The Devine Doughnut Shop(17)

“Are you sure it was Neal?” Grace could barely whisper. “Macy is going to be devastated, and with Darla Jo . . .” She slapped a hand over her mouth.

“Oh, yeah, I’m sure it was Neal. No doubt about it,” Sarah answered and nodded with every word. “The sunlight lit him up real good, and I’d know Darla Jo anywhere. What are we going to do?”

“We have to tell Macy, but we should have proof,” Grace muttered. “Did you think to take a picture with your phone?”

“Nope, I was too stunned. But there was no mistaking that it was him and Darla Jo—or their vehicles, either. She’s been in the shop enough that I could identify that bright blue sports car of hers, and he’s been to the house in his red SUV,” Sarah said. “She’s buried two husbands and gotten rich off each of them. Do you think he’s after her money, or are they in this together and he’s after Macy’s money?”

The heaviness in Grace’s chest was overwhelming to the point that she had to remind herself to take a deep breath. “Why would he need her money? He’s the assistant manager of one of the biggest hotels in San Antonio.”

“Is he, or is he just an employee who has a room so he can be on call 24-7?” Sarah asked. “Do we tell Macy today or do some checking so we have more facts?”

Grace’s nerves got the best of her, and she giggled.

“This is not funny,” Sarah scolded.

“No, it’s not,” Grace agreed. “I was laughing at myself for thinking I’d done so good to offer help to Macy in her Sunday school class. Then I get the props knocked out from under me with this news. I’m so sorry that you’ve had to go through this, Sister. I hope Joel’s wife takes him to the cleaners. I’m not sure if Macy would even believe us if we told her. Maybe we should try to help her find out on her own.”

Sarah nodded. “But we can’t let her buy a dress and flowers, and we’ve got an appointment to look at both at the end of the month.”

“That gives us a little more than two weeks,” Grace said.

Macy had never dated a lot, and until Neal came into her life, she had never been in a serious relationship. Grace couldn’t bear to see her heartbroken.

“I wonder what game he’s playing,” Sarah said. “Why would he string Macy along if he’s planning on going after Darla Jo? And everyone in town knows that Macy is engaged to him, so why is Darla Jo even seeing him? None of it makes a bit of sense.”

“They both came from Houston,” Grace said. “Maybe they knew each other before she moved to Devine and got involved with Wesley and then Henry.”

“And Wesley was barely in the ground when she took up with Henry and wound up inheriting that big ranch of his when he died. I’ve always wondered if she had a list of prospective older guys that she could fleece,” Sarah said. “Do you think Neal is doing what they call a long con?”

Grace shook her head. “Surely not. Why would he be engaged to Macy if he and Darla Jo are getting rich off her husbands?”

“To cover up their relationship,” Sarah suggested.

Grace giggled again. “We’ve both been watching too many cop shows in the evenings. He’s probably just having one last fling before he has to settle down and be a faithful husband.”

Sarah laughed with her. “Look at us—sitting out here, thinking that there’s a real black widow in our little town. Wesley died of a heart attack, and Henry’s diabetes killed him. You’re right. Neal is just having a last fling. You can tell by the way he looks at Macy that he’s in love with her.”

“Let’s go home and get out the rocky road ice cream and two spoons,” Grace suggested. “That will help you get over Joel.”

“It might. Ice cream heals everything from broken hearts to the desire to smother a man with a cheap hotel pillow.” Sarah started up the engine and drove back to the house. “But I’m not sure I’ll ever trust a man again—and in my defense, he wasn’t wearing a ring. He didn’t even have a pale spot where a ring might have been. I always check for that before I even let a man buy me a drink.”

“There are a few good men out there,” Grace said, “but I don’t think they hang out in bars.”

Sarah shook her head slowly and parked in front of the house. “You met Justin at church. Of course, you were both just kids at the time, but still . . .”

“Point taken, but do you realize that Justin and Joel both start with a J? Maybe we should avoid any men from now on that have a J name,” Grace told her as she got out of the truck and made her way to the porch, where Macy was sitting in the swing.

Grace was about to open the front door when Macy called out to her, “Hey, I’m glad y’all are back. I need to talk to you about something really important, and there’s no time like right now to get it off my chest.”

“She knows,” Sarah whispered, so close behind Grace that it startled her. “Can I get a beer first?”

Grace grabbed the handle to the screen door. “And I’d like an iced tea. Do you want one, Macy?”

“I’d love one,” Macy said and flashed a brilliant smile.

“She doesn’t know,” Grace whispered on the way to the kitchen. “If she did, she wouldn’t be smiling like that. She would be crying until her eyes swelled shut.”