Page 26 of Saddles & Suits

Ohhh. I sigh. I met Malcolm again at the Tarrant Christmas gathering—which was a lot quieter than my family’s Christmas—and we didn’t exactly hit it off. He wasn’t rude, exactly, but he and Jack aren’t close and he clearly didn’t have any interest in getting to know me or talking to his brother. I have no clue why he’d be here now.

For a second, I’m tempted to tell Chris to bring him here. If he wants to talk to me, he can fit into my schedule. But he’s still Jack’s brother, and the last thing I want is to be the cause of trouble in the family. “How long’s he been waiting?”

Chris shrugs. “Not long—fifteen minutes, maybe? He went up to the house first, but…”

“There’s nobody there today,” I finish. “Do you have time to take care of Stark?” I’m not adding to his workload if he’s already under the pump.

“Yeah, all good. I’ve got a student in half an hour, but I was just going through the enrolments for the next group of beginning classes.”

Which he can’t do while Malcolm is in the office. I sigh again and reluctantly hand over the body brush. “Spoil him, will you? He hasn’t gotten enough attention lately.”

“I got it.”

Leaving him to it, I head toward the office. I’m still sweaty and dusty, but Malcolm can deal with that. He knows what stables are like.

I find him sitting on the small sofa against the wall, flicking through Chris’s latest issue ofAustralian Performance Horsemagazine. “Malcolm,” I greet, and he looks up. “I wasn’t expecting you. Jack’s not here today, if?—”

“No, I came to see you,” he corrects, standing and sliding his hands into his jeans pockets. “The other guy said you were riding.”

“Chris? He’s our head instructor,” I say, then wonder why I bothered. Though Malcolm probably knows Chris’s family, and oh crap, is that why Chris was all frowny? Did Malcolm say something rude? “Uh, yeah. I just got back a few minutes ago. If I’d known you were coming, I would have made sure I was here.” Maybe. “Did you want to go for a ride? Most of the horses are out right now, but?—”

“No, but thanks,” he interrupts meagain.“I might come back for a ride another time. It’s been too long. There just isn’t the time these days, you know?” There’s something pointed in the way he says it that makes my hackles rise.

“Sure. At least I’m here on the farm and can sandwich it in between other things. It’s a lot harder from the city.”

He makes an agreeing noise. “You’re probably wondering why I’m here.”

Ya think?“I’m a tiny bit curious, yeah.”

“I was talking to my dad the other day, and he told me who you are.”

That doesn’t clear things up at all. “Who I am?”

“Uncle Warwick’s charity stable hand.”

Heat rushes up my neck and into my face. “That’s not how I would have put it,” I manage, and Malcolm waves dismissively.

“I don’t really care that you worked for Uncle Warwick?—”

“That’s big of you.”

“—but when I realized youstillwork here, I figured it was worth coming down for a chat.”

I’m suddenly so conscious of the fact that he looks like he’s about to spend the day in a suite at the Australian Open, and I’m a sweaty, dirty mess.

“Why’s that?” I think I know where he’s going with this, and it’s not anywhere good.

His mouth curls in disgust. “Don’t be coy. I remember everything Uncle Warwick said about you wanting to own your own stables. Did that get too hard? Decide to marry the owner instead, hm?”

I take an involuntary step back. I didn’t really think he’d just come out and say it like that. “I think it’s time for you to leave.”

“You’re kicking me off my brother’s property? That just proves my point?—”

“It proves nothing. I’m the manager here, and it’s in that capacity that I’m asking you to leave. You’re being deliberately insulting and making assumptions about a situation without any facts.” My voice sounds way calmer than I feel, and I mentally pat myself on the back for that. “Are you going, or do I need to call the police?”

Malcolm scoffs. “That’s not going to look good for you.”

Meeting his gaze steadily, I say, “I’ve had to call them out to remove rowdy tourists before.”

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