Brenne shook her head. “If you’re designing an office based off a chicken coop, are you expecting your employees to lay eggs?”
Gavin blinked at her. “Well, no. But work is work, right?”
“It’s clear you’ve never been in a poultry house before.” She laughed. “If you tried to make me stay in one for eight hours a day, I’d peck you to death.”
Gavin laughed, a loud bark of a sound that riled the chickens up.
“Come on, let’s get you away from here before all the eggs come out scrambled,” she said, taking his arm and guiding him back to the path.
Brenne could tell that with Gavin, she had to expect the unexpected. Oh boy, my brothers are going to love him.
CHAPTER 15
ALEX
“They’ve been out there for a while.”
Alex stood on the porch of the MacAllen farmhouse, peering out into the night. Elijah was in one of the rocking chairs, and Jack sat on the railing that ran between the porch columns. He turned to the MacAllens, trying to school his features but fearing some of the urgency that was churning in his belly was leaking out.
“Brenne’s a big girl,” Jack said after a moment. “She can handle herself.”
“I’d be more worried about what our dear sister is saying to Mr. Gavin Jeffries,” Elijah said around the toothpick that was perched on his bottom lip.
“What in the hell was Evan thinking?” Alex groaned, repeating again what everyone had been saying since he strutted through the door with the billionaire.
“He wasn’t. Thinking isn’t in my twin brother’s skillset.” Elijah frowned. “I almost pity him. Jameson and Jim are likely tearing him a new one right now.”
After what felt like hours, Alex caught sight of a light bobbing in the distance. He watched it until it resolved into two figures, walking much too close for his comfort. Brenne’s arm was loosely looped through Gavin’s, and they seemed mighty familiar with one another.
The green monster inside him gnashed its teeth, spoiling for blood. He kept a chain on it, but only barely. Brenne’s gaze met his, but he could read nothing in her expression. They stopped short of the porch steps. “Thank you for the tour. I’ve learned more than I could have hoped,” Gavin said with a polite nod in her direction.
“Come back anytime,” Brenne said, warmth in her voice. Warmth that made Alex feel cold all over.
“Well, I’d love to, but I’m having a little problem leaving. Your brother drove me here.”
Jack swiveled on the railing and leapt down to the dirt. “I’ll give you a lift back into town. Or wherever it is you’re staying.”
“We’re renting a property about five miles from here. The advance teams are working out of what used to be a mill of some sort.”
“The old Hayden mill,” Elijah volunteered. “It’s on the historical registry. It’s a museum of sorts. I wasn’t aware they rented it out as accommodations.”
“Well, people tend to roll out the red carpet for IG,” Gavin said with a polite smile. “I heard it was the Governor herself who suggested it.”
Jack led him in the direction of his vehicle, a beat-up SUV that had seen better days. Alex felt a perverse burst of joy at the idea of the billionaire riding around in Jack’s rust trap. Then he turned his attention fully to the female in front of him.
“Well?” he said after a moment, unable to help himself.
“Well what, Doc?”
“What happened on your walk?” Elijah filled in, not in the mood for his sister’s game. “What did you find out about him?”
“I found out that Gavin Jeffries is not easy to read. He doesn’t think like we do.” She climbed the steps to the porch to sit in the chair next to her brother. “And he seems obsessed with chickens for some reason I can’t understand.”
“Chickens?” Alex’s fist clenched and unclenched, the tension inside him making him feel off balance. Having to watch Brenne walk arm and arm into the night with Gavin had him feeling loopy.
“You heard him going on about Mama’s fried chicken during dinner,” she replied. “Then on our walk he couldn’t wait to see the poultry house. He was fascinated.”
“Well what in the living hell could that mean?” Elijah asked, puzzled.
“I wish I could tell you,” Brenne said with a laugh. Alex’s brow furrowed. She seems to be in an awfully good mood.
“That’s enough for one night,” Elijah said, standing. “I’m gonna find my wife and kid and head home and to bed. We can put our heads together again tomorrow.” He went into the house, leaving Alex and Brenne alone on the porch.
Alex took the chair Elijah just vacated. “Checking out the chickens can’t be the only thing that happened.”
“Well, I did offer to take him riding. We never made it to the stables, and he said he wants to see more of the property, so—”
“Riding?” His hands gripped the arms of the chair hard enough to turn his knuckles white. “You’re going to show him around the ranch on horseback?”
“Yeah. Why not?” Her artless shrug and seeming indifference irked him.
“You’re very blasé for someone about to show off one of the best pieces of land in the county to the man looking to buy property.” There was a lot else that he wanted to say, but he managed to keep the little green monster’s lips sealed.
Brenne’s jaw dropped just the same. “It’s just a ride around the ranch. You act like I’m some realtor and it’s an open house. You’re being ridiculous.”
“Let’s see what your brothers say about it.” He stood, walking around her.
Brenne didn’t let him pass freely, however. She stood up, grabbing him by the arm. “You’re gonna go tell on me to my brothers? Are you for real?”
“Are you? Don’t you realize what’s at stake?” He pulled his arm out of her grip.
“Gavin could buy or sell any damn thing he wanted. What does it matter if I show him around? He could have an army of drones map every inch of the damn ranch and there isn’t anything we could do short of shooting them out of the sky. If IG wants something, IG takes it.”
“And does that extend to you?” he asked, his tone dropping and filling with anger. “Is that what this ride is really about? A billionaire to hang off your belt?”
Brenne’s eyes narrowed. “Tread carefully, Alexander Parsons.”
“You were out there quite a while, Miss MacAllen. How do I know he hasn’t already had a ride?”
She slapped him hard enough for his ear to start ringing. “I swear to God, Alex, if you ever speak to me like that again, I’m gonna let my mama wash your mouth out with soap. Now get out of here before I go tell my brothers what you just said.”
She shoved him in the direction of the steps, and Alex didn’t fight back. He hustled down the steps and over to his vehicle without a backward glance.
Two days later, he was just as ornery. And he wasn’t the only one. “He came back yesterday,” Jameson said, then stopped for another sip of coffee. “You should have seen him trying to mount old Ginger. I almost felt bad for the bastard.”