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Without saying a word because he knew he’d regret it if he did, Daniel turned Diamond around and urged her into a gallop. He couldn’t look at his brother in the eye, not knowing what he did now. His coffee shop might go out of business and if he’d known that Megan was planning on coming to town with her ridiculous business plan, he might have been able to do something to prepare.
Now he was up against a wall, and he didn’t know if he’d be able to survive.
What was he going to do if he couldn’t get a grasp on things? There was no one to bail him out. There was no plan B. He’d end up moving back in with his parents and having to mooch off them and what they’d created.
If he couldn’t even keep his business afloat, what good would he be to a family ranch?
His thoughts continued to spiral until he made it back to the ranch. He burst into the clearing and headed straight for the barn, not caring who might have seen him come in. Fresh air had done not a lick of good. He’d need something else to help him past this stumbling block.
Daniel slipped from his saddle and marched toward Diamond’s stall. This could have very well been the beginning of the end.
“I think we got off on the wrong foot.”
He yelped and spun around to find the very cause of his bad day leaning against the wall of the barn. Her shrewd eyes stared at him over the rims of her glasses, but she didn’t move. “Maybe we should talk.”
CHAPTERTWO
Megan didn’t knowwhat she was thinking when she’d told Gabby that she wanted to clear her head. It was strange enough to be seated at the table with the family of the guy she might put out of business. And she hated confrontation more than anything.
So why had she marched into the barn to wait for Daniel?
That answer remained to be seen.
She’d come up against people like Daniel—men and women who thought they could bully new business owners and push them out of small towns like this. Big cities, too. Granted those businesses hadn’t belonged to her, they’d belonged to her clients but she’d seen it all.
The best way to combat them was to make it known she wasn’t going anywhere.
Daniel stared at her like she was evil incarnate and if she hadn’t been born and raised in New York, she might have been intimidated. “You need to leave,” he muttered through gritted teeth.
“I’m sorry? I came to you to see if we could hash this out, and you want me to leave?” She pushed away from the barn wall and headed toward him, head held high. “You really think that’s going to work? Just ask me to leave and I’ll do it?”
He glanced past her toward the door then brought his focus to her face. The smile he wore looked more like a sneer. “I don’t need to ask you to leave, this is my home. You’re officially trespassing.”
She snickered. “Boy, you really have a complex, you know that? I don’t think you can kick me out when someone whoalsolives here was the one who invited me.”
Daniel continued to glower at her, and she found it harder to remain calm. Her temper threatened to boil over just as his had. They appeared to be cut from the same cloth. If she had to guess, she would say that neither one of them was about to back down. Apparently, he could read thoughts because his next statement confirmed her suspicions.
“I don’t know what you thought you were going to accomplish by coming to talk to me, but I’m not going to play nice. I refuse to let you ruin my business just because you didn’t do your research when you came to town.”
“Who said I didn’t do my research?” There was no taking down the walls he’d erected. Even if she wanted it, there wouldn’t be any compromises. She lifted her chin and crossed her arms preparing for the fight to escalate. “I knew what I was doing when I decided to set up shop. This town only has one coffee shop and no traditional bookstore. I don’t know what you’ve been smoking, but some people actually like to have a choice in where they buy and drink their coffee.”
His face turned so red she nearly laughed out loud. He opened his mouth, then his eyes darted away, and he snapped it shut. She almost asked him why he was backing down but then the sound of hooves clopping entered the barn and that answered every question she might have had.
Bo to the rescue.
She’d spent enough time with Bo to know that he’d stick up for her even when it came to his brother—mostly because if he didn’t Gabby would put him in his place. Megan gave Bo a warm smile and her shoulders relaxed but her relief was short-lived when she saw his face.
He actually looked terrified.
Bo’s eyes darted from Megan to Daniel and back. “Megan…” he drawled, “why are you in the barn?”
She gestured toward Daniel. “I wanted to tell your brother that my research suggests there is plenty of opportunity for both of our businesses to thrive here.”
Bo dismounted from his horse and didn’t venture a step further. “Are you sure that was a good idea?” He muttered it under his breath, but he was a fool if he thought Daniel couldn’t hear him.
Megan released a sigh, realizing that perhaps she’d overestimated where Bo’s loyalties were. She forced herself to meet Daniel’s gaze once more, not sure what she could say to salvage what this conversation had become. “You’re right. I should never have come.”
“Megan, wait—”
