, and then waited until he slid into the booth on the opposite side of the table between us. The waitress brought over the coffee pot, but Robert refused, ordering water instead. He was anxious, a little jumpy, so a cup of coffee could’ve set him off like a rocket ship into orbit.
“I was surprised you didn’t want to meet at the property,” Robert questioned.
“I’m very familiar with the place,” I smiled.
We got down to business right away, discussing the asking price of the property.
“You know that price is unreasonable, right?” I asked.
“It’s a huge ranch, and very well maintained. There’s a nice size herd that comes with it as well,” he stammered.
“It’s priced at the high end of the average acreage price, maybe four years ago. Things since then have declined in the market q
uite a bit, so it’s far too high; even at the high end of the market today, it’s over,” I commanded.
“I realize it’s above the market value right now, but things are starting on the up,” he stammered.
“The only way you’ll get anywhere near the asking price, is to split the land up, sell it piece by piece, and people around here aren’t buying, so you’d have to find outside buyers, and how likely is that?” I questioned.
I could tell I was getting to him as he wiped the sweat from his brow. He squirmed in his seat as the waitress placed his water in front him, quickly grabbing it and pushing the glass to his dry lips.
“My seller is insistent on selling to one buyer,” he sighed.
I tried not to smile, but I could feel my lips starting to curl and my cheeks beginning to ache. I knew his seller, and she was a bitch, and a man like Robert, weak, simple, anxious, was no match for her, or me for that matter.
“Okay, then this is what I’m willing to offer,” I scribbled my number on a napkin and pushed it across the table.
Robert paused before opening it, his eyes heavy on mine, filled with fear. I watched as his eyebrows rose at the low-ball offer, and waited for his response.
It was low, by about a hundred grand, but fair in comparison to what they asked. His voice reached a high pitch, one I’d only heard on a boy going through puberty, never a man.
“I’ll have to contact my client,” he gasped.
“I have time. Why don’t you go ahead and make the call now,” I smiled, sipping my coffee casually as I watched his anxiety grow.
He nodded, fidgeted for his phone in his pants pocket, and then dialed the number. His speaker was turned up, so I listened to the rings, one, two, three.
Jill’s voice was obnoxiously chipper as she answered, but quickly turned sour once he told her the offer he’d just received. Words that could make a sailor blush roared through the tiny speaker, into Robert’s ear, across the table to mine. I chewed on the side of my cheek to keep from smiling, snickering, or simply busting out laughing as I heard her growling at the poor realtor who was only doing his job.