She had no right to be here. He couldn’t care less if a piece of paper stated she owned half his land.
No one, not even the law, could make her presence acceptable.
“You out here hidin’?”
Abe frowned as Mitch Goody, his friend and farm hand, ducked through the doorway. “I’m not hiding.”
“Got your company, I see,” Mitch said in his slow Texas drawl.
“Buddy, the term ‘company’ implies she’s welcome.” Abe grabbed an unopened beer from the cooler and tossed it to Mitch. “Pull up a bale. Bet you could use a cold one, too.”
“I believe I’ll do that.” Mitch settled onto the bale.
“Are the cows looking good?” Abe asked.
After taking a long draw from the bottle, Mitch nodded. “They’re working out fine on the north end.” Mitch removed his black Stetson and scratched his thick mane of sandy curls. “Your unwelcome guest settling in okay?”
“Dammit!” Abe swore; Mitch jerked. Abe jabbed a thumb toward the house. “I’m a stranger in my own home.” His anger, which had just begun to ebb, swelled again. “I can’t even relax in my own bed.”
The black stallion in the farthest stall whinnied as he dug a hoof at the ground.
“It’s okay, Danger. She’s too afraid of horses to come anywhere close to the barn.” Abe chuckled. He was safe here.
Mitch slid him a curious glance. “Would you be sittin’ around in that big ol’ house right now?”
“If I wanted to, I couldn’t,” he said.
Mitch broke into laughter. Abe snorted. The situation wasn’t the slightest bit funny. He finished off his beer. He was done for the night. He had to get up early in the morning, and the last thing he needed was a hangover on top of his troubles. His mare Sally came to the edge of her stall and neighed softly, tapping her foot. Abe laughed. “Don’t you start with me too, old girl.”
Mitch pushed his hat back on his head and shrugged a broad shoulder. “In my family, Abe, we stick together. Dee is your family.”
Abe bit back a scowl. His idea of family wasn’t a woman who weaseled her way into his property. “She’s not family. She was engaged to my brother. That doesn’t make her blood thicker than water, my friend.”
He’d only briefly discussed Dee with Mitch. A man didn’t need to air his troubles to everyone, not even good friends.
Mitch shook his head and said, “That sounded a lot like bitterness, pal. She didn’t betray Jacob, did she?”
Abe narrowed his eyes. “Why do you ask that?”
Mitch shrugged. “Somethin’s ruffled your feathers.”
Abe leaned his back against the rough wood and thought back five years. “No, she didn’t betray him,” he answered softly. “But two months don’t make her family.” He held up two fingers. “Two. Anyway, whose side are you on?”
“Yours, partner. Or,” there was a long pause, “maybe not.”
Abe raised his head. “What?” He stared at Mitch, who froze with his bottle caught in midair and eyes rounded. “What’s wrong with you?” Abe followed Mitch’s stare to the open barn door.
Dee stood in the doorway, her fists planted on her hips, her lips pursed accusingly.
“Oh, shit,” Abe whispered.
“Am I interrupting?” Dee took the first step across the threshold of his private zone.
There went his space.
“Hell yes.” Abe shook his head. He caught Mitch ogling Dee appreciatively and wanted to clock him in the jaw. “Can’t a man have a beer in peace?” he asked.
“Are you expecting an answer?”
“Not from you,” Abe grumbled.
Abe restrained himself while Dee surveyed her surroundings with apparent interest. With her every step across the dirt floor, her boots shuffled and his heart thudded in rhythm. As far as he knew, this was the first time she’d ever set foot in the barn.
He’d asked her to go riding once, and she’d turned him down without a second’s hesitation. Something about a childhood accident with a pony.
“Wow, it’s clean in here,” Dee said. “Actually, downright immaculate.” She ran her finger along the sharp tines of a pitchfork hanging from the wall. “Aren’t barns supposed to smell like manure?”
Abe scoffed and rolled his eyes upward. Heaven help him. He caught the quirk at one corner of Mitch’s mouth.
The barn cat ambled up to Dee and wriggled against her ankle. She looked down at the fat tabby, which stared up at her with bright green eyes as if asking, Will you pet me?
Abe half expected her to shoo the scraggly critter away, but instead she dipped down and patted the cat’s head, earning a rumbling purr. “What’s her name?” Dee asked.
“Traitor.”
Dee’s head shot up. She caught him with a piercing gaze. Her mouth curved into a perfect frown. He bit his lip to keep from laughing. She then turned her gaze to Mitch, who was obviously smitten. His toothy grinned stretched for miles.
Abe started to offer introductions but stopped. Why should he? It wasn’t like she was his guest. Yeah, he was pickling in his own juices, but he didn’t give a damn.
It was too much to hope she’d get the hint, turn around and walk out. Instead she approached Mitch and offered a finely manicured hand. Her smile looked as fake as her nails. “Hi, I’m Dee.”
Mitch managed a dumbfounded “Hello,” and clumsily stuck his hand into hers. “I’m Mitch. Nice to meet you. Did you have a safe trip?”
“Most definitely,” she answered with a side glance for Abe. “Thanks for asking.”
Mitch pushed his hat up slightly with the tip of his thumb. “I bet this is a change from the big city.”
She shrugged and wrapped her arms around her waist. “It will be a nice change–at least, I hope.” Abe waited for another glance in his direction, but it didn’t come. “You’re not from around these parts, are you?”
Mitch chuckled. “Can’t hide it. I moved here from Texas almost four years ago.”
“You’re a long way from home.”
Abe groaned. So much for peace and quiet.
Dee turned her back to him, giving all of her attention to Mitch, who seemed more than welcoming. “Did Abe tell you I’ll be staying here permanently?”
Mitch glanced at Abe across the room. Abe scowled back.
“No, I don’t–”
“I didn’t tell him it’s permanent because that’s a lie.” Abe shifted on the hay. “Didn’t you get that much from our earlier conversation?” Damn, he really needed a cigarette. Since that was impossible for the moment, he reached for another cold one. It’d definitely relax his mood. Screw the potential hangover.
Dee smiled coolly. “Actually, after our conversation, it became much clearer that this is home.”
He squeezed the neck of the bottle until he thought it would shatter. “It’s my house, my farm, my life, and I refuse to share it...especially with you,” he growled. The tension grew. One lit match would have combusted the air
Mitch cleared his throat and moved