“Noelle. Yes.”
“She’s the one who broke your heart in college, isn’t she?” his father asked.
“How do you know about that?” Eli asked. He thought he’d kept his personal affairs and heartache more private than that.
“To be honest, your mother picked up on it first. You went from talking about Noelle frequently when you were home on holiday to saying nothing at all after graduation. And you were far more subdued, even glum at times. Your mother put two and two together and shared her theory with me.”
“Of course she did,” Eli said and flashed a half grin. “She doesn’t miss much. I never could get away with any shenanigans growing up.”
His father chuckled. “That’s as likely because you’re a terrible liar. You have more tells than a novice poker player.”
Eli’s eyebrows shot up. “I do? Like what?”
His father hitched his head toward the door, and Eli followed him out toward his mother’s studio. “I’m not telling you. How would I ever beat you at poker again?”
Eli groaned. “I may never play poker again.”
Giving him a clap on the back, Will sobered. “Just as long as you don’t give up on Noelle. If you love her, fight for her. Be her safe place, and with patience and encouragement, she’s bound to come around.” Will’s expression perked. “Say, why don’t you bring her on Sunday to the family party?”
“It’s been suggested, but she doesn’t seem keen to meet the whole boisterous brood of us.”
“Pssh.” His father waved a dismissive hand. “I’ll invite her and let her know we’re nothing to fear. No vipers among us. No one bites. Teddy bears all.”
Before Eli could mount a counterargument, his father headed out to the pottery shed.
Eli hurried to catch up to him. If his father came on too strong, would he scare Noelle away? He recalled what she’d said about her cold family, her isolation as a child and her discomfort with the dynamics of a large family.
When they reached his mother’s studio, Noelle’s expression was stark, her cheeks tearstained. His mother sat close besideher, an arm around Noelle’s shoulders and clay-crusted fingers dabbing moisture from Noelle’s face, leaving dirty smudges in her wake.
Eli’s gut lurched. What the heck had happened? What had his mother said to Noelle?
He rushed to Noelle’s side and crouched by her chair. “Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” He shot his mother a quick, scolding look.
Sasha lifted her chin. “Don’t glare at me in that tone of voice. I did nothing wrong.”
Eli grinned at his mother’s familiar catachresis.
Noelle sucked in a deep breath and blew her nose on a questionable-looking rag from his mother’s pottery cleanup supplies. “I’m all right. Really. And your mother has been nothing but kind.”
Eli angled his head, trying to meet her eyes. “If you’re sure…” Placing a hand on Noelle’s knee, he asked, “Are you ready to go? I have what I need from my dad.”
Noelle sniffled again and nodded. She led the way out of the pottery studio, clearly eager to leave.
Before following her, Eli hugged his mother and gave her a searching look. “What happened?” he mouthed.
“Talk to her,” his mother whispered back.
Eli nodded. He planned to do exactly that.
Chapter 14
“You want to tell me what upset you when you were with my mother?” Eli asked when they were back in his Jeep headed to Shelby. “We have some time now to talk. Alone. No distractions.”
“Yeah. Okay, but I want to know from you what this trip was about, too. You were very mysterious concerning what your father could contribute to the investigation.”
“Sorry,” he said, “I wasn’t trying to be mysterious. I just didn’t want to say anything until I was sure about my suspicion.”
“And now you are sure?” she asked.
