Page 17 of Between the Shady Groves
Even while these things made sense to Cannon, he felt an urgent need to get back to Cincinnati. His business needed him. He didn’t want to stay here. He definitely couldn’t run a business here. There weren’t enough customers to keep him solvent. He wondered if Lauren would be able to even keep a bakeshop solvent, but he knew her mom had run hers for years out of the little shop on Main Street.
He found a parking place not far from where it was. He’d been here a few times to visit her mom, but they didn’t stay long. And it hadn’t been recently. He hadn’t wanted to leave his business.
Getting out of his truck, he noticed that there was movement behind the reflections in the window. Was she open already? He didn’t see any open sign, and while the windows looked clean, there were no special signs or any other kind of paraphernalia advertising the day’sofferings.
He thought about knocking but then figured he might as well try the door. If it was open, it’d be weird not to walk in.
The knob turned when he tried it, and so he pushed it open.
It took him a minute to register what he was seeing, as laughter hit him immediately. His wife’s laughter.
When was the last time he’d heard that?
She stood at the counter, her elbows on it, a piece of bread with a huge bite taken out in front of her face as she chewed with her cheeks puffed out.
There was a man, like a military-type guy, standing across from her, holding the same kind of bread with several bites taken out, with his mouth full as well.
They had been laughing together, and now they were eating together, leaning over the counter facing each other.
He had been sure that his wife wasn’t having an affair. She just wasn’t that kind of person. But then, he suddenly remembered how many people he’d talked to whose spouse had had an affair, and they had said the exact same thing. They just weren’t that kind of person. They never suspected anything. They had no idea. It had blindsided them. No one got married thinking that their spouse was a cheater.
But the fact that she was standing in such a cozy position, eating bread and laughing with a man who… Cannon wasn’t exactly a good judge, but he figured he was the kind of man women were attracted to. He looked ruggedly handsome, and he wore a T-shirt that was about six sizes too small so all of his bulging muscles stood out. It definitely looked like he didn’t miss too many days at the gym.
Cannon didn’t have time to go to the gym. He was busy building a successful business. This dude had great muscles, but he probably didn’t have the smarts or the drive to build anything himself. He was an employee somewhere. Probably for a delivery company or something that didn’t take a whole lot of brains to do. Or require a lot of overtime, since the dude had time to spend a couple hours at the gym every day.
“Cannon!” his wife said, her word partially obscured by food in her mouth.
He narrowed his eyes. “Doesn’t look like you were expecting me.” He tried not to be nasty. Their relationship had never been nasty. Hewasn’t sure they’d ever even fought. Argued, sure. But a screaming match? He couldn’t even imagine Lauren getting upset enough to scream at him. She just wasn’t that kind of person.
Of course, he didn’t think she was the kind of person to cheat either.
This might not be what it looks like.Calm down, dude.
His little pep talk didn’t work a whole lot, but it did keep anything else nasty from coming out of his mouth.
“Why would I be?” she asked, and to his surprise, she looked defensive and even…angry.
Wait. He was the one who was angry here. She was the one who had left, not told him where she was going, sent him in the exact opposite direction to find her, wasted an entire day, and now he walked in and she was with some other dude, laughing her head off and acting all cozy like she hadn’t acted with him in a long time. Years.
She’d left him under the impression that she was still grieving her mom and sad about her miscarriages. But apparently she wasn’t that sad. Because she had just been laughing like she was eighteen with no cares in the world.
“Because you left without telling me where you were going. Because I wanted to know where you were. What did you think I was going to do? Just leave you? Without knowing whether you were safe or not?” He couldn’t even believe that she wouldn’t have known he was going to be showing up. Why did she think he’d wanted to know where she was so bad?
“I’m Matteo. I own the bookshop right beside here.” The man pushed back from the counter, still holding some type of bread in his hand, and came forward with his other hand out.
Cannon looked at it but didn’t take it.
“I suppose you probably need to get back to your business,” he said instead, leveling a gaze at the guy.
“I’m sorry, Matteo. My husband is usually more polite.” And to his consternation, Lauren came around the counter, holding something in her hand for Matteo. “Here’s the bread I promised you. Thanks for stopping by. I appreciate the laugh. And don’t forget about those books you owe me. I think it’s up to about fiveor six now.”
He grinned, and Cannon figured it was an engaging grin, because his wife smiled back. Which made Cannon even angrier. How dare she smile at this flirty, irresponsible gym rat and not give her husband a proper greeting?
He ground his teeth together but didn’t say anything as Matteo took the wrapped bread Lauren handed him.
“Thanks. This is the best—I don’t think I’ve ever had cheese bread before. This stuff is addicting.”
They smiled at each other again before Matteo turned, glancing at Cannon and nodding his head.
