by Amy Brent
“That’s not true!”
"Of course it is," I said on a laugh, the next instant we were hugging, both of us laughing and for a moment I was back in high school. Quinn and Lily. Inseparable best friends.
“So, what is it that you want?” Lily asked, a smile still curling her lips.
“What are you talking about? Can’t a friend just come bring Swedish fish to another friend?”
She shot me a knowing look. “It’s a bribe and you very well know it.” Lily shrugged, taking the bag of candy with another laugh, “You might as well just tell me what it is.”
“Okay, you might think I’m crazy–.”
“Quinn Moore? Crazy? Never!” Lily put her hand to her chest in a dramatic gesture that I chose to ignore.
“But I’m not,” I took a deep breath, laying it all out, “Something big has happened.”
“How big?”
“Big! Really big. And I’m still,” I took another inhale, struggling to find the words for a moment, “I’m still not sure how I feel about everything.”
“What’s everything, Quinn? Start from the beginning.” Lily put the books down, giving me that look of hers, that look that could see everything about a person good and bad, but never judged. It was one of the things I admired most about her. She could look at a thing from every angle, even if she disagreed with it.
“Okay. I was arguing with Jonah–.”
“That’s nothing new.” Lily interrupted and I gave her a stern look but continued.
“We were arguing because I flunked out of my college classes and got kicked out for have drugs in my room–.”
“What? Quinn, you got kicked out? Drugs? No wonder Jonah was pissed off.”
“That’s not the point, Lily. Do you want me to tell you the whole story or not?”
“Yes, sorry. Go on. No more interruptions. But we will come back to the whole flunked out of college and drugs thing.” Lily made the motion of zipping her lips closed and throwing away the key and I rolled my eyes. She was still the same old Lily.
“So, we were arguing when the doorbell rang. It was some lawyer who said that my grandfather had left some property to my mom, but she’d never taken care of it. Big surprise.” I snorted at that. No one was surprised, least of all me.
“He said that since my parents were gone, the property was passed on to the next living relative, Jonah. We went to look at the place, Lily. There’s so much potential! I mean, it’s completely run down but with a little elbow grease I can get it up and running again. The foundation is solid. There are some water problems but I can fix that. I’m going to turn it into a bed and breakfast, Lily! My own business! But I could really use some extra hands getting things started. What do you say?”
Lily stared at me for a long moment after I finished giving my speech, her blue eyes wide and filled with that damned kindness again. Suddenly she was moving forward, wrapping me in another bear hug.
“Oh, Quinn, I’m so sorry,” She said, her voice full of sorrow, “I know you weren’t close to your parents, I mean, they were total assholes to you and your brother, but I’m sorry. That must be an awful way to find out. How did it happen? Are you going to have a service? I can bring my sage oil, it’s very calming. And my amber crystals. They’ll help dispel any negative energy so you can grieve properly.”
I pulled back enough to give my best friend an incredulous look, not wanting to admit how much her words affected me. I still didn’t know what the hell to feel about the news of my parent’s death, but I knew grief wasn’t it. Anger, sure. Disgust, absolutely. But grief? I didn’t think so.
“We’re not having a service. It happened months ago. My mom overdosed and crashed the car. They both died instantly,” I repeated the words numbly, but forced them to the background, clinging to the excitement that had filled me earlier, “But that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about. Will you help me?”
“With?”
“The bed and breakfast! Weren’t you listening? This is the perfect opportunity. I’m going to convert the property into a profitable business, and then Jonah won’t have to worry so much and I won’t be such a failure.” I didn’t realize the truth of the words until they were out of my mouth, how important it was to me to prove myself. Not just to Jonah, but for myself as well.
"Of course I'll help," Lily said immediately and I sighed in relief. "I can see if the Brewer boys can lend a hand. And Charlotte. And Maybe Finn, if he's not busy."
I grinned at Lily, giving her another impulsive hug. “Thanks, Lil. The more the merrier.”
“What about Jonah?” Lily asked, and my smile dimmed.
“What about him?”
“What does he think about your plan?”
I swallowed hard, trying to put on a brave face. “I’m about to find out.”
It was a short drive from the Library down the street to Lucky's, where I knew my brother always hung out when he wasn't working himself to death. In the back of my mind, I couldn't help wondering if Leo would be there, or how he'd react to seeing me after the way he left so abruptly the last time we were together.
That’s not important now. Stay focused on the plan. Right. The plan. I had to stay focused. I tried to keep that thought at the forefront of my mind as I opened the door and walked inside to the dim interior of the bar.
It took me a moment for my eyes to adjust after the bright sunshine outside but after they did I caught sight of Jonah. He was sitting in the middle of the bar, a full beer in front of him but it looked untouched as he stared at a small card, turning it over in his hands. It was probably the realtor's card.
I hated the worried expression on his face. For as long as I could remember, Jonah had always worried about something. I knew my plan had a shot of taken away that worry once and for good. Now, I just had to convince him that I could make it work.
"Hey, big brother," I said as I plopped down on the stool next to him. He gave me droll look.
“Hey, little sister. Funny seeing you here. What is it this time? Money? Well, that ain’t going to happen.”
“Why does everyone assume I always want something.”
Jonah gave me another pointed look and I shrugged.
“Listen, I did actually want to talk to you about something.”
“Of course you did.”
“No, listen Jonah. I’m serious. I have a plan.”
One of his eyebrows raised dubiously but I kept on going, “After walking through the big house with the realtor, I realized something. We can make a profit from it!”
“You’re right. We can. And we are,” Jonah said, flicking the card in his hand. It was the realtor’s, “By selling it.”
“No. That’s where you’re wrong.” I tried to put more confidence in my voice than I felt, “by turning it into a bed a breakfast.”
Jonah just stared at me blankly for a long moment before throwing his head back and belting out a belly laugh.
“Oh, that’s a good one Quinn. You really had me going there for a second.”
“I told you, Jonah. I’m serious,” I growled through gritted teeth. I’d expected a lot of reactions to my plan, but humor hadn’t been one of them. “I’ve figured it all out. The foundation is good, that’s what the lady said. That’s the most important thing. The rest of the fixes are just cosmetic–.”
"Cosmetic? The roof needs to be completely redone, the basement sealed, the plumbing is totally fucked and probably the electric too. Not to mention the giant holes in the ceiling and the bathtub in the kitchen. Do I need to go on? That place is better off being torn down."
The hope and excitement that had carried me through started to fade away at his words but I wasn’t about to give up, not that easy.
“I can do it, Jonah. I already have a crew ready and willing to help and you know I can haggle down the price of materials better than anyone else in this town. I can make it work. I can turn it into a real, profitable business.”
“I don’t think you can–.�
�
“Thanks for the vote of confidence, bro.” I snorted, disheartened.
“I don’t think you can, but, I can give you six months to turn the property around.”
I stared at Jonah in disbelief. “Are you serious? You’re giving me a shot?”
“Six months, Quinn. Then that buyer is coming to discuss buying the place. That’s all you have.”
My head was spinning. Six months! The renovations I had planned would take more like a year, at least. Maybe more. But I didn’t have a choice. I had six months to make it work, and damn it, I would do everything I could to make it happen.
I threw my arms around Jonah in a quick hug. "Thanks, big brother."
“Don’t thank me yet. It’s going to be shit ton of work. You’re going to need all the help you can get.”
“I know,” I said happily, “I’ll figure it out. It won’t cost you a dime. I’ll do it on my own, I swear.
"Well, maybe I can rustle you up another set of helping hands," Jonah said, his head turning towards the door behind the bar that an all too familiar face had just walked out of. "Hey, Leo! Come over here a sec. I have someone I want you to meet."
My surprised gaze met Leo’s and I saw him swallow hard before walking towards them like he was walking towards the gallows.
***
Leo
Fuck. That was the first thought that flew through my head as I stepped out from the back room and saw Quinn and Jonah sitting together at the bar. She shot me a sunny smile, dimmed somewhat by the confused look in her eyes as Jonah waved me over but damn, it felt good to soak in that grin like sunshine. Like her.
I tried to play it cool as I sauntered over.
"Hey, Jonah. What's going on, man?" I said, shooting Quinn a side-eyed look, trying to convey with just my eyes that she shouldn't say a damn thing. Not if she wanted either of us to walk out of there without catching Jonah's wrath.
“Leo, this is my little sister Quinn.” Jonah said, introducing them, “Quinn, this is my good buddy Leo. He works at the bar. Moved here after you left for college.”
"Oh, is that so," Quinn said weakly and I shot her a sickly smile that faded quickly at Jonah's next words as he leaned closer to me.
“Not that this needs to be said, but she’s off limits,” The words were said jokingly but the light in his eyes was dead serious as he stared at me, “I know what you’re like with women. Quinn isn’t your type.”
It wasn’t a question but I answered just the same.
"Right. Uh, of course. Sure man, whatever you say." I stammered, trying not to look in Quinn's direction but even still I could see the wide-eyed look as her gaze flicked from me to Jonah and then back again.
She knew as well as I did just how protective of her Jonah could be, and I sure as hell didn’t want to experience it firsthand. Hearing the stories was bad enough.
"Can I get you another drink?" I finally asked just to break to the tension that had suddenly sprung up around them.
“Naw, I’m good. But you can help me with something else.”
“Yeah? What’s that?” I asked, dreading the answer. I already knew it wasn’t going to be good.
“Well, remember that property I was telling you about?”
“The one on the edge of town? Sure, I remember.”
“Well, Quinn here has this crazy idea to fix the place up and turn into some sort of motel.”
“Actually, it’ll be a bed and breakfast,” Quinn interrupted, and the sound of her voice shot throw me. It took every ounce of willpower I had not to look at her.
“Is that so? Sounds like a lot of work.”
“Exactly. You know I work at the construction firm in Tolima but I’m swamped right now with a new job sight. You said you’ve worked construction before, right?”
My stomach sank at the implication of his words but like a dumbass, I still opened my mouth and found the truth spilling out.
"Uh, yeah. I worked with a construction crew for about a year and a half but I–.”
“That’s perfect. Just want to make sure at least one person there knows what the hell they’re doing.” Jonah said with a grin, driving in the last nail of my coffin, “So, you’ll help her out?”
I don’t know who was more surprised, me, Quinn, or Jonah when I nodded my head, “Sure.” Oh no, this is bad. This is really bad, “I can help out.” What the fuck am I doing? “I’d be happy to.” That’s it. I’m a dead man.
Chapter 10
Leo
I was still trying to figure out why the hell I’d agreed to any of this as I drove up the long, gravel driveway. I parked my old pick up in front of the sprawling house and looked it over with a dubious expression on my face. What the hell did I get myself into?
The place was even worse than I had expected. The entire front porch had collapsed, blocking the front entryway completely. Even from where I was I could see the way the roof sagged precariously in the middle and way the siding was rotted through. It would all have to be torn down and replaced.
“Hell, Quinn. What did you get both of us into?” Never before had I seen more of a lost cause. Better to just tear the whole thing to the ground and build again. But I’d seen the look of determination in Quinn’s bright green eyes. She wasn’t about to back down. I didn’t admit to myself how much I admired that. Her spirit. Her unwillingness to waver even when things looked bad. And fuck, this looked really bad.
"Maybe the inside isn't as bad as the outside," I muttered to myself as I got out of the truck and headed around to the back. It was the only accessible way in since the front door was blocked off.
I shook my head at the state of the rooms as I continued walking, searching for Quinn. In my head, I rehearsed all the things I was going to say to her. Quinn, you know I would love to help you out but I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to spend any more time together. Your brother made it pretty clear how he feels.
A grimace slid across my face as I stepped over a sodden pile of something I didn't want to look too closely at but smelled atrocious. I kept walking, still thinking of what I would say.
We had fun together, but that’s all it was. I really don’t want to be on the wrong end of Jonah’s temper, and if anything sets him off, it’s men messing around with his little sister.
She’s a grown woman. She can make her own decisions. The last was interjected into my thoughts. They might be true, but that sure as hell not how Jonah saw it, and it was Jonah I was worried about.
We should just stop things now before they go any further. We’ll pretend like we don’t even know each other, and maybe I can even help you out now and then around the place.
I glanced around at the crumbling wallpaper peeling off the hallway walls in long strips all by itself. She could really use the help. I had no idea how the hell Quinn was planning on fixing this place up in six months. Shit, six years still might not be long enough to get rid of that smell. I’d never seen anything in worse shape than this dilapidated old farmhouse.
I was just about to reach out and poke at a suspicious looking spot on the wall when the soft sound of humming hit my ears. I tilted my head to one side, enchanted by the sweet sound and followed it the rest of the way down the hall until I made it to the entrance to the front room and froze.
There she was, down on her knees in short shorts and a loose t-shirt as she tugged at a piece of shag carpeting that looked straight out of the seventies. Her blond hair was pulled up in a bun but tendrils still fell loose to cling to the sweat that soaked her forehead. She was covered in dust from the dirty work but damn if she wasn’t the sexiest thing I’d ever seen.
As if sensing me standing there in the opening, Quinn looked up and as soon as her green gaze met mine bolts of lightning struck through me. I opened my mouth to say something, anything, but then closed it again when no sound came out.
I called myself ten types of fool, but it didn’t stop my feet from moving towards her, almost as if on their own accord. My body knew wha
t it wanted, even if my brain was hollering for me to turn right back around and run in the opposite direction. The rest of me didn’t listen.
I stopped just a barefoot away from where she'd risen up to her knees and watched in silence as she got slowly to her feet, wiping the sweat and dust from her brow as she did. Well, she tried to anyway. More than anything, she just smeared it even worse but I didn't care. Jesus, she was so fucking beautiful, dirt and all.
The tension was so thick in the air around us that I swore I could reach out and feel my fingers pass through it like butter. It made it hard to draw a breath or calm my racing pulse. It made it damned impossible to remember all of the things I’d been meaning to say. Something about staying apart and forgetting what happened between us. Moving on.
Why the hell would I want to move on? The thought skittered through the back of my mind and sure as hell I couldn't come up with a good enough answer to keep me from closing the distance between us. A part of me knew I was making a mistake. Not just because Jonah would skin me alive, but because of other reasons. I never stayed with the same woman long. It wasn't my style. I didn't get attached. It was easier that way. Always had been.
But nothing was easier than leaning forward, closing the distance between us, and kissing her. Quinn’s kiss was a rush that flooded my system. I was an addict and that was my drug of choice. It would have scared the hell out of me if I’d had thought about it, but at the moment I couldn’t think of anything but the softness of her lips and the delicious taste of her as I slid my tongue against hers.
Quinn’s hand grabbed mine and then she was moving away, dragging me with her. I followed in a daze. She didn’t stop, pulling me along with her up the narrow, precarious stairs, stopping every few steps to place another kiss on my lips and took everything she would give me.
