Page 22 of No Bed Of Roses

He kept telling himself to stay away because she was his neighbor, but for the first time in his life, he wasn’t listening to sensible. Which was as terrifying as it was enthralling.

“Any chance I can buy some cameras from you to install upstairs in the barn? I want her to be safe.”

Sam grinned at him. “Got it covered. Tansy and Isla own the property together, so no one’s paying for anything.”

He hadn’t known that. Isla had only talked about her plans for the land. And not even much about that.

“Tansy’s interested in farming?”

Both men laughed at that before Sam answered. “Tansy’s interested in everything. Especially if it improves life for people or the planet. Isla’s been creating strains of various food items to make them more drought resistant.”

Hell. He didn’t know that either. Not that they’d known each other long, but it made Levi itch to know more. And he wanted Isla to be the one to tell him about her plans and dreams.

Damn it.

CHAPTER 8

A Thorn In My Side

It was hours before Tansy and Sam left. Now, there were cameras in Isla’s barn as well as around her cottage. Besides the lab where she’d worked, she’d never been around security cameras. She felt awkward and stilted even though she knew no one was sitting around watching her.

She expected Levi to head back to his farm after the others left, but he stood with Marcus beside her cottage, waiting for her after she saw her friends off.

Straightening her shoulders, she walked back to the pair. “How about some lunch? It’s past time to eat, and I think there’s enough in the fridge.” At some point, she’d have to go into town and shop. And deal with people. Never her strong suit.

Without waiting for an answer, Isla unlocked the door to the mudroom and walked inside. She toed off her wellies and slid on the moccasins Tansy had left for her.

There were enough fixings for sandwiches, so she pulled everything out and set it on the counter. She knew Marcus had questions and figured it was better to get that started. “Go ahead and ask your questions, Deputy. I’d rather keep busy while I answer but help yourselves to something to drink.”

Levi waved Marcus to the table and went about getting the drinks.

Marcus nodded. “I know this is invasive and uncomfortable. I’m only asking to see if I can help keep you safe. If you don’t feel comfortable answering anything, say so.”

She found the serrated knife in the drawer and nodded. “Okay.”

“Tell me about your life before you moved up here.”

Straight to the heart of the matter. “Since grad school, I’ve worked at Future 4 Us Labs in Texas. It’s a lab where scientists focus on improving food quality and quantity around the world. Things like creating drought-resistant grains and rice blends that can grow in harsh climates. Getting plants to produce food more quickly and produce more nutrients. The lab wants to create foods that can deal with shorter growing seasons and different climates. With climate change, it’s important to adapt.”

Levi put three glasses of water on the table and filled Hopper’s water bowl before coming to lean against the counter near her. “That’s impressive, Isla. I had no idea.

Marcus nodded. “It is. Please continue.”

She’d been rambling because she didn’t want to talk about the rest. Better to get it out quickly. “Thanks. I’d been working on drought-resistant wheat most recently. I worked in a lab with controlled climate features, and I was making good progress. I thought I was close to having a reliable sample to test in real-world conditions.”

She took a deep breath and sliced some pickles. “One day, I arrived at work and found my data had been changed. To make a sordid story short, another scientist had stolen my data. He made himself a copy, then made critical changes to my data, leaving me with a strain of wheat that wouldn’t feed a mouse.”

The men were quiet, so she kept talking. “It took a few days to uncover what had happened. My boss finally figured it out when this colleague came to her with his progress update, saying he’d tried a new angle. She recognized my work and fired him. Ed had a lot of friends at the lab and the rumors flew around like mosquitos. He’d told them all that I’d set him up and got him fired. It made for an uncomfortable work atmosphere, so I quit.”

She heard Levi’s soft growl and managed a wry smile. “Until this morning, I thought Vermont was the right move.”

Marcus tapped his pen on the table. “It was the right move. We’ll figure out if this ladder incident was aimed at you. If it was, we’ll stop him, and you can settle in. This is a great place to be, and we don’t want to see you go.”

That warmed her heart, but it was Levi’s nod and Damn right that made her smile.

Marcus made notes while she piled the sandwiches on a plate. When she brought it over to the table, Levi made quick work of cleaning up the ingredients and stowing everything in its proper place. The man was both observant and thoughtful.

Marcus smiled at her. “Thanks, Isla. Why don’t we take a break while we eat?”

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