River's End (River's End Series, #1)(26)

By then, Erin and Ben had already entered the barn and were getting carrots and feeding some of the mares. Jack’s attention strayed for a moment, becoming distracted by Erin’s laugh as the horse nosed her hand. Chance looked at him, then at his sister.

“Too late, boss, didn’t your brother already beat you in fucking her?”

Jack eyed Chance and his fist tightened. He’d never had the urge to smash his fist into another man as often as he did with Chance Poletti. “I was looking at my son. And has it ever occurred to you that she’s your sister? Why don’t you have even a trace of protective interest in her?”

“Question is, boss man, why do you?” Chance smirked as he stared into Jack’s eyes.

Jack stood up. “Forget the hay run. I’ll do it.”

“So I’m done here?”

Jack would happily have paid Chance to get out of his face forever. “Yeah, you’re done. Give me the keys.”

Chance tossed them at him. He should never have trusted Chance with his truck anyway. He snagged them before watching Chance stride out, and give his sister an excessively hard shove.

“Ben, come here,” Jack yelled out.

Ben glanced back at Jack with a glare, but finally came towards Jack and stared at him, his stance obviously belligerent as he crossed his arms over his scrawny chest. “What?”

Jack tossed the keys at his son. “Get the flatbed hooked up to my truck.”

Ben’s eyes bulged, and for a moment, the too cool, too bored teenaged look was gone. “By myself?”

“Yeah. You can handle it.”

Ben nodded as he grinned and backed up. “I can. Sure.”

Jack stood up and started clearing his desk off. He ignored the knot of worry in his stomach. He could not afford for Ben to mess up his truck or the trailer; but he knew if he didn’t start trusting Ben more, he’d lose him in rebellion. Almost like he was losing Joey.

“Mr. Rydell?”

He turned and found Erin in the entrance of his office. “What?”

“Uh, well, it’s probably not for me to say but…”

“Spit it out.”

“I noticed Chance staring at that. I just didn’t like the look in his eye. You should maybe think about keeping it in your house.” Jack turned to see what Erin was talking about and found she was pointing at the petty cash box.

He hesitated. “You think he’ll try to steal it?”

“I think he will try. I think he’s getting ready to bolt. That’s what he does. He up and leaves a place and disappears for weeks at a time. My mom used to get a phone call or an e-mail with his new address, his new job, and his latest lies about how well he is doing.”

Jack didn’t get her. “Why would you warn me? You know how badly I want to fire him. Why give me the ammunition?”

She glanced away. “I don’t want him to steal from the ranch.”

From Joey? Jack figured that’s what she meant and why she’d put her position there in such jeopardy.

“What happens to you if he does?”

“I’ll go stay with friends.”

“Why didn’t you to start? Why subject yourself to him? He’s a terrible brother.”

She smiled. “He really is a terrible brother. I wanted to get out of Seattle. I wanted to start a new life. I thought it might be a good jumping-off point.”

“So if Chance leaves, you’ll go back to Seattle?”

She nodded and looked him in the eye. “I really do know my place here, Mr. Rydell. You’ve given me a lot of latitude here as it is. I get that.”

“I didn’t. Joey did. You’re here at my brother’s insistence.”

“I’m here because you let me. I know whose ranch this is, even if Joey doesn’t.”

He regarded her. She wasn’t stupid. Was she playing him? And why put herself in immediate jeopardy to warn him? Was there more to her scheming than he could see? Was gaining his trust the goal here? Were Chance and she playing something like good cop/bad cop, and really planning a heist together? He hadn’t ruled that out yet.

Jack crossed his office, taking the metal box off his desk. When he stepped out, Erin followed him. As he locked his office up again, he said, “Next year, the ranch will be Joey’s ranch too. I’m trying to let him have a bigger role in it. As do all my brothers. It’s not just my ranch. Ian runs the horses with me, as well as getting the alfalfa and hay grown each year. Joey and Ben have always helped with the horse care and other miscellaneous issues that come up, anything from fence repairs to sprinkler additions. ”

“What’s next year for Joey?”

“Joe turns twenty-one. My parent’s will was written so when each brother hit the age of twenty-one, he gets his share of the ranch.”

She made an odd, strangling-like sound. He glanced over his shoulder at her.

“When Joey turns twenty-one? Meaning he’s only twenty now?”

Jack turned fully to her now. She had his attention. “Yeah? You didn’t know that? How old did you think he was?”

“I don’t know. Mid-twenties. He looks older than twenty.”

“He’s so pretty, it distracts women. You’re not the first.” Jack didn’t know what to think. She seemed genuinely shocked and bothered by how young his brother really was.