Page 79 of Opposites (Never) Attract
“I thought you could use some food,” she said. “Help fuel the brain.”
“Too late,” Ethan said, getting up to help her move stuff around the desk to make room for the tray. “She already melted our brains. Shoo Bruce, this is important ranch business.”
The goose honked in protest but waddled out of the study, like it understood the directions.
Harmony turned on me. “Oh, no. Did she go all math on you guys?”
“Worse,” Mac said, helping himself to a sandwich. “She threw in Mandarin for good measure.”
I crossed my arms over my chest and raised my right eyebrow.
“Oh, please,” Carter begged me. “Not the eyebrow. That thing fucking scares the crap out of me.”
Of course, I knew that. It’s why I used it so effectively. “I’m trying to help you all. You brought me here, remember?”
“A plan like this. We’re going to have to bring it up for a vote,” Ethan said. “I don’t see any other way around it.”
“What do you mean?” I asked them. “Who’s voting? All of the brothers?”
Carter shook his head. “The town.”
“But it’s your ranch,” I said.
“It’sourranch, sis. But, big decisions like this, we can’t make it without everyone being involved,” Ethan said. “Too many lives are impacted by the choices we make. Dad didn’t care, obviously, but we do.”
“Fine,” I told them. “I already have the PowerPoint presentation ready.”
The three men groaned in unison.
“It’s a good presentation!” I shouted back. I wasn’t used to having my excellent work questioned.
“Just don’t do the eyebrow thing,” Carter said. “We want the town to trust you, not fear you.”
“I’ll get everyone assembled,” Harmony said. She took out her phone and started typing out a text.
“This feels like overkill,” I muttered, leaning on the desk behind me.
“No, you’ll see,” Harmony said. “Town hall meetings are fun.”
“Town hall meetings are not fun,” Mac told Harmony. “Carter, let me know what time this thing is and I’ll come over and watch the kids.”
“Don’t you get a vote?” I asked Mac.
“I’ll go with the consensus,” he said. “But I don’t do town hall meetings.”
Harmony sighed. “Mac…”
“Don’t, babe,” Ethan said. “Not worth it. You headed back to the bunkhouse?” he asked his brother. Mac nodded. “Stop by Tag’s place and let him know we’re calling the town hall. Tell him to get the word out to the hands.”
“On it,” he said, as he stepped outside the study. “Oh, and Bruce has been eavesdropping this entire time.”
Honk!
“Is that true?” I asked my sister.
“Bruce doesn’t like to be kept out of things,” Harmony pointed out.
The guys left and it was just the two of us. I poured a glass of iced tea for myself and grabbed a handful of peanuts. I hadn’t realized how nervous I’d been about the presentation, but now I was starving.
