Chapter 52

fifty-two

BEN

I was soldering a silver ring when someone knocked on my cottage's front door. Turning off the butane torch, I checked my watch. Jonathon and Paul weren't supposed to be here for another hour and the guests staying in Acorn Cottage wouldn't be back until later tonight. If the person standing on my veranda wanted to sell me something, they'd be disappointed.

For the last two weeks, I'd spent all my time in my studio, trying to keep up with the orders that had flooded in after the award ceremony. Elijah Lewis, the woman I'd met at LaGuardia Airport, was working in my jewelry store. Without having to go into town, I'd been able to get through a lot more work. Unfortunately, that meant I hadn't spent a lot of time with my friends.

The person knocked again, and I sighed. Taking off my safety glasses, I quickly walked through the living room and opened the front door. "Dylan?"

"That's me."

Dylan's wide grin made me smile. I hugged my friend tight. "It's good to see you, but you weren't supposed to arrive home until tomorrow. Is everything all right?"

"Everything's fine. One of Alex's friends called a couple of days ago and asked if Alex could help with an IT issue. We'd had a great honeymoon and were ready to come home, anyway. So we packed our bags and here I am."

"Come inside. Do you have time for a cup of coffee?"

"I'd love one. Paris was amazing, but I couldn't find decent coffee anywhere. What have you been doing while I was away?"

I took two cups out of a cupboard. "I'm not sure where to begin."

"I saw Jonathon before I came here. He told me you went to Manhattan to accept the Wilson Award. When did you decide to go?"

"After your wedding, Daniel asked if I'd create an exclusive range of jewelry for his company. One of the conditions of the contract was that I attend the awards ceremony."

Dylan's eyes widened. "You're working for Wilson Enterprises? That's fantastic! It'll make a huge difference to your career." He studied my face and frowned. "Or maybe not. Has something else happened?"

"The man who accused Dad of stealing his designs was working for Daniel when he made the complaint. Wilson Enterprises paid his legal expenses even though they knew the chance of winning the case was remote."

Dylan sat on a kitchen stool. "How did you find that out?"

"A reporter asked me some questions at the awards ceremony. The only reason Daniel employed me was because he felt guilty about what happened to Dad."

"Did he tell you that?"

I handed Dylan a cup of coffee. "No, but he might as well have. He's rebranding his company. He wanted to use my face and jewelry to attract different people to his online store."

"That happens all the time."

"Except you usually tell the person what you're doing. He knew I didn't want to have my photo everywhere. Even going to the award ceremony as B.J. Davis was a big risk."

"Because of your dad?"

I nodded.

"You said a reporter was asking you questions. What did they do with the information?"

"She was going to publish a story, but nothing has appeared in the paper or online."

"Have you spoken to Daniel?"

"There's no point." I hadn't seen or spoken to him since the award night. I thought he was the man I could have spent the rest of my life with. But I couldn't trust him and no amount of talking would change that.

"Daniel seemed like a nice person. Look at what he did for the tiny home village. Without his company's support, the church wouldn't have anywhere to build the houses. And he spent a fortune at the auction for The Welcome Center. You don't do things like that unless you want to make a difference."

"He has lots of money and he knew both projects are important to me. Daniel probably thought he would have a better chance of working with me if he showed an interest in what I was doing."

Dylan frowned. "That doesn't sound like the man I met. Are you sure you aren't overreacting?"

"I wish I was." Daniel's enthusiasm for both projects didn't make sense unless he had an ulterior motive. I just hoped he knew what a difference his company was making in Sunrise Bay. "Tell me about your honeymoon. Did you go to the top of the Eiffel Tower and eat baguettes filled with French cheese on the Champs-élysées?"

The worry on Dylan's face was replaced with a smile. "We did. You should have seen our honeymoon suite. It was huge and filled with beautiful furniture and the biggest bed I've ever seen."

"It sounds wonderful."

"It was, but the best thing was spending time with Alex. He's a wonderful man. And in case you need reminding, so is Daniel."

I shook my head. "I thought he was, but I was wrong."

"Before you write him off completely, talk to Pastor Adam. I think you might be surprised by what he has to say."

"When did you see Adam?"

"He was on the same flight as Alex and me. For the last couple of days, he's been in New York City, talking to investors about the tiny home village."

"Did he say how it went?"

"Talk to Adam. He'll have the answers to the questions I can see buzzing around in your head."

I did have questions, but they all involved one man. And it wasn't Pastor Adam.