Page 70 of Trust

“Get out of here then and do something fun.”

Allen tipped his chin toward the gondolas that were currently getting a second coat of pink paint. “All my friends are here, so I’m staying. All this shindig needs is some pizza and beer.”

Linc ambled over. “I’ll do the grub run.”

“Call Ginos, and he’ll have someone run it out here,” Allen replied, swiping some paint off his arm.

“Done,” Linc said as he slid his phone out and walked away.

Zane picked up several of his tools. “Appreciate you getting the men to help out.”

“That’s what we do here,” Allen answered, looking up at the ride. “And let’s be honest, this monstrosity will likely end up in one of the town parks, so it’s an investment in Haven as much as you and Olivia.”

“Me and Olivia?” he asked. “This ride doesn’t have anything to do with us.”

“Of course it does.” Allen rocked back on his heels. “It was the excuse you two needed to be in each other’s company. It was a convenient cover that allowed you to explore the attraction while pretending otherwise.”

Zane scoffed. “Olivia doesn’t need a cover. The woman doesn’t possess a single subtle bone and broadcasts her thoughts at full volume.”

“I was talking about you, Zane.”

“Oh,” he said quietly, unsure where to take the conversation next. “I hadn’t given any thought to where the ride would permanently reside. Guess I assumed it would stay here.”

“Have you given any consideration to where you’re going to permanently reside after the renovation is done on the house?”

“Initially, I planned to stay on and live a quiet life, filling time with my antique clock restoration business.”

“Sounds like you might’ve made some revisions to that plan.”

Zane didn’t want to be discussing his and Liv’s relationship. That is if they still had one.

He’d been mucking it up fairly regularly with his growling and snarling and wouldn’t be surprised if she wanted no part of him. “Still planning on staying. It’s just the quiet part that won’t likely happen.”

“A full life is rarely a peaceful one.” Allen crossed his arms. “You know, this is never an easy day for Olivia, so don’t worry too much if she was out of sorts earlier. She’s as strong as any woman I know and never lets herself simmer in the grief for too long.”

Not wanting to admit his earlier transgression, he kept his mouth shut. How could he have picked a fight on one of her most challenging days? And why didn’t she tell him beforehand how significant the day was?

It seemed he wasn’t the only one with their drawbridge partially drawn.

“Food and libations are on the way,” Linc called out.

“Thanks, cousin.”

“No problem.” Linc hooked his thumb over his shoulder. “I’m gonna get one more gondola painted before the chow arrives.”

“Yeah, I’ll do the same,” Allen added.

Zane watched both men stride away and again acknowledged that his demons needed to be evicted. There had to be a way to get rid of the lousy bunch of them along with his annoying dead relatives, didn’t there?

He studied his hands and thought about what he’d done in the name of freedom. The lives he’d ended of the country’s enemies and the men who’d done their level best to do the same to him. Blah, blah, blah, he was tired of the reel of his sins that played continuously and was about ready to quit paying the Devil his due.

Letting out a gust of air, he crouched in front of the engine box and vowed to double down on his efforts to get his mind right.

Olivia deserved better than what he’d been offering, and, one way or another, he needed to find a way to upgrade his emotional literacy.

Several hours later, the sun had dipped low enough in the sky to make any further work on the project impossible, so Zane collected the last of the detritus from their pizza feast and shoved it into a bag. His phone chirped in his pocket, and he was surprised to see Lucy’s name on the display. “Hey, everything okay?”

“Not really,” she replied. “Can you run over to Greenville and bring Olivia home?”

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