Caught in the Act: Book Two: Independence Falls (3 page)

Katie picked up her beer and took a long drink. Lowering the bottle to the table, she looked at her brothers. “I’d go work at a nonprofit animal sanctuary. Maybe start my own. ”

She’d been working toward her goal for some time now, sending out résumés to large animal sanctuaries in surrounding states. She wouldn’t go too far. She didn’t want to be across the country if there was a problem with the family business. But after the Black Hills contract was in place, she trusted her brothers to handle the day-to-day.

“So you think selling is a good idea?” Josh pressed.

“No. But Brody’s right. It doesn’t hurt to hear their offer,” she said. “Was today the first Liam mentioned the idea?”

Brody looked down at his hands. Smart man, he knew she would hate being kept in the dark. “Eric asked for the financials and I sent him the balance sheet. Today, after your little walk, Liam dropped in to ask for the profit and loss statements, that sort of thing. Can you pull that together for him? And the information on the pending contracts with Black Hills?”

Katie hesitated. “I’m not sure we should share that yet.”

“We’re worth a helluva lot more with it, right?” Chad said.

“We are,” she replied. “But like you said, it is not final. Not yet.”

And Liam Trulane was the last person she trusted with information about the pending deal.

“Eric is not exactly a fan of the biomass industry,” Katie added. “He has spoken out against using the extra branches from the timber harvests to create energy.”

Brody furrowed his brow. “We can’t hide the information from them even if it isn’t a done deal.”

“She might have a point,” Josh said. “I’ve worked with Liam and Eric’s crews. Those guys believe that leaving the trees limbs to decompose on the forest floor is better for the land and the next crop of trees. They’re not interested in collecting them, running them through a chipper, and selling the stuff to a biofuel plant.”

Katie nodded, grateful at least one brother agreed with her. Part of her wanted to shove proof of the deal she’d negotiated in Liam’s face. But she knew it made more sense to wait until the ink was dry on the contracts—and until they saw just how serious Moore Timber was about buying the Summers family business. For all she knew, Liam would take the information about the Black Hills deal and try to screw her. Again.

“I’ll get the paperwork in order. If Liam didn’t ask to see our pending contracts, I don’t see a reason to send them,” she said. “We should start thinking about a number. What we need to make the sale worthwhile. Grandpa built this company from nothing, starting with a single truck. And Daddy gave everything he had to this business.”

Across the table, Brody nodded.

“We’re not giving it away,” she said, her voice firm. “Not to them.”

Not to Liam.

“No one said we were.” Brody leaned forward, resting his hands on the table. “And Katie, if you want me to talk to Eric and ask that Liam be removed from the deal, I will.”

“I’m a big girl.” She stood, handing off her mostly full beer to Chad. “I can negotiate with my ex-lover.”

Chad closed his eyes. “Shit, Katie. If you bring that up, I might talk to Eric myself.”

“Let’s leave the past out of this.” But as she headed for the first floor study, she wondered if that was possible.

Taking a seat behind the desk, she went to work, pulling together the information Liam requested. This would give them a place to start negotiations. And buy her some time to secure the Black Hills contract.

Her cell phone buzzed in her pocket and Katie pulled it out, glancing at the out-of-state number on the screen.

“Hello?” she said.

“Katie Summers?”

“Yes.” Holding the cell with one hand, she hit print on the financial documents.

“Carol Lewis from Montana’s Safe Haven for Horses,” the woman said. “I apologize for calling you on a Sunday, but I’ve reviewed your résumé and I have an opening if you’re still looking.”

“Yes,” Katie said quickly.

“Great,” the woman on the other end of the line said. “The position is for interim director.”

“Director?” Katie squeaked. “That’s not possible. I mean, I’m hardly qualified.”

With no experience apart from caring for her own horses and only a college degree in business that she’d never used, Katie had expected to start in an entry-level position.

“Yes,” the woman said. “I’ve known the sheriff in your town for years. He heard I was looking for someone to run my facility for six months, maybe a year, and recommended you. He said you’d care for my horses as if they were your own. And that you’re more than capable of running a business. While I need someone to step into the director’s chair now, I would like to keep that person on after I return.”

“I would take excellent care of your horses,” she said, picturing the barns filled with animals needing a little extra love and care. “And I can handle the business side, ma’am.”

“Please call me Carol. Why don’t you take a couple of days to think it over and learn more about what we do here. One summer intern designed a Web site that offers an overview. I can answer any questions once you’ve had some time to think about whether this is what you’re looking for.”

“Yes.” Katie squeezed her eyes shut, excitement bubbling up inside her. This was what she’d been waiting for. “I’ll check out your Web site, but this job—it is exactly what I’ve been hoping for. More than that, really. It sounds like a dream come true.”

If only the timing was better.

Chapter 4

L
IAM STEPPED OVER
the toy train track running through the front room of his best friend’s sprawling timber frame home. “Eric? Georgia? Anybody home?”

“In here,” his sister called.

He navigated around a drawbridge, heading for the archway to the kitchen. He stepped inside and found Georgia standing by the stove in her “Hug a Logger” T-shirt and jean shorts. Eric sat beside his nephew at the kitchen table, piecing together what looked like a toy dinosaur.

“Hey stranger.” Georgia gave him a quick hug before returning to the stove. “Staying for dinner? Nate already ate, but after he goes to bed, Eric and I were planning to sit down for a grown-up meal.”

Liam glanced over at his friend, who was no longer looking at the plastic T-rex pieces. Eric was staring at Georgia, his gaze lingering over her backside. Liam’s jaw tightened. Not long ago, he’d caught Eric with his hands all over his sister. It had been a helluva way to find out his best friend and boss was sleeping with his little sister, who’d only recently returned from Afghanistan, and brought some serious baggage back with her. Liam had accepted their relationship, but he had zero interest in playing third wheel over dinner. And judging from the way Eric was watching Georgia, dinner might be delayed.

“No thanks,” Liam said. “I just stopped by on my way home to fill Eric in on my meeting with the Summers brothers.”

“You’re still in one piece,” Eric said, turning his attention back to the dinosaur. “It must have gone well.”

“They didn’t kick me out. Brody thought about it, but he heard me out.” Liam went to the fridge and helped himself to a bottle of water. He had a feeling Brody Summers’s reaction had more to do with the fact that he’d walked Katie home. “They said I’d have the rest of their financials tomorrow.”

“I’ll take a look at the numbers with you, but I have a feeling our starting offer will be low. I like those guys, but I don’t want to overpay.” Eric secured the dinosaur leg and handed the completed model to his nephew. “All done, buddy.”

“Did you see Katie?” Georgia asked.

“I did.” Liam leaned back against the counter.

“She told you about her potential job? The one in Montana?” Georgia stirred the pot on the stove.

Liam straightened, his hand tightening around the bottle. “No.”

“A horse rescue wants to hire her. But get this. The owner is leaving for six months, maybe longer, to care for her son. He was recently diagnosed with cancer, which is awful. But Katie would be running the place while the owner was away. She’d basically have her own sanctuary.”

“That’s great.” Liam tried to sound genuine, but the idea of Katie leaving unsettled him, more than he wanted to let on. “But I’m sorry you’ll lose your friend and maid of honor.”

“They haven’t offered her the job yet. She still needs to do a phone interview. But she’ll get the position. When she accepts, I will make her promise to return for the wedding,” Georgia said. “I’ll miss her, but Katie has been counting down the days until she can focus on doing what she loves. And I get the feeling she is ready to leave the watchful eyes of her older brothers.”

“Big brothers can be a pain in the—”

“Language,” Georgia warned him, waving her wooden spoon at the little boy playing with his dinosaur.

“Sorry.” Liam crossed to the stove and gave his sister a quick kiss on the cheek. “I should get going. Long day. Eric, I’ll see you at the office.”

In the driveway, Liam sat on his bike, engine off, staring out at the mountains. The land he’d bought and planned to build on one day had a similar view. But somewhere between her broken-down car and the long walk to the barn cradling her goat, he’d realized that he couldn’t shake the memory of Katie. He’d never forget her. Worse—he’d never stop wanting her. And this time he needed more than stolen moments in parking lots.

But he couldn’t go after her now. Not with the deal undone. But if he didn’t act soon, she would leave.

“Freaking Montana,” he muttered, closing his eyes, blocking out the view. His road to success suddenly felt like it might take a detour to failure.

Liam opened his eyes and focused on his bike, revving the engine. He couldn’t afford to make a wrong turn and end up like his dad. Still, something inside him refused to accept the thought of Katie walking out of his life.

T
WENTY-FOUR HOURS LATER,
Liam stood in the gas station waiting for the attendant to fill up the fifty-gallon drum he kept in the back of his truck. It was there just in case his crew ran out of gas to run the chainsaws out in the forest. Today had been one of those days. But shit, it was Monday, which probably explained why anything that could go wrong on a job site had gone wrong.

Hands on his hips, he hoped the attendant would hurry up. Liam had been working since before dawn and his body ached from head to toe. He needed a shower and then bed. But first he had to review the financials Brody had dropped off that morning and send Eric his thoughts on a starting offer.

Shaking his head, Liam turned and headed for the station to pick up a coffee. He needed something to keep him up tonight and—

“Liam!”

The familiar voice that up until, oh,
now
, only screamed his name in his dreams, called for him a second time. He glanced over his shoulder and spotted Katie. She’d traded her short skirt for jeans and a T-shirt, but with her red curls flowing over her shoulders and her determined walk, she looked pretty damn enticing.

He smiled as he ran a hand through his dirty hair even though nothing short of a shower would make it presentable. “Hey, how are the goats?”

“Fine.” She stopped an arm’s length away. “But they were as surprised as I was to learn we hiked through the woods and you never bothered to mention that you were looking at buying my family’s trucking company.”

He raised an eyebrow. “You talk business with your livestock?”

“When it concerns how I’m planning to earn money to buy their grain, yes.”

“Fair point.” Liam stared into her green eyes, shinning bright. Right now, he was too damn tired for this conversation. And he had a feeling the Independence Falls gas station wasn’t the place. “But it didn’t come up.”

Her eyes widened. “Didn’t come up? Seriously? That’s your excuse?”

He drew a deep breath. “Look, Katie, at the time, getting you home safe seemed more important than a deal that may or may not happen.”

It better damn well go through, he thought. He refused to fail his first task as an equity partner. The last thing he wanted was Eric kicking him out of the offices. He might feel out of place there now, but he had a feeling one day soon—like ,oh, say, today—sitting in a chair might sound a lot more appealing than felling trees.

She crossed her arms in front of her chest, forcing her breasts to swell over the edge of her fitted scoop neck T-shirt. Right now, he was just tired enough to get caught staring if he wasn’t careful. He lifted his gaze to her face.

“But if you want to discuss the deal,” he continued, knowing he needed to get out of there before his eyes—and his thoughts—wandered. “I’m game for dinner.”

“Dinner?” she repeated, her green eyes widening.

“I’m not in the office much and I’d have a hard time hearing you on a job site,” he said. “So yeah, dinner.”

Years ago, they’d spent a lot of time together, but he’d never taken her on a formal date. He’d been so focused on being alone with her that it had never occurred to him. But this time, if he was going after her, he had to do it right.

He knew he should wait. Take her out after the deal closed and not under the pretense of a business meeting. But that one word—Montana—echoed in his head. He’d already let seven long years slip by. He’d always had an excuse. She was too young. She’d never forgive him for how things ended. And when he went after her, he wanted to have more, to prove he deserved a place in her life.

But now he owned land and a stake in Moore Timber, one he hoped like hell he could keep. He couldn’t afford to wait any longer. If he did, she’d be long gone.

“What do you say?” he asked, pressing the issue at hand—dinner.

“No.”

“I’d hate for you to feel left out of the discussion.”

Katie turned and headed for her car. “We don’t need to share a meal to fix that, Liam. You just need to try talking to me instead of my brothers.”

Liam watched her walk away, his resolve hardening with each step. If he didn’t go after her soon, she’d climb into her car and go a helluva lot farther than the Summers farm. Dinner was a solid first step. After last time, he couldn’t push for too much too fast. But first he had to convince her to say yes.

K
ATIE RAN THE
brush over Sugar, the gentle mare she’d rescued from a family who could no longer afford the feed bills during the winter months. The horse had been skin and bones back then, but now her coat shone and her belly had filled out. As she ran her hand down the horse’s neck, her mind jumped from the sale to Montana to . . . Liam.

She paused, resting her forehead against the mare’s smooth neck. “I have important life-changing decisions to make, choices that affect my family and my future,” she murmured. “And I’m thinking about dinner with a boy.”

Sugar let out a soft neigh.

“You’re right,” Katie said with a sigh, lifting her head. “He’s not a boy. He’s a walking, talking fantasy on a motorcycle.”

And a heartbreaker. She couldn’t forget that. He was still the same Liam Trulane who’d walked away when her brothers demanded to know if he was serious about her, if he cared for her—

“Hey sis,” Chad said from the door to the trucking company office, housed in the front of the barn. “Brody wants us back at the house. Liam called. We have an offer.”

“Wait a minute and I’ll walk up with you.” She unsnapped the cross ties from Sugar’s halter and led the mare back to her stall. Minutes later, she followed her brother to the main house.

Brody sat at the kitchen table and the siblings quickly took their places.

“What’s the number?” Chad asked. “What are we worth?”

Her brother’s mouth formed a grim line. “According to Moore Timber, one million dollars.”

Katie felt her anger simmer, quickly turning to a boil. She’d expected a low initial offer. Still, a million? It sounded like a fortune, but she knew better.

“The trucks alone are worth more than that,” she said. “Each one would sell for about two hundred thousand.”

“Maybe,” Brody said. “Some are getting old.”

“A million dollars isn’t enough,” she insisted. “Factor in taxes, and the debt we need to pay off on the new equipment, and we’re left with less than half that after the sale. Then divide it four ways and we each walk away with a hundred thousand if we’re lucky.”

“So what do you suggest we do?” Josh cut in. “Tell them hell no?”

“We come up with a counteroffer. Buy some more time,” she said.

“Any idea when your friend at Black Hills plans to sign those contracts?” Brody asked.

“I’m meeting with Mr. Fidderman on Thursday,” she said.

“We can’t afford to blow this,” Brody said slowly. “It’s not like companies are lining up to buy the business. I think we should tell Liam about the potential deal. They probably already saw the recently purchased tractor-trailers and the chipper on the inventory.”

“Not yet,” Katie shot back. Why was it so hard for her brothers to trust her? They let her manage the bookkeeping, but when it came to the big decisions, it was as if they turned a blind eye to the fact that she had studied finance and been on track to go to business school. Then Eric Moore, and his new equity partner Liam Trulane, entered the picture and they started second-guessing her.

“Katie,” Brody said. “There’s a chance this thing with Black Hills isn’t worth as much as you think. If that’s the case, we need to do what is best for the company.”

Katie ground her teeth. “It is also possible Liam would ruin the deal. This offer, it could all be a scheme to ruin our negotiations with Moore Timber’s leading competitor.”

“I don’t like Liam either, but I don’t think he would do something like that,” Brody said. “This might be the best offer we’ll get. And the timing . . . Katie, I want you to take that job if the woman in Montana offers it.”

Katie closed her eyes. She hated hearing the defeated note in her big brother’s voice. And the thought of leaving Brody without the business he’d fought to hold on to? In exchange for so little?

“Maybe we should put this to a vote?” Josh offered.

Katie opened her eyes, glancing around the table and confirming her suspicions. Her brothers were willing to take the deal. She could see it in their expressions. Well, maybe not Chad. He appeared to be on the fence. But Josh wanted out. And Brody would put everyone else’s wishes first.

“We’re worth more,” she said. “I know we are. Let’s put together a counteroffer. And then as soon as the contract with Black Hills is finalized, we can make the call. But please, let’s not do it because we feel trapped. We’re not.”

“I’m willing to see if they’ll bump up the price,” Brody said. “But make it reasonable. We don’t want to drag this out. Not with you moving to Montana.”

“I might not get the job,” she said.

“You will,” Brody insisted.

Katie smiled. “Thanks for the vote of confidence, but I still need to ace the interview. Until then, I’ll be drafting our response to Moore Timber.”

Katie stood and headed for the study. Inside, she shut the door and leaned back against the solid wood surface. Last week, finding a location for Georgia’s bachelorette had felt like the most pressing issue. But now? She had to keep her oldest brother from sacrificing everything, make certain Black Hills signed, and deal with the man who’d broken her heart.

Liam.

Had he known when he asked her to dinner that he planned to toss out a lowball offer? Running into her on the side of the road had not felt premeditated. Neither had the gas station. But Liam Trulane had tricked her before.

“I’m not some inexperienced little girl anymore,” she whispered to the empty room. She wasn’t going to let Liam mess with her future. No, she’d given him power over her once. She’d do anything to prevent that from happening again.