Chapter 5
At least he had one thing.
He knew her name.
Sam.
Henry glanced at her out of the corner of his eye as they reached the bedroom. Funny, she didn’t quite look like a Sam. Maybe it was short for something. Or maybe he had made himself believe that she had some kind of exotic name better suited for those green eyes.
He pushed open the door and gestured with a sweep of his arm. “Home sweet home. What do you think?”
She glanced at him, then back to the room.
“Still not talking to me, huh? You ever gonna say something? I’d almost thought that you might be mute until you said your name. Hope doesn’t bite. You could have talked to her.”
Sam shot him a flat look, and he chuckled as he held up placating hands for what felt like the hundredth time.
“Okay, okay, I get it. You don’t like to talk to anyone. Not even the guy who’s willing to give you free room and board.”
Once again, her gaze locked with his, and for a brief moment, something electric passed between them.
Henry moved past her into the room. “Now, there’s still some of my brother’s things in the closet. If they get in the way, let me know and I’ll throw them in a box or something. The bathroom is down the hall. Breakfast and lunch are usually a free-for-all, but we always have dinner as a family.”
Sam wrinkled her nose, and he laughed.
“I know. Another weird thing in this day and age when families don’t make time for each other, but I promise, it’s not as bad as it seems. And we’ve got a lot more space since some of us have moved out.”
She placed her food on the dresser that was pressed up against the wall, and Henry motioned to it.
“You want me to put that in the fridge? We can put your name on it, and no one will eat it.” He scrunched up his face. “Okay, maybe that’s not true. Sometimes, Caleb takes stuff that doesn’t belong to him, and he totally lies about it. But maybe if I hide it in the vegetable drawer, he won’t see it.”
Sam moved to the window as if she hadn’t heard a single word he’d said. She wrapped her arms around herself, then took a deep breath and released it.
Henry didn’t dare go any closer to her. Now was not the time to push anything she wouldn’t be comfortable with. He was lucky as it was to get her on board with coming up here in the first place. “Anyway,” he drawled, “I was thinking that if you wanted to, we could go to town again and get you a few things.”
Her head snapped around and she stared at him with curiosity.
He flushed hot. “I noticed you didn’t have anything with you. It’s getting colder around here. I thought you might like to get a jacket and maybe a few other things.”
Sam shook her head vehemently and then turned back to the window.
“Are you sure? Because—”
Once again, she shook her head.
“Okay,” he said. “Well, I’m going to head out and get some more work done. You’re welcome to get some rest or take a shower or something. I don’t know where Hudson is, but I’ll make sure he knows that this room is yours now. Oh, and there’s fresh sheets in the closet on the top shelf. I’d offer to change the bed for you, but I can’t until later.” He inched closer to the door, backing up until he stood in the doorway. “Come find me if you need anything. Or you can ask anyone you bump into. I swear, we’re all really nice.”
Sam still didn’t turn. He wasn’t sure if she even cared about any of the stuff he’d just told her. It probably didn’t matter anyway. At this point, he wouldn’t be surprised if she regretted her choice to stay and she ended up disappearing before he got done with his work for the day.
He’d just have to hope that she trusted him enough to stick around.
* * *
Henry didn’t seeHudson anywhere when he went downstairs or outside. He might have already gone out to work and that would mean touching base with him when they came in at lunch. Then again, if Sam agreed to it, Henry didn’t plan on being home at lunch. For some reason unknown to even him, he really wanted to take her out to get a few things of her own.
Already, he could tell she would be a hard nut to crack. She’d said exactly one word to anyone since he’d come in contact with her. For whatever reason, she held her cards close to her chest. But he’d figure her out.
The hours dragged on as he got the rest of his morning duties completed. Every so often he’d look toward the house as if he expected to see Sam make a run for it. But each time he did, there wasn’t anything.
It probably took him slightly longer than usual to get his work done just for that fact alone. As it neared lunchtime, he finally tossed aside his work gloves and headed for the house, only to have the door slam open. Birds shot out from the nearby trees and Sam scurried from the house, followed by an angry Hudson.
Henry charged forward quickly enough to have Sam collide with his chest when she took a moment to look behind her. She gasped as her head whipped around and her green eyes met his. She blinked, then all at once dug her face into his chest.
His arms came out to his sides as his brain tried to make sense of how she was treating him.
“What is that homeless chick doing in my bedroom, Henry?” Hudson demanded.
Sam flinched, and Henry shot a dirty look at his brother. “It’s not your room. Up until yesterday, it was Mason’s.”
Hudson shook his head. “Everyone knows that I called dibs. I get to have my own space now.”
Henry snorted. “Seriously? You want to make this about getting your own space? All of us had a roommate since the very beginning. That’s what happens in big families.”
“And now that I’ve paid my dues, I get to have that room,” he insisted.
“Stop being ridiculous. There’s plenty of space for us to help her out.”
Hudson glowered. This had been the loudest he’d been that Henry could ever remember. His sour mood had only continued to increase since the family had grown. He nodded to Sam, who was still burying her face in Henry’s chest. “You didn’t ask for permission. I bet if I tell Wade, he’s gonna tell you to find some other place to put her. In fact, I bet he’s gonna tell you this was all a bad idea. We don’t know anything about her.”
“Not if I get to Brielle first.”
Hudson’s brows lifted. He knew exactly what Henry was referring to. Brielle wouldn’t allow anyone, least of all someone in need like Sam, to get kicked to the curb. Hudson’s shoulders slumped and he groaned. “Come on, man. I just want to have my own room.”
“Then trade with Caleb. I’m sure he’s bummed out with Carter gone.”
Hudson grew quiet. He glanced toward the house, then the barn and back to Henry. “Actually, that might work.”
“I know it will. Twins are notorious for wanting to have company, right?”
“I don’t know about any of that, but I bet I could convince our baby brother that he needs to move out and let me have his room.” Hudson spun around and headed for the house, leaving Henry alone with Sam.
The second Hudson was gone, Sam pulled away from Henry. She wrapped her arms around herself, not looking directly at him. Then she lifted her accusatory gaze.
Henry chuckled, lifting a shoulder as he did. “Sorry about that. Hudson is usually so tame. I didn’t think he’d chase you out of the house.”
Her lip curled and she glanced over her shoulder to where Hudson had gone. Then she shook her head and marched toward the road.
“Where are you going?” Henry chased after her. His heart hammered a little harder. “You’re not just gonna leave like that, are you?” He reached for her wrist, but she ripped it out of his grasp. “Come on, that was just a hiccup.” Henry came around to stand in front of her. “Let me make it up to you.”
Sam eyed him with that familiar disdain mingled with distrust.
Henry laughed. “What kind of girl says no to a shopping spree? You have to admit it sounds fun, right?”
Her eyes narrowed, then she looked away. “Why are you doing this?” she whispered.
He blinked with surprise. Then he moved closer. “Did you just ask me a question?”
Her arms flew down at her sides and she scowled at him. “What is wrong with you? Are you broken up here?” She tapped her temple. “You don’t know me. I could be a serial killer.”
Henry let his gaze sweep over her small frame. “Yeah, and I’m the prince of England.”
She snorted. “Sometimes big things come in small packages.”
A smile tugged at his lips. “I’ll have to take your word for it.” They continued staring at each other until Henry couldn’t take it any longer. “Does that mean you’ll go shopping with me? You can get some new clothes, maybe a bag?”
“I’m not helpless,” she snapped. “Have you considered that I have exactly what I want?”
He sized her up again. “Okay, then just a coat. I’m telling you, if you haven’t spent your winters here, then you’re going to regret not having one.”
“Who says I’m staying here that long?”
Henry blinked. She was right about that one. He’d assumed she was sticking around, but a person like Sam didn’t appear to be the type to stay in any place very long. “Oh,” he murmured.
She glanced up at him, and for a second, he thought he could see her defenses drop. But just as quickly as that occurred, they came right back up. “Fine. A coat. And maybe a new pair of shoes. These ones don’t fit right.”
He grinned, gesturing toward his truck. “Deal.” When she didn’t immediately head in that direction, he held out his arm in a crook.
She stared at it and then lifted a single brow when she met his eyes. “No, thanks.”
At least she was talking now. He had to take every win he could get.
“I hope you know this isn’t some sort of My Fair Lady thing. You’re not going to change my clothes and my hair, put on some makeup and make a new woman out of me.”
“My Fair Lady? What’s that?”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m just saying, I’m not going to be your puppet. And I’m not your project. And I’m definitely not your pet.”
“So we’re nixing the three ‘P’ words. No puppets, projects, or pets. Got it.”
They got to his truck, and he opened the door for her. She hesitated, then met his gaze again with narrowed eyes. “You never said why you were doing this.”
He shrugged. “I guess I don’t have an answer for you.”
Sam huffed. “I don’t believe that for a second. Everyone has ulterior motives. Even handsome cowboys like you.”
Henry grinned. “You think I’m handsome?”
Her cheeks filled with color, something not even a scowl could hide. She dropped her eyes and climbed into the truck. “One trip to town and that’s it.”
He shut the door with a chuckle and hurried around the side to climb in behind the wheel. When he closed his own door, she spoke again. “And you can tell your brother he won’t have to wait long. I’m not staying.”
Henry glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. Maybe that would change.