Page 51 of Guarded Secrets
Keeley arranged the chairs as Sawyer drew Cam into his arms in an embrace so full of love it seemed to glow from them like a moonbeam.
Owen sat with a beer bottle balanced on his knee. He appeared to be engaged with whatever Walker was saying, but she could see the broodiness under the social façade.
More than once she caught his gaze on her. She figured turning her back to him conveyed herleave me alonemessage pretty well.
Bringing a tray from the house with little bowls of pickled onions, dill pickles, and a variety of olives, Keeley spied Owen and Mateo with Shane, their heads under the hood of a pickup.
Shane went to the driver’s seat to turn over the engine while Owen cocked his head as if listening. Using a wrench, he adjusted something in the engine compartment. Listening again, he seemed satisfied with whatever he’d done and signaled for Shane to turn off the engine. He glanced over, and Keeley gave a start when their gazes clashed and she realized she’d been standing doing nothing other than staring at the man.
The sun went down in the western sky, lighting up thin wispy clouds in shades of purple and orange, and a breeze whispered quietly through the pines. It was the perfect backdrop for the evening. The people Keeley considered her chosen family filled their plates buffet style and sat at the long tables, flickering lanternsholding back the dusk. She deliberately chose not to sit in the empty seat beside Owen, instead taking the spot between Mateo and Gage.
She bumped shoulders with Mateo. “Hey, friend, how’s firefighting?”
“Doing some controlled burns to try to get ahead of wildfire season.”
They chatted, trying to draw Gage into the conversation.
Dark haired and broody, Gage had the look of a wounded warrior. She didn’t know his story, all Emery’d shared was he’d had a rough upbringing and some trauma that had brought him to his friend’s ranch to heal. He seemed laid-back, but she had the feeling he kept a lot hidden behind a dry wit and slow smile.
Here she was with two sexy and handsome men, but neither of them rang the same bells for her that Owen did. Regardless, she enjoyed the meal and conversation even while being acutely conscious of Owen seated across the table. She noticed the corded muscle of his arms as he passed a platter, his long fingers as he cut his meat with a knife, his hooded gaze on her as he sipped from a bottle of beer. He was like a life-size magnet with a constant pull she found nearly impossible to resist.
She tuned into the conversation around her. Predictably, talk swirled around pregnancy and babies. Sitting at the head of the table, Harding beamed from ear to ear. “I’m gonna have me a baby to watch after,” he told Shane, rubbing his gnarled hands together. Keeley pegged Harding’s age at somewhere between seventy and ninety. “Y’all don’t need to worry about childcare because Harding’s got it under control.”
“Shane and Emery can’t hog Harding. You guys have to spread the love,” Delaney complained.
“I got plenty of love to spread around. But I can only take care of one baby at a time,” Harding said.
Happy pregnancy pheromones seemed to radiate from the couples. Keeley turned to Emery. “Twins run in families, right? Youhave twin brothers, so maybe you and Shane will continue the tradition.”
“Bite your tongue, girl,” she said, her voice emphatic. “I don’t have a preference for girl or boy, but I’ve put my order in for a single.” She held up an index finger. “One baby at a time.”
Emery pinned Shane with awatch outmisterlook when she caught him grinning. “What are you smiling about? You know how my brothers are. It’ll be a miracle if they survive to adulthood.”
“Twins would certainly give us a jumpstart on our family.”
“Says the man who won’t havetwobabies growing inside him.”
“Darlin’, I’m game for whatever we get. It’ll be fun.”
“Here, here.” Walker held up his beer in salute.
Keeley decided time with her besties had been exactly what she needed.
Between being attacked twice, and whatever was going on between her and Owen, her batteries needed a positive charge. After a couple hours with her friends, she felt calmer and in a more settled frame of mind.
They finished dinner and she helped with the cleanup. She said her good-byes with lots of hugs and walked across to her car under a sky strewn with stars, fishing her keys from her purse. Pam had stolen the brand new purse she’d gotten for an excellent price at a sale several weeks ago. Keeley had no idea if she’d get it back or if the police would hold on to it as evidence. She’d been forced to dig out her old purse from the back of her closet.
Footsteps approaching from behind didn’t alarm her like they would have had she been anywhere else.
“Wait up.” Owen trotted up behind her.
Cam stuck her hand out the window to wave as she and Sawyer drove away, headlights bright in the darkness. Keeley turned to face Owen. Given the look on his face, she could already guess what he wanted. Suddenly she was tired of it.
They stood in the glow from the light over the barn door. Owen jammed his hands into his pockets.
“Look, Keeley, about that kiss. I’m sending mixed messages, and that’s not what I want to do. I wanted to be clear.”
“Got it.” She opened her car door.
