14. Dusty

I might have slept an hour or two. I’m not sure. It felt like I spent the entire night staring at the ceiling. My thoughts are like Ed chasing his tail. I worry about the farm and that gets me thinking about Marnie. Thinking about Marnie gets me hard and then I’m frustrated and thinking about how this exasperating woman is going to be my Achille’s heel. And then, I’m worrying about the farm again.

Round and round.

I’ve been lying in bed for hours, waiting for enough daylight to get started.

I’m not an early bird by choice. But any Nebraskan knows that the best time to get work done in the summer is right off the bat.

Better to get soaked with morning dew than to bake in the afternoon sun.

I stop in the bathroom, slapping cold water on my face, like that might wake me up. Shaving quickly, I pull on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt.

I’m waiting for my coffee to brew when I hear Ed kicking up a storm in the yard. Walking to the window, I spot Juice’s shitty hatchback Volkswagen puttering down the drive.

I step into my boots and wander outside.

“Ed. Hush.”

I cast a wary glance at Gus’s house. This would not be a good time for Marnie to make an appearance.

When Juice climbs out of his car, his cousin gets out, too, and then I’m doubly sure this would not be a good time for Marnie to show up. I’m not happy about Skunk knowing where I live, but I sure as shit don’t want him knowing this is where a woman like Marnie lives.

Even if it is just for a short time.

Juice saunters over, Skunk hot on his heels. Ed shifts on his paws, fur bristling.

“Awfully early for you, ain’t it, Juice?”

“This ain’t early, it’s late. We haven’t gone to bed yet.”

Skunk is peering up at the barn. “Nice place. Juice said you converted the barn into an apartment?”

“Yup.”

Skunk focuses on me. “That take a lot of work?”

“A shit ton.”

Juice cracks his neck, peering out at the lightening indigo sky. “We just thought we’d stop by with your order before I forgot about it.”

He slaps hands with me, passing the baggy over.

“What do I owe you?”

“The usual.”

I pull my wallet out and hand over the cash.

“Hello. Who’s this?”

Skunk whistles quietly.

My heart sinks. I glance towards the house, and sure enough, Marnie is picking her way across the yard. Ed is on his paws in an instant, trotting over to guard dog her. She pulls up short as he approaches, but when he doesn’t jump all over her, she reluctantly allows him to trot alongside her.

I jam the baggy in my back pocket, hoping like hell that she didn’t see the whole exchange. My gaze shifts to Skunk, who’s watching Marnie with a little too much interest.

I can’t say I blame him.

She’s wearing a soft, stretchy shirt that dips between her breasts and buttons all the way down, top to bottom, like a shirt that thinks it’s a cardigan. The shirt’s hem barely skims the waistband of her jeans, showing a little slice of her tummy.

I can see the wheels turning in Juice’s head. He turns slowly towards me, opening his mouth to speak, but I cut in. “I’ll see you around, bud. Thanks for the delivery service.”

Juice’s eyes twinkle, and he gives me a lopsided grin. “You bet. You know where to find me if you need anything else.”

I cross over into Marnie’s path. Feeling like I need to hide her away, I guide her back towards the barn. She casts a curious glance over her shoulder, watching Juice putter away in his beat-up car. We step inside, and I find myself feeling exposed.

I don’t usually invite people in. The guys don’t even hang out over here. Sienna and I keep the place pretty tidy, which is easy enough, considering we don’t tend to collect clutter. I follow behind Marnie as she walks in. I usually think of the apartment as simple, but now it’s striking me as bare.

She glances down at the roughhewn flooring, then up at the crisp white walls. Black industrial fixtures Sienna helped pick out. She glances back at me, one eyebrow raised. “Uncle Gus helped you do this?”

I nod, shoving my hands in my pockets. But my fingers just brush across the baggy, and I yank them back out, feeling guilty.

She grins, eyes sparkling. “Very cool. If I had known he had this in him, I would have asked him to help with the bakery.”

A flush of pride swells in my chest. “You’d be surprised. Gus had a good sense of design.”

She nods, a tinge of sadness dampening her smile. “I see that.”

We hear footsteps overhead and Sienna comes tumbling down the steps at her usual break-neck pace. One of these days, she’s going to go head over heels.

Knowing her, though, she’d probably just roll.

She pauses on the bottom step, gaze flicking between the two of us. She tilts her head, a grin tugging at her lips. “What is this ominous tension?”

She pauses, wiggling a finger between the two of us. “Did you two sleep together?”

“Jesus, Sienna.”

I croak, feeling my cheeks catch fire.

She grins triumphantly. “That’s not a denial.”