Page 58 of Honeycombs & Homecomings

Brandon cocked his head. “They require costumes?”

Really? They’d just let him in like that?

Jo grabbed Cash’s arm. “You told Brandon to meet us here?”

“I did,” Cash said.

He hadn’t expected to see the man until a little later tonight, and Cash hadn’t had time to tell Jo what he’d done. Explain that he’d found someone else to invest. He felt a nervous pang, worried she might not take kindly to him setting up business deals for her, but he’d promised he’d fix everything, and that meant not just Allie, but the whole mess with the Warners, too. So, when he’d gone home to change into his costume, he’d looked up Brandon’s number and called him.

Cash knew he must love Jo if he was willing to deal with this farmer flirt. He swallowed.

“Why?” Jo’s expression clouded over, filling with concern. “We can’t bring him into this, Cash. It’s too dangerous.”

Brandon stepped forward. “Wait, your name’s Cash? I thought your name was Tony.”

Yeah, Cash had left that out. It’d been too much to explain over the phone. “It’s a long story.”

Smile lines creased the corners of Brandon’s eyes. “Then you’re not Allie, you’re Jo?”

She nodded. “Yes, I’m so sorry we deceived you. It’s not as bad as it probably seems, but I’d be happy to explain later if you’d like.”

A dog barked in the direction of the corn maze, and Jo glanced that way.

Cash continued. “It’s not as weird as it seems, when you hear the story, you’ll understand—” At least he hoped he would.

Another bark came from the direction of the corn maze. Jo side-stepped the men and her eyes went wider than a Sunday afternoon brunch at . . . well, any aunt’s house in Harvest Ranch.

“Shhh,” she hushed them, and a third bark pierced the air. “Honey.” Jo sucked in a gasp and she was off like a race car at Daytona.

Cash frowned. “Honey?” What was she talking about? Was someone eating her jalapeno honey on blueberry corn bread or something?

Brandon pointed after her with his hat. “What was that about?”

“Listen, we’re in a bit of a pickle,” Cash said, moving around Brandon. He didn’t know what kind of businessman Brandon was, but Cash felt sure he was a good man. “If you could just wait for us to take care of something, we’ll be right back.”

Cash darted after Jo, barely catching Brandon’s “It’d be my pleasure,” as he rounded the corner to the opening of the Maze.

Chapter 20

The moment Jo had heard Honey bark, she’d felt her stomach sink. She knew that bark anywhere. Honey only ever barked when he thought Allie was in trouble. And she’d memorized that bark a couple years ago when they’d gone hiking. Honey had kept jumping in front of them, and would let loose one sharp bark—a warning. They’d never seen him behave like that before, and it was enough to get them to stop. How Honey had known not to go into a barking fit, but just one warning bark here and there, she wasn’t sure, but it’d been enough for her to check out the trail before continuing on like nothing was wrong.

She’d peeked around the corner of a switchback, and there was a big, old black bear clawing at the base of a tree. She’d backed up slowly, and the sisters had made a hasty retreat down the trail, warning other hikers as they went. Honey had stayed behind them the entire way, turning in circles to watch their backs.

If he was barking like that now, something was wrong.

Jo shot past the crowd to the entrance of the maze. “Allie! Where are you?”

Honey barked again, and Jo spun around. He was in the maze. And if he were there, then Allie was too. Honey would never leave her side unless she ordered him away, and she’d never do that.

She thought she heard Cash call out to her from behind, but she couldn’t wait. Allie was in trouble. She sprinted through the opening of the maze, under the large wooden sign with the word “Entrance” carved in it, and was soon swallowed by the thick stalks of corn all around her.

She made turn after turn, stopping only when she thought she heard the whisper of voices, or the crunching of leaves underfoot. Honey hadn’t made another peep.

“Jo!” Cash called out from somewhere behind her.

She jumped and knocked into a few bales of hay stacked together. They tipped over. She sucked in a breath and continued on, too nervous to call out when she couldn’t see who was where or how close she was to anyone.

The maze was bigger this year, with many twists and turns she might have enjoyed as a fun challenge if it weren’t for their current situation. She kept on for several minutes, trying to decide if she should keep going or turn back and try to find Cash.

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