Banging my fist against the steering wheel, I groan. That’s not what I really want at all. If I had my way, Tally would not be someone I’d be avoiding. Then again, if I had my way, Tally would have never taken the tarps off the damn tulips.
“Fuck.” I smack the wheel again. This is so fucking bad. My sister had all sorts of ideas that will help us for next summer—seeds we can plant and other attractions we can tout to brides—but none of them fix our immediate problem. We have a bunch of weddings scheduled for the end of May, and I highly doubt any of the tulips will make it that long. Even if they do, they won’t be the beautiful blooms that the brides expect. They’ll be wilted. Maybe even grazed over by the deer.
I’ll need to invest in a better system to keep the flowers we do have safe.
Plus, for the next two weeks, I’ll have to devote my attention to the tulips, which weren’t in my planned rotation.Basically, I just have a lot more fucking work to handle and no idea what we’ll do about the potential loss of income.
“She meant well.” Billie’s words taunt me again as I pull down the long driveway and the big white Victorian comes into view. I still can’t forget them as I park and hop out of my old truck, my boots kicking up dirt as I stomp up to the house.
“She meant well.” I pause at the door, staring toward the meadows. I love this land, I love this farm, and I know she meant well, but fuck, she’s making it really hard for us to keep it.
Things are worse than Gail and Peter let on when they brought me onboard. Every bill I uncover makes that clear. Frank is right. They would have only a season left if they kept going the way they were. We’ve got a season left if I don’t figure this shit out.
I’m about to head inside when I hear a whimpering cry.
“No.” It’s a moan. Afemalemoan.
“Hello?” I call into the wind, walking across the porch and peering out into the dark night. The evening sky is filled with stars, but there’s no light coming from the farm in any direction. The closest source is Gail’s cottage, which has a faint glow behind her curtain, and then the brewery in the distance.
“Shit, shit, shit. Why did I do this?” The voice gets louder as I rush off the porch and head toward the fields.
This freaking girl. Can she not listen to a word I say? What could she possibly be doing now? I half expect to find her pulling the tulips from their bed since I told her to stay away from the flowers and she tends to always do the exact opposite of what I ask.
“Tally!” I call louder as I continue my search.
“Go away!” she yells back, and as my eyes adjust to the light, I can just make out her slow limp.
“Dammit, what did I tell you?” I growl as I start to run.
As if she can sense my speed and urgency, Tally starts to rush forward. Though she only takes two faster steps before she drops to the ground with a loud thud.
“Gah!” she yells. It’s hard to tell if she’s hurt or just angry.
“What the hell are you doing?” I hiss as I reach her. She’s on her back with a sandbag flopped on top of her.
A hundred-pound sandbag.
What. The. Fuck?
Tally lets out a heavy sigh before pushing it off. I watch as she drops her head to the ground and stares up at the sky. “Go away.”
Hands on my waist, I glare up at the glowing moon, which taunts me as it lights up the field. I know when I look down I’ll be able to make out every one of Tally’s features. Tally sounding broken and angry in the dark is hard enough to resist, but seeing her desperate sadness when I’m trying to focus on my anger instead of her whimpers? Not so easy. But of course, I’m a glutton for punishment, so I barely brace myself before glancing down at her. When I see the wet marks trailing down her cheeks, I know I’ve lost the battle.
“Are you okay?” I rasp.
Tally closes her eyes. “Just pretend you didn’t see me. I’ll get everything put back where it was by morning. Promise.”
Obviously, that’s not going to happen. I rough a hand over my face and blow out another breath. “Come on Tal, let’s go inside.”
“No.”
This woman.
“Tally.”
“I’m serious, Walker, this isn’t your problem.I’mnot your problem. Let me fix this.”
She’s right. She’s not my problem. But dammit if that makes a bit of a difference. Not sure what else to do, I drop to my ass beside her. “You can’t fix it. It’s a day’s worth of work at least when there’s a full crew to help. It would take you a week to do on your own.”
