“That art show is going to be really good for her.” Claire bent to pet Cooper, who had been obediently sitting next to Jane, watching their conversation. “How is the wedding going?”
Jane rolled her eyes. “I can’t wait until it’s over. I’m thinking about putting Andie in charge of guest check-in.”
Claire’s left brow quirked up. “Oh? So does that mean Andie is staying?”
“She hasn’t said as much, but she also hasn’t said anything about leaving either.” Jane didn’t want to get her hopes up, but she really did want her sister to stay. She’d seen her in a different light over the past two weeks, and they’d bridged some of the gap that had happened in their relationship over the last few decades.
Claire’s eyes drifted over Jane’s shoulder, and her face immediately lit in a smile. Jane didn’t have to turn around to know that Rob Bradford was coming from his store across the street.
“Hey, Jane, how are you?” Rob came to stand beside Claire, his smile matching hers.
“Good. You? How's the bread biz?”
“Great. Gaining business every day.” Rob looked over at his store with pride. “I love being here in Lobster Bay. In fact, last night Mike and I had a great time at Salty’s. Ran into Maxi’s husband there.” Rob’s expression turned serious. “I didn’t realize they were having trouble.”
Jane’s warm feelings were replaced by anger for James. “Yeah, turned out he’s not such a great guy.”
“After all those years of marriage. We’ve known him as long as Maxi, and I’ve always liked him, even though he’s a bit stuffy,” Claire said. “But I never expected he was a cheater.”
“A cheater?” Rob frowned at Claire. “What do you mean?”
Claire glanced around to make sure they couldn’t be overheard. “Yes, he cheated on Maxi. That’s why she left.”
Rob made a face. “Are you sure? Because the guy I talked to last night didn’t seem like a cheater. In fact, he seemed oblivious to the reasons why Maxi left.”
“Huh? That can’t be right.”
Cooper let out a small bark, and his tail started thumping. Jane turned to see Mike coming up the street. As he joined the group, he took Cooper’s leash, his hand brushing Jane’s and causing her heart to flutter.
“Hey, Mike.” Rob and Mike shook hands. “Didn’t you think James seemed sincerely baffled as to why Maxi left when we talked to him last night?”
“Yeah, the guy was practically crying.”
“Claire and Jane said that Maxi thinks he cheated,” Rob said.
“Cheated? No. He wants her back. Did she talk to him about the cheating? Because he didn’t mention that. He seemed genuinely in the dark about what was bothering her. I think he’d know what it was if he was cheating on her.” Mike bent down to rub Cooper’s neck.
Claire pressed her lips together. “Well, I don’t think she mentioned it exactly, but he’s been acting funny, and she found a card with a phone number.”
“Is it possible this is just a miscommunication?” Rob asked.
Claire shook her head. “I don’t think so. There were other signs.”
Rob shrugged. “I don’t know. If you saw how James was last night, the last thing I would suspect would be that he had another woman. If he did, why would he seem so clueless about why Maxi left and desperate to get her back?”
Claire put her hands on her hips and looked up at Rob. “You’re too nice to notice, but cheaters always lie. I know from experience. I bet if I talked to him, I’d pick up the lie in a heartbeat.”
“Good, because you’re going to get that chance.”
“I am?” Claire asked.
Mike nodded. “Yep, last night we advised James that if he wanted to get Maxi back, you and Jane were the ones to talk to.”
Maxi glanced at the ocean then back at her painting. She leaned in, dabbing a line of bright-white paint along the top of the wave. She wanted her painting to be realistic, to capture the way it actually looked when the sun hit the foamy crest of the wave. She glanced back at the ocean. Not too bad.
She’d been working for several hours, and this one was almost done. One down, two to go. But if she could finish them as quickly as this one, she’d have no problem making the deadline for the art show.
Putting her brush in a bottle of turpentine, she stretched and flexed her fingers. Her hand was slightly cramped from holding the brush for so long, but it was surprising how quickly she got back into the rhythm of painting after not having done it for so long. The soothing cadence of the waves and the sea air helped.
