Page 44 of Small Town, Big Storm

I shrug.As far as I’m concerned, we can chop them all the way down and turn them into firewood…along with the rest of this place.

Rain sighs.Looks back over at the women.“I’ll take care of getting the trees trimmed.”

A pause, the women exchanging a glance before Riley calls, “And the gutters?They’re a fire hazard loaded up with all those needles.”

Rain looks at me again.

And I just shrug again.

I’d pay for it, I guess, but I’m definitely not hauling my ass up on a ladder to clear out someone’s gutters.

Not for a house I don’t want any fucking part of.

Rain sighs again.Then, “I’ll take care of it.”

The women exchange another glance.

“And when exactly will that be?”Riley asks.

Rain grits his teeth together, rolls his eyes heavenward.“By the weekend.”

The girls look at each other, as though deliberating.

Then Clover calls, “That would be great.Thanks, Rain.”

My brother just grunts and starts for the house.

“I like the outfit, by the way,” Riley calls.

Rain’s shoulders tense, but I’m smirking as I follow him into the house.Serves the stubborn bastard right.

If he just burned this place to the ground, all of our problems would be solved.

“Still want to keep the house?”I drawl as I trail him.

He stops on the threshold, glares back over his shoulder at me.“Like I told you at the reading”—which was a whole other brand of fucked-up, thanks Dad—“you don’t have to deal with it.But I’m not selling this place.”

“Then I’ll buy you out.”

“I won’t accept.”

And, just like that, my anger is back.

With Poppy and Holly, I could pretend?—

Well, I could pretend this version of me didn’t exist with them.

Or shove it down enough that it stayed buried for a little while.

But five minutes on Harrison property and I want to punch something, want to shout and break shit andhurtpeople.

“You’re an asshole, you know that?”I grit out.

A shrug.“Takes one to know one.”

I whip toward him, hands lifting, but he just raises his brows and watches me, as though he can see my internal struggle to stop myself from throttling him.Pain shoots through my jaw, but I resist the urge to punch my asshole of a brother, and march through the entryway, sending water splashing in all directions but not giving a fuck.

He wants to keep the house, he can fucking clean it up.