Kendry nodded but cast a curious look between him and Vincent. “Your lady? As in both of yours? You’d be willing to share?”
James patted Kendry on the shoulder and said, “When it’s the right woman, yeah. Why don’t I get us a few more beers and we can go inside and cool down a little before starting supper prep. We’ll explain what life in Divine can be like. I hope steak is all right with you.”
“Works for me.”
While he seasoned the thick filets, Vincent, Kendry, and Jared shucked several ears of fresh corn and wrapped them in foil, and the two of them told the McCulloch brothers a little about Leah.
“And she’s with both of you?”
“For now. We hope to make it permanent. Ideally, we wanted her with the three of us. Patterson’s death devastated her and it’s been really rough for her the last few months.”
“But she’s thinking about leaving?” Kendry raised a questioning eyebrow.
Vincent sat forward and shook his head. “You’d need to know her to understand. She’s a little go-getter, and she’s gone to school and trained specifically to do the kind of job she’s been offered, and she’s only twenty-nine. It’s a family-run business so she could eventually go all the way to the top. I’d miss her like crazy if she left but I’d understand.”
James didn’t see any reservation in Vincent’s eyes as he spoke and James knew that Vincent loved her enough to let her go. He wouldn’t volunteer such frankness if he didn’t mean it.
“She must be somethin’,” Jared said as they finished stripping the corn silk from the last of the ears of corn.
“That she is.” James stuck the steaks back in the fridge and went outside to light the charcoal in the pit. Blue barked enthusiastically and followed him into the house.
Vincent was showing the guys the family photos that were lined up on bookshelves in the living room when the doorbell rang. Vincent and James shared a look before he went to answer it.
Leah stood on the porch, biting her lip and looking ready to bolt, and he stepped out and wrapped his arms around her. “Honey, you came.”
The way she tugged her soft lip between her teeth made him want to kiss her. “I–I thought I might come for a few minutes. I don’t want to be in the way. Is it—is it going okay?”
He squeezed her again and kissed the top of her head, inhaling her sweet fragrance. “It’s better than okay.” He looked over her shoulder and said, “Honey, why is your trunk propped open like that.”
Her bright smile made his heart lurch a little. “Remind me to show you when the three of us are alone.” She craned her neck to peek around his arm and whispered, “The visit really is going okay?”
He nodded and leaned down to kiss her. “It is. Come in and meet Kendry and his brother, Jared.”
“Okay.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ears and followed him into the house, and he made the introductions. Her hand gripped his forearm as she reached out with the other and shook Kendry’s and Jared’s hands. When the introductions were complete, Vincent leaned down to kiss her and whispered a few quiet words to her.
After coaxing her to take a seat next to him on the couch, James looked on as Vincent showed pictures of Patterson from a family photo album to Kendry and his brother. Kendry asked if they had any family videos. Vincent looked at him and he nodded. “If it’s okay with Leah. It’s been a while since I’ve watched them.”
Kendry looked down at his hands, braced on his knees, and frowned. “Maybe that was out of line. It hasn’t been that long since you lost your brother and it must seem like I’m just satisfying my curiosity. That wasn’t cool of me to ask.”
Leah said, “I think it’d be fine, Kendry. If you’d like to see the videos, it would tell you a lot about Patterson. I mean, who knows when you’d get the chance to watch them again, right?”
James knew what it cost her to watch the videos, on top of everything else she was dealing with. As the first one played, he glanced at her and saw her eyes become a little glossy. This was no easy thing for her like she pretended it to be.
Chapter Fourteen
Leah breathed through the ache in her chest, trying to stay composed as they watched the video which had been shot down at the river while the men were fishing. A younger version of Blue scrambled clumsily down the wooden dock, barking excitedly, and jumped into the water, splashing Patterson who sat at the end baiting his hook.
Patterson glanced back at the camera, grimaced, and then said, “You’re gonna break that, pointing it at me.” Turning his attention back to the hook displayed his angular profile, his dark lashes and brow, square jaw and neat beard, and Leah drank it in like a woman dying of thirst.