Chapter 21
TWENTY-ONE
Allistair gasped in the sudden silence. “Is it?” he demanded, and grinned at Maddy like a maniac. “Girl, spill. Right the hell now.” He set an elbow on the table and propped his chin on his fist, full attention riveted on her. “This is amazing. That man is fine.”
“I second that,” Bronwyn said, plunking her brush into her water jar and folding her arms. “We’re gonna need all the details.”
“Good for you,” Willow told Maddy with an approving nod. “Now tell us everything.”
They were all watching her expectantly. Waiting for details she didn’t want to give. “There’s not really anything to tell, I—”
“When did this start?” Allistair asked.
“Um, yesterday.” That hug at the door before he left had shifted everything.
Xanthe made an exasperated sound and swatted her arm. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me. What happened?”
“Nothing, I just went with him to the San Juans this afternoon and—”
“And?” Allistair prompted when she stopped short, hanging on her every word. It seemed like they all were.
She opened her mouth. Closed it because Lachlan might not want anyone to know. Now she wished she’d kept her stupid mouth shut and not said anything at all.
“Did he kiss you?” Xanthe asked.
She could feel the blood suffusing her face.
“Hell yeah, he did,” Bronwyn said with a satisfied grin. “Look at her. Girl, never play poker for money.”
Maddy cleared her throat. “I only asked about him before in case you knew of any red flags or whatever,” she said to Xanthe, wishing this whole conversation had never happened. Her sense of timing sucked, and her girl talk game wasn’t much better.
“I can’t think of any reason to warn you away from him. Love the guy. Except he hasn’t been in a serious relationship for a long time, for obvious reasons.”
The look in Xanthe’s eyes said something more. Concern. Maybe because she was aware of Maddy’s lack of experience with men. Or maybe because Lachlan wasn’t and never would be over his late wife.
“Okay. Thanks.” It wasn’t like she wanted to marry him. She didn’t even know if she was capable of falling in love.
Thankfully, the conversation switched over to Willow and Tripp’s wedding while everyone painted. Maddy kept quiet, bringing Oscar to life little by little. Enjoying the process more than she expected.
When she was done she texted Lachlan a picture of her painting.
Just made this at Willow’s painting party.
That’s amazing! He responded a minute later. I didn’t know you were an artist.
I’m not.
Could’ve fooled me. I’d pay money for that.
The compliment warmed her to her bones. And she liked having a tangible souvenir of her day with Lachlan, something she’d made to remember their first kiss by.
At the end of the night everyone took pictures of their work and then a group shot. Willow started making plans for a pumpkin carving and pie night.
When she stepped out of the cozy workshop with her painting in hand, cold wind was gusting, driving fat raindrops from the heavy dark clouds.
After saying goodbye to the others, she sighed in relief when she shut her car door. It had been fun, but she was looking forward to going home to the cozy little cottage, getting her jammies on, and crawling into the flannel sheets under the chenille comforter on the bed. And dreaming of Lachlan.
Fallen leaves scattered across the road as she drove back toward town through the rain. There wasn’t much traffic, only a few other cars were also traveling west to the coast. Two took the exit toward Whalebone Cove with her.
One made the turn north after she did. She didn’t think anything of it, the vehicle behind her so far back it was just headlights in her rearview.
Her phone rang the instant she pulled into the driveway. Mae’s name showed on the screen. “Hi, neighbor.”
“How was the paint night?”
“It was good. I actually like my piece.”
“That’s good. Listen, I have to go to the mainland for a day or two tomorrow. Do you have any plans for the weekend?”
“No.” Other than she hoped to see Lachlan and spend more time with him.
“Would you be willing to come stay here for a night or two and take care of my dogs until I get back?”
“Oh. I…”
“My regular dog sitter is away, and I don’t like taking them to a kennel because they’re assholes.”
She frowned. “The people at the kennel?”
“No, my mutts.”
Not exactly a ringing endorsement as to why she should babysit them.
She glanced toward Mae’s place. Squinted as a dark shape materialized out of the darkness down the road from it. A tall shadow that disappeared behind the back of the house.
A person? It had vanished too fast for her to tell.
“You still there?”
She ignored the prickles buzzing along her nape. Stop. It’s nothing. “Yes.” She squinted again. Was that a car back there at the side of the road, a little way down the hill?
Stop it. You’re literally jumping at shadows. No one followed you.
But what if someone had?
She thought of the note with the message in Arabic and a little shiver rippled through her. Sitting out here alone made her feel exposed. She wanted to get inside.
“Sure, I can look after them for you,” she said, distracted.
“Fantastic. You’re a gem. I’ll call you in the morning.”
“Sounds good. See you tomorrow,” Maddy finished, looking to her left down the road. The sudden silence amplified the sound of the rain drumming on the car. She didn’t see anything. No cars or shadows. No more movement.
Tucking her painting inside her jacket to shield it, she got out and dashed to the front porch. A nagging sense of unease made her glance back down the street as she unlocked the door.
There was nothing there, but the reassuring beep of the security system was welcome as she stepped inside. Instant relief hit when she locked the door and armed the system to “home” mode.
Just to be sure, she took another look through the side panel window. Still didn’t see anything out there.
But as she turned away she thought she just glimpsed the dark shape of a car as it drove slowly past through the pouring rain.