He swallowed. “The less you know, the better.”
A fire ignited in my gut. “That’s not gonna fly with me.”
He remained stubbornly silent.
“Jed!”
He turned to look at me, completely expressionless. “Do you trust me?”
Fear mixed with the anger. “What did you do?”
“Do you trust me?”
Did I trust him? I trusted that he would do everything in his power to help me.
But did that include sleeping with Kate?
There was so much going on between us right now, I wasn’t sure. I wanted to say he wouldn’t, and most of me was positive of it, but this was a man who’d dug up the dead body of the man I’d killed, dug another grave, and then burned the body to make certain no one would find a scrap of my DNA on him. Jed had proven he’d go to great lengths to protect me, but did that extend to sleeping with Kate? He hadn’t had sex in at least a month.
Doubts slipped into my mind, curling in on me like wisps of smoke—You’re not pretty enough for him… You’re just a charity case he’s tired of. The rational part of me didn’t believe it, but the damaged parts of me latched on to the familiar digs like they were lifelines in a turbulent sea.
“Neely Kate,” he said in a pleading tone. “Please.”
This was the first sign of emotion I’d seen from him all day and my heart broke. “Of course I trust you, Jed.”
Relief relaxed his features, but I felt numb. What had Jed done?
The rest of the two-hour drive was tense and silent, each of us lost in our own thoughts. When we were about five minutes from the farm, I asked, “What am I going to do about the private investigator?”
“I’ve been thinking about it. The number is to a PI office, but the guy didn’t identify himself. He was trying to intimidate you, which makes it surprising he didn’t leave his name and his agency to make his inquiry sound more official.”
“You don’t think he’s a PI?”
“I don’t know. Just don’t return the call and don’t answer if he calls back. I’m still trying to figure out how to deal with it.”
“Shouldn’t we deal with it together?”
He was silent for several seconds, then grabbed my hand and squeezed. “We will. Give me some time to mull it over.”
Jed was typically a man of action and few words. After seeing so much of him the last month, I’d realized that these still waters ran deep. He was capable of split-second decisions, but he preferred to let them sit. Ordinarily, I found it to be an admirable trait, but it was frustrating in this particular situation, particularly since it was my problem.
He pulled onto the tree-lined drive leading to the farmhouse. It was shortly after six, and Rose’s truck was parked out front.
Jed turned to me with a grin, but it was obvious he was putting some effort into it. “An etiquette class, huh?”
I gave him a sly smile. “I need to be highbrow for my date Saturday night.”
His brow lifted slightly. “Date?”
I could have played him, but after this afternoon, I wasn’t feeling very playful. “Joe asked me to go to a fundraiser dinner in Little Rock on Saturday night—which reminds me, can you take care of Muffy for Rose? Joe wants to spend the night in Little Rock.”
“Yeah,” he said, looking uncomfortable. “Sure.”
“What?”
“Nothing.” He smiled. “That’s big, huh? He’s willing to make you public.”
“Yeah.” I tilted my head as I stared at him. “Does it bother you that we haven’t gone public?”
He took my hand and interlaced our fingers. “While I’d love nothing more than to proudly declare you as my girlfriend, we’re on the same page about keepin’ it quiet. I’m workin’ on becomin’ legit. I just need more time.”
I resisted the urge to sigh. I only wished he would tell me what he was working on, but every time I asked, he declared it a surprise. I knew better than to press him.
His thumb began to brush the back of my hand. “I know I’m askin’ a lot of you, NK, but trust me on this too.”
How many people had I trusted in my life only to be hurt? I was pinning a lot of faith on this man, but in my heart, I know I’d chosen well. Jed Carlisle was an honorable man. “Okay.”
He leaned over and gave me a soft kiss. “Are we still on for tomorrow night?”
I smiled. “Yeah.”
“Dress up. I’m takin’ you to a special dinner.”
My eyes widened. “Are we headin’ up to Magnolia?”
“Some place better. Pick you up at eight?”
“That late?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay.”
He gave me another tender kiss. Then I got out and went inside, giving him one last wave before I shut the door behind me.
“Neely Kate?” Rose called from the back of the house.
I followed her voice and my nose to the kitchen. “Something smells delicious.”
“I made chicken enchiladas.” She was pulling something out of the oven. “Are you hungry?” she asked as she set the casserole dish on top of the stove burners. The table was already set with two plates, glasses, and silverware.
“A little. I suppose I need to go upstairs and figure out what to wear tonight.”
She gave me a look of surprise. “I figured you’d already know since you’ve had hours to mull it over.”
I gave a tiny shrug, feeling like I was about to burst into tears.
She took off the oven mitts, then closed the distance between us, pulling me into a tight hug. “Bad afternoon?”
“It’s never a good one when it involves Kate Simmons.”
“I’ll give you that,” she said.
“I found out a bit more about my momma.”
Rose leaned back and grabbed my upper arms as she searched my face. “You’re kiddin’.”
I shook my head as a single tear fell down my cheek. I’d let myself ponder all the Ardmore stuff during the drive, but I’d kept my mother on the back burner. This was one thing I could share with Rose, not to mention it was easier to discuss it with her than Jed.
“What did she tell you?”
“Not much,” I said, swiping the tear away as I pulled free and walked to the refrigerator to get the pitcher of lemonade. I wouldn’t be able to tell her this face-to-face. “I knew most of it already. Kate found her in West Virginia. She was scared when she realized Kate was a Simmons. She wanted to know if I knew the truth, and when Kate told her no, she didn’t ask her anything else. She was only interested in me if I got part of the Simmons money.”
“Kate could be lying.”
I shut the fridge door. “We both know she’s not.”
Rose carried the casserole dish to the table. “Pardon my language, but your momma is a jackass.”
My gaze jerked to her in surprise—Rose’s usual idea of a swear was “crappy doodles”—and I started giggling.
“Well, she is,” she said with plenty of conviction. “She doesn’t deserve someone as amazing as you.” She walked over to the freezer to get the ice tray.
“You’re gonna give me a swelled head.”
“Gonna?” she teased. “I thought you already had one.” She filled the glasses with ice, and I poured the lemonade.
She held up her glass to me. “To making our own family and surrounding ourselves with people who love and care about us.”
The words could have sounded maudlin if she’d said them in a different tone, but she was glowing.
I clicked my glass with hers and I realized this was much more of a home than what I’d had with Ronnie. I felt like I’d been playing dress-up when I was married to him. “I’ll drink to that.”
We both took a sip and then I lowered my glass. “He makes you happy.”
She gave me a startled look. “What?”
“Skeeter. He makes you happy.”