“Good. You should.”
Madeline didn’t say it, but she couldn’t help but compare Ken’s encouragement with Josh’s response to her work on the book. He always complained since it took her away from doing things for him.
That was one of the differences in a casual relationship.
She didn’t have to worry about things like that.
THE FOLLOWING DAY, Ken strolled into Anna’s in the morning for breakfast, just like he did every day. There were about six people already eating today, and most of them waved at or greeted him as he entered.
He’d lived in Azalea all his life. He knew about half the people in town well, and the other half he at least recognized to say hi to. It was one of the perks of living in a small town. That and very little traffic.
One of the downsides was that everyone knew your business. It was a miracle that he and Madeline had been able to keep their relationship secret for so long.
“Hey, Sheriff Harley,” the waitress called out to him from across the room. “Your usual?”
“Yeah. Thanks.” He glanced around, trying to decide where to sit. He normally sat at the counter so as not to take up one of the booths. But Jacob Worth was sitting near the window with Matthew Jenkins.
Ken like Jacob a lot. Considered him a friend now. And Matthew was Madeline’s brother. He lived in Richmond and worked as an architect, so Ken wasn’t sure what he was doing in town this morning. Madeline certainly hadn’t mentioned it. But it would be rude not to go over and say hello.
He headed over, and Jacob grinned and moved over to make room for him at their table.
After normal greetings, Ken asked Matthew, “What brought you to town?”
Matthew was older than Madeline by a couple of years, so he was probably twenty-eight or twenty-nine. He had the same coloring as his sister, paired with a square-jawed face and an athlete’s body.
“He’s helping me with plans for the downtown buildings,” Jacob said. “I want to get a start at fixing more of them up.”
For a long time, Azalea’s downtown area had gone the way of a lot of other small towns. A lot of empty storefronts and run-down buildings. But Jacob had recently inherited all the buildings on one of the central blocks in town from his grandfather, and he’d been slowly working on renovations and bringing in more businesses.
“Ah. That’s great news.” Ken eyed Matthew discreetly, trying to match him up with Madeline. He had the same serious demeanor as Madeline—a pose that hid sharp intelligence and a lively wit. Madeline was close to her brother. Ken knew they talked and texted regularly. But he doubted she’d told him about her relationship with Ken.
Matthew’s gaze was polite. Friendly enough. But it didn’t appear to be covering any knowledge of Ken’s significance.
Not that Ken was particularly significant to Madeline. He’d just been her sex partner for a month.
It felt like more to Ken. It felt like everything. But it obviously didn’t to her, and he’d been doing pretty good at controlling unrealistic expectations.
“I stopped by your place yesterday evening,” Jacob mentioned after Ken accepted the coffee Brenda brought over for him.
“Oh yeah?” Ken grew still, his heart jumping slightly. He made sure he sounded unconcerned. “Did you need something?”
“No. I was running, saw your house, and just stopped by to say hello. I heard Marlowe barking, but I guess you weren’t home.” Jacob’s eyes were hazel. Far too observant for Ken’s comfort.
“No. I was out. Sorry I missed you.” Ken sipped his coffee. Prayed that none of his rush of nerves were visible on his face.
“Your neighbor came out to talk to me,” Jacob continued. He definitely had something to say here.
“Mrs. McCracken?”
“Yep.”
“I guess she had a lot to say for herself.” Ken silently cursed his nosy, eighty-four-year-old neighbor and then felt guilty for doing so. She was a kind, generous woman, and she had very little to do aside from looking out her window.
“She sure did.” Jacob was almost smiling now. “Guess you’ve been going out at night a lot.”
“Hmm.” Ken focused on his coffee and didn’t meet the other man’s eyes.
“You getting back together with Katie?”
Ken was so surprised by the question that he answered it honestly. “No! Course not. She’s been seeing Russell Meers for a few months now.”
“Then I guess you’ve got a girlfriend you haven’t been telling anyone about.” Jacob posed the words as a casual comment, rather than a question. He seemed to be having a very good time with the conversation.
Ken was not having a good time. He was terrified of giving something away when Madeline was so committed to keeping them a secret. She would never forgive him if he slipped.
He regained enough of his common sense to refrain from answering rather than babbling out an unconvincing explanation.
“Good for you,” Matthew said, looking interested only in a mild way—like none of this conversation connected to him at all. “It’s been a while since you got divorced, hasn’t it?”
“Yeah. More than two years.”
“So who is she?” Jacob asked. “Why keep it secret?”
Ken had no idea what to say and was afraid anything he said might give the truth away, so he again said nothing.
Jacob was still amused, but he also looked slightly confused. Of course he couldn’t think of a reason why Ken wouldn’t be open about who he’d been dating. “What’s up with everyone keeping secrets lately? Ria was telling me that—” He broke off the words without warning. His expression changed. His eyes slanted quickly over to Matthew and then back to Ken again.
Shit.
Shit, shit, shit.
He knew.
Ria must have told him something about Madeline being secretive about a relationship, and Jacob had managed to put the pieces together.
“Just hoping for privacy,” Ken said, still trying for laid-back detachment when he was feeling anything but.
Jacob gave
