When Henry had arrived at the ranch two weeks earlier, the Bluebonnets had just started blooming, and now they were a patchwork of blue that covered the hills surrounding the ranch. It was as if some had laid a carpet of cobalt over the ground. Bluebonnet season also meant the beginning of branding season, which meant that it would be a busy week.
Usually, the family would come to celebrate her grandparents' anniversary, a tradition that continued even though they had both passed on and help with the branding, but this year they were being held up in New York by a lawsuit. Fiona was vague on the details, but she did understand that it meant there was no extra help this year.
This was the first year that Fiona would be on her own, and it was a lonely business, but despite the fact, Henry and Fiona had taken to having a cup of coffee together every morning.
During the coffee sessions, they discussed the different aspects of ranch life, and sometimes Roger joined them, sometimes not. On the occasions when it was just Fiona and Henry, he had taken the time to give her a few pointers on how to best talk to and lead the men. Some of the information had been useful, but some of it would never work coming from her.
Either way, it was nice to have a moment to spend with someone away from the barn. Fiona hadn't realized how cut off from everyone she was or how lonely that made her. Her parents had retired the previous winter and handed the ranch over to Fiona. Now they were traveling the world and enjoying every minute, and as much as Fiona wanted to beg them to come home, she couldn't do it. They deserved their retirement.
Since branding started the following day, Fiona had wandered into the barn and climbed into the small loft area where they kept the branding irons and a few other tools of the trade. Branding was her least favorite thing to do on the ranch, but she understood the necessity of it. Luckily, they had moved the business away from cattle and more toward horses, so their cattle population was not what it used to be, which meant branding took less than a week, depending on how many calves had been born.
Fiona had moved to the edge of the loft with the surprisingly heavy irons when she noticed Henry working below. He was leading a horse into her stall then began brushing out her coat. He hadn't seen Fiona above him, so she took a minute to admire the view and his strong hands as they soothed the horse.
A moment later, one of the men they called Tiny approached the stall where Henry was working. Tiny wasn't called Tiny because he was small. In fact, he was the opposite. He towered above everyone, and he always made Fiona a little nervous, which was why she did her best to avoid him.
Henry greeted him in a friendly manner, but Tiny looked as if he was itching for a fight.
"Is something wrong, Barry?" Henry asked. Fiona guessed that Tiny's real name was Barry. It said a lot about Henry that he had taken the time to learn his real name.
"It's Tiny," Tiny insisted.
"If you insist, Tiny," Henry nodded, his grin fading. "What can I do for you?" Henry kept his movements calm as he finished with the horse and backed out of her stall, closing the stall door behind him.
"I don't like the way you're taking up with Miss Stevens," Tiny growled.
Fiona felt herself freeze at the comment. Why should Tiny mind who she spent time with?
"I'm not sure what you mean, Tiny. I haven't taken up with anyone." Henry reached into his back pocket and pulled out a bandana that he used to wipe his hands.
Fiona's heart rate had increased, she felt like there was going to be a fight, and she didn't like fights. She knew as a Navy SEAL Henry was more than capable of handling himself, but she should step in and stop it. It is what the boss was supposed to do.
She hated being the boss, especially during times like these.
"You have coffee with her every morning," Tiny accused.
"I do, and you're welcome to join us any morning you like," Henry offered, causing Fiona to cringe. Henry was only there for a month which amounted to two more weeks. What happened when he left and Tiny still wanted to have coffee with her?
"You talk about us with her. You tell her what we do and say." Tiny stepped towards Henry, who slowly put his bandana back in his pocket and crossed his arms. To his credit, Henry didn't take a step back.
"Why would I do that? I have enough to talk about with Fiona besides bring everyone who works here into the conversation. I feel no need to run to the boss and tell tales. What would be the purpose?" Henry asked with a shrug.
"To make her like you more than us," Tiny stepped towards Henry once more.
"That's enough, you two," Fiona said as she climbed down the steps then gave them a hard stare, this time doing her best to look intimidating.
She swore she saw Henry's lip twitch at the look, but it might have been in her imagination since he still seemed to be tense.
"I don't need fighting among us. We're about to start with the branding, and I need every man available. I'm thankful that as an old family friend, Henry is here to help, and you should be too Tiny. Unless you would like to give me a formal complaint against something that he has done?" Fiona's tone was firm. Playing tough wasn't her favorite thing to do, but she could do it when needed.
Fiona watched Tiny eye Henry while he considered his options.
"Henry, would you like to make a formal complaint about, Tiny?" Fiona looked at Henry, knowing he would do no such thing.
"No, I'm good." Henry gave a tight smile, his eyes never leaving Tiny as he told him without words that he was willing to finish the discussion anytime he wanted.
"Now, I would appreciate it if one of you would climb up to the loft and grab the branding irons and other things that I pulled out and take them to the front of the barn for tomorrow." Then Fiona turned and left, letting them work out the details on their own.
It was almost an hour later, while Fiona was in the kitchen making herself a sandwich when Henry quietly opened the back door and joined her in the kitchen.
Fiona was still unsettled by the scene in the barn and didn't say anything right away, but she did offer him a sandwich, which he took.
They both sat at the kitchen table and ate in silence, eyeing each other.
"Good job with the look," Henry said as he pushed his plate away from him.
Fiona's eyes narrowed. He had been laughing at her. "You were the one who said I was good at it," she defended.
"You are. You could make every SEAL I work with quake in their boots!" Henry grinned.
"Stop teasing me, Henry. I don't care for it." Fiona said as she reached for his plate and carried it, along with hers, to the sink.
"Yes, I remember that about you. You were always so serious and shy as a kid." Henry nodded as he looked out the window. "I was shy too," he softly said as if he remembered an uncomfortable memory.
"Yes, but you grew out of it, and I never did." Fiona shook her head as she rinsed the plates. "I would be much happier quietly taking orders than leading a bunch of unruly cowboys. The self-confident boss image is exhausting to maintain."
Henry didn't speak as he continued to look out the window with a frown. The words of support she had hoped he would give to her words were absent.
"Is it that obvious?" Fiona asked as she turned off the water and looked over at him.
"No, it's not." He shook his head. "You play the bossy woman very well."
Fiona got the impression he wasn't even thinking of what he was saying.
With a sigh, Henry turned to Fiona and looked at her. He really looked at her, letting his eyes skim her body and linger on her face. "What's the deal with Tiny?"
Fiona was disappointed by his question. Was this why he had come?
Of course, it was. It wasn't to see her, that was for sure.
"How should I know. This is the first I've heard that Tiny is unhappy in any way." Fiona shrugged, brushing off the hurt, which made no sense. Henry was there to help, not spend time bolstering her self-esteem.
"Yes, but is it because he thinks I'm your spy, or is it because he wants you for himself?" Henry looked her over once more.
Fiona shuddered at the thought of it being personal. "If it's personal, the fact that you invited him here every morning for coffee was a winning decision," she said drily.
Henry's continued silence and stare were making her nervous.
"The way you keep looking at me makes me think that it's hard for you to believe that he or anyone would ever be interested in me," Fiona drawled, trying to hide her hurt once more.
When did she get so sensitive? She grew up in a family that thrived on teasing, and while she didn't like it, she could handle it with the best of them, except when it came to Henry.
"On the contrary, you're one of the most beautiful women I've ever known. You're out of reach for us poor mortal men." Henry shook his head and gave a sad smile.
His words stunned her. He had called her beautiful, but he had also said that he could never have her. Why would he think that? Henry didn't strike her as someone who had self-confidence issues.
"Are you saying that I think I'm better than you?" Fiona asked in an attempt to clarify what he had said.
"I'm a poor working man, and you're a princess," Henry clarified with a shrug.
Fiona wanted to tell him that she had had a crush on him her whole life. That she thought he was the most handsome man in the entire world, and she was all but in love with him and always had been, but she couldn't.
"That doesn't mean I think I'm better than you," Fiona snapped.
"I didn't say it did." Henry stood.
"Then what did you say?" Fiona's eyes narrowed.
"You're a Stevens girl. You're out of bounds, and that's a line I can't cross." Henry walked toward her, reaching past her for his cowboy hat hanging on the hook by the door. He was in her space once again, but this time he had done it on purpose. It was as if he was testing either her or himself.
He looked at her eyes, her face, her lips, and she followed his lead, allowing her gaze to linger on his face. He was so close. One little step would have their bodies touching.
Fiona felt her tummy roll and her breathing change at his nearness as she tilted her head up to look at him. "Funny, it feels like you're crossing it with no problem right now, Henry."
Henry's already dark eyes darkened a little more as he continued to look at her with an intensity that she had never seen in him before. It was as if he was willing something to happen, but Fiona wasn't sure what it might be.
"If there are any lines, Henry, they are all in your head." There, she had thrown down the gauntlet. There could be no doubt in Henry's mind about her attraction to him.
They stared at each other for a moment more before he stepped back.
"Don't worry about Tiny joining you for coffee. If it is personal, it would be the last thing he would do. He fears rejection just as much as the rest of us." Having made this abrupt statement, Henry nodded and left the kitchen.
Fiona wanted to scream. Was he that dense? Did he not get the significant hint she had just dropped? Did she have to jump him to make him get the point?