Even though no major repair work had been done, the place didn't look nearly as shabby as it had the first time he'd seen it. The cobwebs were gone, the aisle was swept clean, and the whole place smelled of freshly cleaned leather, new hay, and horses. It wasn't half-bad. It reminded him of Louise.
Petting a few of the horses as he went along, he worked his way down the aisle to the office. Sitting at the desk, Louise was a pretty sight. “Hungry?” he asked.
She looked up from the papers scattered around her. Her gaze went from his face to the boxes in his hands. “I didn't realize this was a dinner meeting."
A touch of humor lingered in her voice, but he couldn't be sure, so he hesitated to smile.
"You haven't eaten yet have you?"
She shook her head.
"Then it's a dinner meeting.” He moved toward the desk. “Let's eat first, then talk."
She tucked a few stray strands of hair behind her ear.
"You look great,” he said without thinking.
She glanced away as she smiled and cleared off the desk. With a few quick movements, she had everything in two neat piles. She separated out a file folder and positioned it on the corner of the desk.
It was probably the latest numbers. It didn't matter what the figures were. Business was hopping. Whatever she had to report wouldn't change anything. He'd be leaving the island after dinner. And he'd be selling Hawk's in two weeks.
WITH SHAKING FINGERS Louise finished stacking the papers to the side while Trent unpacked the food. The chicken and mashed potatoes smelled fantastic. Her stomach rumbled and reminded her that she hadn't eaten since the toast she'd had for breakfast at Sally's.
After he finished setting out the dinners, he popped open a can of soda and offered it to her. “Sorry, no glasses."
"This is fine.” She shrugged. “It's already more than I expected, really. Thank you."
"No thanks necessary. It's the least I can do, considering all the work you've been putting into this place."
Louise avoided his gaze by looking at the fried drumsticks. She was curious about how he knew she'd been doing anything at all. He certainly hadn't been around, how did he know what she'd been up to? Maybe he asked Gail or Pete. “What have you been doing to keep yourself busy, Trent?"
"Just seeing the island, I guess."
She scooped up a bite of pepper-dusted potato. He acted as though he was engrossed in his meal, but was that really the case?
Given their short, but rocky history together, there could be any number of things on his mind. The kisses they shared, or the nasty scene at the restaurant the day after the fire, for starters.
Judging by the way he avoided her gaze, she figured it was something along the lines of that second option. She was determined not to break under the pressure of the tension, so she smiled and started in on her chicken.
If she ate slowly, she could force him to finish first. Then he'd have to do the talking. As it was, only the sounds of the stable broke the silence. The frustrating man matched her bite for bite, so they finished at the same time.
"You must have some records you want to show me,” he said, wiping his fingers with a white paper napkin.
She dropped the chicken bones into the box they'd come out of and accepted a towelette he offered her. With deliberate motions she wiped her hands free of chicken grease. “Of course. That is why you're here.” Looking over the figures and future projections was something she could let herself get excited about.
He cleaned up the trash from their meal while she took out the papers detailing Hawk's progress. She handed them over and waited in anxious silence as he studied the results of her hard work. His blank features gave her no insight into his reaction, but it seemed to Louise that the awkward tension from remained.
He laid the pages aside. “It's more than I could've done."
Before she could reply, Gail popped her head through the doorway. “Bye. I'll see you tomorrow bright and early."
Louise leaned sideways to see around Trent's shoulder. “Has Pete gone, too?"
"Yep. He left about fifteen minutes ago.” Gail added goodbye to both of them before disappearing into the aisle.
"Thanks, for everything,” Louise called after her.
She turned to Trent. His lukewarm comments weren't exactly the praise she'd foolishly been hoping for, but at least he'd acknowledged that she was capable. But that wasn't enough. “You're satisfied with how things are going? Do you have any questions or concerns you'd like me to address?"
He studied her so closely that she shifted in her seat. When he spoke his tone was flat. “You must be as qualified as my father thought you to be."
She bristled. “You say that like being qualified is bad."
"Obviously, it's not."
Her temper rose. “It's not what you were hoping for. What you really wanted was an excuse to sell, isn't that right?"
He frowned and leaned back. “I agreed to your deal and I'm sticking with it, Miss Hart."
Miss Hart.
Pressing him too hard could mean disaster, so she retreated to safer ground. “I appreciate that, Trent. I just wanted things to be clear between us, that's all."
He lifted an eyebrow. “Things are clear all right. No need to worry about that."
She tried to soften him with a smile. He chuckled easily and sounded like he had that first day when she'd heard him talking on the phone. “Am I so easy that you think you can manipulate me with a smile?” He was grinning, so he meant the words to tease her.
Somehow, she laughed with him.
But then there was something in his gaze, a subtle change that made her pause. “What is it Trent? Do you have something to tell me?"
His expression sobered. “I do appreciate everything you've accomplished. Like I said, it's much more than I could've accomplished. As you already know, I have absolutely no experience with horses.” He pointed down at the papers. “You've done a lot in a short period of time."
Louise was pleased with the compliment. His confidence thrilled her more than he'd ever know, but she didn't make the mistake of reading anything personal into his words. The threat of him selling was always close.
"You don't need me around,” he said.
Louise thought about asking him what he meant by that, but hesitated. She had a suspicion she wasn't going to like the answer.
A muted pounding took her attention. The rhythmic sound made the hair on her neck rise. She looked at Trent, but he'd turned toward the doorway, probably straining as she was, to listen.
"We're the only ones here aren't we?” he asked quietly.
"I thought so."
"Maybe it's just the wind.” He turned around but remained silent.
A peculiar reaction swept through Louise and she shivered. Trying to ward off the unexplainable chill, she rubbed her arms.
Then she heard a distant scratching. There was no reason why the noise should make her tense, but something wasn't right. She sat stiffly, again straining to hear more.
The noise stopped.
"You wait here, I'll go check it out,” Trent whispered.
She nodded, but ignoring his request, she rounded her desk to follow him through the doorway. She paused and listened, struggling to hear anything that might let them know at least where the intruder might be.
The whimper of a horse sounded near the feed room at the end of the aisle. She looked to Trent the same time he turned to her. When he pointed to the chair she'd gotten out of, she shook her head and he frowned. He cast her a stern stare, but turned back around and moved forward. Walking softly, they worked their way down the aisle toward the fire-damaged feed room. They paused again in front of the wide double doors.
Trent turned around and lifted a finger at her, silently asking her to wait a minute. She frowned and shook her head, but stopped when she saw the fierce expression on his face. She relented, and waited while he started toward the feed room again.
Just before he pulled open the door, a low creaking came from above. It was impossible to tell exactly where the sound started because it seemed to spread across the roof. Louise looked up and shifted her feet.
A single board fell from the ceiling and clattered to the ground. She jumped back, but others followed. Soon more boards and pieces of the roof fell from above. Sheets of the metal roofing sliced through the air and clattered to the floor. Louise leapt side to side to get out of the way, but everywhere she landed, more pieces crashed down around her.
The sounds of ripping wood, clanging metal, and wild whinnies of frightened horses pierced the air. A thick wooden beam with nails sticking out from both sides whooshed past her ear then became embedded in the wall.
"Get out of the barn,” Trent shouted.
She searched for him, but the air was thick with dust. Huge sheets of the roof hung down, blocking her view. “Are you all right, Trent?"
"Louise, get out!"
A horse beside her kicked at the wall. Its terrified shriek sent chills down Louise's spine.
Dust flew all around and boards swung from the huge hole in the roof. She lifted her arms to protect herself, but then she couldn't see it all. Although she wanted to find Trent, going after him could endanger them both. If she got out she could go for help.
In her effort to move, she tripped over a chuck of steel and stumbled against a wall. Her arm scraped against the rough wood, but she leaned onto it for support anyway. Another piece of the roof gave way sending more boards and shingles raining down.
Louise sagged to the ground beside the wall and waited with her arms above her head. Finally, the deluge of destruction stopped and the only noises were the horses thrashing in their stalls and crying to get out.
She dropped her arms. Where was Trent? Her heart pounded with new fear. Should she go for help? Look for him? What if he was hurt? He hadn't hesitated to help her when she needed it, she couldn't deny him the same. She picked her way across the mess and kicked aside a couple planks.
As she neared the feed room, she called to Trent.
He didn't answer.
Heart in her throat, she entered the room.
BROKEN BOARDS, BITS of the metal roof and odds and ends lie heaped all around Trent. He looked up and his shoulders dropped with relief when Louise peered at him through the doorway. Like him, she was covered with dust, slivers of wood and scratches, but she was all right.
No doubt about it, they were lucky. They could've been seriously hurt. Or worse. Gut instinct told him that had been someone's intent. No one had to come and examine the stable to tell him what he already knew. Someone had done this on purpose.
He stepped over a section of steel and worked his way to Louise, took her hand, and they helped each other outside to the yard.
With huge eyes, Louise stared at the barn. It looked like a giant had stepped on it, leaving a huge gapping hole. A few boards hung perpendicular to the roof, ready to fall at any moment.
"We better call the vet."
Trent nodded at Louise's suggestion. “The phone in the rental office will be safe."
As she dashed off to make the call, he realized she'd been lucky again. And him? He'd been forced to face how much he cared about her, again. The flickers of pain and confusion were there, the same as before, but one thing was different. He wasn't going anywhere now.
A few people who'd stopped to stare at the mess shouted to him, but he didn't answer, only waved to let them know they were okay. He had enough questions of his own to deal with. Who wanted to destroy Hawk's? Or was it him and Louise they were after?
His suspicions about Gail and Pete resurfaced. If they were working together, he had no idea what they were trying to accomplish.
Louise came out the side door by the rental office and jogged to him. “I told the vet what happened. He said he'd be right over."
"Good. I'm glad you thought to call him. I don't think I would've."
She nodded, but didn't reply. As much as he wanted to reassure her, it would be a mistake, so he didn't reach for her as he had the night of the fire. There was no going back. Things had changed between them and he knew she didn't want his comfort.
He folded his arms over his chest. “You can go on to Sally's. I can take care of things here."
The vulnerable expression vanished. “What do you mean by that?"
"Just what I said. I'll go call the police chief and wait for the vet."
"No,” she straightened her back and glared at him. “I'm staying. You're paying me to do a job, and I intend on doing it."
"Always business first, right Louise?"
Her face flushed with anger. “When business needs doing, yes."
Arguing with her wouldn't accomplish anything. He left her standing in the yard and went to call the police chief. He wanted a complete investigation this time, even if that meant he had to follow behind the chief, insisting that he go over every inch. He wanted absolute proof that this had been done on purpose.
LOUISE WENT INTO the barn and started to clear the aisle by the door. The mess on the ground wasn't too bad, but several long boards swung ominously above the animals. One by one, she led them out of the horrible mess and into the small paddock.
The vet arrived within minutes. Louise stayed beside him, making notes about the injuries and how to care for them.
"None of these injuries are critical, but some of the animals will need special attention for about a week or so,” he concluded when they returned to the front yard. “Your animals are lucky."
She nodded, “We were lucky too."
The man glanced at the roof and nodded. “You'll follow my instructions?"
After she assured him that she would, he said, “I'll be by tomorrow morning, then.” He started to walk off, but stopped and turned. “You know what caused this?"
Louise scanned the roof. “I have no idea."
"Old place, it needs some fixing up."
"It sure does now."
"The owner ought to get some insurance money out of the deal. That'll help get the roof fixed better than before ... ‘course that depends on the most recent inspection."