Page 14 of Stalked By the Farmer

I jump out of bed and get dressed, determination burning through my veins. The bank opens in an hour. I'll go there and demand answers.

As I drive into town, possibilities swirl through my mind. A mistake? No, it's too specific. For the life of me, I can't figure out who could and would do this.

I grip the wheel tighter as I chew my lip. I have to find out the truth.

* * *

I stride through the bank doors and straight up to Margaret, the head teller. She's worked here for decades and knows my family well.

"Margaret, I need to know who paid off my parents' farm loan." I lean over the counter, heart pounding. "It was done anonymously, but this is important. Please tell me what you know."

Margaret's eyes widen. She glances around nervously. "I'm sorry, Misty, but that information is confidential. I can't disclose details about our clients' accounts."

"Come on, Margaret." I grasp her hands. "This is about my family. Don't you want to help us?"

She bites her lip, gaze darting away. I can tell she's struggling between her duty to the bank and her affection for my family.

"I know you want to tell me," I press on. "Just give me this one piece of information, and I swear I'll keep it a secret. No one has to know it came from you."

Margaret closes her eyes for a long moment. When she opens them again, resolve has hardened her expression. "I'm sorry, Misty, but I can't break our policy. My hands are tied here."

Frustration boils up inside me. I want to shake the answer out of her. But I know it's no use.

"However, even though I can't break my silence," she adds as she makes a show of straightening the papers on her desk, looking down at them pointedly, "whoever it is cares for you greatly."

I inhale a sharp breath as I get her drift and glance down that papers.

And one name stands out prominently.

Conner Mitchell.

My best friend.

The name I've been trying to avoid for weeks now.

Conner.

My chest tightens at the mere thought of him.

Could he have?

My best friend since childhood, and the man I've been in love with for years. He's the only one who knows how much the farm means to my family.

But I haven't seen him since the fair. He can't even know about my family's struggles. How would he know?

Plus, I clench the steering wheel, Conner sees me as a friend, nothing more. He would never do something so extravagant.

Would he?

My hands curl into fists as confusion envelops me. Why would Conner do this? Why would he pay off my family's debt in secret?

He made it clear he thinks of me as nothing more than a friend. Is he doing this out of friendship?

I'm so confused.

The engine roars to life as I slam the pickup into gear, gravel spewing behind my tires. It's time for a reckoning.

* * *

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