“Well, no. You can live with us, and we’ll give you an allowance or something.”
Colleen whispered, “And after you’re with Jesus, after I run the store and take care of you, are you going to leave me the feed store and the house?”
“Of course not,” he scoffed. “We couldn’t cheat your brothers out of their inheritance. That wouldn’t be fair.”
They were going to take everything away from her again, everything that she’d tried to do in her life, and then they were going to leave her with nothing and throw her away.
Not that she had done much with her life. She’d managed to go to college until they wouldn’t give her access to their tax information for her FAFSA federal student aid form anymore, so she couldn’t get tuition loans for her last two years.
But even after that, she’d managed to take care of herself, make the payments on the loans, and pay her bills.
And she’d built a tiny community of friends online and in town who seemed to give a damn about her, even after she’d dropped out of college.
She’d helped people, saving the minnows in the Sherwood Forest forums from the predatory Killer Whales who would cheat them out of their life savings.
And then there was Tristan, who was sitting in the snarled sheets of her bed with his arm resting on one knee, watching her. His blue tee-shirt was a few shades grayer than his eyes. His fist clenched, and the corded muscles in his forearm bulged. His other hand held onto her sheets as if he would otherwise have leaped to his feet. His gaze was steady, and he wasn’t smiling.
Her father continued to rant, his tone becoming harsher. “Hurry up and get your things together. You were always so slow to get going. I can’t believe we’ve been so patient with you.You’re an idiot.You’ve always been a clumsyidiot.Now quit beinga dumbassanddo the right thingfor once in yourlife.”
Tristan’s jaw bulged, and he didn’t look away from her eyes as if he were trying to pour his restrained strength into her. He said very quietly, “Say the word, and I’ll jump in.”
Colleen’s father was pacing as he snarled his words. “I said get your shit together and get your worthless ass in my truck.”
“No,”Colleen whispered.
Her father spun and glared at her.“What did you say to me?”
Colleen continued to stare into the blue fire of Tristan’s eyes. He wouldn’t let her speak that way about herself, and her father shouldn’t be doing it either. No one should.
She swallowed hard and lifted her head to look at her father. “I said no. I’m not packing up, and I’m not going with you. I’m staying here. And stop calling me an idiot. I’m not an idiot. No one should call me an idiot, not even you.”
“You havenothinghere. Look at thisshithole.”
“I’m making a life for myself. I managed to go to college until you sabotaged me so I couldn’t get any more student loans because you wanted me to come home and work for you for nothing. I’m not your cow to milk or chop up into beef. I’m not your bags of grain, or saddles, or baby chicks to sell, and I’m not your inventory to put on a shelf or put on sale or use me up and throw me away. I’mme.I’mmine.I belong tome,and you can’t take that away from me and use it up or sell it to someone else. You neverownedme, which means you never had the right to throw me away.”
“We didn’t throw you away. You ran away.”
“You wanted to use me up and throw me out.”
“You still can’t get those Pell Grants and loans to go to college without us. You’re stuck here like this, or you’re stuck with us.”
Colleen shook her head. “In six months, I’ll have lived on my own long enough that I won’t need your tax information anymore for the FAFSA form. I’ll fill it out by myself next year with just my numbers, and I’ll get grants and loans and enroll in college again in the fall.”
He sneered, “Are you going to get yourself deeper in debt and keep throwing good money after bad to go to college? A college education isn’t even worth anything these days.”
Last night, Tristan had slept curled around her, his warmth permeating her down to her heart. Her body was still warm from his. “It is. It’s worth a lot. It’s just that more women than men are enrolling in college now, so people like you are devaluing it because it’s not just for men anymore.”
“Don’t bring politics into this. And you should be ashamed to take handouts like that. We raised you to be stronger than that.”
“It’s an investment, and I amsmarterthan that.”
“Education has corrupted you, and I’m taking you home so you can come to your senses. Pastor Williams will set you straight as to what your role is. Right now, you’re nothing but anidiotand afailure.”
“I’m not going with you, and I’m not a failure,” Colleen told him and glanced back at Tristan. A hint of a smile curved Tristan’s lips. “I just needed time to separate my finances from yours so I could do the FAFSA paperwork without you, and I just needed someone to believe in me so I could make myself stronger.I’m staying here.”
Tristan blinked, his dark lashes sweeping over his eyes, and his smile grew.
“The hell you will.”Her father reached out and grabbed Colleen’s arm.
