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“Where the hell did you hear that?”
“Yvette ate breakfast with Old Man Turner this morning at the diner. News travels fast in Kelly Bay.”
We started walking again.
“The last thing on my mind is doing anything to hurt him. I can see everyone in this town worries about him, but you don’t see him for who he is.”
“How do you mean?”
I struggled with how to say this in a way that wasn’t insulting. “I know you all have his best interests at heart, but it seems like you’re content to let him wither away with this…idea he has of himself.”
He slowed his pace as we neared Drew’s house. “Believe me, none of us are content about it,” he said, his tone grave, “but things were a lot worse when we pushed harder.”
A noncommittal noise was the best I could do in response. I knew next to nothing about what Drew had been through or how his friends and family handled the fallout, but the way everyone in town danced around the topic didn’t sit right with me. But that was the last thing I needed to say to the guy who was worried I was here to dig up secrets.
As we climbed the short flight of stairs up to the wraparound porch, I could’ve sworn the drapes over one of the front windows twitched. Wishful thinking. The only way Drew would be watching for me to come back would be if it was to avoid me.
I turned to face Paul. “I have no intention of doing anything to hurt Drew.”
Paul leaned in and whispered in my ear, “I’m skilled at reading people. I think you’re one of the good ones. But even good people make bad decisions. This town and the people in it are important to me. That’s all I’m saying.” He leaned back and flashed me a grin that would be panty-melting if my panties weren’t so preoccupied with someone else.
I didn’t get the chance to respond because that someone else swung the front door open like a gunslinger bursting into an Old West saloon. “What’s going on here?”
Paul failed to suppress a smirk. “Ran into Sadie and we were getting to know one another a little better.” He winked at me. The mirth in his eyes told me the gesture was meant to razz Drew more than anything else.
“Yeah? That why you’re lingering on my porch like you’re dropping off your date after the homecoming dance?”
Paul chuckled. “I think we’re done…for now.” His words seemed innocent enough, but I could hear the underlying warning in them. He trotted down the stairs, walked backward a few steps as he tossed me a little salute, then spun on his heel and whistled as he headed off.
“I need to talk to you.” Drew gave me an intense look.
As I watched Paul’s retreating back, I got the distinct impression my housing situation was about to change yet again. I wondered if there was anyone left in this town who might still offer me a place to crash if Drew had changed his mind.
