Page 15

“Maybe you two should take the time to get to know each other,” Mrs. Mayberry suggests, her tone almost too casual. “See if there’s some sort of... compromise or arrangement you can come up with?”

My brows furrow, and I glance at Regan, who’s pointedly avoiding my gaze. Her eyes look to the house, the pond, even the sky like there’s something interesting up there in the clouds. I tilt my head to see what she’s staring at but find nothing but early spring blue.

“What are you talking about?” I ask.

Regan huffs out a breath, crossing her arms over her chest and rolling her eyes like it’s totally obvious.

“She’s talking about a marriage of convenience, Hayes.”

A... what? I blink, my brain stuttering like an engine that won’t start. The words die in my throat because that’s... crazy. That’s a crazy suggestion.

Regan looks up at me, studying me with those piercing blue eyes that once made me lose all sense of reason.

It’s like she can see the panic racing through me at the thought of marrying someone.

Then, to my surprise, she throws her head back and laughs.

Hard. It’s a full, carefree cackle that has her wild, dark red hair catching the sunlight as it sways with her movements.

“I don’t think so, Mrs. Mayberry,” she says, her voice dripping with amusement. “I told Hayes once to be careful not to fall in love with me. If we did that, he actually might.”

Mrs. Mayberry glances at me, her expression laced with confusion, but I barely notice it. Regan’s already walking away, her bare feet crunching against the gravel as she makes her way to a bike I hadn’t noticed before, propped under the old, oak tree that she was swinging from.

She swings one leg over the seat, the movement lifting the hem of her soft, white dress.

One of the straps drops off her shoulder but instead of fixing it, she leaves it, drawing my eyes to the swell of her breasts and the smooth skin it exposed on her neck.

Then she glances back at me, her blazing blue eyes locking onto mine.

“I’ll figure something out,” she says, her voice steady and determined. “And I’m going to get this property, one way or another, Hayes.”

Um, okay that felt a lot like a threat.

With that, she pedals off, her hair streaming behind her like fire in the sunlight. I stand there, rooted in place, watching her disappear down the dirt road, leaving me and Mrs. Mayberry in the thick silence she’s left behind.

“Well, that was interesting...” Mrs. Mayberry trails off, chuckling softly as she turns toward the front steps of her home. She wobbles slightly, and I reach out to steady her, guiding her up and inside.

“Thank you, dear,” she says, patting my hand with a fond smile as we cross the threshold.

“You know, I don’t know what kind of past you and Regan have—or if there even is a past—but I can tell you one thing about that young woman.

” She settles into a worn armchair inside the living room, sighing as if the weight of the world’s been lifted from her shoulders.

“Regan loves fiercely. The people she cares about, the things she sets her mind to will always take priority in her life. She’s a dreamer, yes, but she’s also a hard worker.

And she loves this land. Always has. She used to come here as a little girl and just talk to me.

It’s like growing up in that house full of boys no one really saw her or listened to her feelings.

She’d ramble on about fairies, and puppies and all the things she loved at that moment.

It was always changing like the seasons.

I used to love listening to it since I never had any children of my own. ”

I nod as I watch her, realizing this may mean more to both of them than I’d realized.

“Owning it, managing the farm, running her own business with the wedding venue—it’s all she’s ever wanted. Something of her own, you know? Something that sets her apart from the rest of the Marshall kids.”

Her words hit me hard, dredging up a memory I’d buried years ago.

Regan, during that night we first met, lying beside me in the dark, whispering about her dreams and hopes for the future.

How she felt trapped in her brothers’ shadows.

How she wanted her own business, her own family, her own life.

And this farm... this must be it. This is what she’s been chasing all these years.

A prick of guilt slides down my spine, sharp and unwelcome. I shake it off quickly because, in the end, I’m not the one standing in her way. I’m not taking this dream from her. I have no reason to feel guilt. She has to get married just as much as I do if she wants to buy the land.

“She’s a catch, you know,” Mrs. Mayberry continues, her voice softer now. “Everyone in town loves her. Her boyfriend just proposed, actually.”

My head snaps up. “What?” I growl. The sound escapes before I can stop it. That’s… interesting. Because if her boyfriend proposed, why wasn’t she wearing an engagement ring?

And yes, I checked.

Again .

So, did she turn him down? Or is she planning to rush into a wedding now to secure the property? That thought has me worried.

“I think you two have more in common than you realize,” Mrs. Mayberry adds, her tone sly like she’s enjoying stirring the pot.

She leans back in her chair and closes her eyes with a satisfied sigh. “Close the door on your way out, would you, dear? And I hope to hear from you with some good news soon, Hayes.”

I stand there for a moment, staring at her as she drifts off, her words settling over me like a challenge I didn’t ask for but can’t seem to ignore. Time to figure some shit out.