Silver River Secrets. Linda Hope Lee

around them. Okay, now go! Then his gaze fell on her empty glass. “Looks like you’re ready for another drink.”

      She frowned but said, “Why, I suppose I—”

      “There you are, Rory!”

      Rory looked around to see Helen Lewis hurrying along the walkway.

      Helen skidded to a stop. “I’ve been looking for you. I just had to tell you how well our car runs since you gave it a tune-up. Jasper and I were about to trade it in, but not now.”

      “Glad it’s working for you,” Rory said.

      Helen turned to Lacey. “This man is a wonder.” She peered through her black-framed glasses. “Oh. I don’t think I know you.”

      “This is Lacey Morgan,” Rory said. “Lacey, Helen Lewis. She and her husband are new in town. He works for Thompson’s Building Supply, and Helen works at the Visitor’s Center. Lacey, ah, used to live here,” he added to Helen.

      Helen’s eyes widened. “I’ve heard about you. You’re the one who—”

      Catching Lacey’s stricken look, he finished quickly, “Went to high school same time as I did.”

      Helen frowned as she cut her gaze to Rory and then back to Lacey. “Oh. Right. You were high school buddies.”

      “Buddies” didn’t exactly describe his and Lacey’s relationship back then, but he wasn’t about to correct Helen. “We were on our way to get Lacey another glass of wine.” He nodded toward the bar.

      Lacey shook her head. “No, I really need to leave now. Busy day tomorrow. Nice meeting you, Helen. Good to see you again, Rory.”

      The words tumbled from her mouth, and before Rory could reply, he was staring at her back as she hurried along the walk to the B and B’s door.

      Helen pressed her fingers to her lips. “Oh, dear, I hope I didn’t run her off.”

      Rory raised a hand. “Don’t worry about it. Lacey and I were only saying hello.”

      * * *

      INSIDE THE B AND B, as Lacey set her empty wineglass on a table, she realized her hands were shaking. She felt queasy, too. Bad enough to have spent time talking to Rory, but then to meet a stranger who apparently knew all about her past... Too much.

      Taking a deep breath, she hurried through the dining room to the stairs. She put her foot on the bottom step, but then on impulse swiveled around and marched toward the front door.

      Five minutes later, she sat in her car at the entrance to the highway, waiting for traffic to clear. She rolled down the window and, along with sounds of the music from the party, the fresh air rushed in, tinged with the smell of grass and hay and the river.

      Once on the highway, she pressed her foot to the accelerator, watching the speedometer inch up past the speed limit. Except for a pale glow of light lingering behind the mountains and the lights of the houses she passed, darkness covered the land.

      She sped along for a few miles and then came to her senses and eased her foot off the accelerator. No point in risking a ticket. Calmer now, she loosened her grip on the steering wheel and leaned back against the seat. Putting distance between herself and the party—and Rory—was just what she needed.

      And yet her thoughts lingered on their meeting. They’d exchanged more words tonight than during any other time their paths had crossed when she’d come to town. So what? Trapped by circumstances, they were only being civil to each other, exchanging small talk that didn’t mean anything. In a few days, she’d be gone again.

      Meanwhile, she’d be sure to keep her distance.

      * * *

      LACEY SURVEYED THE array of food displayed on the B and B’s dining room sideboard, from scrambled eggs and hash browns to waffles and oatmeal and fresh fruit. She breathed in all the enticing aromas, and her stomach rumbled. After her unsettling encounter with Rory, she’d spent a restless night, but that hadn’t dulled her hunger this morning. The conversation of other guests drifted through the room. The door to the courtyard stood open, admitting a fresh morning breeze.

      Sophie bustled in carrying a tray of coffee cups. “Good morning, Lacey.” She set the tray next to the coffee urn.

      “Hi, Sophie.” Lacey slowly shook her head. “I don’t know how you do it.”

      Sophie quirked an eyebrow. “Do what?”

      “The party last night, and now this fantastic breakfast.” She made a sweeping gesture to include the sideboard.

      Sophie laughed and fingered the turquoise scarf holding back her hair. “The committee prepared last night’s food, and this spread is our cook’s doing. She’s a marvel. Still, compliments are always welcome... I was glad to see you at the party,” she added, as she unloaded the cups.

      “Kris caught me as I came home from Gram’s.”

      “Ah, so I had a little help, did I? Well, you came, anyway. I saw you talking to Rory—” She cast Lacey a cautious glance.

      Lacey picked up a plate and helped herself to the scrambled eggs. “All these years, we’ve never said much more than ‘Hi,’ and then last night we actually had a conversation. Sort of.”

      “Maybe that’s a good thing.”

      Lacey shrugged and added hash browns to her eggs. “I can’t imagine why. We won’t get together again.”

      “You never know.” Sophie finished unloading the cups and picked up the tray. “Oh, by the way, are you going up to Restlawn to visit the graves sometime this trip?”

      “Yes, I’d planned to go this morning, before I start cleaning out Gram’s old apartment.”

      “Feel free to take some of the flowers in the courtyard.” Sophie gestured toward the open doors.

      “Why, thanks, Sophie. That’s thoughtful of you.”

      “That way, Hugh and I can pay our respects, too. He’s outside now. You can get a bucket and some clippers from him and choose the flowers you want.”

      Half an hour later, Lacey found Hugh outside folding up the tables from last night’s party. Dressed in blue overalls and a white T-shirt, he looked more like the farmer he used to be than the proprietor of an elegant bed-and-breakfast.

      “Looks like you’re getting your courtyard back in shape,” Lacey said.

      “That was some party.” Hugh lifted his baseball cap, smoothed his gray crew cut and then settled the cap back on his head.

      They chatted a bit, and then Lacey said, “I’m going up to Restlawn this morning, and Sophie said I could take some of your flowers, and that you’d have something I could put them in.”

      “Sure. Wait here a minute.”

      Hugh disappeared inside a toolshed, emerging a couple minutes later carrying a plastic bucket and a pair of clippers. He handed them to Lacey. “These should do the job.”

      “Thanks, Hugh.”

      “Take some of the pansies.” Hugh indicated the flowers clustered in one of the beds. “Your mother’s favorite.”

      “They were, and I will take some.”

      “Don’t suppose Rick would care what flowers you put on his grave,” Hugh said in a dry tone. “Not that he deserves any.”

      Lacey dropped her jaw and stared at Hugh, his unexpected slam at her father taking her off guard. Then she lifted her chin and said crisply, “Well, I care.”

      Hugh shook his head. “You’re probably the only one who does.”

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