Once Sten had given her the tour, he had work to do.
Madison left him to it and strolled around the property, keeping to herself. She found a nice spot on a little dock in sight of the hangar where she’d left Sten.
For a while, she played games on her phone. Then she switched to the reading app and dug into a bestselling mystery she’d been meaning to read for months now and never had time for. It was peaceful on the dock, with the sound of the river lapping around her. When she got tired of reading, she just sat there in the mild sunlight, watching the giant boats out on the wide river.
After a half hour of boat-watching, she almost nodded off. Time to get up and move around a bit. She texted Sten to let him know she was dropping in on Karin and headed for the office at the other end of the yard.
A woman she didn’t remember seeing earlier stood behind the front counter. Madison introduced herself as the Larsons’ tenant and asked if Karin was anywhere around.
The woman stapled a stack of papers and handed them to a guy in overalls and a tan cap. “There you go, Denny. You’re all set.” She pointed back over her shoulder. “Karin’s taking a break. Through that door there.”
The door in question led to an empty employees’ lounge with a basic kitchen setup in an L-shape along two of the walls and a table in the center of the room, five molded plastic chairs around it. One of the chairs was pulled out. On the table in front of it sat a half-finished sandwich and a can of ginger ale. No sign of Karin.
Directly across from the door to the office area, there was another door with a restroom sign on it. Karin was probably in there.
Madison pulled out one of the chairs. But before she could sit down, she heard the sounds from the other side of the restroom door. Someone was being sick.
Karin?
Who else could it be? Madison almost rushed to her aid.
But then, what if it wasn’t Karin? That could definitely be awkward. It could be awkward even if it was Karin. Sten’s sister might not appreciate a woman she really hardly knew knocking on the bathroom door when she thought she was alone.
So Madison just stood there by the table, wanting to help and not knowing if she should.
Finally, the heaving noises stopped. The toilet flushed. She heard water running.
Karin emerged. Her cheeks were red and her eyes watery. She held a damp paper towel to her mouth. “Madison.” She lowered the towel and smiled in a wan sort of way.
Madison met her midway between the table and the restroom door. “Are you sick?”
“It’s a long story.”
Madison wrapped an arm around her. Karin didn’t resist the attention. They went back to the table, where Karin dropped into the chair with the food in front of it.
“Ugh,” said Sten’s sister as she glared at the leftover sandwich. “That’s enough of that.” She shoved it away and then drank from the can of ginger ale, setting it down with great care and bringing the wet towel back to her mouth.
Madison hovered at her elbow. “Are you going to be sick again?”
Karin shook her wild, dark hair and laughed—or at least, Madison thought it was a laugh. Sten’s sister still had the towel pressed to her face. Maybe she was gagging.
“How can I help?” Madison cast a frantic glance around the room, seeking a wastebasket or some other appropriate receptacle in case Sten’s sister really was about to hurl.
But then, Karin lowered the towel and took a few slow breaths through her nose. “I’m okay,” she said. “Really. I think it’s stopped for now.”
Cautiously, ready to leap to Karin’s rescue at the first sign of heaving, Madison lowered herself into the next chair. She took off her hat and her sunglasses and set them on the table.
Karin tossed the towel down and put her hands to her flushed cheeks as if to cool them. Slowly, her eyes lifted to lock with Madison’s. They stared at each other.
And it was right then, as their gazes collided, that Madisonknew.
Chapter Ten
“Liam’s?” Madison asked in a whisper, wondering what was the matter with her to ask such a thing. Not only was it no concern of hers, the question made no sense.
Except it did make sense. To Karin. “Yep. You’re going to be an auntie.” Karin caught her trembling lower lip between her teeth. Her eyes gleamed with tears.
But Karin didn’t cry. She grabbed Madison’s hand between both of hers. “Listen. You can’t tell anyone. Please. Not Sten. Definitely not Liam. I’ll do it. I will. Eventually.”
