He shook himself out his thoughts and realized it was ten o’clock so he grabbed his phone. Time for his daily call with the man who was promising to make him very rich for doing very little.
“Hey, Mr. Langdon,” Jake said, as his client answered. “I’ve got something more interesting today.”
“Oh yes?” Mr. Langdon asked in his clipped Mid-West accent.
“Yeah. Mrs. Langdon went out to Freer with one of your new ranch hands earlier. They met some woman there in a diner – I’ve yet to discover who she was. But Mrs. Langdon seems to be getting chummy with this cowboy…”
Jake let this hang in the air. It was his job to report the facts, not stir the pot.
Mr. Langdon sighed, then he went pensively quiet. Jake wondered whether this was actually why he’d been following Mrs. Langdon around over the last few weeks. To find out if she was having an affair. Perhaps she’d done it before in… wherever they’d come from. He’d dealt with plenty of suspicious spouses before.
“Do you have any information on the man?” Mr. Langdon asked, sounding irritated.
“No sir,” Jake lied. “I hadn’t seen him before today, so I guess he’s only just been employed on the ranch. Let me dig a little deeper. Is there anything you want me to do for now?”
“No… just keep an eye on them. Tell me if anything untoward happens.”
“Sure, okay.”
Jake finished the call, hoping Mrs. Langdon would be safe tonight after that revelation. He actually like her a lot, even though they’d never spoken. She seemed like a sweet girl who’d inadvertently gotten caught up in her jealous husband’s illegal contraband deals. Maybe it would be better if she ran off with a cowboy. Not that he was really a cowboy of course – Jake knew that for definite now. He was Ivan Quinlan…
Jake tore open another cigarette pack, lit up, then turned Ivan’s driver’s license over and over in his fingers, studying every detail of his chiseled face and big brown eyes.
Jake wasn’t sure why he’d lied to Langdon about having nothing on Ivan. It certainly wasn’t because he’d wanted to protect him – it was probably because he wanted to confront Ivan himself. He was looking forward to revealing the dirty little secret he’d been carrying around all these years. And what a showdown that was going to be.
Chapter Ten
After Ivan had calmed down last night and they’d made love, Samira had snuck back to the ranch-house and slept in her own bed, missing him and his gorgeous arms.
She awoke this morning, feeling excited and optimistic, and drifted to the dining room for breakfast – where Mr. Langdon was already tucking into his eggs and bacon, while reading his newspaper.
Samira still couldn’t figure Langdon out. He was superficially friendly, with a kind face, big eyes, and laughter lines. He possessed a full head of hair, and he was in great shape for a man in his forties. And he was obviously doing well to be able to afford this ranch… and of course there was the matter of the suitcases. But at times he seemed gruff and moody. Today the seething tension crackled from him like static in a storm. Had he found out what she’d been up to with Ivan?
“Morning.” She eased herself into a seat at the other end of the long mahogany table.
He didn’t look up from his newspaper. “Good morning, Samira.”
Samira reached over and grabbed the box of muesli that the housemaid always put out for her, along with a jug of milk. She loved this room – the huge windows gave sweeping views of the entire ranch on three sides, and the high ceilings were decorated with oak beams – giving it a farmhouse feel. Every morning she sat here contemplating how lucky she was… but today she just wanted to get her passport and leave. She’d always been a bit of a rebel back in Iran, and she’d hoped America would allow her to be free – to express herself. But on this ranch she felt trapped and stifled. Mr. Langdon had offered her salvation, but he’d clipped her wings.
All she wanted was Ivan. He was all she’d ever wanted…
She poured the milk over her muesli, hoping to warm Langdon’s chilly mood with some small talk. “Oh, here’s a strange thing. Yesterday I was standing by the creek near the servants’ cottages, and the bank suddenly gave way. It was so odd… it felt as if someone had loosened it. No one’s been doing any work there, have they?”
He rustled his newspaper. “What were you doing at the creek by the servants’ cottages?”
“Just riding my horse… enjoying the sunshine. I was lucky because one of the ranch hands pulled me out. I can’t swim… did you know that?”
He lowered his newspaper and gazed at her. “Yes, you’d mentioned it.”
His sinister tone sent a wave of apprehension up her spine. She opened her mouth to enquire about her passport, but he spoke over her. “So where did you go yesterday then, hmm?”
“Oh… I just had a coffee with some new guy… a ranch hand. We got chatting. Apparently he’s… we’ve got similar interests.”
Langdon raised an eyebrow. “You’re not planning to run off with a cowboy, are you? After all I’ve done for you?”
“No, of course not. I just wanted to get out of here for a while, but I couldn’t find you to check if it was okay.”
He inspected her with a blank expression. “If I find out you’ve been lying to me, I’ll be very upset. Now I’ll ask you again – have you got friends or family in America?”