Molly’s devilry faded as she saw Kevin jogging toward the Common from the highway. As soon as he’d finished his interviews, he’d changed into a T-shirt and his gray athletic shorts, then taken off. Even when they served breakfast together, he barely spoke to her. As Amy felt duty-bound to point out, he spent more time talking to Charlotte Long than he spent talking to Molly.

All week he’d been killing Lilly with cool politeness, and Lilly had been letting him get away with it. Now, however, she jabbed her trowel in the ground. “You know, Molly, I’ve just about run out of patience with your husband.”

That made two of them.

Molly watched as he slowed to cool off. He bent his head and rested the palms of his hands on the small of his back. Marmie spotted him and stirred in her arms. Molly gazed at the cat resentfully. She was jealous. Jealous of Kevin’s affection for a cat. She remembered the way he stroked Marmie’s fur, those long fingers sinking deep … sliding down her spine … It gave Molly goose bumps.

She realized she was blindly, utterly furious with him! She hated the fact that he’d spent the morning interviewing strangers to take over the campground. And what right did he have to act as if they had a genuine friendship, then dismiss her just because she’d refused to go to bed with him? He might pretend he was angry because of the incident with the canoe, but both of them knew that was a lie.

Impulsively, she turned around and set the cat against the trunk of the linden tree they’d been standing beneath. A squirrel stirred in the branches above. Marmie flicked her tail and began to climb.

Lilly caught the action out of the corner of her eye and spun around. “What are you—”

“You’re not the only one running out of patience!” Molly glanced up to see Marmie scramble higher. Then she called out. “Kevin!”

He looked over.

“We need your help! It’s Marmie!”

He picked up his stride and hurried toward them. “What’s wrong with her?”

She pointed into the linden tree, where Marmie had climbed out on a branch high above the ground. The cat yowled her displeasure as the squirrel scampered from sight.

“She’s stuck and we can’t get her down. The poor thing is terrified.”

Lilly rolled her eyes, but she didn’t say anything.

Kevin gazed up into the tree. “Hey, girl. Come on down.” He extended his arms. “Come here.”

“We’ve been doing that for ages.” Molly eyed his sweat-soaked T-shirt and running shorts. The hair on his bare legs was matted. How could he still look so gorgeous? “I’m afraid you’ll have to climb up after her.” She paused. “Unless you want me to do it.”