Page 113 of That One Heartbreak

Just one word in his deep voice was enough to send a shiver down her spine. And she hated that. She didn’t have to look up from the computer to know who it was. Even if he hadn’t said a word her body would have reacted to him being so close.

“Marley.” She willed herself to look at him.

But she didn’t smile.

Three of the stitchers who were about to walk out of the library changed their minds and walked back to join the audience watching them.

“I sent you a message,” he said, his eyes catching hers. “Did you get it?”

Dammit, she felt like she was on the set of a soap opera. And then Mary grabbed her phone from her purse and actually started recording them.

“No recording in the library,” Kate said to her.

“Spoilsport,” Mary grumbled, putting her phone back in her bag.

Marley’s brows knitted as he turned to see the gaggle of older women watching them. “Can we talk in your office?” he asked Kate.

“No,” Gloria said, clearly wanting to hear what he had to say. “You argued last night in the middle of the road and I missed it. I’m not missing it again.”

If this wasn’t so excruciating it would be funny right now. Maybe it would be, one day, when she was old and single and consoling Addy after some heartache.

“Follow me,” Kate said to Marley, lifting the countertop so he could walk through.

And dammit, she was so aware of his presence as he walked into her office. He was in a pair of work jeans and those brown scuffed boots that did things to her body when she saw them. There was dust in his dark hair, like he’d just come from the construction site.

“Sit down,” she said, pointing at the chair by the window. “I’ll get rid of the crowd.”

When she got back to the desk they were all huddled around it.

“Okay, the show’s over,” Kate told them. “You can leave.”

“Are you two going to have sex in there?” Mary asked.

Kate rolled her eyes. “Of course not.”

“Then why can’t we listen?” Mary didn’t look embarrassed at all at the prospect of being a peeping tom.

“Because my life isn’t your entertainment.” Kate took a deep breath. “I’m asking you as a friend, Mary. Please make everybody leave. I’ve had a horrible week.” She shook her head, deciding to appeal to the woman’s fairer nature, if she had one. “To be honest, a horrible few years. And I need to talk to that man without it going viral in the community. Help me.”

Mary’s face softened. She reached for Kate’s hand and patted it with her own. “Leave it to me,” Mary told her, a smile pulling at her face.

“I just got a message,” Mary shouted loud enough for everybody to hear. “The sexy guy in the hardware store is so hot he’s took his top off. Why are we all still standing here?”

And to Kate’s amazement, Mary’s lie worked, and everybody rushed out.

Chapter

Thirty

Marley wasn’t sittingin the chair when she walked back into the office. Of course he wasn’t. The man could never do as he was told. And he couldn’t sit still to save his life.

Instead, he had his back to her, his hands in his pockets as he stared out of the window toward the greenery of the town park. She took a moment to compose herself, trying really hard not to look at the way his muscles filled out the dusty fabric of his t-shirt. Or the way it was damp from perspiration.

Because he’d been working outside most of the day.

“They’re gone,” she told him, and he turned around, his blue eyes meeting hers. She took a deep breath. “And before you say anything else, I’d like to say something first.”

He opened his mouth and she held up her hand.

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