‘Good question,’ May derided.
‘It isn’t good at all!’ January corrected snappily. ‘There’s the little problem of paying someone to help.’ She turned on Max sharply. ‘Something, it must be obvious even to you, that we aren’t in a position to do.’
‘January…’ May rebuked softly. ‘Max was only asking,’ she reasoned gently before turning to give Max a rueful smile. ‘We did have some help last year after—after our father died,’ she explained huskily. ‘It didn’t work out.’ She shrugged.
He couldn’t help noticing that January looked rather pale now, May’s gaze once again evasive, making him wonder in what way it hadn’t worked out.
He shrugged. ‘It was just a thought.’
‘A totally impractical one,’ January snapped scornfully. ‘Although that must be rather good for you to hear,’ she continued scathingly. ‘After all, it would suit your plans perfectly if we were forced into selling the farm because we simply couldn’t manage it any more!’
‘January—’
‘Don’t be fooled by him for a minute, May,’ January harshly interrupted her sister’s reasoning tone. ‘Max—and
the Marshall Corporation—would like nothing better than for us to fall flat on our faces! Well, dream on, Max!’ she told him forcefully. ‘You will never get your mercenary hands on our farm! Now, if you’ll excuse me,’ she added hardly, grabbing her coat from the back of one of the chairs. ‘You can stay and talk to him if you want to, May, but I have work to do!’
The room seemed to reverberate as she slammed the door behind her, May’s wince matching Max’s as he glanced across at her ruefully.
‘What did you do to upset her this time?’ May mused with a grimace.
‘Do I need to “do” anything in order to upset January?’ he came back wryly.
‘Probably not,’ May sighed.
‘That’s what I thought.’ He nodded, his gaze narrowing. ‘What was his name?’ he rasped.
May looked at him undecidedly for several long seconds, and then she gave a rueful shrug. ‘Ben,’ she supplied economically.
His admiration for this woman seemed to grow by the minute. She had obviously taken over the role of mother to her two younger sisters while only aged five or six, still a baby herself, in fact, was possessed of a lively intelligence, and her beauty was of the inner as well as outer kind.
‘Thank you.’ He gave an acknowledging inclination of his head.
May frowned. ‘For what?’
‘For not insulting my intelligence by denying there was a “he”,’ Max drawled. ‘That “he” was the hired help you had here last summer. I’m also guessing it’s the same “he” who hurt January. The same “he” who prompted your warning me off her on Sunday evening,’ he added ruefully.
‘What would be the point in my denying any of that?’ May shrugged. ‘I realized on Sunday evening that I had probably said more than I should have done.’ She sighed self-disgustedly. ‘You’re an intelligent man—’
‘Thank you again,’ he drawled dryly.
‘That doesn’t mean I like you!’ she snapped, green eyes flashing a warning.
‘That’s a pity…’ he smiled ruefully ‘…because I like you,’ he explained at her questioning glance. ‘Oh, not in that way,’ he assured her as her glance became sceptical. ‘One Calendar sister, I’ve discovered, is one too many!’
‘I’m glad about that,’ May drawled. ‘Max, what are you doing with my little sister?’
He sighed, that sigh quickly becoming a grimace. ‘How the hell should I know?’ he murmured heavily.
She laughed incredulously. ‘Well, if you don’t know I certainly don’t!’
What was he doing? January had made it more than clear when they’d parted on Sunday that she never intended seeing him again through choice, and he knew her well enough to believe she meant it.
So instead the mountain had come to Mohammed. Because he had feared for January’s safety after hearing about the latest attack.
But he could have picked up the telephone, called the farm, then any one of the sisters could have given him that information.
Instead he had chosen to drive out here in order to see for himself that January was safe and well.