Page 88 of The Burbs and the Bees
“What are you talking about?”
Tyler comes out from around the corner, like the watchdog he is.
“Bryce,” he says and stands next to me. The position reminds me of the one I faced with Cluck and Breakfast my first day here. A strange knot tightens in my gut. Why do I get the feeling that I’d be making a huge mistake if I sell to him? “What can we do you for?” Tyler asks.
“You can’t do anything for me. My business is with Alyson.”
“Well, Alyson is family,” he says, and my heart skips a beat. He nudges me with his shoulder, an instant alliance between the two of us. “Any business you need to discuss with her, you can do in front of me.”
Bryce turns to glare at me.
“He’s right,” I say.
“You think about that offer. There is nothing here for you, city girl. This farm is falling down around you.” He gazes the length of me. “I’m surprised to see you still standing. You can’t keep it running all by your pretty self.”
“That’s why she has us,” Tyler says, his jaw clenched, refusing to back down from a fight. My God, he’s a carbon copy of his brother. Jay did a fine job with this one.
“You have one week, Alyson,” Bryce says and scurries back to his car. “You won’t get another offer as high as that one. Not in this market.”
“Thank you,” I say to Tyler.
“I hate that guy.”
I turn to Ty. “Why does he want this farm so badly?”
He goes quiet, chews on a piece of hay as he thinks about that. “He’s a developer. He puts up shopping malls, apartment buildings, things like that.”
I glance at the grounds, that unease in my stomach expanding. “Do you think that’s why he wants this land?”
His eyes go wide. “Shit. I guess I never thought he’d want to put up a complex out here in farm country.” He kicks the dirt. “Maybe that’s why Jack would never sell to him.”
“Yeah, maybe.” I brush my hand over my hair. “Thanks for standing with me. It means a lot.”
He makes a fist and nudges my chin. “You didn’t need me. You’re a fighter.”
My chest swells at the compliment. My God, when and if I leave here, I’m going to miss this kid. In fact, I’m going to miss them all. It must have killed them when Juanita walked away without so much as a backward glance. My heart tumbles. If I do the same, then how am I any better than her?
“Well, I need to get a shower,” I say, glancing at myself.
“Come on. I’ll walk you to the house.” We head toward my half-assed painted house and Tyler asks, “You coming for supper tonight?”
“I don’t want to impose.”
He frowns at me. “You’re family. Did you not just hear me tell that to Bryce? A family member is never an imposition.”
I take a fast breath, my heart pounding in my ears as tears prick my eyes. I’ve never been a part of a big family before. Yes, my parents are loving, but they’re so damn judgmental. No one here is judging me. They’re just accepting me for who I am—a spoiled, ignorant city girl who knows nothing about nothing. No, that’s not true anymore. I do know something about something.
We reach my steps, and I hurry to my door. “I’ll see you shortly.” I step inside and breathe in. There is only the faint, lingering scent of skunk that I’m sure will never go away. The screen door bangs shut behind me, and I dash up the steps toward the shower.
As I hurry, a cracking sound reaches my ear, and my heart jumps into my throat as the wood below me c
ollapses. I let loose a god-awful screech and fall, my leg twisting beneath me. Pain shoots up my ankle, and I grab the handrail before I fall all the way through to the basement.
The front door bangs open and bounces off the wall as Tyler comes running back inside.
“Alyson,” he calls out and looks up to see me hanging on for dear life.
“Tyler,” I say, my voice as shaky as my body. “I fell.”
