“She was his friend.”
Jake looked at the woman again. She was still watching him, her gaze unfaltering.
“Must have been his very good friend,” he said coolly.
“Listen, man—”
“She doesn’t look much like a rancher to me.”
Travis laughed. “The understatement of the year.”
“It doesn’t help that the Chambers place is a disaster,” Caleb said.
“It almost always was.”
“Remember when we were kids and you worked there a couple of summers? You had lots of ideas about how to improve things.”
“Yeah, well, old man Chambers didn’t want to hear any ideas but his own.”
“Addison would.”
Jake looked at Caleb. “Addison?”
“She’s a friend.”
Jake brought his beer to his lips and took a long swallow. Why was the taste of it more bitter than before?
“Woman looks like that probably has a lot of ‘friends.’”
“She is,” Caleb repeated, his tone as cool as Jake’s, “exactly what I said. A friend.”
“Whatever you say.”
“Dammit, Jacob—”
“The point is,” Travis said quickly, “we thought you might help her.”
Jake almost laughed. He wasn’t having much luck helping himself, much less somebody else.
“You know, take a look at the land, the buildings—”
“Here’s the deal, Trav. I’m leaving tomorrow.”
“We figured it would be something like that. Well, no sweat. Check the property for her, leave next week instead. A business deal.”
“Is that what you call your arrangement with her? A business deal?”
Why in hell had he said that? What did his brother’s relationship with a woman he’d never met—and never would meet—matter?
He saw Travis’s eyes narrow and he put out his hand and squeezed his shoulder.
“Sorry.” He managed a quick smile. “I guess I’m not used to talking to people who aren’t wearing cotton nightgowns that leave their butts hanging out.”
“As a matter of fact, the answer is yes. She’s my client. Caleb’s, too. I’m her financial consultant. He’s her lawyer. She’s a smart, tough broad. An attorney, like Caleb, but from New York. If I were you, I wouldn’t underestimate her.”
No. A man would be foolish to underestimate a woman who could pin him with a look.
“No danger of that,” Jake said. “I told you, I’m not staying, so you’d best not recommend me to—”