A Summer of Secrets Read online

  She turned to go inside. Bree had left on a lamp but must have gone to bed. Which was fine with her, because she wasn’t sure she wanted to answer Bree’s questions about tonight. She wasn’t even sure she knew how she felt right now.

  Except she knew she’d wanted him to kiss her. She’d wanted that very, very much.

  Chapter 9

  Madeline Stuart burst through the door to the Feed and Seed in Comfort Crossing, Mississippi. She’d finally gotten out of the lease on her place in St. Louis. The landlord hadn’t even charged her for breaking it early because he’d found another renter. And she’d turned in her notice at work. It was really happening. She was moving to Comfort Crossing and marrying Gil. Everything was falling into place. She couldn’t wait to tell Gil.

  Gil looked up from behind the checkout counter where he was waiting on Frankie Johansen, and a big grin spread across his face at the sight of her. “Maddy, you’re here.” He rushed out from behind the counter and swooped her up in a big hug and swung her around. When he finally set her down, he kissed her quickly.

  Frankie cleared her throat, and a smile played at the corner of her mouth. Gil turned to her. “Sorry ’bout that.” The disarming grin on his face didn’t say he was sorry—not one bit. He turned back to Frankie and finished ringing her out. “There you go.”

  Frankie shook her head, but the slight smile said she hadn’t minded the delay. “You two have fun. Stop by Frankie’s tonight if you can. Dylan Rivers and Missy are playing.”

  “We’ll try.” Gil nodded.

  Madeline waited until Frankie left Gil’s store. “Guess what?”

  “What? You missed me so much you couldn’t stand it?” He threw her an impish smile.

  “Besides that.”

  “I give up. What?”

  “So… got out of my lease in St. Louis early. I turned in my notice at work and I’ve made arrangements to have my things moved down here in two weeks.”

  “Best news I’ve ever heard. I’m so ready for you to be down here all the time instead of this constant travel back and forth.” He came back out from behind the counter and took her hand. “Now, if you’d just set a wedding date, my life would be complete.”

  “Well then, be prepared to be complete.” She grinned at him as his eyes widened.

  “Seriously?”

  “Seriously. You know how we went to Sweet River Falls last summer with your Aunt Josephine and Paul and visited my cousins and saw the Brooks Gallery that Paul invested in?”

  “Of course.”

  “Well… if it’s okay with you. I want to get married there in Sweet River Falls. At the lodge. I know it’s not very advance notice but… I want to be married to you.” She grinned. “If the last weekend in June works with you, we’re all set.”

  “I’d marry you anywhere and any time.” He circled his arms around her waist.

  “I’ve always wanted to get married there. Ever since my parents took me there as a little girl. I even told my mother I’d get married there one day.”

  “Then that’s where we should get married. Sweet River Falls it is.”

  “We need to tell your Aunt Josephine and Paul. And your sister, Bella, of course. And Aunt Catherine…”

  He tossed his head back and laughed. “Yes, we’ll tell everyone. I’m thrilled to actually have a date set. I’m sure everyone will move their schedules around to make it happen.”

  “My cousins, Bree and Cece, are doing weddings there now. Bree is catering and Cece is doing the planning. I’ve talked to them like three times this week trying to get things arranged. I know it’s short notice, but they said we could get married that weekend and well… I couldn’t wait any longer. Did I mention I can’t wait to be married to you?” She grinned again.

  “Best thing I’ve heard all day.”

  “Besides, I’m kind of tired of staying at Rebecca’s B&B all the time when I’m here. Even though it’s lovely, it’s still not… well, a home.”

  “My home is your home. Let’s get this wedding done so you can move in with me as my beautiful bride.” He pressed another gentle kiss on her lips.

  Her heart did a little flip. He still made it hard to catch her breath when he held her and kissed her. She leaned her face against his chest. “I’m so very happy.”

  “As am I.” He kissed the top of her head and held her close.

  Chapter 10

  Zach found himself looking up from his work way too many times the next day. Lunchtime had come and gone with no Cece bringing him a picnic lunch. He looked at his watch.

  She’d said she’d drop by, and he’d hoped it would be at lunch so he could take a break without feeling guilty. Who was he kidding? He’d take a break anytime with her if she’d just drop by.

  He was still ticked at himself that he hadn’t kissed her last night. He’d wanted to. But he’d been unsure of himself, first date and all. Besides, he’d proven that he didn’t really know women. What they wanted. He obviously did a poor job reading them.

  But Cece seemed different. Open. Honest. At least that was what his gut was saying.

  He dropped his pencil on the plans and stared out the opening that should already have a window. A long breath escaped him. Maybe he’d just wander over to the lodge for a bit. He should update Jason on the progress of the building, shouldn’t he?

  And who was he kidding now? He just wanted to see Cece. See her smile and her one cute dimple. Watch her eyes flash when he teased her.

  He looked at his watch. Again. Yes, it was definitely time for a break.

  “Cece, you’ve got a visitor. Out on the front porch.” Nora popped her head in the office Cece was using at the lodge. Nora had given her the space there to keep her paperwork and meet with brides.

  Zach. She smiled, jumped up from the table, and hurried out through the lodge to the porch. She took a quick look in a mirror on the wall and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

  She pushed out through the door, her heart fluttering with anticipation, a wide smile plastered on her face.

  A smile that quickly turned into a frown. “Eric, what are you doing here?”

  “Hey.” Eric smiled at her. “I thought I’d come see the attraction of Sweet River Falls. Why you want to move here.”

  “Eric… I thought…”

  “No pressure. I just missed you. Wanted to come see the place.”

  She closed her eyes for a brief second, trying to catch her bearings. She’d done her best to let him down easy. Maybe too easy. Had he not understood? “Eric… I thought we decided that things… that we wouldn’t be dating anymore.”

  “But we could still hang out, right? We always had fun hanging out.” His eyes were eager, and she felt like a jerk.

  “I’m not sure that’s such a good idea. I just… I mean, I care about you, but I don’t have feelings for you. Not like that. I don’t think it would be smart to still hang out. I don’t want you to think—”

  “You don’t want me to think that you led me on for over a year?” Suddenly his face hardened, catching her off guard. “That I waited patiently and gave you time because you said you didn’t really date much?”

  She swallowed. She’d pretty well messed this one up. “Eric, I’m sorry. I am. I didn’t mean for you to get hurt. I was always honest with you, though. I never promised anything.”

  “But you kept seeing me.”

  “I—” He was right there. It had been nice to have someone to go places with. But she’d thought it was more hanging out as friends.

  “Eric, I’m sorry if you got hurt. That wasn’t my intention.”

  “I thought this was just a little phase of yours to get out of your dead-end job in Denver. I was going to say I’d still come here on weekends to visit.”

  “No, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

  His eyes turned an icy blue. “So you got a guy here? You’ve been cheating on me? I know that’s kind of how you operate.”

  She stepped back as if he’d thrown ic
y water on her. “I think you should go.”

  “Right. I think so too.” He reached out and grabbed her wrists, his hard fingers digging into her flesh, pulling her close to him.

  “Eric, stop, you’re hurting me.” She tried to tug her arms away. Her heart pounded and a flicker of fear surged through her.

  He leaned in close to her ear and growled. “Once a cheater, always a cheater.” He finally let her go, spun on his heels, and stalked off to his car.

  She rubbed her arms and looked down in dismay at the angry welts he’d made. She watched as he sped away and all she could feel was relief.

  Relief and a bit of leftover fear. Her heart thundered in her chest as she fought to catch her breath and settle her jangled emotions.

  Zach whistled as he walked down the path toward the lodge. When he got to the clearing, he paused and frowned. Cece was standing on the porch with some guy. They were deep in conversation. He hung back by the trees and watched. He told himself he just didn’t want to interrupt them, that was all.

  But feelings of distrust welled up in him and he couldn’t beat them back.

  He watched, stunned when the man took both of her hands, pulled her close, and leaned in.

  That was enough. More than enough. He’d seen plenty.

  He certainly didn’t need to see some guy kiss her. He’d been played for a fool, again. Cece had left off one tiny detail about her life. She had a boyfriend. A boyfriend who she was cheating on with him. He spun around and strode down the pathway back to the worksite.

  How could he have been so foolish? He knew better. He’d sworn off women. The only thing he didn’t know was why hadn’t he listened to himself? He chastised himself every single step of the way.

  Women cheat. They do. And he obviously was a lousy judge of the female character.

  Zach stormed around the worksite and his workers steered a wide path around him after he chewed one of them out for not cleaning up after himself and Billy for not wearing his safety goggles. He went into the kitchen area that he was using for a make-do office, sank onto the stool, and rested his head in his hands.

  He heard someone walking through the building and looked up when Jason stood in the doorway.

  “I heard you were looking for me.”

  Zach stood. “You didn’t need to come all the way over. I just stopped by the lodge to give you an update. Things are going fine.” Just perfectly fine. Shingles weren’t here. Windows weren’t here. And the woman he thought he liked had a boyfriend.

  “You okay? You look… funny.”

  “Just distracted.” And angry. And if he was honest with himself, he was hurt a little bit. Which was ridiculous because he barely knew Cece.

  Thank goodness his sanity had prevailed last night and he hadn’t kissed her. He shoved away the thought that he’d just been ruing the fact he hadn’t actually kissed her.

  They both turned at a sound in the doorway.

  Cece.

  The last person in the world he wanted to see.

  Standing there with an expectant smile on her lips. Not that he was looking at her lips. His whole body stiffened.

  “Hi. I know I said I’d stop by today. I was busy and just now broke free.”

  Right, busy with her boyfriend.

  “I’m kind of tied up with Jason right now.”

  Jason smiled at Cece.

  Fine, go ahead and smile at her. Be nice to her. Traitor.

  “I should go. We can catch up later.” Jason turned to leave.

  “No, don’t go. I have some things to go over with you.” He scrambled to think of what he could talk to Jason about to make his lie legit.

  Jason frowned. “We could do it later.”

  “Now’s fine.” He looked at Cece. “Now’s not a good time.”

  He could see the hurt in her eyes, which was ridiculous. So much ridiculousness going around today. Why was she hurt? She was the one who was cheating. He’d swear he saw tears gathering in her eyes, but he hardened his heart. No way he’d be played the fool again.

  “Oh, okay. Well, I’ll go then.” She turned to leave and paused, giving him one questioning look over her shoulder, before turning back around. Her footsteps echoed through the building as she walked away.

  Chapter 11

  Cece had to fight back tears as she hurried out of the building. Zach had been so cold. Hadn’t he said for her to stop by? After the whole ordeal with Eric, she’d wanted the comfort of being with Zach. To be honest, Eric had scared her when he grabbed her. She rubbed her arms where he’d grabbed her. The look in his eyes had been so… menacing.

  Her first instinct had been to go see Zach. Talk to him, laugh with him. Feel safe.

  But his face had held a disinterested look at seeing her, and his words had come at her cold and impersonal. His whole tone had said she was a bother, an interruption.

  She determinedly fought off the tears, her emotions ping-ponging this way and that. Eric had upset her and so had Zach. Not in the same way, but they’d both surprised her.

  She stood by the side of the lake, unwilling to go back to the lodge just yet, not wanting to see anyone. She needed some time to get her bearings. Picking up a smooth rock at the water’s edge, she tossed it out onto the lake, watching it skip three times before it disappeared into the cold depths.

  She’d thought that she and Zach had connected last night. She’d so enjoyed their time together. He was easy to talk to, funny, and his eyes mesmerized her. He was the first man she’d been interested in… well, in a very long time.

  She picked up another rock and flung it across the water. This time it didn’t skip, it just sank. Determined, she picked up another rock. That one refused to skip either.

  With one last glare at the lake, she turned her back on it and headed back to her office at the lodge. Feeling sorry for herself wasn’t going to get her job done.

  She sat down at her desk and pretended to work.

  Bree poked her head in. “Hey, I passed Eric on my way over here. He was speeding away in that fancy sports car of his. I looked for you, but couldn’t find you.”

  “I was… I went on a walk.” Tiny truth.

  “So what did Eric want? I thought you guys broke up.”

  Cece stood, walked around her desk, and perched on the edge of it. “I thought we had, too. But evidently, I wasn’t clear enough. He came here and said he would come every weekend to visit. It was like he hadn’t even listened when I talked to him in Denver.”

  “So you told him again?”

  “Very clearly this time.”

  “Was he hurt?”

  She rubbed her arms and winced.

  “What’s wrong?” Bree stepped further into the room.

  “He was angry, not hurt. Very angry.” She glanced down at the angry marks on her forearms and unrolled her sleeve to cover them.

  Not quite quick enough.

  Bree walked over and pushed up her sleeve. “Did he do this?”

  “He was mad.”

  “That doesn’t give him a right to hurt you. Are you okay?” Bree hugged her, and her sister’s arms were just what she needed. Or didn’t need, because they broke through her every barrier she’d put up, determined to stay strong, and the tears started to flow.

  “He scared me. The look in his eyes…” She swiped at the tears.

  “I’m so sorry.” Bree hugged her again. “At least he’s gone now.”

  “Yes.” Cece grabbed a tissue and dried her eyes. “He just caught me off guard.”

  “Why don’t you knock off early and go visit with Zach?”

  Cece shook her head. “I tried that… He said he was busy. He was—” She turned and glanced out the window, then back at Bree. “He was cold and distant. I don’t know what’s up with that.”

  “Why don’t you talk to him and ask him?” Bree asked logically.

  “Seriously, Bree… he practically dismissed me.”

  “He was probably just busy.”

  “Maybe.”
But Cece didn’t really believe that. Something had changed. She was sure of it.

  Zach waited until dark before heading over to the lodge. He wanted to make sure Cece was long gone. He needed to run something past Nora or Jason. The doors they’d wanted were still on back order, and he’d found two new ones at a better price point that were available now, but he didn’t want to order either of them without their okay.

  He took a deep breath when he didn’t see Cece’s car parked near the lodge. Good. He was safe. He climbed up the stairs, and the door to the lodge opened and Cece stepped out.

  He looked to the left and right, but there was no escape.

  “Hey, Zach.” She smiled at him, a tentative smile. “Do you… do you have time to talk?”

  “I’m looking for Jason or Nora. Have you seen either of them?” Even he could hear how dismissive his tone was. Maybe she’d get the message.

  She physically flinched. “I…” She took a step back. “They’re inside. In the dining hall.”

  “Perfect. Gotta see them.”

  “Mom?”

  They both turned at the sound.

  “Petey—Pete—what are you doing here?” Cece rushed forward and hugged the young man standing on the top step of the porch.

  “My Friday class was canceled, so I came early to help with the wedding this weekend. Aunt Bree said she needed me to help serve.”

  Zach stood there staring at both of them. Her son? He looked at her and back at the young man. And back to her.

  Another detail she’d failed to tell him. Another secret.

  “Pete, this is Zach. He owns the company working on the new addition to the lodge.”

  The young man held out his hand. “Pleased to meet you, sir.”

  Zach stepped forward, shook his hand, and just nodded. He could barely speak. He didn’t know this woman at all. And why had she kept her son a secret? Obviously, he knew nothing—nothing—about her.