Page 40 of Evidence of Secrets

Ben sighed. “Yup.”

“Is she staying overnight at Grace’s house?” asked Mark.

“Yup.” Ben vigorously rubbed the back of his neck. “You know she can’t hold her liquor. At least the girls are together and not going out.”

Hank laughed to himself.

Marlee was a one-drink gal. Any more than that, she was a hoot, although Ben would vehemently disagree.

“Is Laura there, too?” asked Hank.

The guys stopped and stared at him.

“Whaaat?” Hank threw his arms up. “I can’t be curious?”

“Uh-huh. Is that what you’re calling it today? Curious?” Luke laughed. “Something you want to share?”

“Assholes.” Hank pursed his lips and glared at Luke. “Nothing is going on. We’ve seen each other several times, that’s all.”

“That’s all?” said Ben. “You really want us to believe that the love ’em and leave ’em guy asks about a woman we all know and…”

Hank rubbed his eye, giving Ben the middle finger as he did. “I’m interested in her. Okay? Laura’s funny and smart, and I enjoy being with her. Seeing where it might lead.”

Luke clutched his chest. “Be still my beating heart.”

Hank shook his head. “So childish.”

“Seriously, though, has Laura said anything to you about her problems at the bistro?” asked Jake.

“I know some of what’s going on,” said Hank.

Jake let out a long exhale. “It’s public knowledge, at least in the restaurant world, that she’s struggling to keep the bistro afloat and might lose it.” He shrugged. “I guess she’ll figure it out. She’s a hard worker.”

Hank’s heart sank. He didn’t know Laura was struggling so much. She never gave a hint that things were so tough. Now that he thought about it, she had been sleeping in her office when they tented her apartment for bugs because she didn’t want to spend the money on a hotel. It was a good thing that he spotted her clothes and sleeping bag in the closet when he was fixing the router. At least he offered a safe place to stay.

He wondered what else was going on with Laura and if he could help. The sudden beating of his heart stopped him. Oh, right, he’d been down that path before. Heather only wanted him for his money.

Although Laura had no idea that he had money. Hank shrugged. He never had that conversation with her. Shit. They’d made love, he cared about her a lot, and he should have mentioned it a while ago. Because he more than cared about her. He was in love with her. Something he sure as hell wasn’t mentioning to the guys yet.

Besides, it wouldn’t be his wealth that would turn Laura off. It would be him not trusting her to know. Betrayal of trust was worse.

CHAPTERTHIRTY-ONE

Laura closed the bistro door and headed toward her car. The darkness hid her tears. It was only nine thirty at night, but the bistro was empty. Empty! On a Friday night, no less. She closed the doors at ten, but people usually lingered over dessert and coffee more often than not. Tonight, diners came in and left early. There was no sense in keeping employees there and paying them to stand around and stare at each other. The downside was her concern that staff would leave to find other jobs.

Grace was having the girls over tonight. Laura initially begged off, but going back to her little apartment and staring at the four walls was a depressing thought.

Grace and Luke lived just outside of town. With two toddlers and a newborn, she wasn’t in a position to leave the kids. She and Luke took turns going out for a night. Tonight was poker night, and Laura wondered if Hank was playing with the guys.

The drive to Grace’s house took about half an hour. She passed several horse and cattle farms and a few fixer-uppers. There were no sidewalks, and nobody was walking on the streets. Palm trees competed for space with pine trees, and bushes and vines took over anything in between.

There were few cars on the road in this direction. When she got to the house, Laura noted the vehicles parked in front of the ranch house. Laura parked next to Sam’s SUV and reached over for the desserts that hadn’t been sold. The women would appreciate them.

She knocked, and Sam opened the door.

“You came!” Sam leaned in for a kiss on the cheek. “Everyone will be thrilled to see you.” She took the tray of desserts from Laura’s hands and sniffed. “They’ll be thrilled to see these, too.”

Laura smiled. “Yup, that’s my goal in life, to thrill everyone.”

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