Chapter Three

James

 

The woman was all business, all five feet of her. I watched anxiously as she shuffled through the papers I’d given her, the look on her face serious, but the way she pushed her eyebrows down as she read was somehow adorable.

Axel was right to warn me. Something about her intrigued me.

“Do you know who was named executor of the estate?” she asked.

“I was, ma’- Miss Pierce,” I stammered.

She nodded. Was that a smile?

She looked ridiculous in the shorts I’d found, but her thin legs poking out of them had caught my eye.

Evelyn Pierce cleared her throat as she pulled my attention back to the table and away from her legs. They were tan. I imagined what she’d look like in a bikini.

“The children do have the right to contest the will, simply because they are next of kin,” she stated firmly.

My heart sank. That wasn’t what I wanted to hear.

“The cost for them is sometimes enormous, outweighing the gain if they win,” she cleared her throat again as she looked around the room.

“I know it’s not much to look at, but it’s a good ranch. Before old man Jasper died, before he got sick, this place was thriving. That’s what I want to do again, make it thrive,” I rattled on like a silly teenager.

I hadn’t even realized how badly I wanted this place when he’d given it to me. Now, the thought of losing it, it was tearing me up inside.

“Is this the only will?” she asked, holding the paper I’d given her.

“Yes, that I know of,” I admitted.

“Their case is weak if so, but if there is another one, a newer one, there could be trouble,” she warned.

“What do you mean, trouble?” I sweated.

“Wills made on a deathbed, or shortly before the deceased passes can be contested by stating the individual was incompetent or even coerced,” she explained.

“There was nothing incompetent about old man Jasper, and no way could anyone make him do something he didn’t intend to do,” I chuckled.

Her lips curled into a smile as she looked in my direction. My heart raced for a moment at the thought of how pretty she was behind that serious demeanor of hers.

“Did you ever talk about gaining the ranch once he passed, anytime during your time together?” she questioned.

I stood from the table and walked to the counter. I thought about all the times he’d told me this place would be mine one day. A place to come home to, a reason to come home, that’s what he’d always told me. He knew I was joining the Navy, my dream of becoming a SEAL stronger than anything else.

“You want some coffee?” I asked as I scooped out the grounds into the filter.

“No. I don’t touch the stuff,” she waved her hand as if I’d offered her a cigar.

I grinned in her direction, finding her more and more intriguing. Her gestures, her tones, her expressions, they were all drawing me in.

“What do you drink?” I queried.

“Coke. Only Coke,” she said quickly.

I shook my head.

“That stuffs more suited to clean a battery terminal than to put in your body,” I grinned, taking note of the body she tried to hide under the kitchen table.

“Water and Coke, that’s all I ever drink,” she added.

I finished the coffee while I told her about old man Jasper, and his long-time promise of giving me the ranch. As I sat down, I handed her a cold bottle of water from the fridge and cupped the warm coffee mug in my hands.

“But, you left for the military?” she questioned, looking up with a curious expression.

“Yes. But, I came back,” I told her, and then explained how he wanted me to have something to come home to.

“The kids, did he ever talk about them, did you ever see them?” she asked.

“He didn’t talk about them much, no. I met them a couple times when they were younger, and once or twice once they’d grown,” I responded.

“How was their relationship with their dad, as far as you were aware?” she continued her interrogation.

“They didn’t care for the ranch much. Their mother moved them to California when they were small, and when they did come back here to visit, they mostly complained,” I growled.

“Complained?” she asked.

Her green eyes were wide and curious, and all I could think about was making her smile again.

“No air conditioning, the smell, the work, the mud,” I grinned.

There it was…that beautiful smile. I loved how her plump lips thinned as they stretched into a curl.

“So, were they here when he grew sick?” she asked.

I shook my head, anger boiling in my veins.

“No. I’m sure he didn’t tell them he was sick, but then again, it’s not like they’d ever call and check,” I groaned.

“So, you took care of him?” she sounded surprised as she spoke.

I nodded, gripping my coffee mug tightly as I brought it to my lips.

The notes she’d been taking were scribbled all over her notepad in writing that was barely legible. A strange feeling rolled in my gut as I worried she might not be tough enough to handle this case. She was unorganized, clumsy, and had a nervousness about her that oozed through her eyes when they made contact with mine.

“How many cases have you done like this?” I asked.

She looked up from her scribbling, her expression empty and pale.

“This will be my first,” she smiled sweetly.

I felt sick.

“I’ve spent most of my time with zoning laws, real estate issues and property tax liens since out of college,” she explained.

“It’s just, Axel said you handled probate and estate law,” I stammered.

Her eyes softened as she reached across the table with her delicate petite hand. It touched mine, creating a quiver under my skin that startled me.

“I studied probate and estate law in school, extensively. This is just where I landed. It in no way expresses my ability to handle this case,” she assured me with a smile.

When her hand left mine, it felt cold and alone. It was nice to be touched, comforted. It was the first time I’d felt that in a long time.

“This just means the world to me, this ranch. I really appreciate your help. I didn’t mean to sound ungrateful,” I confessed.

“I understand, Mr. Laurie,” she returned to her professional tone.

“Call me James, please,” I suggested.

That smile returned, soft and brilliant.

“James, tell me more about the ranch, what’s entailed in its running, and what it’s worth would be if sold today,” she pushed.

I sipped my coffee in between filling Evelyn in on what it’s like to live and work on a ranch. It was hard work. The repairs alone were enough to keep a man busy, but feeding the livestock, keeping their living areas clean and tending to their daily needs was another full-time job in itself. As I spoke, she jotted down notes on her pad, but mostly just listened.

“The work never ends, and there’s little monetary reward, just reward knowing you’re doing an honest job,” I smiled, fighting back the urge to give her a sweet wink.

Once I told her the value of the property, including livestock, equipment, and the buildings, she gasped. I knew she wasn’t impressed when she’d arrived, and it was easy to see that once inside, her impression hadn’t changed. It didn’t look like much, but it was a working ranch with over eight thousand acres of rolling hills, pastures, two ponds, and even a beautiful piece of lakefront property on the backside of the acreage.

“So, why wouldn’t you want to sell?” she questioned.

I smiled. She was a firecracker, a tiny little firecracker. Her questions shot from every direction, leaving me a little off-guard.

“Why would I? This place is beautiful,” I said.

“But, it’s a lot of work,” her head tilted to the side, showing off a tiny mole on the side of her neck.

Her hair was starting to dry, curling from its once straight state. I tried to avoid staring, but my eyes lingered without my consent on the small baby hairs curling at the back of her neck and around her ears.

“It is, but it’s worth it,” I said sternly, pulling myself away from her beauty.

A smile crept upon my face, a devilish one I was certain. I thought it funny that I was already thinking about undressing her and taking her to bed. I’d already got her undressed. I grinned.

“Do the kids have the means to take this all the way?” she asked, her hand slipping to her mole, her delicate petite fingers playfully touching it, hiding it.

She was nervous. I wondered if she had similar thoughts about me traveling through that amazing mind of hers.

“They have plenty money. Old man Jasper took a mortgage out on the place a few years before I left for the SEALs. He handed over a large amount of money to the kids as what he called ‘their right.’ I think he felt bad for promising the place to me, like he needed to do something for them too,” I explained.

“Is that mortgage still due?” she questioned.

“No. That was one of the last things he said to me, that he made sure he didn’t give me a debt,” I laughed, looking around the place.

It was debt. It was a lot of debt. But, I knew what he meant.

“And the mother?” Evelyn asked.

“When they divorced, he bought her out of her half. She wanted to be a star, a singer in fact, but as far as I know, she only did a few commercials, maybe one or two B-rated movies,” I replied.

“Okay, good,” she nodded, quickly going back to her scribbling.

“So, what do you think?” I asked curiously.

“I think you have a strong case, but that doesn’t mean they won’t fight. My assumption is they figure you will run out of money fighting back, and if they keep the place just out of your reach, you’ll just give up,” she stated.

“I won’t give up,” I insisted.

“I expect you won’t,” she smiled.

“How much do you figure this is gonna cost me?” I asked.

“Court fees, appeals, they will add up quickly, but my fee is non-negotiable,” she said firmly.

My stomach grumbled. I wanted her on my side, fighting with me, for me. It wasn’t just because she made my jeans tight when she smiled; it was the fact she was smart, driven, and even though sitting in my kitchen with a pair of boys green gym shorts that were too big for her thin legs and a sweatshirt that said ‘Save a horse, ride a cowboy,’ she was professional, unbreakable.

“I understand that. Can you tell me what you think your fee will be?” I asked cautiously.

My pride was standing strong in the way of my common sense. I wouldn’t turn her down, no matter what price she threw my way. I didn’t have much money, but what I’d saved was still just sitting in the bank, waiting for a rainy day. As I stared out the window as the sky turned black again, noticing the mud puddles, one of which Evelyn took a swim in, I realized, this is a rainy day. Whatever it cost, I’d pay it.

“My fee is pro-bono,” she finished jotting down something in her notepad before looking up.

“Oh no, ma’am, I mean Miss Pierce, I can’t let you work for free. This is my battle, and I expect to pay,” I stammered.

“It’s our battle now, and as I said, my fee is non-negotiable,” she gathered her papers, shoving them in her bag without any concern for organization.

“That’s mighty nice of you, but I can’t let you do that,” I protested.

“Well, when the time comes, after we win, we can discuss it again,” she smiled.

My mind spun in circles like a merry-go-round at the state fair. Was she doing this to be nice, or was she afraid I would lose, and this was her way of showing empathy?

I was spiraling as I tried to figure out her motive, find a way to handle my pride and feel the confidence I needed to get through this ordeal.

“I’m not worried. You shouldn’t be either,” she said as if reading my mind.

I looked at her as she stood by the table. Her knees popped out from beneath the hideous shorts, and her bare feet displayed pink painted toenails. Any sign of makeup she’d worn when she arrived was long gone, and her hair was frizzing into wild curls all over her head. She looked like an angel. An angel sent to help me fight this battle, and from the way she exuberated confidence and strength, I truly believed she was here to help me win my battle.

“Remember, keep all receipts. You still run the farm as if it’s your own, but anything sold or purchased, repaired, etc., will have to be accounted for, and at fair market value,” she warned.

“I’ll be back Monday, same time?” she queried.

I nodded.

She rushed out the door in the same tornado-like fashion she’d arrived.