Not wanting to accuse Max of being naive, she trod carefully. “You must really trust him to give him access to your money.”
“Mymoney?” He threw his head back and laughed. “Tess, I am completely broke.”
“You doing all the repairs on credit then?” That seemed risky, but again, she didn’t want to seem all up in his business.
“Sort of. Logan’s lending me the cash for the renovations. We’ve got a schedule worked out for me to repay him.”
“I thought he did construction.” What she really wanted to ask was, where the hell had Logan gotten that kind of money?
“He does,” Max said. “Or he did. But that’s not his real gig. He and his brother own some big business down in Houston. Real estate and franchises, I think he said.”
“So he’s not broke?” It came out a little blunter than she’d intended, but patience wasn’t her best virtue.
“I don’t think so.” Max shook his head. “In fact, I get the impression he’s pretty successful. Dropped half a mil into a bank account on a moment’s notice and acted like it was chump change.”
“But I thought he was living here, working for room and board, because he had to?”
“Well, he is staying rent-free.” Max shrugged. “But I’m not paying him an hourly wage or anything, if that’s what you mean.”
Tess was confused. On the campout, whenever anyone asked, Logan had been ambiguous about his job, but the underlying vibe was that he wasn’t one of the typical well-to-doers. Even at Alex’s wedding, when the topic came up, he’d been enigmatic about it.
If Max was right, and Logan did have money, then he’d deceived her. He may not have lied outright, but he hadn’t been entirely honest either. And whether or not it was technically a lie, itfeltlike one.
“Hey, before you go find Logan, you wanna come upstairs and see the progress we’ve made?” Max asked.
He was so enthusiastic, Tess couldn’t say no. It was the most animated she’d seen him since before Jenny’s death. “Sure, I’d love to.”
She followed him up the stairs and listened as he gave a detailed narrative of all they’d accomplished. He led her into a room that was completely finished and looked fantastic.
“This is the first one done,” he said. “What we’ll model the rest after.”
“It’s so pretty and bright,” she gushed. “But still cozy, like a cabin should be. I love it.”
“Yeah,” he agreed. “We’ve redone everything, but just the new carpet and paint make such a difference.”
Most of the other rooms on the floor were in various stages of disarray—sheetrock torn up, no carpet, wallpaper half on. Huge bins of old drapes and ugly bedspreads lined the hall.
“Looks like it’s coming along,” she said. “I’m excited for you.”
“Logan’s been a real lifesaver.”
His smile warmed her heart, but in the back of her mind, she was still irritated with Logan. His deception wouldn’t seem like a big deal to Max, but the revelation had rubbed her the wrong way.
“Hey, I just remembered, I told Faith I’d meet her at Karla’s for lunch. Tell Logan I’m sorry?”
“Oh,” he said. “Sure.”
Tess wasn’t surewhythe news of Logan having money bothered her, just that it did. Had he intentionally misled her? Or was it her fault for assuming? And really, what did it matter anyway? They were casually dating until he left. His net worth didn’t affect her in the slightest.
On the way back to town, she passed the Cold Cone Cave ice cream shop. A chocolate fudge something sounded good, so she flipped a U-turn and parked. Sorting nonsensical feelings was always done best à la mode.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Logan
Logan hit “confirm” on an order for fifty gallons of paint and glanced at his watch. Tess should have been here by now. His stomach raged, telling him it was past lunchtime. But, more than simply hungry, he was eager to spend time with Tess. Usually, waitin’ on a woman wasn’t his thing, but his desire to see her was close to overwhelming.
He was just about to call her when Max appeared in the doorway.
