Page 23 of Stirring Up Trouble
Robin knew it too, because when he answered, it was with a dismissive, “It’s all fine. We’ll get together when there’s time. I need to get back.”
He walked past me with his head held high. I almost reached out to grab him. If I’d had any idea of what kind of advice to give, then I would have. As it were, I was as lost about it as he seemed to be.
I waited until I heard his footsteps disappear before I took off to find Leslie. She might know what was going on with all the time she’d spent around our guests. That, and she was a nosy person in general. She could sniff out the truth before someone even finished their lie.
As I searched for her, I pulled my phone out to call Keaton. My foreman answered on the first ring, which I always appreciated. He was prepared for damn near anything with those lightning reflexes.
“Boss. What can I do for ya?”
“We’re going to need some space cleared away for a few sheep. 'Bout six of them will be coming in from Hazel Grace’s place later this week.”
“Yes, sir.”
“You ain’t gonna ask me why we’re bringing in sheep, Keaton?”
He grunted. “No, sir. It’s not my business. Only need to know what I’m managing. The rest is yours to decide.”
“And if I wanted to bring home four times that amount?”
“Then we’d need to get to work building some fencing to hold them while we got better shelter in place.”
“Don’t worry, Keaton. I’m not going to increase those numbers. We’ll start with these to see if it works out. We might find ourselves proper sheep farmers before it’s all said and done.”
“Yes, sir. We might.”
“Let me know if anything comes up, ok? I’m never too busy for the ranch.”
“I know, Mr. Anders. I’ll call ya if I need ya.”
With that, I hung up. He couldn’t give me any better assurances than that.
Leslie wound up being by the food trucks. She was flirting with a young girl who looked more like a college student than a woman who could go toe-to-toe with my friend. Leslie would eat the poor thing alive if given the chance.
I placed my hand on her lower back when I approached. Her head whipped my way. The curl of her lip told me she was seconds away from letting me have it because she thought I was some stranger.
“Darlin’, I need to talk to you about something. It’s rather urgent.” I made my voice deeper as I thickened the accent.
The girl at the window damn near swooned. Leslie groaned when she realized the attention was no longer on her.
“Sure thing, sugar. Let’s go talk over there.” She pointed to one of the empty tables.
I shook my head as I steered her somewhere private. We didn’t need anyone else eavesdropping on our conversation. Toomany people wanted a shot at my spot. I didn’t need to give them any ammunition to falsely accuse me of anything.
“What is this about, Blaze? I was having some fun during my lunch break. You ever heard of that.”
“Which part? The lunch break or the fun?” I paused. “Doesn’t matter. I need you now.”
“Ugh! That’s what I wanted her to say.”
“She’s a baby, Leslie. Don’t corrupt the young ones. Give them a chance.”
Her snort made me smile. “That girl was kinky as fuck. She just looks innocent. I know. My radar is never wrong.”
“Enough with your whining. I need to know if you’ve heard anything about Robin’s brother. Or his family in general.”
“Why? Did something happen?” Leslie’s brow arched.
“He got a call earlier. It seemed to have upset him a bit. I wanted to offer support, but he acted like he was fine.”
