Page 117 of Love Is Brewing

“I think he’s got a girlfriend,” he said. “Not sure. He’s not someone to cheat.”

“If he was single would he be with a married woman?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” he said. “Not to be mean, but Skip is simple. I don’t think he does anything maliciously.”

“Maybe take that angle. Kayla said that she still talks to someone named Beth who has slept around even though she’s married. I don’t know her last name. Just that she’s been there for a while if Kayla knows her. Another thought is all.”

“Thanks,” he said. “I’ll see what I can find.”

She could hear him typing while they talked. “Are you looking up how many Beths are working there?”

“Yeah,” he said. “And one of them was on yesterday working in distribution. She was employed by the company I bought and stayed on.”

“Not sure if it’s going to help you or not, but it’s something.”

“It’s better than I had,” he said. “Thanks.”

They hung up and she called her mother quickly.

“I didn’t think you’d answer, Mom.”

“Then why did you call?” her mother asked, the humor in her voice.

“I needed to hear your voice. Even if it was your voicemail.”

“Is my baby having a bad day?”

“No,” she said. “Everything seems to be going so well.”

She couldn’t tell her mother what was going on with Elias.

“But you still wanted to talk to me?” her mother asked. “I can tell you that your father and I feel everything is going well business-wise too. I expect you’ll need that second attorney soon.”

She’d held off since she’d been so busy but knew at some point she’d need it and should start looking.

“Maybe soon,” she said. “I’m happy I’m as busy as I am and it doesn’t seem to be letting up. The paralegals all have a lot of work to keep them going too.”

“All great news. And you appear to be adapting to small-town living.”

She snorted. “Slowly. I hate the gossip and talk and being stopped and asked personal questions all the time, but it does have its benefits.”

“You’re good at riding the lines of what to give and what to take from it,” her mother said. “You’ve always been good that way. It’s what makes you such a wonderful attorney. Your ability to steer any conversation the way you need it.”

“Redirecting,” she said. “It drives Elias insane.”

“Since you two are doing so well, it can’t bother him too much.”

“We’ve yet to hit any snags in the road. Or anything big. Are we supposed to fight?”

“No,” her mother said. “Your father and I rarely do. We talk things out. Maybe it’s boring to some, but it works for us. If you talk and understand each other, that is all you need.”

“I feel as if we do. It’s more about finding what we both want.”

“You’ve always been on the slow end there,” her mother said. “Slow to voice how you feel or what you want, but you finally get it out. I’m going to assume you have. It was nice seeing you two together at Ben’s wedding a few weeks ago. You look very much in love.”

She smiled. “Thank you. I feel that way. His mother says the same to him.”

“Then don’t look for hidden problems,” her mother said. “Just be you.”

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