Eli said no more. He retreated to his office and closed the door.

Spent the next twenty minutes rereading the printouts, scouring every email, every post.

Something nibbled at the edge of his mind, just out of reach.

What was it?

What was he missing?

He finally gave up, went back to the front office, poured himself a cup of coffee.

“Why the frown?” Connie asked.

He told her.

There was something there, in the Freddie-Tiffany situation, that he couldn’t get hold of.

“Relax,” Connie said. “Let it come to you.”

That was good advice, Eli supposed.

If only he could follow it.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

THE ART FRENZY lasted until after dark, when Waldo eased through the partially open bedroom door and, purring, curled himself around Brynne’s ankles as if peeling an orange in reverse. His whiskers tickled her bare feet.

He was definitely hungry.

Brynne glanced at her phone, propped on the dresser top, and realized two things—time had definitely gotten away from her, and several texts had come in while she was working.

Quitting time.

She dropped her brushes into a plastic coffee container filled with water and reserved for the purpose, letting them soak until she could clean them properly. Unlike watercolors, acrylic paints couldn’t be washed away in the sink without catastrophic damage to the plumbing.

Making her way toward the kitchen, careful not to trip over a still-winding cat, Brynne cleaned her hands with disposable wipes, then washed them under running water.

She fed Waldo and refilled his water bowl, then returned to her improvised studio to reclaim her phone with clean hands.

While deciding what she wanted for dinner, she thumbed open the texts and read them in order.

From Clay: Brynne, I’m sorry for dropping in unexpectedly the way I did. I just wanted to see for myself if you were open to giving things a second try. Clearly, you aren’t, and I’ll respect your wishes. Again, I apologize for intruding in your life.

From Sara: If you need to talk, I’m here.

From Davey: Dad says he came to visit you and you weren’t happy to see him so he’s going to leave you alone from here on out. Will you still be happy to see Maddie and me, if we come to spend part of spring vacation with you?

Finally, from Eli: I was wrong, and I’m sorry.

Tears burned behind Brynne’s eyes, and she pressed her lips together to keep from breaking down again.

She brewed a cup of tea, plunked herself down at the table, and pressed the buttons that would connect her with Clay.

He sounded confused when he answered, “Brynne?”

“You’re right,” she said, not unkindly. “It’s over between us. I appreciate your apology, but I think I need to say sorry, too. You caught me off guard, and I reacted like a crazy person.”