Page 46

The other guys laugh, but Dale doesn’t. He turns his mustache toward me. “What are you doing with this loser? Taking out the trash?”

“Let’s go,” I say to Hattie, my voice low.

She waves me off, eyes locked onto Dale like he’s a target in her crosshairs. “That’s funny, Dale,” she says, cocking her head. “It’s good to hear you using complete sentences for a change.”

More laughter from the other two. Not from Dale.

He squints at her, then looks at me. “You might think everyone’s just supposed to roll out the red carpet for you, Kane—” he takes a step and plants two fingers in my chest“—but all the trophies in the world aren’t gonna pay my family back for the property damage, are they?”

Ah, okay. Now I remember.

“You’re Rip’s grandson,” I say. “That right?”

“Figured you wouldn’t even remember his name, chump.” Dale crosses his arms over his chest and glares at me. I think I’m supposed to find him intimidating.

I don’t. I grit my teeth and scrape every ounce of patience from the bottom of a very empty barrel.

“Don’t touch me again,” I say.

“Oh, okay.” Dale holds his hands up. “Big tough guy now, right?”

Hattie moves in front of me, a full foot shorter but a whole lot scrappier. “If I remember right, Dale, your grandpa collected the insurance money on that old tractor and got quite the upgrade,” she says. “Seems to me he’s doing just fine.”

“Mind your business, Hattie,” Dale says, not taking his eyes off of me.

“Don’t talk to her like that,” I say, voice low.

Hattie puts a hand on my arm as if to say, I’ve got this.

“Noble is my business.” She reaches down and takes my hand, and Dale tracks the movement with his eyes.

It takes a second for me to register that she’s holding my hand. On purpose.

“You can’t be serious,” he says. “Are you with this guy?” He spits to the side. “I really thought you had better sense than that.” Dale’s face turns to disgust.

“Oh, my sense is just fine.” She stands her ground and Dale stands his, and I’m over here trying to figure out why in the world Hattie, who I know for a fact is still mad at me, is sticking up for me right now. As adorable and unnecessary as it is, she’s got my back.

It’s been a very long time since I could say that about anyone.

Dale takes a step toward her, and my instinct to get between them is interrupted when Hattie straightens, making it clear she doesn’t need help from me or anyone else.

Dale shrinks a little, then angles his body away from me, as if that will keep me from hearing him when he says, “Are you into this guy?”

“How about you worry about yourself, Dale?” She smiles, but behind that smile is a resolve that would stop a tank.

He looks at me, disgust on his face. “What’s the matter, Noble, no more buckle bunnies for you to plow through? Now you’ve gotta move in on our women?”

“Your women? Dale McCauley, you wouldn’t recognize a woman if you were water and she fell out of a boat,” she cracks. “And even if you did, she wouldn’t be your property.”

“You’re picking the wrong side, Hattie,” he says, threatening.

“My choice to make.” She lifts her chin, stubborn as ever.

Dale goes rigid, then looks at his buddies. “Whatever, but when this guy screws you over—and he will screw you over—don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He starts to go, and Hattie gives a curt little wave.

Once they’ve gone, she looks at me, lets go of my hand, and rolls her eyes.

I instinctively put the hand she just held in my other one, as if that’ll help me remember the way it felt to have her skin on mine.