Page 106 of Second Chance at Sunshine Inn

“Hey!” she squealed as she pushed him away. “I’m not ten anymore.”

Dad chuckled, and Cade’s eyes glittered as a ghost of a smile played over his mouth.

Landon’s face lit up with his signature goofy grin. “Evie, you’ll always be ten to me.” He checked his phone. “Uh-oh. I’m going to be late meeting Amber, and she’ll yell at me.” He tapped Dad’s shoulder. “Tell Mom hello for me.” He and Cade shook hands. “Call me when you need help.” Then he reached for Everleigh again.

“Don’t you dare...”

Landon hooted and then waved. “See ya later,” he called on his way to the driveway.

“I should get home too,” Dad said.

“Would you like to stay for supper, Mr. Hartnett?” Cade asked.

“I told you to call me Dave, and no thank you.” He patted Cade’s shoulder. “You look exhausted. Get some rest.” He hugged Everleigh. “You too.”

Everleigh held on to him for a moment. “Thanks again, Dad.”

“Anytime, honey. Let me know what else I can do to help, Cade.”

“I will, sir.” Cade grimaced. “I mean, Dave.”

Dad smiled and then walked toward his car.

Everleigh scanned the backyard. “Did Roger and his crew already leave?”

“Yeah.” Cade dropped a small piece of wood into a nearby trash can. “Your dad has a point. I’m worn out. How about we order something for supper?”

She folded her arms over her middle. “Let’s talk first.”

“Okay.” He dropped a few more pieces of wood into the can. “Let me guess. Trevor?”

“Yeah.” A cool breeze blew over her, and she moved her hands down her arms. “I want to know why you lost it with him earlier. What happened at the home improvement store?”

“He didn’t tell you?”

She shook her head.

“Why am I not surprised,” he mumbled. “Everleigh, I saw him with Valerie Rhodes.”

“You saw him with Valerie Rhodes?” she asked, and when he gave her a solemn nod, her stomach pitched. “What exactly did you see?”

He explained that he and Roger were driving out of the parking lot, and he spotted Trevor’s truck. Then he witnessed Trevor leaning into a Porsche Cayenne and talking to Valerie. “They seemed very... comfortable with each other. He was touching her face.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m positive.” He dropped down onto the sunroom’s temporary staircase. “I’ve suspected he was up to something from the beginning, but now I have proof that he’s working with her.”

Everleigh stilled while Trevor’s comments about selling to a developer clicked into place in her mind. It was all starting to make sense—the way his friendship seemed forced, the way he was always overly affectionate, the way he constantly steered their conversation back to the inn.

“Everleigh, I know you want to trust him, but he’s not who he says he is.”

She opened her mouth and then closed it as embarrassment set in.Trevor was using her, and she’d been a fool. Heat covered her cheeks. Cade had been right all along.

“Come on, Everleigh,” Cade exclaimed. “He’s not one of the loser boyfriends you brought home in high school or college.”

She blanched at the sting of his words.

Oh, no he didn’t!

---