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He straightened so quickly that he banged his head on the top of the windowpane. It felt like he’d been coldcocked with a two-by-four.
“Holy shit!” He grabbed his head.
“Ouch. That sounded like it hurt.”
He turned to see Sunny standing there with her back to him. Still holding his aching head, he quickly got in bed and pulled the sheet over him. “You can turn around now.”
She turned.
Corbin had been right. Sunny had been named appropriately. Her smile was almost as blinding as the sun.
“Good morning, big brother!”
Her loud greeting crashed through his sore, pounding head like marching band cymbals. He cringed and held up a hand.
“Softer, please.”
Her smile got even brighter as she lowered her voice. “Looks like you must have stopped at the Hellhole after you left me and Corbin last night. I’m a little upset you didn’t invite us along. Or say goodbye.” She held up a to-go cup and bakery bag. “But I’m not one to hold a grudge. Coffee and a Cocoa Java Junkie muffin? Sheryl Ann said they were your favorite.”
Just the thought of eating made his stomach churn. “No on the muffin. But I’d love that cup of coffee.”
She walked over and handed it to him, her gaze drifting down to his lap. “Your man junk’s showing.”
“Shit!” He quickly grabbed the sheet to cover up and spilled coffee as he did. Thankfully, there was a lid on the cup, but the drops that hit his arm still burned like hell. “Sonofabitch!”
Sunny laughed. “You’re a real mess, aren’t you?”
He brushed the coffee off his arm and scowled. “I’ve had better days. How did you find me?”
“You buying Mrs. Fields’ Boardinghouse is the talk of Butt Muffins.”
“Butt Muffins?”
She hesitated. “When I was in high school, someone—not saying who—painted an extra t on the Nothin’ But Muffins sign turning it into Nothin’ Butt Muffins.” Jesse laughed and she grinned. “It was pretty funny. At least, most folks thought so. Sheryl Ann not so much.” She glanced around. “People are trying to figure out what you’re going to do with this dilapidated building.” She looked back at him. “What are you going to do with it?”
“Probably sell it for much less than I paid for it.”
“So why did you buy it?”
“A whim.”
She tipped her head and studied him. “Hmm? That’s funny. From what Corbin has told me, you’re not a whim kind of guy. He says you act all easygoing, but everything you do is calculated.”
“Well, maybe Corbin doesn’t know me like he thinks he does.” Jesse certainly didn’t know Corbin like he thought he did.
Sunny kicked off her flip-flops and sat down on the foot of the bed, crossing her legs in front of her like a teenager ready to share secrets. “Or maybe there’s a reason you bought this place that you just don’t want to tell me. I get it. You don’t even know me. I’m just a stranger to you.” She blinked her big brown eyes. “So why would you confide in little ol’ me?”
It took a con artist to know one. “Oh, you’re good,” he said. “No wonder you have Corbin wrapped around your little finger. Just so you know, I’m not so easily manipulated.”
Her bright smile returned. “Good to know. Corbin is an absolute pushover.”
He frowned. “Which is how you got him to figure out a way to get the Holiday Ranch.”
The surprise that entered her eyes was real. “If I had known what he was up to, I would have tried to stop him.”
For some reason, he knew she wasn’t lying. Probably because looking at her was like looking in a mirror. “But he’s buying it for you. He told me it’s where you want to live.”
“At one time, it was. But I think a lot of girls dreamed about being one of the Holiday sisters. They were pretty and popular and had a ready-made clique. When you saw them in town all together, laughing and having such a great time, you couldn’t help but want to be part of their sisterhood. I heard that they even had a club. A secret sister club. How awesome is that?”
