Logan shrugged a shoulder. “You’d be surprised. She’s not as bad as you make her sound.”
Clenching my teeth, I stormed to the window. “I’m not going to be her servant, and she won’t find any maids here. I’ll keep her safe, but that’s it. I won’t be at her beck and call. If she wants to stay, she has to live by my rules. Got it?”
He joined me by the window. “Don’t be so hard on her, Evans. Her bodyguard was just killed and her boyfriend is in critical condition. She’s in a bad place right now.”
“Since when did you turn soft?” I grumbled.
“She has that effect on people. You’ll see what I mean.”
I scoffed. “Just make sure her father pays up.”
He patted me on the shoulder. “He’s good for it. Once he hears from me, he’ll give you a call to transfer the money.”
“Good,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest.
“Do you want me to bring her in and introduce her? I have to get back to the airport.”
“Might as well,” I grumbled.
Logan marched out of the kitchen and to the car. The second Hadley stepped out and I saw her face, I knew I was in trouble.
Hadley
“What took you so long? You had me worried,” I said.
Logan shut the door and grabbed my bag out of the back. “Sorry about that. It took longer than I thought.”
“Is everything okay?”
Shouldering my bag, he sighed, looking down at me with troubled blue eyes. “You’re not in California anymore, Hadley. Things are different here. You’re going to have to adapt to this lifestyle so you fit in. People are going to look at you and think they see Hadley, but you’re not her anymore. Understand?”
I nodded. “I know. My name is Anna Sawyer and I’m a twenty-five-year-old real estate agent from North Carolina. Blake Evans is my stepbrother and I’m visiting because I just got divorced from my husband and I needed to get as far away from home as I could.” I paused and took a deep breath. “I took drama in high school. I’m pretty sure I can pull it off.”
He smiled. “Good. I think you’re all set. I put your ID’s and an untraceable cell phone in your bag, along with my number. You can call me anytime.”
I followed him to the front door and stepped inside. The house had a warm feel to it, all western-like, with deer and buffalo heads on the wall. It was just like being on the set of a cowboy movie. I half expected John Wayne to mosey around the corner at any minute.
I gazed around in awe. “This is amazing.”
“So it meets your standards?” an abrasive voice called out.
Gasping, I jerked around and found the owner of the voice glaring at me. For a second I lost my ability to speak. His brown hair was damp with sweat and he was covered in streaks of dirt on his tanned, bare chest. He was gorgeous; except for the scowl on his face. Why was he looking at me like that? Surely that wasn’t Blake.
Huffing, Logan put his arm protectively around my shoulder, speaking through clenched teeth. “Hadley, I’d like you to meet dickface. Crap, I’m sorry . . . I meant Blake. I got a little confused there.” Body tense, Blake rolled his eyes and my stomach dropped. He did not want me there. “Blake, this is Hadley,” Logan continued, squeezing my shoulder. “She’ll be your guest for the next few weeks.”
Blake pointed to the stairs. “Your room is up there, first door on the left. I don’t have servants, so if you want something, get it yourself.”
I held up my hands. “I don’t have servants.” Unfortunately, he’d already turned on his heel and stalked away. Huffing, I glared up at Logan. “I can’t believe you’re leaving me here. Why is he acting like that?”
He set my bag down. “Want the truth?” I nodded. “Basically, he thinks you’re going to be an uppity cunt. What he doesn’t know is that you’re actually a down to earth person. He’ll come around once he gets to know you.”