The Davonshire Series 2: Loving Words (2 page)

The tall dark man pushed the front door open and walked into the large foyer.  He was uncertain how large the house was since it was difficult to tell from the outside.  The inside was spacious and dust-and-clutter-free.  To the right he noticed a conference room, which sat right before what appeared to be an office.  As he moved deeper into the foyer, he noticed the wide staircase that led to the second floor.  Wilfred came from around the corner saying, “Close and lock the door please.  I was just about to have breakfast.  Please join me, Rod.”

Rod’s eyebrows went up but he followed as his host led him to what he assumed would be the kitchen.  His arrival was supposed to be a bombshell, but as he could see by the bulge in the belt loop under the snazzy cardigan, the younger Devonshire was not one for surprises.  He passed by the living room, which segued into a larger family room that was attached to a formal dining room, and opened into the most fabulous style of kitchen that usually was reserved for cooking shows.

The breakfast table faced the patio and a large picture window gave a perfect view to what looked like a greenhouse, a hen house, and maybe a barn.  Before seating himself, Rod hung his jacket on the coat rack by the door and Wilfred placed a plate in front of him, handing him a halved grapefruit and asked, “Coffee? It’s decaf.”  Rod nodded yes.

He held his hands out to Wilfred, who pointed at a door just before the kitchen on the opposite side of the family room.

Rod quickly washed his hands and was grateful that he had not eaten as he had initially planned.  He returned to the table and was surprised that Mr. Devonshire had waited for him before he began. Creamer and sugar had been added to the table, along with a grapefruit spoon and accompanying silverware. Rod thanked him for the breakfast, said a silent prayer, and both men began to eat.  The meal was tasty and satisfying and Wilfred rose to pour them both a refresher on the cups of coffee.

Rod rose and removed the plates from the table, remembering what David had told him about his brother.  He added the grapefruit shells to the green garbage bin, rinsed the yogurt containers, and added them to the red garbage bins.  He washed the plates, and rinsed and placed them in the drainer along with the silverware.  He joined Wilfred back at the table who only watched him with mild curiosity.

Wilfred noticed that Rod stood at five-foot-eleven and was about 160 pounds soaking wet with two bricks in both pockets.  He reseated himself at the kitchen table and crossed his legs, arching his brows and waiting for Rod to speak.  Just as he was assessing Rod, Rod was doing the same of him.

Wilfred Devonshire was without a doubt the most attractive man Rod had ever seen in his life.  He had thick jet black hair that had been meticulously braided.  The braid had hung down his back before breakfast and while Rod had been doing the dishes, he had swirled the braid into some form of knot at the base of his neck that almost resembled a chignon.  His skin was a flawless shade of creamy café au lait, with perfectly trimmed eyebrows that were seated on chiseled facial features.  The chin was faultless. The Patrician nose sat ideally over the most perfect set of lips.  As Wilfred looked up at him, Rod was almost was drawn into the most intense eyes he had ever made contact with.  He wasn’t sure of the eye color and David had warned that his brother’s facial expressions would tell you nothing, but his eyes would tell you everything, especially if the color changed.  Rod had thought it a stupid phrase because no one had mood eye color changes.  He quickly realized that David had been right.

Initially when Rod made eye contact with him in the foyer, the eyes had seemed almost hazel in color– they were now light brown.  When he lowered his lashes, they literally fell across his cheeks and he thought of the number of women who had eyelashes added to get the effect that this man was born with and felt like an ass for sitting here staring at him for so long. Wilfred stood about six-foot-two and was 180 pounds of sheer muscle.  Rod noticed that he was solid and wondered how he maintained it after that sorry breakfast they had just eaten.

There was no need to dilly-dally about so Rod picked his briefcase up from the floor, placed it in the chair beside him, and removed a book by Jonathan Cahn called
The Harbinger
.  He slid the book over to Wilfred.

“I’ve heard of this and had planned to order it,” Wilfred said as he examined the jacketed cover and read the author bio and a brief synopsis of the story.  He quickly perused the first chapter only adding, “Hmph.”

Rod began the odd conversation.  “I took my time driving out and had the opportunity to stop by several bookstores, independents, chains, big box, and Mom & Pop shops from here to Chicago.”

Wilfred waited for him to finish.  “I found the most curious thing.”  He sipped at his coffee.  “People are avidly reading, but they are doing it on eReaders.”

Rod chuckled.  “They are sitting in bookstores, reading books on computers.”  He knew Wilfred would find this information helpful because David never had time to hit the road, so he only analyzed trends through data.  Rod understood that Wilfred rarely left the ranch and only viewed the outside world through clips on the internet and occasional news shows.  He was going to use this approach to soften the blow to come.

“I think we can make a small fortune if we introduce a new series of novellas for eReaders.  We can launch the new brand by staging a summer reading contest, call for submissions, and offer contracts to the ten best.  We could build an eBook division of novellas.”

Wilfred was looking at him head on, taking in every word that he said.  His light brown eyes were now dark brown, smoky, and ten times more intense.  “I like the idea, but what are you talking here is a startup cost of what … seventy-five grand?”

Rod had him interested.  “No, not necessarily- smaller contracts of maybe $5,000 each can be given for a three-to-five novella deal.”

“You are talking about a penny a word. Do you think anyone will go for that?”

“I know a couple of writers who are on the same level with Cahn,” he said, then took two manuscripts from his briefcase and handed them to Wilfred as he went to get the coffee pot to refill both their cups.  “These two would make great additions to the company, and they will work for pennies just to get a book deal.”  He added his comments on Cahn’s work and did a quick comparison and contrast among a famous traditional literary author and a modern literary author, which sparked a conversation that lasted nearly an hour.

The two men had found a common ground and both had assessed they would be able to work together.  Rod felt it was a good time to tell him the good and bad news.  His big speech was interrupted by Conchetta, who entered singing a Mexican folklore song, followed by Gianni.

Gianni, a whirling dervish of a teenager came into the kitchen, grabbed an apple, something that resembled cheese that he stuck between two slices of bread, his car keys from the shelf, and a single-serve orange juice, all before noticing the tall black man at the table.

He stopped in his tracks.  “Hey, man!” he said as he stuck out his already full hand for a shake.  “Who are you?”

Wilfred answered, “This is Rod, my new Chief Operating Officer.”

Gianni plopped down at the table and began a litany of questions.  Wilfred was impressed that Rod took the time to answer each one, not in a condescending manner, but as a man who had spent time with the younger generation.

“So, are you planning to live with us or something?” Gianni asked Rod, but phrased the question with his eyes trained on Wilfred.  Rod, too, turned his eyes to Wilfred.  “David mentioned something about a guest house that he told me ask you if it would okay to use until I get to buy a new place.”

Wilfred only nodded yes and excused himself briefly to go to his office.   He returned moments later with a leather portfolio and switched from coffee to tea, offering Rod the same, who declined.  The back door opened and in walked a very large Indian who stood about six-foot-five, weighed a good 250 pounds, and seemed to fill the entire doorway.  Under his arm was also a leather portfolio that he clutched with his elbow as he made his way to the coffee pot.  He joined the men at the table after planting a quick kiss on Conchetta’s cheek.  His deep baritone voice filled the room, “Morning, all.”

He seated himself as he stared at Rod, and quickly introduced himself.  “I am Henry White Bear.”

Wilfred seemed amused as Rod processed the sheer mass of the man who appeared to suck all the free air from the room.  The back door opened and in walked a short Mexican man, followed by a younger version of the ranch hand.  Rod noticed that each of the men had the same black portfolio and Gianni had pulled one from his knapsack as well.  The younger of the two noticed Rod at the table, walked over, and shook his hand.  “I’m Mario.”

Rod stood and the older of the two extended his hand.  “
Hola, Se
ň
or
, I am Raul.”  Conchetta brought more coffee to the table, refilling Rod’s and White Bear’s mugs, and poured a fresh cup for Raul, with Wilfred adding, “Let’s get started.”

Simultaneously, they powered up the tablets housed in the portfolios and Wilfred began what appeared to be a Monday morning staff meeting.  Rod was impressed when he realized that Green Gables was a self-sustaining working ranch.  Wilfred had brokered a cooperative with a few California growers for fruits that the ranch shared with a local pig farmer that supplied the ranch with some meats.  The items in the green garbage bins were also given to the pig farmer in exchange.

Rod listened intently for the next hour as they reviewed cost, budgets, and scheduling of duties for the next week.  Wilfred began to discuss the power that they were selling to the city of Bisbee and to the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area.

“The new Powermax wind turbines are functioning well and producing more power than was needed,” Raul added to the conversation.

“With Rod taking over the guest house, White Bear, double check the backup generator to make sure it will kick on in case of an emergency.”

Wilfred continued talking, but this time to Raul.  “Raul, check the outside lighting and ensure that the motion lights kick on around the darker side of the house.  We’ve had more javelina this year, so we all must be vigilant.”  He looked at Rod to quickly explain that javelina were wild boars that could cause a great deal of damage.

“White Bear,” Wilfred added, “Rod may be staying in the guest house for up to three months. We will need to have a garage constructed for his vehicle.  Let’s see if we can make that happen this week.”

“I’ll get some preliminary estimates and have them emailed by Wednesday,” White Bear said.  “Once you approve, we can probably have the concrete pad poured by Friday, walls up by Saturday and done by Tuesday.”

Wilfred only nodded and looked at the tablet.  His fingers work furiously as he pushed, slid, and moved items on the tablet’s face.

At last he looked to Gianni.  “Please get with Raul on the filtration in the greenhouse.  That last batch of asparagus tasted kind of funky, and we need to look at phasing out some of the cauliflower in the greenhouse since even the horses don’t like it.”

Gianni’s hands worked the tablet and he showed the crew some hybrid vegetables he wanted to introduce. Everyone seemed to frown but Wilfred listened to the young man only to add, “You’re not worried about cross-pollination and it impacting the other vegetables?”

Gianni looked at him solemnly as if this thought had not occurred to him before and only nodded.  Wilfred closed the meeting.  “I am going to take Rod on a tour of the property before we head down to the office.” He rattled the set of car keys Gianni had laid on the table.  “Time to get moving so you’re not late for school.  We’ll talk more when you get home.”

Raul began to ask Wilfred several questions in Spanish and Rod was surprised that Wilfred responded fluently, patted the man on the back, and gave a few instructions to Mario about the horses.  White Bear helped himself to an apple before exiting as silently as he entered.  Wilfred turned to Rod and said, “Grab your jacket, let’s go to work.”

Although the air was crisp, overall the weather was pleasant, which yielded a rather nice day for a walk. They stepped onto the wide patio and Rod was truly impressed.  To the right of the patio, he could see the fogged glass that indicated an indoor pool.  Wilfred told him, “The pool also has a fully-functioning gym inside of the structure.”  From what Rod could see, the ranch was immaculate.

Wilfred looked at Rod’s feet and noticed the wing tipped shoes and realized that walking was not going to be an option.  The unimproved road that connected the hacienda to the adjoining buildings was covered with small gray gravel.  Next to the greenhouse was a parking pad that housed several utility golf carts.  Rod followed along behind Wilfred loving the quietness of the property.

Wilfred called his name and he looked at the structure of the greenhouse, which was an impressive size.  “Our greenhouse supplies all of our vegetables for not only the ranch, but as you heard, a local farmer and our animals as well.”  Wilfred opened the door to the greenhouse and Rod was amazed at the size of the tomatoes, the cucumbers, a variety of peppers, and other vegetables that were in varying states of growth.

“This is impressive,” Rod said.

“Yeah, especially considering it started as a fourth grade science project for Gianni,” he boasted.  “I’m impressed with what he’s done with the venture.”

They left the greenhouse and climbed aboard the utility cart.  As they drove past the chicken house, Rod was amazed that it had no smell.

“Our eggs, though a staple in our daily diets, are also used to trade with a local family who keeps the coops clean and clips the wings of the birds.”

He added, “The hen house only holds about 15 chickens and one rooster that is only allowed scheduled visits.”  He informed Rod that when the chicks were hatched they were taken to small Apache and Chiricahua Indian villages.  “We try to be a part of the local community and give back,” Wilfred said as he drove the cart toward the stables.

The barn and tack rooms were immaculate as well, and the horses were well groomed.
And there is no smell.
 Mario was in the stable applying a bit to a bay gelding whose ears perked up when the men entered the room.  A magnificent black stallion whinnied and kicked at the stall doors as they approached.  Rod asked, “What’s his problem?”

“He’s mean, horny and ornery,” Wilfred added while he whispered to the animal, “Calm down, Lancelot.”  Rod’s eyebrows went up with the recognition of the name and immediately knew it was David’s horse.

“If that is Lancelot, then this beautiful lady,” he said as he approached the dark mustang, “must be Morgana.”  The barn had several other horses, a beautiful paint, which belonged to White Bear. The Palomino pony belonged to his sister, Willie. There were two pintos, one belonged to Wilfred, the other to Gianni. “Do your ride?”

 “I have ridden a few times in the past, but would not consider myself a horseman,” Rod said as he stopped in front of the gelding.  He eyed the horse with some curiosity and the horse moved closer to the stall doors.

“It appears that Sir Galahad has taken a liking to you, and that joker does not like many people.”  Rod patted the gelding’s nose and Mario handed him a carrot that he fed to the animal.

“He used to belong to my sister, but every time she rode him, he would throw her.  David said it was because of her perfume – but he just doesn’t like her much.”

 They said very little as they left the stables and Wilfred showed Rod the barn.  Back in the cart, they drove down the gravel drive, still quiet as Wilfred waited, knowing…but still waiting.  Rod was amazed at the peacefulness and the serenity of it all.  “It is really nice here,” he said without looking at Wilfred.

After about a mile, Rod started to look around a bit and asked, “Um, where are we headed?”  Wilfred noticed the unease and still said nothing.  As they rounded the corner, they came upon a small adobe cottage.

“This is White Bear’s house. He’s about a mile and a half from the hacienda and a mile from the guest house.”  They continued to ride in silence for the next mile and a half and Rod was not impressed with Wilfred’s tactics to make him squirm, but it was working.  He knew he still had the gun in his waistband too.

The next house was a small two-bedroom cottage. “This is the guesthouse.”  Rod noticed that his car had already been moved and was parked in the space.  White Bear was there measuring for what he assumed was going to be the garage.  “White Bear, please make sure to include enough space to park his golf cart.” Wilfred said with ease as he walked to the entrance of the quaint little house.

Wilfred showed Rod into the charming cottage.  It was tastefully decorated with a studio-sized stove, fridge, and eat-in kitchen.  The bedroom held a king-sized bed and a dresser that was hidden in the closet.  The second bedroom had been converted to a mini office with a small worktable.  There were no mirrors anywhere other than the bathroom.  Wilfred still remained by the door looking as if he was ready to bolt.  As Rod wandered through the cottage, Wilfred told him the distance to the local grocers.

“If you don’t cook, you can take your meals at the main house with me and Gianni, and last but not least, your vehicle is not to be driven on the ranch.”  The instructions were to use the golf cart on the property, and he would send down a loaner until he could order one for him specifically.

The office was located another mile or so down the road.  “Sometimes I ride my horse to work if I am just working a few hours.”  It was idle chitchat because they both knew that there were bigger conversations to be had.

Rod was pleased that the living space was better than he had anticipated, but the gun was starting to bug him, even more so considering the news he had to deliver.  “What’s with the gun?”

Wilfred smiled but clearly stated that even though he had Rod by a clear thirty pounds, he would not take any chances.  “I trust my brother.  My brother trusts you.  You, in turn, have to earn my trust.  In the meantime, although I hold two black belts, hand-to-hand combat can be messy.  If you opt to invade my space, I would rather just shoot you.”

Rod stood with his jaw agape, wondering what had happened to this man to make him so paranoid.  “What makes you think I would want to hurt you?”

Wilfred eyed him suspiciously.  “Life has taught me to be prepared for whatever may come.  A bullet is a nice equalizer.”

“You are a bit of an enigma, aren’t you?”

Wilfred did not respond, so Rod continued, “You look nothing like a Wilfred, and, Wilfred, you are nothing like you look.”

He stopped and eyed Rod with a look of amusement.  “Is that a concern for you?”

Rod raised his voice.  “Hell yeah! Especially since both of us know that I have to deliver you some news that you aren’t going to like!”

A sly grin was all that he got when Wilfred said, “Well, I guess you better tell it to me nicely.”