Strictly Business (7 page)

When they got back to the ranch, she stepped out of the car
and wandered up to the porch. She just wasn’t ready to go inside. She pulled
the sticks out of her hair without thinking, shaking it loose as she settled
onto the swing.

Cody sucked in his breath. “Damn, maybe I
should
have
asked what else you were hiding.”

She looked over at him. Whoops, she was just way too
comfortable with him. She kept forgetting to keep her barriers in place.
“That’s about it.”
Except for the eyes, but no one saw those. They were too
creepy looking.

“Stand up. Let me see how long it is.” She stood up, her
hair falling to her waist. “It’s beautiful. You’re like some sort of myth or
something. What are those Greek things? Sirens or something like that.”

He walked toward her almost in a trance, his eyes never leaving
her hair. When he ran his fingers through it, gently rubbing the top of her
head, she couldn't stop the little sound of pleasure that escaped her throat.

“That feels so good. I’ve had my hair up for three days
straight and it’ll be up for the next five months unless I can build this house
faster.” She heard the antagonism edging into her voice. Just the thought of
that
man had her cranky. She sat back down on the swing, Cody sitting next to her,
still messing with her hair. Jess sort of leaned back against him.

“So, what’s with you and Jake?”

“He’s an ass.”

Jess shot upright, and whipped her head around to look at
Cody. “God, I’m sorry. You’re his best friend. And he’s my client. Apparently
you give me foot in mouth disease.”

Cody laughed “It’s fine. He is an ass. But he’s a good guy
too.”

“I’m sure he is. Everyone here seems completely loyal to
him. And they’ve all been here forever. You don’t get that kind of loyalty if
you’re not a good person. We just seem to bring out the worst in each other. I
antagonize him, I guess. I think mostly because I’m female.”

“What? Jake likes women, and women like Jake. Usually.”

“Maybe, but he thought I was a man.”

“How’s that possible? There is just no way anyone could ever
mistake you for a man.”

“My boss, Mr. Brundel, told him the architect Jess Wythe was
coming. He assumed it was a man. He was less than pleased to see me.” She
waited a beat, then said, “You know, I’m really glad you’re here. Maybe you’ll
be a buffer between me and Jake. It might help. Plus, I like you. Genuinely
like you.”

He leaned her back against him, wrapping an arm around her
shoulders. “I like you too.”

Jess didn’t make it into the kitchen until almost nine
Saturday morning. No surprise since it’d been almost four before she went to
sleep. The night had been so beautiful, cool and clear, but not cold. She and
Cody had sat out on the porch for an hour, talking a little, mostly just
sitting. It was nice to have a friend, no matter how new, out here. She didn’t
feel quite so alone. Although, she knew he wouldn’t stay long. He had another
rodeo in a few weeks. She grabbed some coffee and one of the biscuits left over
from breakfast, scooped up her pencil and sketchbook and headed back out to the
porch swing. She might have just found her favorite place on the ranch.

She set her coffee down beside her, tucked her feet up under
her and started drawing. The house had to be masculine, but natural. It had to
work with the surroundings, and it had to be something that could stand the
test of time. Basically, it had to be Jake in house form. As she tried to build
the house in her mind, she thought of him. Without anger, without antagonism,
just him. He was beautiful, strong, rugged, attached to this ranch inexorably.
Stubborn and hard, with a soft interior. He had to be, to inspire such loyalty
from friends and employees.

Then she had it, she had the house. And it wasn’t what she’d
originally thought of. She drew furiously for quite awhile, losing track of
time as often happened. When she heard everyone heading back in for lunch, or
dinner according to Marsha, she was surprised to find that it was already noon.
And the smell from the kitchen was heavenly. All at once she realized she was
starving.

She hopped up just as George and Cody walked up the steps.

“Hey there sweetheart, how are you this mornin’?” Cody
leaned in and gave her a quick peck on the head. “Did you get some sleep?”

“More than you did, apparently. What have you been up to
this morning?” She looked over at George and waved. “Hey, how are you?”

“Good morning, Jess.” George nodded on his way by.

“We’ve been helping Ben out, trying to break Demon. He’s the
dark brown Hanoverian out there. Have you seen him?”

“No, and she won’t. That horse lives up to his name.”

Jake's voice seemed to come out of nowhere. She hadn't even
seen him walk up. Jess couldn't help but notice he sounded angry already.

“Come on Jake, it’s not like I told her to ride him. He’s
gorgeous. She can take a look.” Turning back to Jess, Cody said, “I’ll show you
after lunch. He’s beautiful and totally wild. If we can ever get him saddle
broke he’ll be the fastest racehorse this ranch has ever seen.”

“After lunch I want to go over some details about the house.
I realize it’s Saturday, but I see you have your sketch book. Do you mind Ms.
Wythe?” Jake asked.

So, we’re back to Ms. Wythe again? Okay, fine
. “Not
at all, Mr. Morgenstern. I only need about another half hour to finish the
sketches. You go ahead and eat, I’ll meet you in your office when I’m through.”
She made sure to infuse her voice with ice.

She turned on her heel and strode out of the kitchen. She’d
be damned if she would eat with him. She headed to her room and the little desk
in there, to finish up the other two options she had sketched out. She’d drawn
a Cape Cod style, with vinyl siding, and a traditional farmhouse look as well.
A modern, larger version of what was there. But she had her favorite, and she
was hoping he would choose that one. Maybe she should present that one in the
middle, so he didn’t know it was her personal choice. He would probably pick
something else, just to spite her. Stupid ass!

* * * * *

Back in the kitchen, Jake felt Cody eyeing him while he made
his plate. Guessing he was waiting for some of the other guys to head back out
before saying anything, Jake just continued to gather his food before sitting
down at the table. Finally, it was down to Jake, Marsha and Ben.

“So, what was that all about?” Cody finally spoke up.

“What was what all about?” Jake knew what Cody was talking
about, but he really didn’t want to discuss it. Especially not with him.

“With Jess. What was that all about? Oh, sorry, I meant with
Ms. Wythe
.”

Jake heard the sarcasm Cody infused into the name.“I need to
get this house goin’ as soon as possible. That takes precedence over your love
life. You’ll have to show her the horse some other time.” Jake all but growled
out the comment.

Cody grinned. “Well, that part was fine, but you probably
should’ve let her eat. I’m pretty sure she missed breakfast and we had quite a
workout last night.”

Thinking back to last night, to Jess and Cody laughing,
dancing way too close, and remembering just how late he'd heard them come in,
Jake knew exactly what kind of workout they'd had. He felt the jealousy begin
to rise. Despite his constant reminders to himself that he didn't even like
Jess, he hated knowing she'd been with Cody.

“You know, dancin’? Maybe you should bring her some food.
It’s been my experience that a hungry woman is a cranky woman. Isn’t that
right, Marsha?” Cody turned around and winked at her.

It was then that Jake noticed Ben and Marsha had been
listening intently to every word.

“Oh, that’s for sure, Cody. I’ll make her a plate right now
and take it up to her.” Marsha made a move to get up and Jake almost jumped out
of his chair.

“I’ll get it. She’s comin’ to my office anyway.” He fixed a
plate of food, cold cut sandwiches, potato salad and green salad. He stopped
when he got to the dressing, not sure what she would like. He finally decided
on Italian. Everyone liked Italian, right? He could feel all three pairs of
eyes boring holes into his back. He grabbed the plate and a fork and stormed
out of the room without saying another word to anybody.

They must have forgotten just how thin the old walls were in
this house. He heard them all burst out laughing as soon as he'd rounded the
corner. “Cody, you’re a rascal. Why’d you tease him like that?” Marsha asked.

“Why, Marsha, I have no idea what you mean.”

Jake walked into his office, trying to set aside his anger,
only to find her sitting quietly in one of the chairs opposite his. He knew
she’d heard him come in because she’d stiffened in her seat. He walked over,
dropped the plate down in front of her and sat in his chair.

“It was brought to my attention, that in my…haste to see the
designs, you didn’t get to eat lunch. I didn’t know what you wanted, so I
brought some of everything.”

“No, thank you. You want to see the designs, so I’ll show
you the designs.” Her tone was very cool, very polite.

He hated it. “Just eat the damn food. You missed breakfast
and apparently, you were very…active last night.” He saw rage flare through her
eyes. Evidently she didn’t like Cody talking. “Dancin’ right?”

“I said I’ll eat later. And don’t cuss at me. I’m not one of
your ranch hands that you get to order about with bad attitude and foul
language! Now, you asked to see the designs, so sit down!”

She was yelling at him again.

He thought about screaming right back at her. For a whole
minute he sat quietly trying to get control of his temper. When he finally
spoke, what he said was, “I’ll tell you what. How about I look at the designs
and you eat.” His voice was a little raspier than he would have liked, but he
wasn’t yelling.

He watched her shoulders tighten briefly, before her chest
expanded on a deep intake of air. “Fine. I have three different options that I
think would work for your surroundings. If you don’t like any of them, we can
try again. I have some home magazines that you can flip through and see if
there’s anything that stands out. All of these are roughly the same interior
plans, it’s exterior style we’re looking at right now. The first is a Cape Cod,
dormer windows, probably done in a yellow, with white trim. Color is optional,
that’s just my personal favorite for Cape Cods. The second is a different look.
It’s a log cabin. But before you rule it out completely, keep in mind that
architecture has come a long way. You can have every modern convenience inside
a log cabin, including standard plaster walls. Or, you can leave the walls of
the main rooms wood and only plaster the bedrooms. Your choice. The third is a
modern twist on what you have here, an old fashioned farmhouse, with all the
modern features. It would be the one that would be most like this home. If your
family is comfortable with this house, then it may be the best option. You can
change the colors, add some flare, or simply modify the trim if you choose this
one. Make it your own, while still keeping with tradition.”

She’d been showing him the sketches as she spoke. Now she
sat down and grabbed the plate he’d brought in.

He slowly flipped through the sketches, although they were
all done in color and great detail, so the word 'sketch' was not truly
appropriate. He moved slowly, allowing her time to eat. He thought he knew
which one she liked best, but he knew as soon as he saw it which one he wanted.
So, why did it matter that he didn’t agree with her? This was his house. So why
should her opinion matter at all? It didn't... or at least it shouldn't.

“I think I know which one you prefer, but I like the log
cabin. I think it’ll be just about perfect.”

She set her sandwich down, wiped her mouth. “And which one
did you think was my favorite?”

“Well, the farm house. Why, was it the Cape Cod?” Why did he
care?

“No, my favorite isn’t important anyway, I was just curious.
So, you want the log cabin? And for the interior, you don’t need to decide now,
but when I bring the blueprints we’ll need to figure out which rooms, if any,
you want left with log walls.”

He’d been watching her reactions, and he thought he saw a
hint of a smile. He ran his hand over his chin. He waited a second longer. “It
was the cabin, wasn’t it? Your favorite?”

She looked right into his eyes and asked, “If I say yes, are
you going to change your mind?”

“No.” He actually smiled a little at her. “But, I wouldn’t
have thought you’d like that one. So, why? Why is it your favorite?”

There was a long pause before she finally answered. “Because
it suits the land, the surrounding trees, but mostly, because it suits you.”

“And you got all that from my bedroom furniture and this
office?” He waited for her to nod. “So, I owe you an apology. I’ve apparently
underestimated you.”

He'd clearly surprised her. Shock registered on her face
before she stumbled out her next words. “Ummm, thank you. I think.”

“So, can we meet Monday and go over some basic floor plans?”
He figured she had plans with Cody, and expected her to ask to meet on Tuesday
or Wednesday instead.

“Yes, that’ll be fine.”

She still wouldn’t admit that she had plans. Maybe she would
actually cancel on Cody. That would be unique. Women never cancelled on Cody.
“Okay, then, Monday at ten o’clock? Just meet in here.”

“Fine, I’ll see you then. Oh, and thank you for lunch.” She
took her plate with her on the way out.

Jess spent most of the weekend in her room working on the
blueprints. Her clothes arrived, for which she was extremely grateful, and
Marsha showed her where the washer and dryer were so she could wash and return
Jake’s shirt. By late Sunday night, she had the blueprints done. She’d added
some features she would like to see added, like the huge stained glass window
above the fourteen foot double front doors. She knew he had some money, but
everyone had a budget to stick to. Hopefully this was within his reach. She was
actually looking forward to the meeting tomorrow.