“I thought we could pay them a visit before we head home. Sometimes people remember something later that doesn’t seem important at the time.”
“I had that thought myself.”
“Ross could do it, but I’d rather he keep digging around in Iron Springs.” Linc ushered her out of the restaurant, into the back of the town car.She’d seemed preoccupied all day, but so had he. He figured she was thinking of El Jefe and what had happened last night, worrying about how to handle things from here.
Linc wished she’d sold him the company, let him deal with the threat, but that wasn’t going to happen.
At the office, both of them went back to work. By six o’clock he was finished and guiding her toward the elevator up to the roof.
“What about the Grangers?” she asked. “I thought that’s where we were going.”
“Millie called to set up a time. They’re out of town until tomorrow. We’ve got a one o’clock appointment tomorrow afternoon. I thought we’d come in and talk to them, then catch an early dinner before we head home.”
Carly didn’t jump at the idea but eventually she nodded. “Okay.”
The chopper took them back to the ranch. From the helipad, Linc grabbed Carly’s overnight bag out of the helicopter while she shouldered her laptop.
Walking beside her, he carried her suitcase up the wide stone steps into the massive entry and set the bag down on the floor.
“You want a tour first or shall I take you up to your suite?”
She didn’t answer. She was too busy staring at the twin sweeping staircases leading up to the second story, the huge crystal chandelier suspended above the inlaid Italian marble floors, the black and sienna sunburst pattern beneath her feet.
Her gaze went left, to a living room done in white and gold with heavy gold draperies and gilded French antiques.
“So what do you think?” he asked, watching her closely.
“It’s . . . umm . . . It isn’t exactly . . . It’s just . . .”
“It’s just what?”
“It’s just that it . . . It just . . . it doesn’t seem to fit you.”
He frowned. “You don’t like it?” He had never brought a woman to the house who didn’t gush over the opulent interior, who wasn’t impressed by the sheer spectacle of the place, the millions it had cost to build.
“It’s fine. It’s just . . . it’s a surprise, is all.”
“It’s a surprise because you don’t think it fits me.”
“Well, I don’t know, I didn’t expect—”
Linc reached down and grabbed her bag, turned, and started striding back toward the door.
Carly adjusted the strap of her laptop on her shoulder and ran after him. “Wait a minute! I didn’t mean to insult you. It’s a very nice house. It’s just—”
He stopped so fast as he turned, she collided with his chest. “It just doesn’t fit me—that’s what you said.” He started walking again, heading for the garage.
“Where are you going?” She trailed after him as he punched in the code and one of the garage doors began sliding open.
He walked over to the black Jeep Wrangler sitting in the bay, tossed her suitcase into the back, slid in behind the wheel, and fired it up.
He backed out of the garage, turned and pulled up next to her. “Get in.” The Jeep idled like a big black cat. One of his favorite toys, it was fully tricked out: chrome rims, wide off-road tires, a heavy duty roll bar. A top covered the front seats, but the rest of the vehicle was completely open. It was rugged, perfect for the ranch.
In her slim skirt, Carly struggled to climb into the passenger seat. Linc grabbed her hand and pulled her aboard. He took her laptop and settled it behind her. Carly buckled her seat belt and Linc hit the gas. The vehicle lurched forward, speeding off down the dirt road that headed toward the back of the ranch.
“So . . . umm . . . where are we going?”
“Someplace else.”
