Summer Days (Fool's Gold #7)(55)
She bent down to pick them up, only to pause. The first sheet was a crude rendering of a development. Small houses lined narrow streets. As Rafe’s business included development, she wouldn’t have thought anything of the sketch, if not for what was written on top.
Castle Ranch.
CHAPTER TWELVE
“YOU’RE SURE?” CHARLIE ASKED, then held up a hand. “I’m not taking his side. I’m just saying, you need to be certain before we move forward with any plan.”
Heidi sat at a table in Jo’s Bar. She’d asked her friends to join her for lunch. She needed help coming up with some way to defeat Rafe.
“I’m sure.” Heidi held on to her anger. It was the only thing that kept her from giving in to tears. “I looked through all the papers he had. He has a survey of the ranch, and pretty much every acre is accounted for. I don’t know how he managed that without us seeing—except there are always workmen coming and going. He generously left his mother the main house and the land around it for her animals. But that’s it. Everywhere else are his ticky-tacky houses.”
She clutched her glass of iced tea. “I was so stupid. He used me. All this time, I thought he was being nice. He actually gave me the names of three people to help me sell my cheese and soap in Asia. I thought it was because we were becoming friends. It wasn’t. He feels guilty. Or worse, what if he was just trying to distract me? We’re not friends. I’m in the way of his cheap-house empire. He’s planning on taking all of it. He’s going to turn that beautiful land into a development, and there’s nothing I can do to stop him.”
Despite being furious, she felt the first whisper of tears.
“I can’t let him win. Where will Glen and I go? I have the goats—they need land. And the caves are perfect for aging my cheese. Plus, this is h-home.” Her voice cracked and she grabbed a napkin. “I don’t want to have to leave Fool’s Gold.”
She felt Charlie and Annabelle squeezing her arm.
“You’re not going to leave,” Annabelle promised. “We’ll figure something out. I just can’t believe he’s doing this in secret.”
“He expects to win,” Charlie said flatly. “Why not? With his money and influence, he doesn’t live like the rest of us. I’m sure he figures the judge will be dazzled by his plans.”
“She doesn’t have to be,” Heidi said, wiping away tears. “Even if I get sales reps interested in my cheese, it’s going to be a while until money’s coming in. I don’t have weeks, let alone months. Assuming we have until midsummer before we’re called back before the judge, I’ll be lucky to have saved ten thousand dollars. That’s only ten percent of what Glen took from May. Plus, May is completely settling into the ranch. She’s had Rafe fix the fence line, and now they’re expanding the barn. She’s bought animals.”
More tears fell. “I can’t pay her back for that.”
“You’re not going to be responsible for the repairs,” Annabelle told her. “The judge never made that a condition.”
“I know, but I’m worried the judge will think May is losing even more.”
“Do you think May knows about Rafe’s plan?” Charlie asked. “Is she in on it?”
Heidi had asked herself the same question. Slowly, she shook her head. “I can’t believe that. She’s genuinely sweet. She could have been angry at what Glen did. She could have insisted he go to jail, but she didn’t. Plus, she loves the ranch and isn’t that into business. This has to be Rafe.”
There was so much more she couldn’t bring herself to say. That she’d begun to fall for him. That she’d trusted him. That last night she’d made love with him, giving herself to him in every way possible. Talk about being a fool.
“He’s trying to distract me from his real plan,” she murmured, hoping the pain in her chest was more about wounded pride than a broken heart. “That’s why he’s being so helpful. It all started…” She swallowed as the truth fell into place. “It’s the casino. That’s who the houses are for. The people who will work there. I’m the one who took him there. Athena got out, and he came with me to collect the goats. He saw it then.”
“We can fix this,” Annabelle told her.
“Any idea how?” Charlie asked. “I don’t mean to be difficult, but wanting something doesn’t make it so.”
“There has to be a roadblock.” Annabelle leaned both elbows on the table and rested her head in her hands. “What gets in the way of construction?”
“Rules, regulations. Zoning.” Charlie brightened. “We could talk to the mayor. She has to like you more than she likes Rafe. She’d be on our side.”
“I don’t know the mayor that well,” Heidi told them. “Besides, why would she be against him building all those houses? Doesn’t she want Fool’s Gold to grow?”
“Sure, but not this way,” Annabelle said.
“Why not? Won’t those workers need somewhere to live? The ranch is perfect.” Heidi blinked back more tears. “That’s the problem. Who cares about a few goats and my dreams when compared with all those people?”
“Don’t give up,” Charlie said. “We’ll find something. If we can’t use the law to help us, what about the media? Aren’t there groups that hate what Rafe does? Maybe if we contacted one of them.”