“We do events,” Molly added. “When you’re ready to host that is.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Holly admired Seb’s commitment to connect this morning, but she noticed how the color drained from his face at the mention of the h-word. She scooped up Digby once more and aimed for the door. No sense pushing Seb into a scenario he wasn’t ready to face. “Great to see you both.”
Outside in the bright morning sunshine, she pointed toward a bench across the street, under a sprawling live oak tree dripping with Spanish moss. “That’s the spot we need.”
“Is it?”
She smiled up at him, undeterred. “We can wallow in strudel while Digby explores all the Central Avenue smells.”
They sat down and he looped Digby’s leash around the arm of the bench. She popped the top on her can of Coke as he opened the bakery bag. After handing her a couple of napkins he gave her the scone—Lila’s newest recipe.
Holly sighed over her first bite. “Can’t help it, it’s heavenly.”
But her apology was ignored as Seb bit into the strudel. “How is it this good?”
“I suspect magic, but I’ve never been able to prove it.”
He laughed, the warm mellow sound wrapping around her. Their arrangement wasn’t supposed to be romantic, just a local woman showing the new guy around town. And yet, she couldn’t quite convince her heart that the ever-present sizzle when he was near was just a random effect.
“You’re doing great,” she said, wiping her fingers on the napkin. “Mrs. Gable is likely to start rumors that we’re together-together, rather than reporter and story.”
“Will she ask me to open the house for a party?”
Holly pretended to think it over. “Fix the library Wi-Fi and you can push off the inevitable.”
“That’s not much comfort, Holly.”
For a moment, she luxuriated in the way he said her name and then pulled herself together. “In the future, if Mrs. Gable corners you about tech support, just tell her you’ll send a memo to your assistant. She’ll be impressed and pipe down. For a few days at least.”
“Noted.” Seb sipped his coffee, his eyebrows lifting in surprise. “This is excellent coffee.”
“Delivered from Palmetto Perk.” Watching him assess the shops across the street from each other, she added, “Think of it as a mutual collaboration. The Bread Basket supplies a selection of food items to the coffee shop each day.”
“Isn’t that more complicated than it needs to be?”
She shrugged. “Maybe, but all parties seem to be thriving with the arrangement.”
“You’re serious about transparency.”
“I am.”
The playfulness in the air shifted slightly as she felt Seb studying her. While Central Avenue was landscaped with crape myrtle and palmetto trees, when she looked west, toward the marshes, she could see the pine trees starting to turn. It was awelcome sign that spring was on the way, but soon neon-yellow pollen would coat everything within her view.
“You’re good at this.” Seb’s voice dropped and he stretched an arm along the back of the bench. “The way you handled Mrs. Gable was remarkable. You didn’t just introduce me; you buffered me. Why?”
Holly couldn’t quite meet his gaze. She ran her fingertip around the edge of her soda can, searching for the right words. “Because I know what it’s like to be the person everyone is talking about for the wrong reasons,” she said quietly. “Transparency goes a long way to protect everyone.”
Seb shifted and when she glanced up the intensity of his warm brown eyes made Holly’s heart do a nervous little skip. “I’m assuming there’s more to the story. Something that motivates you to keep theBuglefocused on the facts.”
Holly took a deep breath. She hadn’t planned on sharing this so soon—if ever—but the sincerity in Seb’s eyes and the way he’d opened up about his parents last night demanded a return in kind.
“When I was in college,” Holly began, her voice shaking slightly, “my father was the most popular man in Brookwell. He was a real estate developer. Charismatic, successful, the kind of guy who promised everyone a piece of the American Dream.”
She looked out at the familiar storefronts lining Central Avenue without seeing any of them. “It turned out the dream was built on wishes and thin air. He was running a scheme, selling the same land over and over, pocketing the deposits and moving the money through shell companies. By the time the town council realized what was happening, families and investors had lost millions. My mom was crushed. She didn’t know a thing about his horrible tactics, but the consensus didn’t change. We were the Brooks family—one unit—and the Brooks family were thieves.”
Seb’s fingers brushed over her shoulder, soothing away the tension. “Your mom moved away?”
