When I walked in the back door of Crave, Cam was the first person I saw. I let the door swing shut behind me with a satisfying bang and she gave me a sharp glare.
"Whoa, what happened to you?" she asked.
"What do you mean?"
"You look..." She paused as though she thought better of her word choice, and then continued, "Aggravated."
I put the bag and our drinks on the stainless steel island that stood between us. "Oh, I'm pissed. What's with all the gossip here? I always thought the TV shows exaggerated the gossip mill in small towns, but now I'm beginning to think they're sugarcoating it."
"What did you hear?" she asked.
"These two women sat down next to me at the diner and they talked non-stop about Ben like he was a piece of fucking meat. Or a walking bank account instead of a human being with a heart and soul. It was disgusting."
"Ben who? Ben Murphy?"
I nodded.
She sighed and shook her head. "It's been like that since Ben and Brody were in high school and older. Well, at least until Brody got married. They're the sons of the richest man in town and they're good-looking. Everyone in Farley is interested in what they're doing or who they're dating."
"It was more than that. It was malicious and just nasty. They were speculating that Ben might get married but he'd never settle down. That his wife would just have to get used to him sleeping with lots of other women because that's the way he is."
Cam scowled. "But that's not Ben at all."
"I know!" I cried. Shit, I shouldn't be yelling about this. I told her Ben was my friend and I was overreacting.
"Let me guess? Gina Farrell and Barb Cowan, right?" Cam asked.
"I only know their first names, but yeah, that matches up."
"They are the cattiest pair in town, but you can't judge the rest of the people here by them. Sure, people talk a little, but most of them just want to see Brody and Ben settled and happy. They're good guys now that they're both grown up and most of the people here are proud of that."
I blew out a long breath. "It made me so mad though because I know Ben and he doesn't deserve to have people talking about him like that. God, no wonder he doesn't date anyone from here."
Cam laughed. "That's part of it. The rest is the fact that most of the women here don't want Ben for his charm or looks. They know how much the Murphy family is worth and they want a piece of the pie. There are a few that don't care, but I don't blame him for being cautious."
So that's what he meant when he said most of the women he'd dated had an agenda. I made a face, which made her laugh again.
"Yeah, that's how I feel about it, too. Though it surprises me that you care so much. I thought Ben was just a friend."
I opened the paper bag and removed two white containers. All this anger had made me hungry.
"I'd be just as angry if they were talking about you," I answered.
Her expression was skeptical. Which I understood. I didn't make friends easily. Cam was the exception rather than the rule. And it seemed Ben was as well.
"Don't look at me like that," I said with a shrug. "You know him better than I do and you even said it was bullshit. Is it a surprise that I would get upset about it because I care about him?"
"Okay, so I'm not surprised about you being mad," she said. "But I am surprised you're willing to admit that you care about him to anyone besides yourself."
"You know I like him, Cam. I've already said that."
"I know."
"Is all the gossip the reason why you don't date anyone local either?" I asked, neatly changing the subject.
Cam considered my question. "Yeah. And that's why Brody and I are taking things slow. I don't want to get the gossips started."
"Makes sense. What are you gonna do when things get serious?"
