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Instead of answering, Garret threw her a fiery glare and told her, “Wyatt is dangerous, and I don’t want you engaging him, you hear?”
She nodded. “Yes.”
“I was in talks to marry Anna. It wasn’t my idea to start with. I don’t care for the girl, but her father approached me. Said this arrangement would help us both out. Her pa owns the biggest cattle ranch around these parts, and it’s no secret he means to expand. He’s been pushing us to sell to him for years now. I don’t even know how my pa held out, with as dire as his finances got. Roy too. Jennings has been putting a lot of pressure on him. Jennings cannot find out that Roy is hurt, you understand? He will snatch his land. That stays quiet.”
“Okay,” she murmured.
“The man is ruthless, and not one to be baited by you. Ever.” He narrowed his gaze on her. “Jennings came to me and said if I paired with his daughter, he would let up on buying my place and give me a considerable dowry for Anna. Enough to save the ranch. Said she fancied me and he would give anything to see her happy. Now, I’m not a stupid man. I know this will only be a temporary fix, because as soon as I step out of line, Jennings will be on me. He’ll own me because of that pairing. That’s why I’ve been trying to raise the money myself to save the Lazy S. I don’t want his money, or his daughter, but I’ll do anything in my power to save this place. It's my…” He made a strange rattling sound in his chest and shook his head. When he looked over at her again, there was resolve in his gaze. “It’s my territory and I need it to stay steady.”
“What do you mean by stay steady?” she asked, unable to help herself.
“That’s all I can give you. I need the land. That’s that.”
There was the shutdown. There was the cutoff to how deep he would allow a conversation to go. It would have to be enough for now. “Did you raise enough on the cattle drive?”
“No. I was never going to be able to raise the cash we needed from one drive, but I thought we could get closer. Maybe have some hope of something working out. Prices dropped, though, and waiting a couple of days wasn’t going to see them on the rise. We sold the first day, and thank the good Lord on that one, because they kept dropping. We’re still not anywhere close though. I have to figure it out.”
“I could sell my nicer dresses. They won’t bring in a lot, but it could help. Oh! And I have a pair of sapphire earrings from Boston. They could catch a fair price if we find the right buyer.”
Weariness swam in the depths of his brilliant gaze. “No, woman. Keep your baubles. They’ll be a comfort to you in the days to come. It won’t make a difference anyway, and this isn’t your concern.”
“It is so my concern,” she said quietly. “You made sure of that when you said vows in front of a preacher.”
Garret grew quiet for a few minutes before he told her, “I don’t need your help or anyone else’s.” And then he kicked Rooney into a trot, and said, “Keep up. Dark is coming, and trust me when I say we aren’t going to want to be caught in this.”
Chapter Eight
By the time they pulled the horses up to the barn, pelting rain had soaked Eliza’s dress clean through, and she had to squint against the stinging drops that sought purchase against her face. She was freezing. Lenny hopped off and took her mare inside the barn while Garret dismounted and strode to where Eliza still sat Buck.
“Here, let me.” He reached for her waist as she slung a leg stiffly over the saddle.
His hands felt so strong as he lifted her down off Buck, and after she was balanced and standing, he left them there for just a moment longer. He peered at her with those piercing eyes as if waiting for her to say something. She shivered at his intimate touch on her waist.
He dropped his gaze to his hands and let her go. “Get inside before you catch cold,” he said in a clipped voice, then disappeared into the barn with the horses.
The moment had come and passed so quickly between them. Had she imagined the tenderness in his eyes, the warmth of his touch? The imprint of his hands and the caress of his look still heated her skin through the cloth of her dress. Get inside before you catch cold. Some part of him cared for her.
Garret Shaw had a heart after all.
The rain barraged her as she stumbled the distance to the house on very-sore legs. All of that time in the saddle had given her an ache in every inch of her body. She shook her dress out on the porch, and shook her head at the puddle she made on the dry wooden boards, then went inside. Her stomach grumbled that breakfast had been a small slice of cornbread a long time ago. No doubt Lenny and Garret would be hungry too. In an attempt to try to decide what to fix for dinner, she began riffling through her hidden stash of recipes.
Garret flung the door open and entered, cursing, and shook his hat off. When she slammed the drawer closed, he leered at her. “Don’t feel like you have to cook for me. I know that’s not a skill they teach highfalutin city folk.”
He headed into his bedroom and she scowled at his back. He’d been almost kind outside, and then had to go and ruin it by opening his mouth.
Very well, no pressure. If she fried up a mud pie and put it on the table, she was sure he would be impressed.
She fried up eggs instead, and reheated a pan of leftover biscuits. She slapped some dried ham on the side of his plate and gave him the half of the scrambled eggs with the shell in it, then began to eat without him. Her manners could be atrocious, too.
Garret poked his head out of his room and narrowed his eyes. “It smells good in here.”
She washed the mouthful of eggs down with a sip of water and ignored him. He slowly made his way to the table and sat in front of his filled plate. She noticed his dry pants and white button-up shirt that was also dry. He’d changed. She should probably do the same.
As he settled in to eat, she rose and set her empty dish in the yawning sink. “I’m going to take a plate to Lenny. I’ll be back soon.”
“You can’t go out there when it’s comin’ down like this. It’s stormin’ bad out there. Lenny can fend for herself. The hands’ cabin has a kitchen in it.”
While he hungrily dug into his dinner, she packed up the plate for Lenny anyway and put her soggy shawl on.
