“Walker, did you hear Tally’s great idea?” Penny asks.
“Hush, you,” Tally tosses at her in the same way she throws grenades at me. Whatever this idea is, she doesn’t want me to know.
Intrigued, I angle myself so my body is flush against Tally’s side. Anyone who walked in would assume we were a couple. Especially if I wrapped my free arm around her middle and pulled her between my thighs.
But I don’t. I turn to address Penny instead. “I didn’t. Care to share?”
“She’s going to sell her baked goods at the farmers market to help raise money for the cottages. The Liberty Ladies were even angling for her to open her own bakery.”
I can’t hide my surprise that Tally would consider staying in Hope Harbor.
“It’s a dumb idea,” Tally says with a shake of her head. “I’ll never raise enough money to pay for help.”
Penny’s jaw drops. “Really? But we only have, like, a month to get everything done before the Hall event, right?”
Everyone’s staring at me now, like I’m the idiot here. “I’ve got it handled.”
Tally rolls her eyes and turns away from me to face Rosie. “Can I have another shot?”
Eli steps closer. “If you need help on the farm, I’d be happy to pitch in.”
Tally presses her hand to Eli’s chest, staring up at him with stars in her damn eyes. “That’s very sweet, Eli.” Then she looks back toward me and sighs. “But you’ll have to ask Walker. He’s in charge.”
Fucking A.
Eli looks to me. “Happy to help, man. We could probably knock out a bunch of stuff in a few days if we get the fire department guys, too.”
“That’s how my bookstore was built,” Penny adds.
“And this brewery,” Rosie says as she pours Tally another shot. “I’m sure a bakery could even be fixed up that way.”
“No,” Tally says in what sounds like sincere annoyance. “We’re not talking about the bakery. This is about the farm.” Her eyes stray my way, and the damn hope in them has my heart racing.
“I’ll let you know,” I say to Eli with a sigh.
Tally lights up like I’ve just promised her the damn moon and then the strum of a guitar has a smile blooming on her lips. “Wanna dance?”
I sip my whiskey as the familiar tune begins, trying like hell not to be drawn to her.
“Oh, ‘Cowboy Like Me,’” Rosie says from the other side of the bar. “Nice one!”
I shake my head as Tally tugs on my belt loop. I like that she’s smiling again, but there’s no way in hell I’m dancing. Least of all to this. “I don’t dance.”
“I do,” Eli says.
My grip tightens on my glass, but I try to keep my composure as the man who I momentarily considered befriending grabs Tally’s hand and pulls her away.
An unfamiliar feeling grips my chest. Still, I can’t look away as Eli’s hand wraps around Tally’s waist and her arms circle his neck. She laughs at something he says as they dance tooursong. I can’t believe I’m angry about a Taylor Swift tune. I don’t understand how I even know one.
But I do.
Every single lyric.
“They look hot together,” Rosie says from behind the bar.
My jaw clicks.
“She always had a crush on him when we were in high school,” Penny continues, reminding me that Eli is the more appropriate choice for Tally. They’re around the same age, and he’s a happy guy. Always smiling. A much better match for my wildflower girl than the grumpy old asshole who barely strings two words together despite the woman trying day and night to just have a conversation.
