The Lucky One(75)

No, it was better that Logan wasn’t here. Keith might overreact if he saw Logan again, even provoke Logan to action somehow, which could be a problem. If Logan so much as touched her ex, he’d find himself in jail for a long, long time. She had to talk to Logan about that later to make sure he understood how the deck was stacked in Hampton. But for now, she had to handle her little problem.

In the distance, headlights appeared and the car seemed first to liquefy, then solidify as it approached the house. She saw Nana peek through the curtains, then pull back. Beth rose from the swing and stepped toward the edge of the porch as the passenger door swung open. Ben scrambled out holding his backpack and stepped into a puddle, soaking his shoes. He didn’t seem to notice as he trotted toward the steps and up to the porch.

“Hey, Mom,” he said. They hugged before he looked up at her. “Can we have spaghetti for dinner?”

“Sure, sweetie. How was your weekend?”

He shrugged. “You know.”

“Yeah,” she said. “I know. Why don’t you go inside and change? I think Nana baked some cookies. And take off your shoes, okay?”

“Are you coming?”

“In a few minutes. I want to talk to your dad first.”

“Why?”

“Don’t worry. It’s not about you.”

He tried to read her expression, and she put her hand on his shoulder. “Go on. Nana’s waiting.”

Ben went inside as Keith rolled down his window a couple of inches. “We had a great time this weekend! Don’t let him tell you any different.”

His tone was full of an airy confidence. Probably, she thought, because Logan wasn’t around.

She took another step forward. “Do you have a minute?”

He stared at her through the crack before he slipped the car into park and shut off the engine. He pushed open the door, stepped out, and ran toward the steps. Once on the porch, he shook his head, sending a few drops of water flying before grinning at her. He probably thought he looked sexy.

“What’s up?” he asked. “Like I said, Ben and I had a great time this weekend.”

“Did you make him clean your kitchen again?”

The grin faded. “What do you want, Beth?”

“Don’t get sore. I just asked a question.”

He continued to stare at her, trying to read her. “I don’t tell you what to do with Ben when he’s with you, and I expect the same courtesy. Now what did you want to talk about?”

“A few things, actually.” Despite the disgust she felt, she forced a smile and motioned to the porch swing. “Would you like to sit down?”

He seemed surprised. “Sure,” he said. “But I can’t stay long. I’ve got plans this evening.”

Of course you do, she thought. Either that, or you want me to think that you do. The kind of reminder that had been typical since their divorce.

They took a seat on the swing. After sitting, he jiggled it back and forth before leaning back and spreading his arms. “This is nice. Did you do this?”

She tried to keep as much distance between them on the swing as she could. “Logan put it up.”

“Logan?”

“Logan Thibault. He works for Nana at the kennel now. Remember? You met him.”

He scratched his chin. “The guy that was here the other night?”

As if you don’t know. “Yes, that’s him.”

“And he’s okay with cleaning cages and scooping up crap?” he asked.

She ignored the obvious dig. “Uh-huh.”

He exhaled as he shook his head. “Better him than me.” He turned toward her with a shrug. “So what’s up?”

She considered her words carefully. “This is hard for me to say . . .” She trailed off, knowing it would make him more interested.

“What is it?”

She sat up straighter. “I was talking to one of my friends the other day, and she said something that just didn’t sit right with me.”

“What did she say?” Keith leaned toward her, alert.

“Well, before I tell you, I just want to say that it was one of those rumor mill things. A friend of a friend of a friend heard something, and it eventually got passed on to me. It’s about you.”

His expression was curious. “You have my attention.”

“What she said was . . .” She hesitated. “She said that in the past, you’ve followed me on my dates. And that you told some of them that you didn’t want them to date me.”

She made a point not to look directly at him, but from the corner of her eye, she saw his expression freeze. Not only shocked. Guilty. She pressed her lips together to keep from blowing up.

His face relaxed. “I can’t believe it.” He drummed his fingers on his leg. “Who told you that?”

“It’s not important.” She waved off the comment. “You don’t know her.”

“I’m curious,” he pressed.

“It’s not important,” she said again. “It’s not true, is it?”

“Of course not. How could you even think something like that?”

Liar! she screamed inside, willing herself not to say anything. In the silence, he shook his head.

“Sounds to me like you need to start picking better friends. And to be honest, I’m a little hurt that we’re even having this conversation.”