Page 33 of Two Hearts' Subterfuge

“I’m sure glad that Lara’s going to own your grandparents’ house next door since we grew up there. She belongs there.”

“Now that she’s touring, we never see her anymore so if we continue to live there too, to have a place to come home to when we’re not traveling, someone will almost always be in residence to take care of the place. But she seems happy.”

“She does,” Ben admitted. “She’s a natural. Even more so than Eve, I think.”

“I agree. Eve never enjoyed performing as much as Lara does.” Mom hesitated. “I can’t wait to see the house that youbought. I’m glad you found a place so quickly. You need to be able to get away from this place occasionally because otherwise it will take over your life. Unless we left town, your Dad and I were always on call since we lived next door. It’s funny how I can’t seem to remember the place you bought.”

“Probably because it was run down and falling apart ten years ago. The couple that remodeled it did a fantastic job. The house is right on the lake, so it has fantastic views, kind of similar to our house next door but more open concept.”

“Why’d they move?” Mom asked.

“The wife’s mother was having health issues so they decided to move in with her down in Georgia rather than move her north where it would have been much harder on her health. But it never even went on the market since your realtor, Jack Wellman, knew that I was looking for a place and called me right away.”

When Mom made a point at staring at his breakfast, Ben laughed and finally started eating.

Chapter Twenty

Ben still had no idea that Aylin was the one who’d purchased the boutique.

Would he even give it a second thought? His mother seemed to think so. She’d actually been going out of her way to keep Aylin’s identity a secret during the past month while Aylin had been directing the remodeling of the boutique behind the scenes.

But part of the reason for the subterfuge was because both Jake and Aylin’s fathers were in the process of coming up with a plan to trap Ash when he arrived in Crystal Rock.

None of them doubted it would happen.

The problem was it was difficult trying to second guess Ash and what he had planned since he was completely unhinged as well as a sociopath.

She was pretty pleased with the progress that had been made inside her new boutique, she decided on a warm sunny day in April as she studied the different zones throughout the space. They would mostly handle women’s clothing but there was also an area where they would sell some assorted menswear and another where they would offer some exclusive items for kids.

It was time to get the word out. She’d open the boutique next week and prepare for a grand opening sometime during the next two months.

As she was ready to step from inside the boutique and into the breezeway, she saw a familiar face. Aylin took a moment to study Ben before stepping back inside. It was the closest she’d come to running into him. He’d sure filled out a lot during the past ten years. He was so distracted that he didn’t even look up from the notepad he had in his hand as he walked by. He appeared to be wearing an earbud, so he was most likely listening to something that had been recorded.

Once he walked by, she headed toward the restaurant to eat. She’d been staying in a suite here at the Inn for security reasons, but now that the boutique was nearly ready to open, she was thinking about purchasing a house. That way she could have some top-notch security installed and maybe even hire a bodyguard or two to live separately on the property.

Dad had called yesterday morning to tell her they had eyes on Ash. Still in New Orleans, he appeared to be roughing it—although Dad had trouble believing his uncle would leave him high and dry. Most likely, there was some sort of scheming going on since their organization was fond of blowing things up.

Alex and Celine had even invited Aylin to move in with them at their home on the lake but that would be as good as inviting trouble for them as well if Ash was bent on revenge. Besides, they had three kids now, so it was kind of crazy over there.

Joanie was sitting by herself in the restaurant, so Aylin headed over to join her.

“Hey there, Aylin. You’re actually eating in public?”

“Yes. In view of the staff for now, since all of you know I’m here. All the construction work and rewiring is done, so I won’t have any more workers going in and out. It’s just me now. I think we’re going to be opening next week, so I figured it was time to come out of my hole.”

“I can’t wait to see the place.”

“I think it’s going to do well. Meanwhile, sales from my online store are supporting all my renovations,” she said, ordering some clam chowder and broiled scallops from the menu. Everything Aylin had sampled in the month she’d been staying here had been excellent. “I’m thinking about buying a house since I’m going to stay here in Crystal Rock and manage the store.”

Joanie smiled widely. “I’m glad. If you’re looking for a realtor, Jake or Danny would probably be the ones to talk to.”

“I kind of figured that,” she admitted.

“I guess I’d better get back to work,” Joanie said, standing from the table just as Aylin’s clam chowder arrived. “Talk about coincidence. Here come Jake and Danny. They look like they might want to talk to you anyway.”

“Hi, Aylin,” Jake said, motioning at the empty chairs. “Do you mind if Danny and I join you? We need to talk to you. I think we’ve come up with the workings of a decent plan.”

“Of course, I don’t mind. I hope it won’t interfere if I open the store next week. It’s time. I still need to do a little work in the adjoining space, but we should be ready to host events in a few months.”

---