Beach Rental(23)

He pulled into the driveway and sat in the car.

Luke wanted to be happy for Ben, but what were the odds Ben and the girl just happened to be at the party, one a guest and one working, had met and Ben found her so attractive and engaging that in one evening he knew he wanted to marry her?

It was insane. It was too crazy by far to be by chance.

For Ben’s sake, he wanted to believe, but seeing her aggravated him almost beyond bearing. Like the way she’d stood with one hand on her hip—a posture with attitude—when he left Ben’s study. It hadn’t looked like anger. More likely it was guilt.

She’d heard him. So what? He had genuine concerns and all of them were solely about what was best for Ben. It was his duty to do what he could for Ben’s sake.

But it if were true and this was an honest relationship, then he had to be happy for Ben.

No, he’d seen her in the Hammonds’ coatroom with the young man who’d looked like trouble from the get-go. His manner was careless and underhanded, beginning with the scene in the dark hallway at the party.

Could it have been innocent? Maybe. But too many ‘could’ve been innocent’ events smelled like something bad. Then Juli had rushed into the room, spoke with the young man and began digging around in the wraps. Luke had stepped forward to ask them what they were doing when Juli left abruptly, nearly slamming into him with a backpack.

The owners of the missing items had reported their losses to the Hammonds and Marcel had engaged the police. Luke didn’t know anything was missing until a few days later. He’d been all set to tell Marcel what he’d seen when he remembered Ben mentioning Juli, the girl he’d left the party with.

Ben not only mentioned her, he couldn’t stop talking about her.

Luke remembered her, too. She was pretty, but when you lived at the beach pretty girls were everywhere.

He walked up the front steps and unlocked the door. He tossed his jacket onto the back of a chair and went into the kitchen for a drink. The housekeeper, Esther, had gotten the mail and left it on the counter.

Esther had also prepared lunch and left it in the fridge. She had some interesting ideas about what constituted a meal, but it was always tasty. Today he had chicken salad on whole wheat with bean sprouts.

He put the plate on the table and was struck by the empty seats. Just him. Always. Unless he entertained.

Ben saw the same.

Ben got comfort from his church family and faith, but when he came home, the chair on the other side of the table was empty. Luke had found comfort in church once upon a time. He looked through Ben’s eyes and could almost see Juli sitting across from him at the table. It was an appealing vision. Not because it was Juli, of course, but for the companionship.

She was probably accustomed to using her looks to get her places. She looked young, but not soft. Wary.

Perhaps it was the quality of wariness that brought out the protector in Ben. He had a strong need to fix people.

Maia had encouraged Ben. Maia believed everything Ben did or said was wonderful. That was Maia.

Adela was different. The instant Ben told her he was planning to marry—who? A girl who’d been working a party—when had they met? Five days before—and the marriage was going to take place when? In three days—no wonder Adela had freaked. Even Ben stopped taking her calls.

He half-suspected Ben had arranged a hasty marriage to forestall Adela. For every good-natured bone in Ben’s body, Adela was, well, the opposite. She wasn’t mean, but her temper drove her way beyond good judgment.

Luke rinsed his plate and fork under the kitchen faucet and left them in the sink for Esther.

In the end, what it came down to was his duty to his cousin and friend. Even to Adela. It would be best for all concerned if he, Luke, confronted Juli privately and let her know he was watching.





Chapter Eight



When renters used their side of the front porch it was easy to hear them through the tall wooden divider. Today, all was quiet.

Juli had her sketchbook, pencils, sharpener and eraser laid out like surgical instruments on the white plastic patio table. While these instruments weren’t as sharp, they were scary. She reminded herself it wasn’t about success or failure.

This wasn’t a commitment.

She started with the medium pencil and played around sketching shapes and shading them. Juli was bent over the sketchbook in her lap and didn’t hear the renter coming up the crossover until she was at the house. Juli looked up. The woman stopped, first tugging at the hem of her knit tank top, then brushing sand from her arms.

“Hi, there. Name’s Emily. Husband’s James. I’m sure you’ve seen him coming and going.”

“Nice to meet you, Emily. I’m Juli. My husband’s name is Ben.” She laid the sketchbook on the table and stood up.