Page 155 of The Secrets We Keep

“He’s wealthy. Just tell him to buy a boat.”

Billy snorted. “He is considering trying to buy that fancy restaurant down by the water—the one right across from me.”

I knew which one he was talking about. It was the one Marin and I had been to right before we…

“Is it even for sale?”

Billy shrugged. “No, but Eli can be very convincing.”

“And so, the Radcliffe restaurant empire begins.”

“Radcliffe-Rivas empire,” he corrected me with a grin. “We’ve both come a long way, Macon.”

My eyes flickered toward Marin. She was over by the food table, chatting with Elena, who I’d just met tonight. Their laughter drifted over, and I couldn’t help but smile.

How did I get so damn lucky?

“Yeah. Yeah, we have.”

Billy patted me on the shoulder. “You’ve got this. You’re going to win, and she’s going to say yes.”

“Thanks, man,” I said, swallowing down a well of emotions.

“And if you lose, maybe she’ll say yes just out of pity.”

“Great pep talk. Thanks.”

“Anytime, man.”

* * *

“Why do they look so guilty over there?” I asked as I grabbed a plate and started piling it with food.

Elena looked over at Macon and shrugged. “He’s a politician now,” she said. “They always look guilty.”

I laughed, shaking my head. “Is the sheriff really a political office?”

She gave me a face, theI know everythingface she’d perfected since law school. “Did you vote on it?”

“I guess I did.”

Kind of weird to think of Macon as anything but Hot Cop. Hot Sheriff just didn’t have the same ring to it.

I tried to hide my smile as I remembered all the many delicious favors he had done, trying to guess that nickname. It’d taken a while, so long that I had started to wonder if he was failing on purpose.

“Your dad seems to be enjoying himself.” She gestured over to where my father was talking to Aiden, while my mother got drinks. “He’s really proud of you.”

I pressed my lips together, feeling my cheeks redden. “I know.”

My artwork had only been in Aiden’s gallery for a short time, but I’d already sold enough to keep me afloat for a while.

A long while.

“Does that embarrass you?” Elena asked.

“No,” I answered. “Kind of? I don’t know. It’s just surreal, you know? I’ve wanted this for so long. And now, it’s happening, and it all feels a little too easy.”

“Why would you say that?”

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