I don't say anything.
Ben turns, folding his arms. "You know she's working for them. That developer group. The ones who want to buy us out, turn our land into luxury crap."
"I know."
"Then what the hell are you doing?"
I look down at my boots, dust-scuffed and cracked from work. "Talking. That's all."
"It won't stay just talking. Not with you. You don't do halfway."
"It's different."
"No, it ain't. It's a slow burn headed for an explosion, and you know it."
I meet his eyes. "She doesn't know who I am. Not really. She thinks I'm some guy his mom mentioned."
Ben shakes his head. "So, you're lying."
"Not lying. Just not correcting her."
"That's the same damn thing, Ash. You're walking a razor's edge. And when it cuts, it won't just be you bleeding."
His words hit too close to home. They settle in my chest, heavy as lead.
"I know," I mumble.
Ben studies me for a long moment, searching my face to see if I mean it.
"Don't play with fire, Asher. Not when everything we love is already hanging by a thread."
He walks back to his truck and drives off, dust curling behind him like smoke.
I stare at the space he left behind. The warning echoes through my ribs. The silence afterward feels deeper than before. It’s as if the barn and the hills and the sky are all holding their breath right along with me.
Then I pull out my phone.
Me:You ever get the feeling you're falling for something you shouldn't?
I know I still haven't answered her last message, and thankfully, she rolls with it.
Kassi:You mean cupcakes?
Me:A woman who's too smart for her own good.
Kassi:Dangerous territory, cowboy.
Me:Yeah. But I've always had a thing for danger.
Kassi:Then you’d better know how to handle it when the storm rolls in.
Me:I grew up in Texas, darlin'. I don't scare easily.
Kassi:Good. Because I don't come with a warning label.
Me:Neither do I.
When she doesn't reply right away, I tuck the phone into my pocket. As I walk back toward the barn, the weight of Ben's words are heavy in every step.