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FIVE
Laura did her best to ignore the void she felt when Rafe left the room. Instead, she focused on the conversations going on around her. Everyone seemed to be happy. It was so unlike many places Laura had worked that it almost made her uncomfortable. Three men finished their food fast, placed their dishes in the sink, and tipped their hats to Elijah first and then to her. Laura nodded and tried to hide her embarrassment.
After the food was done, the rest of the people in the cabin pitched in to clean up, so she did as well. Harper took the little girl, Quinn, into the small living room and was playing peek-a-boo with her. They cleared the meal away fast, with all of them working together.
“I’m going to take Laura and Harper out to the new cabin using the regular driveway,” Eli said to Sadie.
“Don’t be long, I—”
“Have a doctor’s appointment,” he finished pulling her close and kissing her. It was a passionate kiss that had Laura blushing and looking away. She’d never seen adults share physical contact before leaving the church compound where her family had lived. The real world was a culture shock, but to see it in person was even more unsettling.
It made her think of the long, drugging kisses Rafe had given her.
No.
Not going there. He was one of the employees. That meant sex was off the table. Even she knew that.
Laura didn’t see Sadie go to the living room, but she heard her coax Quinn to come with her using the promise of a new box of crayons. It almost wasn’t enough though.
“Want Hawpa,” the little girl insisted.
“I have to go see my new house, Quinn, but I promise to come back for lunch. Ok?”
“Wunch?”
“Yup, we’ll eat together.”
Laura turned to see the small girl get to her feet and reach for Sadie. “Dee, up.”
Sadie bent over, but Elijah beat her to it, swinging Quinn up in the air until she squealed. Then he handed the little one over with another quick kiss to Sadie’s cheek.
Elijah turned his attention to her now. “Follow me in your car for now. I’m planning to get another side-by-side for you to use around the property too, but I haven’t had the chance yet.”
Laura and Harper followed him out of the house and then back down the driveway to the road. In another mile or so, they turned down a much nicer driveway and took that for two miles before it opened up into a beautiful valley with a lake.
Laura gasped at the scene. It was early in fall, but the coolness had already started turning some of the leaves. A single cabin stood on the banks of the lake, but Laura could see other sites that were already cleared with materials nearby for at least four more.
Elijah stopped at the cabin and helped them carry their few bags inside. He frowned. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think about stocking food. Nettie makes breakfast and lunch, but everyone is on their own for dinner. If you make a shopping list, I can grab what you need while I’m in town with Sadie.”
Harper waved him off. “It’s fine. I remember the way into town.”
Elijah nodded. “I’m sorry, it’s not much. We’ll work on something better for long term. This is actually supposed to be part of a rental cabin project to bring in some more income.”
Laura glanced around. She wanted to tell him that this was the nicest place they’d lived since leaving the church, but that might not be the best first impression she should give him.
Instead, she directed the questions to the business.
“I know we talked about the herd size and increasing how many horses you have on hand. Are you planning to make the animals or the hospitality the biggest part of the business?”
Eli smiled. “Honestly, some of both. My wife is planning to run the hospitality end of things and I’ll be responsible for the actual ranch.”
He looked away, and when he returned to looking at her, his face was somber. “The financial situation here isn’t great. My mother and her husband ran this place into the ground. The herd is too small and hasn’t had enough diversity in breeding, and we don’t have the money to buy new stock.”
Laura frowned. If they couldn’t buy stock, how were they building the cabins?
As though reading her mind, Eli continued. “My wife got a business loan with her trust fund as collateral. I’m trying not to use any of her money on the ranch end of things, which makes the going slow. We can talk about that later, though. I’ll let you two get settled and we’ll meet tomorrow to set up some objectives and goals based on your assessment of our situation.”
“That sounds good. I look forward to it.”
