If only the Westons and Caines didn’t know each other and didn’t live in the same town. If only the extended family hadn’t reached out to her and made her feel immediately as if she was one of them. If only Parr, the wild card in this confusing game, hadn’t made advances that left her dizzy with desire . . .

Mary Beth forced her thoughts away from her overwhelming memories of him: the sheer physical power of his presence, the brooding darkness of his eyes, the skilled lovemaking of an experienced man who seemed to understand precisely what she craved most—and gave it to her.

No. That had to end. She would not and could not be so influenced by emotion, not when the happiness of others depended on her eventual decision.

“So? What now?” Bobby Joe asked.

She blurted out the first thing that came to her mind. “Maybe we should separate for a few weeks.”

Bobby Joe clutched the steering wheel with a taut-knuckled grip while she waited anxiously for his reply. It wasn’t long in coming.

“That won’t solve a goddamn thing,” he muttered. “Unless you’ve already made up your mind that you want out.”

“No.” Mary Beth stared out the window into the surrounding blackness. “I haven’t.”

Alma stood at the kitchen sink, rinsing the scrubbed dishes and handing them to Howard, who dried and polished them with a tea towel.

“It’s kinda fun doing them the old-fashioned way,” he said.

Alma hmphed. “That’s because there were only two of us eatin’ dinner.”

Howard stacked the clean plates and put them in a cupboard. “Which was excellent. Thank you again.”

“You can cook next time. Heard you know how.”

“Did Mary Beth tell you that?”

“As a matter of fact, she did. She’s proud of your housekeeping accomplishments.”

Howard gave a slight sigh. “Learned the hard way. I was all she had, growing up.”

Alma leaned back against the counter, smoothing her apron for a moment. “How come you never remarried, Howard?”

The older man took a few steps to stand right in front of her. He took her in a loose embrace and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Because you weren’t available.”

That left a lot unsaid as to why. But he knew a fair amount about the scandal that had shattered the Weston family and still haunted her sons. He and Alma were fine with keeping the past in the past.

Alma lifted her rounded arms and draped them over his shoulders. “I am now,” she said with a mischievous gleam in her eye.

Howard laughed and chucked her under the chin. “Aren’t you supposed to be meeting Bobby Joe in a bit?”

She nodded. “Yes. He went out with Mary Beth. Sure hope they’re getting along better than they were.”

“What does he say?”

Alma mimicked her son’s breezy tone. “Everything’s fine.”

“Is it?”