In the middle of the day. They were getting more brash.
“Who spotted the fire?” Jeff asked.
“Jay.” He was resting on a bale, drinking a cup of water. Darcy strode over to him with Jeff by his side.
“How did you discover the fire?” Darcy asked.
The man frowned. “I came out of the caravan after having lunch,” he said. “I was going to read my book, but I noticed the smoke and ran to get you.”
“Did you see anyone around the haystack?” Jeff asked.
“No one.”
His caravan was the closest. “What about anyone walking past while you were having lunch?”
He shook his head. “Do you think it was deliberately lit?”
“Just checking all options,” Darcy said. The last thing they needed was for the guests to be worried about their safety. But it was something he should consider. Would Stonefish’s tactics escalate to hurting their guests?
He and Jeff moved over to the fire truck. “I’ll call Dot,” Jeff said. “She’ll need to come out so leave those bales where they are so she can look at them.”
“Will do.”
The fire crew stayed and helped for a while before they headed back into town. A red car pulled in and Darcy’s heart lifted. “Faith, what are you doing here?”
She smiled. “I called and Lara told me what had happened. I figured you’d need some help.”
He pulled her into his arms, needing her comfort.
She stroked his back. “How bad is it?”
“Could have been worse. Jeff thinks it was deliberately lit.” Which meant it almost had to be a guest at the Ridge. Who hadn’t come to help?
“Have you called Dot?”
“She’s on her way.” He shifted away.
“We’ve got this.” Her words gave him strength, even though he knew they weren’t necessarily true. “What can I do to help?”
He scanned the area. Lara sat by the water cooler, staring at them, a look of uncertainty on her face. Crap. He hadn’t spoken to her about Faith. She’d been so nervous about Sofia’s visit, he hadn’t wanted to add to that. “Ah, can you check the wet bales, rotate them if they’ve dried? I’d better talk to Lara.”
Faith followed his gaze. “You didn’t mention us?”
“Not yet. She was preoccupied with Sofia’s visit.” He kissed her again. “I’ll be back.”
When he reached Lara, she said to him, “You kissed Faith.”
He nodded. “I did. Does it upset you?”
Lara picked up the water cooler. “I need to fill this.”
He winced at the non-answer and walked with her back to the house. When they were inside, she said, “How long have you been kissing Faith?”
“Since Friday.”
“Does that mean Natasha was right?” The question was so quiet, Darcy nearly missed it. It took him a second to remember Natasha’s taunt at pony club about Faith only being nice to Lara because she fancied Darcy. Damn.
“No, pumpkin. Your relationship with Faith is different from my relationship with Faith. You were friends with her before we even met.”
