When five o’clock finally came, she gathered her things and was grateful that Lydia was on the phone. She gave her a wave as she walked by and went straight to her car without stopping on the way to speak to Gwen or Mia. Normally, she’d pop in and chat for a few minutes, but today she wanted only to get home and make sense of what had happened.

• • •

“Care to tell me again why we packed up in the middle of the night like a bunch of outlaws running for our lives? Don’t get me wrong, I can see you trying to avoid your parents again, but I’ve heard through the family grapevine that they’re out of Myrtle Beach today,” Denny said between mouthfuls of his breakfast. He might be complaining about their last-minute trip, but he was certainly enjoying the food at their hotel.

Mark had opted for just coffee, not feeling up to a large meal this morning. He took his time taking a sip before answering his nosy cousin. “Jacob’s been tied up here for too long. If Williams can’t run this fucking location without having his hand held, then I need to make some changes. We shouldn’t have to constantly bail him out.” Williams was the new general manager and was having issues with those loyal to the one who had been recently terminated. The other manager hadn’t been doing his job, and the company had suffered as a direct result. Mark had given him ample opportunity time and again to get his act together. Yet nothing had ever changed. He’d continued to come in late or not at all, while contracts went unfulfilled. The man was single-handedly ruining the reputation of the DeSanto Group and he had to go. Unfortunately, thanks to his lax work ethic, he was popular with the employees, and they were making it hard for their new boss.

None of it was Cal Williams’s fault, and he was doing a fantastic job while dealing with a lot of hostility. Mark was just frustrated with the world right now and using him as an outlet to deal with it. The look on Denny’s face said that he knew exactly that. “O-kay,” Denny replied, before wiping his mouth and tossing his napkin on the table. “Now that you have that little tirade out of the way, could we possibly get to the real problem? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I like Boston and all. There are some fine-looking women here. But I know you didn’t come to micromanage Jacob or Cal. And since you’ve been ignoring a lot of calls and texts—which you never do—I have to assume that they’re from Crystal. So . . . is there trouble in paradise?”

Sounding completely childish, Mark snapped, “If you weren’t my cousin, I’d fire you so that you could torture someone else for a while.”

“You say that at least once a week.” Denny waved it off. “It’s still hurtful, but the threat doesn’t hold much water,” he added with a smirk. “Now, what’s the problem with your girlfriend? God, I can’t believe I’m using the G word in relation to a woman in your life.”

Mark listened to him rattle on about the shock of him actually seeing someone for more than a few hours. He had to give the man credit, though: even as shitty as his current mood was, he was fighting a smile by the time Denny ran out of steam. Then he found himself opening his mouth and saying more than he’d planned. “I found out that Crystal’s been going to marriage counseling with her ex-husband while we’ve been together. And I had to learn this from my mother, while my dad looked at me in pity when it became obvious I didn’t have a clue.”

“Pardon?” Denny choked out. “Holy crap, that’s creative even for them. You’re not seriously buying into that, are you? They’re probably just worried that you’ll get married, pop out some kids, and not have enough money to support them.”

“Oh, it’s true enough.” Mark grimaced. “They had Oliver use Craig at DeSanto to run a background check on Crystal.” Her name felt strange on his tongue, and the lift of Denny’s brow told him that he’d caught the fact that he hadn’t called her “Angel” as he normally did.

“I’m guessing Craig is looking for another job this morning?” Denny asked, knowing how Mark would feel about an employee invading his privacy.

“Within an hour of their departure last night, Craig was fired,” Mark confirmed. “I spoke to him, and he didn’t bother to deny it. He admitted that he knew it was wrong, and he should have gone to his supervisor when the request was made. If I wanted to dig into the private life of the woman I’m seeing, I damn sure wouldn’t have someone who worked for me do it. No doubt, that shit has probably already made the rounds by now.”

Looking confused, Denny said, “Let’s get back to Crystal. Have you asked her what’s going on? Because I find it really hard to believe that she’s trying to reconcile with her ex. That woman is crazy about you.”

“You think so?” Mark asked before he could stop himself. Shit, he sounded like some lovesick teenager. Maybe he could send her a note asking if she liked him and ask her to check the box for yes or no.

“Hell yes, I do,” Denny stated firmly. “What did she say when you asked her about it?”

Mark shifted uncomfortably in his seat before admitting, “I haven’t talked to her about it yet.”

Denny looked at him incredulously before putting both of his hands on the table as if to brace himself. “So let me get this straight. You found out about this last night. Freaked the fuck out. Packed your shit and left the state. Is that an accurate assessment?”

Suddenly becoming fascinated with his coffee cup, Mark stared into it while muttering, “Pretty close.”