Page 14 of Unexpected Entanglement

The other man’s brows rose slightly when Chris introduced himself. It wasn’t unusual for people to associate him with his family business.

“Welcome,” Kieran said shortly. “What do you need from me?”

“I’m here on behalf of Rae Allen.”

Now, those bright eyes truly sparked as Kieran recognized Rae’s name. His face hardened, but he didn’t respond right away. Instead, he walked past Chris to Frankie.

Turning Frankie around, he walked her out of the barn. “Nobody comes in here until I’m done.”

“But—” Frankies started to protest.

“It’s private. Please, keep this to yourself.”

“I’m running to the inn to meet with Rowan. Should I say something to her?”

“No. This doesn’t concern you, Frankie. I’ll talk to Rowan when I see her.”

Frankie obviously wasn’t happy to be dismissed without an explanation. She actually looked rather hurt, Chris noted.

As Frankie shut the door, Kieran stalked back to Chris.

“This is an impressive setup. What do you have in here?” Chris asked, trying to keep the atmosphere light.

With his full glower, Kieran retorted, “Don’t tell me you’re a hobby gardener. “

“No.” Chris gave a short laugh. “I don’t know anything about gardens or farms except appreciating their beauty and value.”

Crossing his arms at his chest, Kieran stared him down. “Then let’s cut the bullshit and tell me who you are and why you’re here.”

Chris leveled his eyes at Kieran. He appreciated the other man’s directness. He often had to ease his way in with prospective investors before pushing on the real issue.

“All right,” Chris started. “I’m a friend of your half-sister and here as her proxy—”

“If you’re talking about my father’s illegitimate daughter, she isn’t my sister. I don’t even know her.”

Kieran’s brusque denial of his relation to Rae irritated Chris, but he reined in his annoyance. “And she doesn’t know you or Rowan. I’m sure you two would’ve been happier not knowing of her existence, but here we are.”

“Why is she sending you here instead of coming herself?” Kieran demanded.

“She has her reasons. I offered to go in her stead.”

“To do what?”

Chris shrugged. “To understand the situation better. Believe me, Rae doesn’t like to be forced into this arrangement any more than you do. But since neither of you can get out of it, I volunteered to help mediate the situation.”

“We don’t need mediation. If she isn’t interested in learning what our father gave her, she can stay out of it. We’ll pay her profit share—small that it is—until we can buy her out.”

“Can you afford to buy her out?”

“We might in three years.”

“Until then, the three of you must learn to coexist.”

“Look, this land has been in this family for years—”

Chris lifted his palms open to deescalate Kieran’s growing irritation. “Trust me, I understand all about family legacy. But whether you like it or not, you, Rowan, and Rae are tied together by your father’s will. I’m just trying to help.”

“How are you going to help?” Kieran asked suspiciously.

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