Page 4 of No More Secrets
Carter looked pained. So Summer immediately changed tactics. She waved her hand. “Forget all that. Let’s start with something simple. What do you grow here?”
“We’ve got an orchard for apples in the fall,” Carter began. “We also grow just about anything you’d find in a backyard garden. Lettuce, broccoli, radishes, tomatoes, peppers, and sweet corn.”
Summer nodded, committing the list to memory. “We?”
He was weighing her questions as carefully as she would his answers, both feeling the other out. He was careful, she noted. Not at all interested in sharing about himself, which was a drastic and refreshing change from her usual subjects. But it wouldn’t stand. One look at Carter and his home and she knew there was more than organic apples and acres of sweet corn here.
“I have help,” he said, his tone brusque.
Tiptoeing would be key, she noted. “Sounds like a big job. Do you ever get a day off?”
Carter’s lips quirked at this. “No. How about you?”
She smiled at the glimpse of humanity. “Not really,” she returned. “How many animals do you have on the farm?”
She could see him doing an internal headcount.
“Fourteen, counting the chickens.”
“Is that a lot?”
“No. How many animals do you have in New York?”
“None.” She had never had a pet. Not enough space, too much travel. There wasn’t room in her life for something that needed attention. “I have a plant at the office. It’s tended by the building’s plant service. How many hours a day do you work?”
“Depending on weather, interruptions, and farm catastrophes ... between eight and twenty.”
Summer did laugh then. “What constitutes a farm catastrophe?”
“Anything that has the potential to disrupt the regular schedule for more than a few hours.” He leveled that steely-eyed gaze at her and she knew it was a subtle dig.
“Am I an interruption or a catastrophe?”
Carter eyed her up. “That remains to be seen. I’m leaning toward catastrophe.”
“Nice.” Summer was used to being underestimated. It only motivated her to work harder. She’d change his mind. She wouldn’t get in his way, and she would pry everything out of Carter Pierce that she needed from him. She would just have to be careful and use a little finesse.
“How would you describe Pierce Acres? One word,” she asked, purposely turning her back on him to study the view through the windows. She held her breath.
“Sanctuary,” he said, gruffly. Carter put the water bottle down on the granite with enough force to make her wince.
The unadulterated truth of it echoed in her bones. She didn’t know exactly what he meant, but in that one word Summer knew that the story and this week would be more than she had anticipated.
He rounded the island. “If you’re done with twenty questions, give me your keys. I’ll bring your bags in and show you your room.”
And just like that, sharing time was over. Summer was far from done, but bit her tongue on the thousand questions his simple statement sparked. Instead, she handed over the rental car’s keys. His hand closed over hers, and again she felt that interesting tingle.
Without another word, Carter stalked down the hallway and out the front door. Summer sighed. Usually she was much better at easing people into interviews. His entrance and the fierce frown on that incredible face had thrown her.
One thing was for sure, there was a lot going on in the fine head of Carter Pierce. She would bide her time and find a way to make the weeklong interview more comfortable for him. She would crack him. She always did.
––––––––
Carter popped the trunk on Summer’s car and put the single suitcase and leather bag on the front porch. At least she hadn’t packed her entire wardrobe. It was a point in her favor. He slammed the trunk lid shut and looked around him.
He meant what he said. The farm, with its gentle rolling hills and neatly cordoned pastures and fields, was sanctuary. His sanctuary. One that had just been invaded by a nosy, appealing woman with Dresden blue eyes. The jolt he felt when he shook her hand had gone straight to his chest like a jumpstart to the heart. It was so unexpected he let his fingers linger on hers when he took the keys just to see if it happened again.
It did.
