Rob. He was even more handsome in person, all neat and tidy in a rich, blue button-down shirt and grey slacks. Did he always dress that nicely?
“The bet was fifty dollars, period,” Lucy said, digging in her purse. “Not fifty dollarsandbragging rights.”
“I didn’t come here to claim my prize,” Rob said innocently. “I’m here to support Grindstone.”
“Sure you are,” she snapped. “I’d prefer it if you supported us from the safety of your fish office.”
Fish office? What on earth was she going on about now?
Rob accepted a handful of cash from Lucy. “I needed a break.”
“Are you selling off the farm already?” Marty asked. “I’d still like to buy that slingshot.”
Lucy glared at him. “I’m settling a bet.”
Rob introduced himself, but before Lillian or Marty could reply, Lucy spoke again. “Yes, fine, there’s no time for that. What did you guys find out?”
Lillian had been listening to Lucy complain about Rob for weeks. She wondered when she’d finally meet him, and now that he was here, there was no need to be rude. “I’m Lucy’s sister, Lillian, and this is our cousin, Marty.”
“Nice to meet you,” Rob said.
Lucy shot him an annoyed look as Lillian went on. “Mostly good news, I think. We talked to a lot of people who said they’re here to be supportive.”
Lucy’s eyes lit up. “Really?”
Marty nodded. “Yeah. There’s even a farmer here from Lopez. Whatever you guys did worked.”
“See?” Rob turned to Lucy. “I told you it was worth the time to look for actual farmers.”
“That wasn’t your idea,” Lucy said.
Rob turned to Marty and lowered his voice. “She’s angry because I still hit more houses than she did.”
Lucy let out a disgusted sigh. “For all you know, that could’ve been a farmer whom I talked to. People like me better. That’s why it took me longer to get through the same number of houses, because people actually wanted to talk to me.”
“That may be true,” Rob said with a nod, “but being better-liked wasn’t part of the bet.”
Lillian stifled a laugh. No wonder Lucy couldn’t stand this guy. He was playing her like a fiddle.
Marty, apparently oblivious to the fight in front of them, interjected. “I think you’ve got a decent shot at getting what you need to get. We didn’t meet anyone who seemed super keen on robbing the place blind.”
“It only takes one banker to weasel their way in and ruin our plans,” Lucy said as she paced the room.
Rob cocked his head to the side. “Was that directed at me?”
Lillian bit her lip. This was hilarious. Rob was winding Lucy up, and better yet, he seemed to be good at it. How was Marty missing this?
She looked over at him. He had picked up a book from the shelf and was leafing through it.
“I don’t know. You’re the one who showed up looking like a banker,” Lucy hissed. “Don’t you own any other clothes?”
Rob’s face fell slack and his eyes wandered up innocently. “No. None at all. This is my only pair of pants.”
Lucy’s phone went off and she let out a shriek. “All right, kids, it’s almost go time. Let’s move!”
Chapter Seventeen
They followed Lucy into the open field where the auction was to take place. Rob wasn’t one to get nervous easily, but Lucy’s explosive anxiety was starting to breach his walls.
