Page 20 of Puppy Kisses

“It was the least I could do,” he said loftily. “Puppies who lack affection can have all kinds of problems later on.”

“Humans, too,” Dawn added mischievously. “We all need a little love sometimes, wouldn’t you say, Adam? Just look how miserable that poor lady today was. Does she live in that huge farmhouse all by herself?”

The provocation was strong, but he managed to subdue the urge to retaliate in kind. The only way to beat Dawn at anything was simply not to play.

“She’s lived there alone for as long as I can remember,” he replied. “She had a husband once upon a time, but he left the picture long before I took over the ranch.”

As was almost always the case whenever he mentioned his rise in status at Dearborn Ranch, a somewhat subdued hush fell over the room. Adam had only been nineteen when their father died and put him in charge of this place.Andof Zeke and Phoebe, who’d only been fifteen. It had been a lot to heap on any teenager’s shoulders, let alone one who faced a few extra hurdles in life. Within the space of a few months, he’d had to learn how to cook and make sure the twins got to school, helped with trigonometry homework and prom-date woes—and all of that on top of his regular workload.

It had been hard on them emotionally, too. Their father had been old when they were born; older still as they moved through their teens, but that hadn’t made him any less of a presence in their lives. He’d never been awarmman—not really, not after their mom died having the twins—but when your whole life and livelihood was tied up in a place like this, it was impossible not to become dependent on those around you.

The fact that they were all still working here was clear proof of that. For good or for bad, he and Phoebe and Zeke were bound. Roped together like a herd of cattle heaving and thronging as one.

Adam cleared his throat—and, in the process, cleared the air. “All that land is a lot for anyone to maintain by themselves, let alone a woman of her age,” he said. “I assume that’s why she’s selling out.”

“Selling out?” Dawn echoed.

“Oh, yeah. It’s the hottest thing to happen around these parts since that two-headed deer was seen stalking the north woods.” Phoebe began fidgeting with the condiments on the counter, the clatter of the ketchup bottle and saltshaker ringing together. “Her acreage is some of the best in these parts. Water access, highly arable land… I won’t tell you how much Adam has offered her for it. It makes him turn red to think about it.”

Predictably, Adam felt his color rise. There was no denying that he’d already gone much higher than he’d ever planned, but what other choice did he have? Bea Benson drove a hard bargain.

“It would allow us to add an extra hundred head of cattle to our operation,” he said in a level tone. “Which, by the way, is a thing all three of us agreed to. This is as much your ranch as it is mine.”

“You guys are expanding?” Dawn asked. “Weird. Zeke never said anything.”

“That’s because Zeke doesn’t think it’ll actually go through,” his brother said. Like the other two, he’d pulled close to the kitchen counter to join the conversation. “If you ask me, Bea’s just toying with Adam. Adam and the Smithwoods both. She’ll never actually sell. She only wants to see how far he’ll bend over.”

“And how far will he bend?” Dawn asked. “For purely scientific reasons.”

The heat that had risen to the surface of his skin didn’t abate any, but Adam busied himself with straining the pasta. The steam was as good an excuse for the flush as any. “I offered a little above market value, that’s all. Not that it mattered. She didn’t bite. It would have been worth the extra money to see the Smithwoods squirm.”

“Why do we want the Smithwoods to squirm?”

Zeke laughed. The sound was followed by the pop of a cork and the gurgle of wine being poured out. Apparently, they were turning this into a whole thing—food and drink and family camaraderie. Adam’s heart gave an odd sort of thunk at how good it felt, how ordinary. He couldn’t remember the last time they’d done this on a day that wasn’t a holiday or a funeral.

“We’ve been at war with their family for years,” Zeke said. “Didn’t you know? They’re our mortal enemies.”

Dawn paused long enough to swallow. “We have a mortal enemy? And no one told me?”

No one bothered to correct Dawn’s pronoun usage. It didn’t seem to matter that she was just a friend of Zeke’s, a dog trainer they’d hired to work on-site for the next six weeks. Now that Adam thought about it, he didn’t recall any of them inviting her to stay for dinner, either. Yet for her to leave now would have ruined the evening for all three of them.

“Okay. Spill.” Dawn rapped her knuckles on the island top. “What’s the matter with them?”

“Oh, not much,” Zeke replied. “It’s only that they’re stuck up and greedy and would love nothing more than to see our entire family in ruins. We’ve been at war with them for generations. It’s a modern-day medieval feud.”

“People don’t have feuds in our day and age,” Phoebe protested. “They just get annoyed with each other on the internet.”

“Tell that to the Smithwoods,” Zeke countered.

Since Dawn wasn’t likely to get any sense out of either Phoebe or Zeke, Adam cleared his throat and did his best to summarize over fifty years of antagonism. “Their ranch is located on the other side of the Benson property,” he explained. “It’s the only direction either of us can expand, and whoever buys her land will control the best natural water resource in this area. Naturally, we’re both very eager to get our hands on it. And even more naturally, Bea Benson knows it. She’s been toying around with us both for years.”

“Oh.” Dawn sounded disappointed. “It’s a land dispute.”

“It’s a lot more than that,” Zeke retorted. “Tell her the best part, Adam.”

“I don’t see what difference it makes.”

“The Smithwoods used to own the land our ranch is located on,” Zeke said. From the dramatic way he spoke, you’d think he was sharing a deep, dark family secret. Which, Adam supposed, wasn’t too far from the truth. “But our grandfather won the deed from Peter Smithwood in a poker game.”