Chapter 14
CHAPTER 14
A fter the employees’ party, which Edward did not attend, Samantha and her mother decided it was time to wait up for him. Like two parents waiting for a tardy teenager, they sat in the living room of the house, waiting for him to sneak up the stairs.
About two o’clock, after her mother had fallen asleep on the couch, Samantha heard him come into the house.
She shook her mother awake, hating that she had to do it, but their mother needed to hear his excuses.
“Where have you been?” her mother asked.
He walked into the room and gazed at the two of them.
“Have a seat,” Samantha said, pointing to the chair across from them. “We need to talk.”
His brown eyes widened and she could see the fear in his gaze. She was so angry at him that it was hard to remember that he was her brother and that she loved him.
“Samantha, what’s wrong? Did something happen at the wedding,” he asked, taking a seat across from the women.
“The wedding was cancelled by the fiancé. He didn’t want to marry Bridezilla,” she said.
A smile spread across his face. “They still have to pay, right?”
“Who knows,” she said. “Where have you been?”
The man licked his lips uneasily and shifted in his chair. Her mother just stared at him. “Isn’t it a little late for Mother to be up?”
“No,” she said in a commanding tone that Samantha had not heard her use since they were children. “It’s time for us to have a family meeting and for you to be honest with us.”
Edward gulped. “What do you mean?”
Samantha picked up the first group of papers and handed them to him. “This is an audit on the ranch’s books I had Casey do. What are you spending the money on, Edward?”
He flipped through the pages.
“This is all wrong. This can’t be true,” he said.
“When did you take out a loan on the ranch without telling me,” her mother said.
His head jerked up. “I’m in control of the ranch. I can do what I want with the land.”
Her mother took a sharp intake of breath and Samantha suddenly worried about her having a heart attack.
“No, you can’t,” she said. “Your father left the ranch to me with you in charge of the business. I still own this property and don’t you ever forget it.”
Sadly, Samantha knew that with what Edward had done, she doubted they could hold onto the property much longer.
“You need to tell us what you did with the cash. Be honest or I’ll have the men walk you out the door right now. Do you understand me?” Samantha said.
He licked his lips. “I got into a bind. You know I’ve always liked to play cards. I owe a shark a lot of money and they’re threatening to break my legs if I don’t pay them.”
Stunned, Samantha stared at her brother. “You’ve taken out half a million dollars. Did you lose it all to gambling?”
Nodding, he stared at her. “That’s why I haven’t been around much. I know that one of them has been searching for me. If I didn’t pay him, he was going to give me a dose of what he would do to me.”
Her mother started to cry. “Your father warned you.”
“Yes,” he said. “He did.”
That was news to Samantha.
“And yet you still got into trouble,” she said, glaring at him through her tears.
Hanging his head, he sighed. “When I went to Daddy and told him I needed a loan to pay some of my debts, he had a heart attack. I blame myself for killing him.”
It was all Samantha could do not to jump up off the couch and throttle her brother.
Her mother sobbed. “And now what have you done to us?”
“We’re about to lose everything,” he said. “But I’ve found a buyer. Someone you’ll really like.”
“Who?” Samantha asked, a trickle of fear filling her. Fearing she already knew the answer.
“Cameron Burnett. He wants to buy the ranch and turn it into one of those adult playgrounds.”
Stunned, she stared at her brother, wanting to curse him. The man she had been falling in love with, who had not been honest and told her the truth, wanted to buy their family land.
Damn him!
Putting her face into her hands, she cried. He’d not been honest with her and that hurt more than anything. That one night with him had her heart missing and wanting more time with him. How could she be falling in love with the man who was trying to take her family home from her? No, she refused to let him have her heart. Just no.
Raising her head, she stared at the man she almost hated. “Did you think we would approve of selling the ranch?”
Her brother squirmed in his chair. “No, but I don’t have a choice.”
They both stared at Edward like he was crazy. He expected them to be excited about losing their family home.
Her mother was getting up there in age, but she stood, her face was red and Samantha could see she was outraged.
“As the matriarch of this family, on Monday, I will make certain that the bank knows that your name is to be removed from all accounts. Your name will be removed from this place, do you understand me? Your sister is now taking over and I’m going to do everything I can to help her save this place. I’m so ashamed that my son, my only son, is going to lose the land that has been in this family for so many generations.”
Her brother’s brown eyes widened. “We can start somewhere new. As a family.”
“No, we can’t,” her mother said. “I’m almost eighty years old and you want me to begin again? No.”
Samantha had never seen her mother so upset.
Her brother turned to her. “Cameron is going to buy it. I just know he is. I’m just trying to drive the price up.”
Cameron, the man she loved, who had hurt her so badly by not telling her the truth.
“You two were cozying up to one another,” Edward said.
“Do you think it makes me like Cameron now that I know the real reason why he was here? Do you think I want a man who is going to buy our property and take it away from us? Do you think I want a man who has lied to me?”
“I asked him not to tell you,” he said.
“You have no idea what you’ve done.”
Staring at the two of them, Edward sighed. “I screwed up.”
Her mother paced the floor in front of him.
“You will no longer be working at the ranch. It’s time you went out into the world and found out what real life is like. You’ve never had to pay rent, purchase your own car, or anything else. Time for you to experience the real world,” her mother said. “I want you off the ranch tomorrow. And you’ll need to get a job to support yourself. Your trust fund will no longer have money put in it every quarter. That money will now be used to try to save this ranch.”
“But, Mom,” Edward cried. “What am I supposed to do?”
“When we lose the ranch, where did you think the money was going to come from? Where?” her mother asked. “You’re done. I want you off the property tomorrow afternoon.”
His face flushed red and he stood his fist shaking.
“I’ve never worked anywhere before but the ranch,” he said. “Who is going to hire me?”
“Not my problem,” her mother replied. “Now if you’ll excuse me. I’m going to bed. It’s been a long disappointing day.”
Samantha watched as her mother, like a regal queen, left the room, not looking back at her son or even her daughter.
“Sam, you’ve got to help me,” Edward said.
Shaking her head, she stared at him. “No, Edward, I think this family has helped you all we’re going to. Now it’s time for you to stand up and become a man. You’re on your own.”
Turning, she walked out of the room and up the stairs to her bedroom. What could she do? She didn’t want to sell the property to Cameron. Would he help her? Would he give her a loan big enough to pay back the bank and even help her get her wedding venue business going?
Besides, she was angry at him at this moment. He’d lied to her. He’d lied to her about his reasons for being here and she had to speak to him. To tell him he’d turned out to be a big disappointment. But if she did that, then he would never work with her. And right now, he was the only person she could think of to save their ranch.
Going to her desk, she opened her laptop and booked a flight to Texas first thing in the morning.
As much as she hated it, she was going to see him. Talk to him. Try her darnedest to keep things civil but ask for his help. Without him, the Mistletoe Inn was lost. The ranch was lost. And she feared this would kill her mother.
With a sigh, she pulled out her suitcase and began to pack.