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“Not at all?”
“Chopsticks, and maybeMary Had a Little Lamb.”
“Seriously?” Sarah’s eyes were wide with surprise.
Eli shrugged. “Music is not my talent, much as everyone wanted it to be. But please, play. It’s not played often enough.”
“I can tell.”
Tensed muscles greeted Eli unexpectedly. The tone of Sarah’s voice didn’t tell her if she was upset or annoyed, but either way, that comment had been unexpected. She’d thought she’d been making progress with not being as short in response to anything Sarah did, but perhaps she was wrong or perhaps Sarah just expected her to be a jerk the entire time she was there.
“Well, I have to go back out and check on my cattle.”
“You do that a lot.”
Eli shrugged. “It’s calving season, so yes, I check on them frequently. I also don’t have any hired help right now, so that leaves it up to me.”
“Why not?”
“Why not what?” Eli said, exasperation leaving her lips even though she didn’t want it to. She wasn’t about to apologize for it or rein it in either. Something about Sarah pulled out her annoyance in ways she hadn’t expected, though she did suspect it wasn’t Sarah she was annoyed with but rather her own dang self.
Sarah didn’t move from the piano bench. She stared with wide eyes at Eli, and Eli suspected she had hurt her somehow. Eli really should apologize, but she was too tired to think of the words.
“Why don’t you have anyone hired to help?”
“First, hiring people costs money and takes out of my profit. Second, finding good help, help that shows up, is not as easy as you think. The pay is low, the work is hard, the days are long. I’ll hire seasonally around harvest to get my wheat and milo in, but I prefer to take care of my cattle myself.”
Sarah put her hands up in the air like she was under arrest. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.”
Sighing, Eli rubbed the bridge of her nose and set her coffee on the end table next to her. “No, I’m sorry. I’m short with you. I’m tired, that’s all.”
Standing up, she bent down and grabbed her coffee. When she stood back up, Sarah stood within inches of her, and Eli’s breath caught in her throat, her heart moving its way up and making it impossible for her to speak.
“When do you think we’ll be able to get my car?”
“Tomorrow afternoon is when Mrs. Hargrave will have time. She called early this morning.”
“Oh.” Disappointment flittered over Sarah’s face, and Eli had to resist the urge to reach out and grab her fingers. If there had been one thing she’d made clear to herself, Sarah was off-limits. There should be no touching, no helping, no flirting, nothing.
“Was there something you left in it?”
“My phone. I wanted to tell my friend I got here safe.”
“Oh!” Eli nodded. “Did you have a computer? You could email her. Or my cellphone.”
Sarah shook her head. “I don’t know her number.”
“Want to use my computer, then?”
“If I could.” Sarah gave her a sweet smile, her chin knocking up an inch. “I don’t want her thinking I fell off the end of the world or something.”
Chuckling, Eli shook her head slowly. “Well, you are close to the end of the world here.”
“But it’s beautiful, just like you said it was.” Sarah’s eyes locked on Eli’s, and her stomach flopped as she felt drawn into Sarah.
Sarah reached out, a hand on Eli’s forearm. “Where’s the computer?”
“Uh...my office.” Eli cleared her throat. “I’ll show you before I leave.”
