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to get out of this place and make a shitload of money. I guess she always thought the orchard money would just be extra. But things didn’t work out the way she had planned. She could never do anything about it while Dad was alive, though. But with him gone, and just me and Jenna left . . .”
    “She’s contesting that she should have the right of survivorship, rather than you two,” Laney finishes.
    I nod. “And that’s why you’re here, inventorying everything my family has ever owned.”
    It’s Laney’s turn to nod. She casts her eyes down, like she’s afraid to meet mine. Finally she speaks. “I’m sorry, Jake. I can’t imagine how hard it must be to go through something like this right after you buried your father.”
    She’s sweet. And sincere. I can feel compassion rolling off her in waves.
    And it makes me distinctly uncomfortable.
    So, I do what I do best, and I deflect.
    I step closer to Laney, close enough to smell her perfume. It’s light and sweet. Sexy. Like sunshine and sin.
    I take her chin between my fingers and wait until her eyes meet mine. “Don’t feel sorry for me. Unless you plan to do something to make me feel better.”
    Her cheeks turn pink again. “You really are a bad boy, aren’t you?” she whispers, almost like she’s thinking aloud.
    “I can be as good or as bad as you want me to be.”
    “I’ve always wanted the good guys,” she muses. I’m not a bit surprised. I’d be willing to bet she’s never broken a rule in her entire life.
    “Maybe it’s time for a change.”
    “Maybe it is,” she says softly, her blue eyes flickering down to my mouth and back again.
    “Tell me to kiss you,” I say quietly as I lean slowly toward her.
    Like I poked her with a cattle prod, I see her eyes widen and a startled look come over her face. She steps back, as though she’s stepping away from danger. “I need to go. I’ll be back after lunch.”
    And with that, she turns and walks quickly to where her car is parked, slides behind the wheel, and drives away. I step out of the barn to watch her go. And I see her watching me through her rearview mirror.
    I grin at her and wink. Whether she can see it or not, it doesn’t matter.
    It’s just a matter of time.

SEVEN: Laney
    S unday morning, and I’ve never been happier to hear the pianist start the first hymn. Here I thought I’d have to worry about sinful thoughts of Jake during church. Little did I know today’s torture would be about Shane instead.
    I’m already tired of all the good-natured, well-meaning questions about his absence. I can’t remember the last time I came home and went to church and Shane
wasn’t
with me. Evidently everyone else noticed that, too. One of the major downsides of small-town life is everyone knowing your business. It hasn’t yet hit the gossip mill that we aren’t together anymore, but it’s sure to spread like wildfire now.
    I exhale in relief when Mom slides into the pew beside me. The grilling is over. For the moment, anyway.
    As the choir fills, the banging of the door at the back of the church turns nearly every head in the building. My blood boils when I see Tori, my
ex
best friend, duck and walk quickly down the aisle toward the front. Toward me.
    Surely to God she doesn’t have the audacity to come sit with me!
    And yet, she does. My mother shifts her legs to the side to allow Tori to pass. I do not. I keep my back straight, my feet planted, and my eyes trained straight ahead.
    When she sits down beside me, I scoot a fraction of an inch toward my mother. I hear Tori’s sigh, and I grit my teeth.
    “Really? This is how you’re going to act? In
church
?” Tori whispers.
    As much as I’d like to say to her, as much as I’d like to blister her ears, I keep my mouth shut and ignore her.
    “Nice. Real Christian of you, Laney.”
    I turn my blazing eyes on her. “
You
are telling
me
what’s Christian?” My laugh, though soft, is discernibly bitter. “Oh, okay.”
    “What’s