Later that evening, as the fog thickened into a soupy mess, Rodney Hopper decided that the Lawson Plantation looked like it was about to host a Barry Manilow concert.

 

For the last twenty minutes, he’d been directing the traffic into parking spots and watching in disbelief at the procession excitedly making its way toward the door. To this point, he’d seen Drs. Benson and Tricket, Albert the dentist, all eight members of the town council, including Tully and Jed, the mayor and the staff from the Chamber of Commerce, the entire school board, all nine county commissioners, the volunteers from the Historical Society, three accountants, the entire crew from Herbs, the bartender from Lookilu, the barber, and even Toby, who emptied septic tanks for a living but looked remarkably spiffy nonetheless. Lawson Plantation wasn’t even this crowded during the Christmas season, when the place was decorated to the nines and free to the public on the first Friday in December.

 

Tonight wasn’t the same. This wasn’t a celebration where friends and acquaintances got together to enjoy each other’s company before the hectic holiday rush. This was a party meant to honor someone who had nothing to do with the town and didn’t give a damn about this place. Even worse, though Rodney was here on official business, he suddenly knew he shouldn’t have bothered ironing his shirt and polishing his shoes, since he doubted that Lexie would even notice.

 

He knew all about it. After Doris had gone back to Herbs to get the cooking under way, the mayor had rolled in and mentioned the awful news about Jeremy and Lexie, and Rachel had called him straightaway. Rachel, he thought, was sweet in that way and always had been. She knew how he felt about Lexie and didn’t tease him like a lot of other folks did. Anyway, he got the impression that she wasn’t all that thrilled, either, with the idea of them showing up together. But Rachel was better at hiding her feelings than he was, and right now he wished he were somewhere else. Everything about tonight left him feeling lousy.

 

Especially the way the whole town was acting. By his reckoning, folks around here hadn’t been this excited about the town’s prospects since the Raleigh News & Observer had sent a reporter to do a story about Jumpy Walton, who was attempting to build a replica of the Wright Brothers’ plane, one he planned to fly in commemoration of the hundredth anniversary of aviation at Kitty Hawk. Jumpy, who’d always had a couple of screws loose, had long claimed to be nearly finished with the replica, but when he opened the barn doors to proudly show how far he’d gotten, the reporter realized that Jumpy didn’t have the slightest clue about what he was doing. In the barn, the replica looked like a giant, crooked version of a barbed-wire and plywood chicken.

 

And now the town was placing its bets on the existence of ghosts in the cemetery and that the city boy would bring the world to their doorstep because of them. Rodney strongly doubted it. And besides, he didn’t honestly care if the world came or not, as long as Lexie stayed part of his world.

 

Across town and at about the same time, Lexie stepped onto her porch just as Jeremy was coming up the walkway with a small bouquet of wildflowers in hand. Nice touch, she thought, and she suddenly hoped he couldn’t tell how frazzled she’d been until just a few minutes ago.

 

Being a woman was challenging sometimes, and tonight had been rougher than most. First, of course, there was the question of whether this was even an actual date. Granted, it was closer to a date than what had gone on at lunch, but it wasn’t exactly a romantic dinner for two, and she wasn’t sure whether she would have even consented to something like that. Then there was the whole image question and how she wanted to be perceived, not only by Jeremy but by everyone else who would see them together. Add the fact that she was most comfortable when she wore jeans and had no intention of showing any cleavage, and the whole thing became so confusing that she’d finally just thrown in the towel. In the end, she’d decided to go with a professional look: brown pantsuit with an ivory blouse.

 

But here he comes waltzing up in his Johnny Cash look, as if he hadn’t given the evening a second thought.

 

“You found the place,” Lexie observed.

 

“It wasn’t too hard,” Jeremy said. “You showed me where you lived when we were on Riker’s Hill, remember?” He offered the flowers. “Here. These are for you.”

 

She smiled as she took them, looking absolutely lovely. Sexy, too, of course. But “lovely” seemed more appropriate.

 

“Thank you,” she said. “How’d the diary search go?”

 

“Okay,” he said. “Nothing too spectacular in the ones I’ve looked through so far.”

 

“Just give it a chance,” she said with a smile. “Who knows what you’ll find?” She raised the bouquet to her nose. “These are beautiful, by the way. Give me a second to put them in a vase, grab a long coat, and then I’ll be ready.”

 

He opened his palms. “I’ll wait here.”

 

A couple of minutes later in the car, they were driving through town in the opposite direction from the cemetery. As the fog continued to thicken, Lexie directed Jeremy along the back roads until they came to a long winding drive, bordered on both sides by oaks that looked as if they’d been planted a hundred years ago. Though he couldn’t see the house, he slowed the car as he approached a towering hedge that he assumed lined a circular drive. He leaned over the steering wheel, wondering which way to turn.

 

“You might want to consider parking here,” Lexie suggested. “I doubt if you’ll find something any closer, and besides, you’ll want to be able to get out of here later when you need to.”

 

“Are you sure? We can’t even see the house yet.”

 

“Trust me,” she said. “Why do you think I brought the long coat?”

 

He debated only for an instant before deciding, Why not? And a moment later, they were walking up the drive, Lexie doing her best to keep the jacket pinched together. They followed the curve of the drive near the hedge, and all at once, the old Georgian mansion stood in blazing glory before them.

 

The house, however, wasn’t the first thing Jeremy noticed. What he saw first were the cars. Scores of cars, parked haphazardly, noses pointing in every direction as if planning a fast getaway. Numerous others were either circling the mayhem and flashing their brake lights or trying to squeeze into improbably tiny spaces.

 

Jeremy halted, staring at the scene.

 

“I thought this was supposed to be a little get-together with friends.”

 

Lexie nodded. “This is the mayor’s version of a little get-together. You have to remember, he knows practically everyone in the county.”

 

“And you knew this was coming?”

 

“Of course.”

 

“Why didn’t you tell me it would be like this?”

 

“Like I keep telling you, you keep forgetting to ask. And besides, I thought you knew.”

 

“How could I have known he was planning something like this?”

 

She smiled, looking toward the house. “It is kind of impressive, isn’t it? Not that I think you necessarily deserve it.”

 

He grunted in amusement. “You know, I’ve really come to appreciate your southern charm.”

 

“Thank you. And don’t worry about tonight. It’s not going to be as stressful as you think. Everyone’s friendly, and when in doubt, just remember that you’re the guest of honor.”

 

Doris had to be the single most organized and efficient caterer in the world, Rachel thought, since this whole thing had been pulled off without a hitch and with plenty of time to spare. Instead of having to dish up food all night, Rachel was wiggling through the crowds in her best imitation Chanel party dress when she spotted Rodney walking up to the porch.

 

With his neatly pressed uniform, she thought he looked quite official, like a marine in one of those old World War II posters in the VFW building on Main Street. Most of the other deputies carried a few too many chicken wings and Budweisers around the midsection, but in his off-hours, Rodney pumped iron in his garage gym. He kept the garage door open, and sometimes on her way home from work, she’d stop and visit with him for a while, like the old friends that they were. As little kids, they’d been neighbors, and her mother had pictures of them bathing in the tub together. Most old friends couldn’t say that.

 

She took a tube of lipstick from her purse and dabbed at her lips, conscious of the soft spot she had for him. Oh, they’d gone their separate ways for a while, but in the last couple of years, things had been changing. Two summers ago, they’d ended up sitting near each other at the Lookilu, and she’d seen his expression as he watched a newscast about a young boy who had died in a tragic fire in Raleigh. Seeing his eyes well up over the loss of a stranger had affected her in a way she hadn’t expected. She’d noticed it a second time last Easter, when the Sheriff’s Department sponsored the town’s official egg hunt at the Masonic Lodge and he’d pulled her aside to tell her some of the trickier places in which he’d hidden the goodies. He’d looked more excited than the children, which made for a funny contrast with his bulging biceps, and she remembered thinking to herself that he’d be the kind of father who would make any wife proud.

 

Looking back, she supposed that was the moment she realized that her feelings for Rodney had changed. It wasn’t that she fell in love with him right then and there, but it was the moment when she realized that she’d stopped believing the possibility to be nil. Not that it was likely, though. Rodney was over the moon for Lexie. Always had been, always would be, and Rachel had long since come to the conclusion that nothing would ever change the way he felt about her. There were times when it wasn’t easy, and there were times when it didn’t bother her at all, but lately, she admitted that the times it didn’t bother her were fewer and further between.

 

Pushing through the crowd, she wished she hadn’t brought up the subject of Jeremy Marsh at lunch. She should have known what was bothering Rodney. By now, it seemed, the entire town was talking about Lexie and Jeremy, starting with the grocer who had sold them their lunch and spreading like fire once the mayor made his announcement. She would still like to go to New York, but as she’d mentally replayed her conversation with Jeremy, she’d gradually come to the realization that he might have simply been making conversation and not extending an invitation. Sometimes she read too much into situations like that.

 

But Jeremy Marsh was just so . . . perfect.

 

Cultured, intelligent, charming, famous, and, best of all, not from here. There was no way Rodney could compete with that, and she had the sinking suspicion that Rodney knew it, too. But Rodney, on the other hand, was here and didn’t plan to leave, which was a different sort of an advantage, if one chose to see it that way. And, she had to admit, he was responsible and good-looking, too, in his own way.

 

“Hey, Rodney,” she said, smiling.

 

Rodney glanced over his shoulder. “Oh, hey, Rach. How are you?”

 

“Good, thanks. Some party, huh?”

 

“It’s great,” he said, not hiding the sarcasm in his voice. “How’s it going inside?”

 

“Pretty good. They just got the banner up.”

 

“Banner?’

 

“Sure. The one welcoming him to town. His name is in big blue letters and everything.”

 

Rodney exhaled, his chest collapsing slightly. “Great,” he said again.

 

“You should see what else the mayor has in store for him. Not only the banner and the food, but he had a key to the city made.”

 

“I heard,” Rodney said.

 

“And the Mahi-Mahis are here, too,” she continued, referring to a barbershop quartet. Local citizens, they’d been singing together for forty-three years, and even though two of the members had to use walkers and one had a nervous twitch that forced him to sing with his eyes closed, they were nonetheless the most famous entertainers within a hundred miles.

 

“Swell,” Rodney said again.

 

His tone gave her pause for the first time. “I guess you don’t want to hear about any of that, though, huh?”

 

“No, not really.”

 

“Why did you come, then?”

 

“Tom talked me into it. One day I’m going to figure out where he’s coming from before he opens his mouth.”

 

“It won’t be so bad,” she said. “I mean, you’ve seen how people are tonight. Everyone wants to talk to him. It’s not like he and Lexie can hole up in some corner somewhere. I’ll bet you ten to one they won’t even be able to say more than ten words to each other all night. And, just to let you know, I saved a plate of food for you, if you don’t have a chance to get anything to eat.”

 

Rodney hesitated for a moment before smiling. Rachel always looked out for him.

 

“Thanks, Rach.” For the first time, he noticed what she was wearing, his eyes alighting on the little gold hoops in her ears. He added, “You look nice tonight.”

 

“Thank you.”

 

“You want to keep me company for a while?”

 

She smiled. “I’d like that.”

 

Jeremy and Lexie wove through the mass of parked cars, their breaths coming out in little puffs as they neared the mansion. On the steps up ahead, Jeremy saw one couple after another pausing at the door before going inside, and it took just an instant to recognize Rodney Hopper standing near the door. Rodney saw Jeremy at the same time, and his smile immediately changed into a scowl. Even from a distance, he looked large, jealous, and, most important, armed, none of which made Jeremy feel particularly comfortable.

 

Lexie followed his gaze. “Oh, don’t worry about Rodney,” she said. “You’re with me.”

 

“That’s what I’m worried about,” he said. “I kind of get the feeling he isn’t all that happy that we showed up together.”

 

She knew Jeremy was right, although she was thankful that Rachel was beside the deputy. Rachel always had a way of keeping Rodney calm, and Lexie had long thought that she’d be perfect for him. She hadn’t, however, figured out a way of spelling it out for him without hurting his feelings. It wasn’t the sort of thing she could bring up while they were dancing at the Shriners’ Benefit Ball, was it?

 

“If it’ll make you feel better, just let me do the talking,” she said.

 

“I was planning on it.”

 

Rachel brightened when she saw them coming up the steps.