Total pages in book: 45
Estimated words: 42859 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 214(@200wpm)___ 171(@250wpm)___ 143(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 42859 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 214(@200wpm)___ 171(@250wpm)___ 143(@300wpm)
“Hey,” he said, following the landlord.
The man stopped and turned around. “Can I help you?”
“Yeah, I’ve got a question for you,” he said. “Why toss a good tenant?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He went to turn away from him, but Archie was already close and stopped him with a hand to his arm.
“Wait, you know what I’m talking about. Annalise was a good tenant. She’s been here forever. What’s the deal? Is this just about the bottom line? You sell to a builder or something?”
“Look, it’s none of my business. I don’t get involved in family disputes. This is all I have, and I take pride in offering decent places for people to live at affordable prices. I can’t afford all the red tape if the inspectors come down hard on me. I never wanted any of this. I’m sorry for Annalise. I truly am.”
The landlord pulled away, and Archie frowned.
“Who wanted you to kick her out?” Archie asked.
“Her stepfather.”
Archie nodded. “Is he someone we’ve got to be worried about?”
“I don’t know,” the landlord said. “All I know is that he threatened to have me shut down for rental violations, as well as citing the building. He carries a lot of weight, and I can barely put food on the table. At first I didn’t believe him, but then I got hit with a city council warning. Believe me, be careful.”
“Thanks.” Archie didn’t see a reason to prolong his meeting with the landlord. He had a hunch about the eviction, and he was right.
He was going to have to talk with Vinny and Gabe, but he wasn’t going to worry Annalise, certainly not yet.
“Is everything okay?” Annalise asked as they met back at the truck.
“Perfectly fine.” He looked at Vinny, who raised an eyebrow. He gave him the signal that he’d talk about it later.
It was way too hot, and they didn’t have A/C in the truck. It was time they headed back out toward the ranch. He turned on the radio and listened to some country tunes.
Annalise’s stepfather was making waves, but why? He didn’t get it. He knew they weren’t close to each other. Anyone could see that.
Why go after Annalise? As far as he knew, she’d been on her own and supporting herself for most of her life.
They arrived back at the ranch and started to unload her belongings.
“It can just go into storage,” Annalise said.
She had a couple of bedside tables, a couch, and then a couple of boxes of books, and meager belongings, which included her clothes. Not a lot of stuff.
“Don’t worry about it. We’ve got plenty of room,” Archie said.
Gabe headed toward the barn. “This everything?” he asked.
“Yep, everything.” Archie and Vinny carried the couch into the living room. They only had three chairs, and even though it didn’t exactly fit in with the rest of the furniture, they’d never been one to care about the aesthetic of a room.
Stuff was stuff. When you came from nothing, anything was a prize.
They carried the rest of her stuff up to her bedroom.
She’d only been with them a short time, and already the room smelled like her.
****
“This doesn’t have to mean anything,” Gabe said.
Annalise had already been settled in for the night, and there was no sign of her. He kind of missed that.
Archie though, seemed to be looking for trouble, which he didn’t like.
“Maybe it’s something we should take a look into,” Vinny said. “Without Annalise knowing, of course.”
“Does Annalise even know?” Gabe asked.
He watched Archie run his fingers through his hair with a shrug. “I don’t know what she knows. She looked sad about moving though. The old man seemed to like her.”
“She might have seen this coming. We don’t know her that well. For all we know, she could be a huge bitch.”
Archie snorted, as did Vinny. Gabe didn’t believe his words either. Annalise was no bitch. He was a good enough judge of character to know that. Whatever her stepfather had against her, it was his own deal.
He leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees. “Look, there’s not a lot we can do right now about any of this. We’ll keep our ears open and our mouths shut. See what happens. For now, we’ve got a new housekeeper, so hopefully you assholes will stay off my case.” He got to his feet. “I’m tired and we’ve got a lot to do tomorrow. Stop worrying about shit that you don’t even know what is real or not and focus on what you truly know to be fact. We’ve got a ranch to run. Not to think about the what-ifs of life. Got it?”
Gabe waited until he got confirmation from his friends before he let them be. He headed upstairs, ignoring the very door their new housekeeper now slept behind.