She stiffened.
Caleb noticed immediately.
Then he added, “I mean the doorway. It was too narrow, and the bed wasn't properly supported. Your father built better than that.”
Her expression softened.
“You remember my father?”
Caleb looked toward the mountains.
“Very well.”
She studied him.
For a moment, she seemed uncertain.
Then asked, “Did you like him?”
Caleb's face changed.
He looked toward her.
“Yes.”
The answer was so quiet, and so full of feeling, that Evelyn stopped asking questions.
She understood grief.
There were some memories a person could carry for years without finding the words to share them.
So she simply said, “Thank you for making the room comfortable.”
Caleb nodded.
“You're welcome.”
Then he tipped his hat and returned to work.
Evelyn watched him cross the yard.
For the first time since returning to Willow Creek, she felt something other than sadness when she looked out the window.
She felt curiosity.
Victor quickly discovered that Evelyn was better at bookkeeping than the men he'd employed before her.
Within ten days, she identified three duplicate feed invoices, corrected errors in the cattle inventory, and found a discrepancy in a freight account that had remained unresolved for nearly a year.
The amount was small.
Eighty-seven dollars.
But Victor was furious.
He summoned her to his study.
Evelyn entered carrying the ledger.
Victor sat behind Henry's old desk.
“Miss Hart, I understand you've been questioning our supplier's invoices.”
She nodded.
“I found entries that don't agree with the delivery records.”
His expression hardened.
“I didn't hire you to question my suppliers.”
She looked toward the ledger.
“You hired me to reconcile the accounts.”
Victor stared.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then he leaned back.
“Your father had the same unfortunate habit.”
Evelyn felt her chest tighten.
“What habit?”
“Assuming that understanding arithmetic made him an expert in business.”
She looked up sharply.
“My father built this ranch.”
Victor smiled.
“And lost it.”
The words struck her like a slap.
For a moment, Evelyn couldn't breathe.
Then she lowered her eyes.
Victor continued.
“I'm giving you an opportunity, Miss Hart. It would be wise not to confuse that opportunity with authority.”
She gripped the ledger.
For several seconds, she struggled to remain composed.