The last thing she needed was to fan the flames of that rivalry.
“I’m sure it wasn’t him.” She waved her hand in the smoky air. “I don’t know why I just said that. Why would a successful businessman get involved in a criminal act?”
“They have paid flunkeys to do their dirty work,” Alex growled. “I wouldn’t put anything past Lance Brody, or his brother, Mitch. I’ve been a burr under their saddles for years. Maybe this is their way of trying to push me out of town.”
He turned to the barn, where the roof had now collapsed and flames licked out of the hayloft windows.
His eyes flashed with a mix of anger and pain. “But no one’s going to run me off El Diablo, and whoever did this will regret the day they were born.”
At lunch the next day, Alex paced back and forth across the dining room at the ranch, his burger growing cold on the plate.
“Alicia, it’s not safe for you here right now. If someone’s out to get me, who knows what they’ll try next. You can stay with El Gato.”
Alicia looked up from her plate as goose bumps spread over her skin. “I’ll be fine here. Besides, you need someone to look after you.”
She pointed to his plate with her best schoolmarm expression. “Eat your food.”
“I’m serious, ‘Manita. It’s not safe.”
“Staying with Paul ‘El Gato’ Rodriquez is what’s not safe. I know you won’t hear a word against him, but everyone knows he’s involved in drug trafficking.”
Alex grunted as he slid into his chair. “They just don’t like to see a Latino make a lot of money. You’d be shocked if you knew how many people think I’m involved with drugs or guns or something. They don’t think we can make money the old-fashioned way like they do.”
He took a bite of his hamburger. “That’s why joining the Texas Cattleman’s Club was such a big deal for me. When I’m there, I’m one of them, a member of the club. They have to smile at me and act polite, even if they’d really prefer to see me hang.” He grinned. “I love that.”
Alicia hated the way her brother still felt like an outsider, even now that he was one of the richest men in the area.
“You were accepted into the Texas Cattleman’s Club because you’re a man of honor and an upstanding member of Somerset society. You are one of them.”
“That’s one of the many reasons why I love you, sis. You have such great faith in the human spirit.” He winked as he took a sip of soda. “But you’re still not staying here. El Gato can protect you from anything.”
“I’m sure he can. He’s probably got nine millimeters stashed in the trunk of his car, but frankly that kind of ‘protection’ makes me nervous.”
“He’s one of us. When the going gets tough, sometimes it’s better to stick with your own.”
“I don’t consider a suspected criminal to be one of ‘my own’ in any way.”
“You know what I mean. When you come from the barrio, you see the world a little differently.”
“You’re talking as if I didn’t grow up in the same house as you.” Alicia bristled. She hated when her brother treated her like a kid. “I was there, too, remember? I know what hard times are like, and I’m more than glad to have left them behind. You need to get rid of that chip on your shoulder,” she said, still trying to figure out how to change Alex’s mind. “I could go stay with one of the neighbors.”
Alex narrowed his eyes. “I don’t trust those people. Not right now.”
“How about Maria Nunez? You’ve known her as long as I have. You let me sleep over at her house when we were in school. I’m sure she won’t mind me staying a few nights.”
He grunted. “I always suspected that Maria of having a wild streak. Still, her parents are good people. Does she live at home?”
Alicia laughed. “No. She’s twenty-six years old, remember? She has an apartment in Bellaire. Very safe area.”
“If she’s not married, she should be at home with her family.” Alex took a swig of coffee.
“It’s not the nineteenth century anymore, Alex. Deal with it. I’ll call her right away. If she says no, then I’ll go to El Gato, okay?”
The lie tingled on her tongue for a second, since she had no intention of going anywhere near Paul Rodriquez and his crew of scary henchmen, even if he was Alex’s oldest friend.
Alex clucked with disapproval. “Stubborn.”
“Sensible.” She smiled sweetly. “You know I am. Don’t you trust me?”
Her heart fluttered as she realized he had every reason not to.
“All right, you can stay with Maria. You are sensible, and I’m very proud of you. I love you like crazy, ‘Manita, you know that?”
“I do, and I love you, too, you big bear of a brother.” She rounded the table and gave him a kiss on his thick head of hair before going upstairs, heart pounding.
Alicia closed her bedroom door carefully before picking up her phone.
She hadn’t even dared add Rick’s number to her favorites, in case Alex happened to pick up her phone and notice a new number there among her old friends from school.
Anticipation mingled with anxiety made her fingers twitchy as she dialed.
It rang only once.
“Hey, beautiful.” That soft, seductive voice.
A smile spread over her face. “What if I’m not looking at all beautiful right now?”
“Impossible. You can’t help it,” he said, making her feel warm all over. “I saw on the news they put the fire out and that no one was hurt. What a relief.”
“Tell me about it. We rescued every single calf, only a few scrapes and cuts on them. The barn is gone, though. Nothing left but soggy blackened wood. And there was a six-month supply of good hay in there that we’d put up for the winter.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. I hope it was insured.”
“It was, but the barn is irreplaceable. It was one of the first buildings in Somerset. A true historic landmark. I was hoping to get it preservation status, but I guess I can forget about that now.” She sighed. “It could have been much worse. If the wind was blowing harder, the house could have caught fire.”
“I wish I were there to give you a hug.”
“Trust me, I could really use one.”
“Then since you won’t let me set foot on El Diablo, you’re going to have to come here to get one.”
Adrenaline flashed through Alicia. How could she ask this delicately? Or even indelicately? “Can I spend the night with you?”
A beat of silence made her pulse throb, but it was followed by a rushed, “Of course.” His enthusiasm almost made her laugh.
“Wow, that sounded bad, didn’t it? It’s just that Alex doesn’t think it’s safe for me to stay here. The police think the fire was set deliberately and he’s worried the arsonist will come back to finish the job. He wants me to go stay with an old school friend of his, but I don’t like the guy.”
“I don’t want you near any guy except me. And in case you didn’t know, my suite at the Omni has four bedrooms.”
“You’re kidding.”
“Not even a little. Pack your bags and come on over.”
“My car was parked behind the barn. It pretty much melted.”
“No sweat, I’ll