I stopped in my tracks, a sick dread in the pit of my stomach. Silas must have noticed I’d gone pale. He grabbed the platter from me, brushing my arm in a subtle show of support. I hadn’t shared anything about Sarah with him. Nothing about our marriage, our divorce, the ups and downs of coparenting, or the cloud of uncertainty looming about her future in the Four Forest area.
Nothing at all.
To be fair, none of those topics ranked in my top ten favorites.
And somehow Silas knew. He suddenly had big opinions about brussels sprouts and a funny story about the time he’dmade cauliflower and it had somehow exploded in his oven. The kids were practically crying with laughter. Ivy told him about the cake she’d baked that had dipped in the middle. She’d solved the problem by filling the hole with frosting.
“It was so good,” Ivy bragged. “Chase wants me to make it for his birthday.”
“Yep! With chocolate frosting.” Chase licked his lips greedily.
“No problem. But you have to wait till September,” Ivy singsonged, shifting toward Silas. I met his gaze across the table to catch his reaction at the inevitable question, “When’s your birthday, Silas?”
He blew his cheeks out like a puffer fish and slumped theatrically in his chair. “In a few weeks.”
Ivy gasped in delight. “Really? I’m baking a cake!”
I hid my smirk behind my glass of water and thoroughly enjoyed the ensuing banter about frosting choices, sprinkles, and if fruit or whipped cream were ever good options.
“You set me up,” Silas jokingly accused the next day in front of the coffee shop.
“I did no such thing.” I adjusted the sleeve of one of the lattes on my tray and tipped my chin to greet a couple of loggers who’d walked in.
Ted was the elder statesman in the bunch. The rest were in their twenties and thirties, following their parents and grandparents into the business.
“Yo, Boss. A little early for a lunch break, ain’t it?” Beau teased.
I delivered my best deadpan stare, made a quick round of unnecessary introductions ’cause of course, they all knew whoSilas was now. But it was an opportunity to emphasize that he was my neighbor and to put a little distance in my voice.
“Right. I’m timing you now, smartasses,” I grumbled, then nodded in Silas’s direction. “See you around, neighbor.”
“Later.”
I walked away, my face hot with something that felt a lot like shame. And I wasn’t sure why. Silas was as invested in keeping our relationship a secret too. Maybe more so. There was no reason for second-guessing. We both knew the score.
Still. I felt dirty.
“I heard you bumped into our resident football hero,” Layla said, thanking me for her drink.
It had been less than ten minutes since we’d parted ways on Main Street, but this was Wood Hollow, so no…I wasn’t surprised. News traveled fast.
“Yep.” I plucked my drink from the tray and made a beeline for my office.
“Oh, hang on!” Layla motioned me toward her desk. “Two things: Hank called from Denver. He says the big meeting is set for next month. It’s a conference call. He left details in an email and asked me to tell you to check it sooner rather than later. Does that mean what I think it means?”
I raised my brows. “I suppose we’ll see next month.”
“You’re no fun,” she huffed impatiently. “But that’s okay. I know I’m right, and I’m manifesting positivity. This is so happening.”
“If it does?—”
“Whenit does,” Layla corrected.
“Okay…when it happens, you’re not allowed to leave the mill to work at the Depot. I hope you know that.”
She chuckled. “As if. I love my job and I love my cranky boss.”
“Hmph. What was the other thing you wanted to tell me?”
