He turned off the faucet and faced her. “Indi tells us she’s engaged—engaged to someone we’ve never met, the latest in a string of someones we’ve never met—and you’re upset at Wilder?”

“The engagement probably won’t last more than a week or two.” Lilian rolled her eyes. “You know that. You know Indi.”

“How could you . . . why would you . . . that’s really what you think?”

Neil didn’t even bother to cover his groan at the sight of Indi suddenly behind Lilian, the hurt in her voice. Lilian turned slowly. “Indi, I didn’t mean—”

“Yes, you did.”

“Guys—” he started but Indi cut in.

“Bennington Foster is different. You’ll see when you meet him.”

She was engaged to a man named Bennington? Neil shook his head, sighed. “Indi—”

“And you.” She pushed past Lilian, glare centered on him. “You didn’t even bother to congratulate me.”

“I’m sorry. You’re right, I . . . I’m happy for you, sis. I am. I’m just distracted tonight. I’m concerned about the farm and Maggie and there’s a stranger sitting out in the dining room and . . .” He turned away from his sisters, raking his fingers through his hair with another sigh, appetite entirely gone. “I can’t handle Maggie being disappointed again. Last time she hardly came out of her room for weeks and I just . . . I can’t see her like that again.”

Strained silence carved out the air around him, until Lilian moved to his side. “What do you mean you’re concerned about the farm?”

He shook his head. Now wasn’t the time to burden his sisters with that. Although knowing Lilian, if she got a good enough look at him, he wouldn’t be able to hide the depth of his worry. So he let his gaze drift through the window to a sleepy sky filled with pastels. He heard Indi move to his other side and he reached his arm around her back. “Congratulations, Indi. I’m sorry I didn’t say it earlier.”

She offered a small smile as she glanced up at him. “So what’s the plan?”

“Plan?”

“For dealing with the woman. You always have a plan. Do we sabotage her? Stonewall her? Grab some pitchforks from the barn and chase her off?”

That actually managed to pull a laugh from him. “Or we sic Lil on her. She can intimidate her with a slew of lawyerly questions.”

Lilian elbowed his side. “Don’t be ridiculous. As long as Wilder keeps hanging around, none of us will have to do anything. He’ll annoy her into leaving.”

Now all three of them were laughing. “What is your deal with that guy?” Indi asked through her giggles.

Neil couldn’t help the tease. “The real question is, are you seriously going to marry a man named Bennington?”

She shouldn’t be here.

Sydney opened her suitcase atop the daybed she might not be sleeping in after all tonight. Before that fiasco of a dinner, she’d mostly emptied her luggage, placing neatly folded shirts and jeans into the walnut dresser across the small room and lining up toiletries and cosmetics atop it while her frazzled nerves gradually uncoiled.