Page 77 of The Hermit on the Hill

My great uncle was dying. I hadn't lied when I'd told Jenna I needed to go see him. He'd asked me to help him with some property he owned in Catalpa Creek that he wanted to leave to my cousins, his estranged daughters.

Being a narcissistic asshole, he wanted to put all kinds of conditions on the land and wanted my opinion on how the land could best be made into a business that would be a legacy to his memory. I told him the best thing he could do was to stop being an asshole and just leave the land outright to his daughters, but he hadn't wanted to hear that.

He wasn't my favorite person, but I had a few good memories of the man and spending a weekend with a dying, despairing man who's just realizing all the ways he fucked up in life when I was suffering from my own broken heart had been a shitty way to spend a weekend.

"Busy breaking our sister's heart," Cody said through gritted teeth.

"You'll be happier with me out of her life," I said. "The whole town will be glad to see me go."

"You're leaving?" George's expression didn't display the elated cheerfulness I would have expected from him at the news.

"Yes, I—"

"He's leaving, and he's giving the house and the property to Jenna," Jared said.

I glared at him. "That was between you and me."

I hadn't wanted to tell Jared my plan, but it had been the only way I'd been able to come up with to get him to help me. Unfortunately, I couldn't just buy tranq darts or a rabies vaccine on the internet.

Jared shrugged. "I don't keep secrets for morons who break my sister's heart."

"Wait," Noah said. "You're just giving her the property?"

"She wants to be a stay at home mom. She can sell off as much of the acreage as she wants and make enough money to give her at least a couple years of that until she finds a job she can do from home or marries a man who supports her."

I could barely say those last words, but I got them out. Thought I did a damn good job of pretending they didn't affect me, too.

"Oh." Cody nodded like he'd had an epiphany. "I get it. You're a total moron."

Noah shook his head and pressed his fingers to his eyes, but George looked between me and Cody, obvious confusion creasing his brow. "I don't get it."

"It's 'the dump her because it's what's best for her even though I'm in love with her' move," Cody said.

George narrowed his eyes. "Or it's the 'I don't love her and I don't want to step up and be a father, so I'm going to leave her material stuff so I can sleep at night' move."

"My guess," Jared said. "It's the 'I'm afraid of commitment, but I can't let her go, so I'm giving her a house so I'll have an excuse to keep breaking her heart over and over again' move."

"Hey," I said. "I'm standing right here and you're all wrong. I've got a great job offer, and this house is a tax shelter. It would be stupid to leave it here with nobody living in it."

Cody narrowed his eyes. "Thought you said you were giving it to her."

"I am."

"Not a tax shelter if you put it in her name," Noah said.

I glared. What the hell was wrong with these guys? They should rejoice that I was out of their sister's life. "Of course I'm putting it in her name. And before you ask, I'm going to take care of the taxes involved with a gift this big. I've been working on it with my lawyer and I think I can give it all to her in trust for our son, but also give her the ability to sell off what she needs."

"Ah," Noah said. "Yep, you are a moron."

I growled. "I really don't give a shit what you think of me. Jared and I are going to catch a bobcat."

I stomped off into the woods, but they all followed me.

"Huh," George said. "You might be right, Cody. The fact he hasn't run us off his property with bullets and fists could mean he's actually in love with her and can't bear the thought of hurting her brothers."

I spun on him. I hadn't been sleeping or eating much. I was exhausted, my head hurt, and I fucking missed Jenna like I'd lost an arm. "You're not her brother. I've got no problem killing you and burying your body right here."

The idiot actually laughed. He spread his arms wide. "Go ahead, man. It might make you feel better. Punch me."

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