Widow's Secrets

by Shelley Shepard Gray

  She took it, once again realizing that no one had ever treated her like he did. It wasn’t so much the compliments and flowers as much as knowing that she mattered.

  And Liana couldn’t deny it—she loved that she mattered to him.

  He kept her hand encased in his, using his other to close her door and click the lock with his key fob. “So what’s the plan?”

  “First, find Serena. Second, talk her out of making me give a speech.”

  “Sounds good.”

  “That’s it?”

  Kent looked at her in confusion. “What do you mean?”

  “Come on. You usually have so much to say about everything. I thought you were going to give me tons of tips all night.”

  “Nope. I have lots to say about police work. Precious little about gallery openings—especially not to the talented artist herself.”

  “Thanks.”

  “No problem.” He leaned closer. “Besides, I’ll have you know that I’m already feeling pretty great about tonight.”

  “Why is that?”

  He lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed her knuckles. “Because I’m with the prettiest girl in the room. You look beautiful, Liana. I promise.”

  She was so touched, she didn’t even bother to remind him that they were just friends. “Not waiter-like?”

  “Oh, absolutely like a waiter. No doubt about that. But you’re the prettiest one around.”

  Her bark of laughter floated to the door he opened, causing several people to look their way. The ladies smiled at her.

  Liana smiled back.

  Then couldn’t help but giggle as she caught sight of Serena, who was gaping at her like she’d seen a ghost. After whispering something to the man she was talking to, she rushed forward, her dark black hair swishing along the middle of her back and contrasting with the red satin fabric of her dress.

  “Liana Mann! You’re here!”

  And just like that, the room went silent. She could practically feel every pair of eyes focus on her. She felt her hand shake and hated herself right then for showing up.

  Then, just as she was about to whisper to Kent to get her out of there, the whole room erupted into applause.

  Every person was clapping.

  “Look at that,” Kent whispered. “That’s for you.”

  She was stunned. “I don’t know what to do.”

  “Stand and smile and take it in. You’ve earned it.”

  She couldn’t think of anything to say to that, but she supposed it didn’t matter because Serena was enfolding her in her arms. “Thank you, Liana. Thank you so much. You being here is amazing. No, it’s better than that. It’s...it’s everything!”

  When she pulled back, Liana was caught off guard by the emotion in her friend’s eyes. Serena really wasn’t exaggerating. She was ecstatic about Li being there. “I almost asked Kent to turn around but he convinced me to be brave,” she confided.

  “No, Liana decided that on her own.” He held his hand out. “Kent Olson. Pleasure to meet you.”

  “I’m Serena Ketels, and it’s very nice to meet you, too.”

  “Are you ever going to let this lady loose so we can talk to her, Serena?” an elderly man asked.

  “One second, Frank.” Turning to Liana again, Serena lowered her voice. “I’m thrilled you’re here, but I don’t want you to be miserable. How do you want to handle this? You can visit with people or talk for ten or fifteen minutes about your work to everyone.”

  “Which is easier?”

  “The talk will get almost everything out of the way, while the chatting would take longer but is kind of fun. It’s up to you.”

  Looking at the couple waiting so expectantly, she realized that she wouldn’t be able to simply walk away. “I guess I’ll chat.”

  “Okay, I’ll announce that.”

  Suddenly everything—her art on the walls, the fact that there were a ton of people all staring at her, even this elderly man named Frank who seemed ready to ask her a ton of questions—all seemed so real. “Will you stay nearby?”

  “I will...but I’m also going to be selling paintings.”

  “I won’t leave your side, Liana,” Kent whispered.

  When she smiled up at him and spied the assurance in his blue eyes, she felt her whole body relax. That was when she knew that while she might be Kent’s key to a cold case he was desperate to solve, and they might be friends, there was something far more between them than those two things.

  For better or worse, Kent had become very important to her. So important that she wasn’t going to ever want to let him go.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Kent was so proud of her. During the past two hours, Liana had talked to dozens of strangers about her paintings. She posed for pictures with them. She talked about her inspiration for different works and didn’t so much as hesitate when asked to write a personal message on the back of a canvas to several buyers.

  Little by little, she’d come into her own—at least Kent thought so. At first, she’d looked petrified and constantly seemed to glance his way, to make sure that he hadn’t left her side. But he’d meant what he’d promised. He’d hovered and been ready to help her out if someone asked anything too intrusive.

  But Liana hadn’t needed him.

  Serena had stayed close, too, though she’d been actively selling paintings like the pro that she was. Not that it seemed to be too hard to make sales. Everyone in attendance was enthralled by Liana’s work and acted as if the opportunity to actually speak to her about her paintings was an amazing gift.

  By the second hour, Liana had relaxed enough to sip on some peppermint tea he’d found for her. Her smile appeared more easily, and her replies to customers’ questions sounded less forced.

  Then, true to her word, Serena closed the show promptly at nine o’clock. When the last couple was leaving—after buying two of her largest canvases—Liana whispered that she had to run to the bathroom.

  Glad to take a breather, he walked around the room, taking notice of the bright gold SOLD signs that were now attached to over half of the canvases. Given the prices they were marked at, Kent figured Liana had just made an amazing amount of money.

  It was incredible.

  “Kent, I’d marry you if I could,” Serena declared after locking the front door.

  “I’m flattered, but I don’t think your offer has much to do with my good looks and charm as much as the company I keep.”

  She grinned at him appreciatively. “Though you aren’t anything to sneeze at, you would be right. I’m forever in your debt because you were able to get Liana here. You have no idea how surprised I was to see her.”

  No way was he going to take so much credit. “Liana wanted to come.”

  “Ah, we both know that she did not.”

  “Okay, how about this... I think she was finally curious enough about the show to not fight too hard about coming. She did great, too.”

  Serena broke into a wide smile. “Liana did better than great. She was so down-to-earth and humble, everyone was completely charmed. They fell in love with her at first sight.” Looking at the many paintings with sold signs, she added, “And they showed their appreciation with their pocketbooks.”

  Kent couldn’t deny that he was slightly shocked by Liana’s success. “I had no idea she was so well-known.”

  “That’s the thing. She isn’t well-known, but her work is well loved. There’s a difference, you know. Plus, she’s fabulous.”

  “She is that.”

  “Are you two talking about me?” Liana asked as she joined them.

  “We absolutely are,” Serena said. “How could we not? You were the star of the show tonight.”

  Liana’s cheeks pinkened as she shook her head like she was a little dazed. “I still don’t know what to think about it all. You
were incredible, Serena. I’m glad I got to see you in action. And I feel pretty bad that I wasn’t here before.”

  Smiling at Kent, Serena said, “Actually, I think it was better that you weren’t. Everyone felt like they were attending a really special event. There’s a time and a place for everything, Liana. I think this just happened to be your night.”

  “Maybe so.”

  Serena darted a look from Kent to Liana and back again. “Any chance one of you wants to tell me what is going on with you two?”

  “Nope,” Kent said.

  “We’re just friends,” Liana murmured.

  “Oh, obviously.”

  As Liana picked up a pair of clear plastic cups, Serena practically batted her hand away. “No, you don’t. I’m going to do the cleanup. You two um, good friends can get on your way.”

  “We can’t leave you with this mess,” Liana protested.

  “I agree,” Kent said. “You’ve got to be as tired as Liana.”

  Serena tossed a chunk of her dark hair over one shoulder. “If you think tonight has worn me out, you’ve got a big surprise coming your way. I haven’t felt so jazzed in weeks. I’ll be fine. I won’t be able to sleep for another couple of hours even if I tried.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’ve got some help coming in early tomorrow. They’re going to help me crate and ship paintings to some and hand deliver the others. Along the way we’re going to be cleaning. I promise I’ve got it covered.” She made a shooing motion with her hands. “That means the two of you need to get on out of here and go celebrate.”

  Kent thought that was a great idea. “What do you think, Liana? Are you ready to sit down and relax for a bit?”

  “I guess so. You might not be tired, but I feel like I just ran a marathon.”

  “Be careful going out. It’s usually pretty safe around here, but every once in a while someone is lurking.”

  “Kent’s a cop. We’ll be fine.”

  Serena raised her eyebrows. “Is that right? Now, isn’t this a night for surprises?”

  Kent didn’t even want to try to decipher that comment. “I’d feel better if we stayed and I walked you out, too.”

  “Thanks, but I’ve got a guy who’s a friend, too. He’s coming to pick me up in an hour.” She held up a hand. “I promise.”

  Feeling like he’d done as much as he could for Serena, he turned to Liana. “Ready to take off?”

  “Almost.” She hugged Serena tight. “Thank you so much for everything. I know there’s more to say but I have no words.”

  “Given it’s you, sweetheart, I’d say that’s no surprise. Take care of our girl,” she said to Kent after she shook his hand. “She’s pretty special.”

  “Always,” he murmured as he took Liana’s hand and led her outside. He smiled to himself, enjoying the way she still seemed to be in a little dream world.

  After helping her buckle up and then getting in on his side, he leaned over and kissed her lightly.

  Her eyes widened. “What was that for?”

  “No reason. It was just um...a friendship kiss.”

  She giggled. “Yes, I’m sure there are some friends who kiss all the time.” Yawning, she leaned back in her seat as he pulled out of the parking lot. “I’m too tired to argue about that...especially since I’m so glad you made me do this and that you stayed by my side.”

  “I didn’t want to be anywhere else. Promise. Now, since it’s half past nine, our choices for dinner are pretty limited. What are you hungry for?”

  “Any kind of fast food is fine.”

  “Are you sure?” He was pretty certain that the last time he’d bought a date fast food he’d been in high school.

  “Of course.” She smiled at him. “I’m not picky.”

  Deciding that she might not be picky but she was probably starving, he pulled over to the first place he saw—the inevitable golden arches. It was late enough that only the drive through was available. Instead of apologizing again, he went with it and asked what she wanted, then ordered two of everything.

  Then he pulled into one of the many empty parking spaces, handed her a soda and started pulling out burgers and fries.

  “Oh, yum,” she said just before taking a big bite.

  He laughed, thinking that her appreciation echoed his own to a T. “This does taste pretty good.”

  “I think all that nervous energy got the best of me. This tastes so good.”

  She wasn’t wrong. Ten minutes later he tossed their trash in a receptacle and headed back on the highway.

  Next to him Liana looked completely relaxed and sated. So much so that he decided to finally ask her something that had been bugging him ever since he’d realized just how successful she’d been that evening.

  “Hey, Li?”

  “Hmm?”

  “Why aren’t you doing this full-time?”

  “Doing what? Sitting in the passenger seat while you drive me around places?”

  “You know what I mean. Painting. You obviously love it, and you’ve got a lot of people who love your work. And you make good money.”

  Her lazy countenance evaporated into wariness. “I don’t—”

  “Come on. I know you know how much those paintings are going for.”

  “Tonight was a fluke.”

  Was she in denial or just extremely modest? Or maybe the reality was that she didn’t want to discuss it with him. Thinking that was most likely the case, he nodded. “Oh, okay. Your exit is up ahead.”

  Taking the exit, he veered right and headed down the state highway toward her home. Even though it was just a little after ten o’clock, the road was essentially deserted.

  The car was dark. Only passing headlights and an occasional streetlamp illuminated her face. He would have loved to get a feel for what she was thinking. But maybe he should be grateful for her secrets. He was in no position to give her advice, especially since she wasn’t asking for it in the first place.

  No, what he should have done was keep his mouth shut. Thinking of his arrogance, of the way he’d almost ruined his career, Kent felt his cheeks burn. When was he going to learn to listen? The Lord was probably wondering that exact same thing, as well.

  “I’m afraid.”

  The words seemed so bare, vulnerable, maybe even more forceful in the dark.

  His mouth went dry as he weighed different responses. But since none of them would do, he elected to simply speak from his heart.

  “I understand.”

  “You do?”

  “Well, I know what it’s like to be afraid. Fear is pretty hard to overcome, hard to ignore. I’d say it’s pretty powerful.”

  “It is.” When he kept silent, she added, “Sometimes, when I’m really being honest with myself, I know what the root of it is.”

  “What?”

  He could almost see her lick her bottom lip. Glance at him warily...analyze the pros and cons of trusting him.

  “I’m afraid to believe in myself,” she said at last.

  “I’ve had that same fear,” he admitted.

  “Really? How did you make peace with it?”

  How? He was currently working in the basement of the police department, unsure if he was ever going to have what it took to claw his way out. He was constantly comparing himself to his father and knowing that he would never be as good, respected or smart.

  Now, as he tried so hard to improve his reputation, what did he do? He was starting to fall for the one woman he shouldn’t. Worse, he was afraid to tell her all that on the chance that she would decide she didn’t want another thing to do with him.

  “I haven’t,” he said at last. “I haven’t made peace with a thing. But I believe hope is powerful.”

  “Hope is everything, Kent.”

  They rode in silence the rest of the way t
o her house.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Liana supposed there wasn’t a good time to eat a half-thawed chocolate cake, but eleven at night after a quarter pounder with cheese and fries was likely one of the worst.

  Sitting on her living room couch, balancing the paper tray the Pepperidge Farm chocolate cake rested on with her left hand and holding a fork in her right, she refused to feel guilty or ashamed. It was just cake.

  As she speared another bite and popped it into her mouth, Liana closed her eyes and simply enjoyed the rich taste. She’d bought the treat when she’d realized that she had a coupon and the cake was on sale. It had been an impulse buy. Now she was pretty sure it was one of the best decisions she’d ever made.

  At the very least, it was sure helping her get through a bout of insomnia. She rarely had trouble sleeping—a side effect of working in a busy diner all day—but every once in a blue moon, sleep remained elusive. Tonight was one of those nights. Deciding to accept it instead of toss and turn in her bed, she’d pulled out that cake from the freezer and set herself up on the couch. She’d flipped channels on her TV until she found some reruns of an old show from the nineties for background noise.

  Now she was consuming a thousand calories while she stewed on the night’s events. How had her special evening ended on such a sad note?

  Maybe it was that she’d felt so exposed. Very few people in her personal life knew about her painting. And of the people who did, only she and Serena knew just how successful her paintings had been.

  But now there were three people.

  When Kent had asked why she didn’t just quit her job and only paint, she’d been caught off guard. She hadn’t expected him to ask such a thing...mainly because she hadn’t had the nerve to ask herself that question.

  But now that it had been uttered—and she’d been brave enough to say she was afraid—Liana felt like it was time to finally consider why she was so scared in the first place. Was she afraid that her paintings’ popularity was just a fluke? Or maybe she didn’t want to leave her friends at work?

  Or did her reluctance to follow her dreams stem from something far bigger? Had she been living like a cold case in the police station’s basement?