just happened to be one of the biggest names in country music and Kendra was most definitely a fan.
“Well,” Walker said sheepishly, “yeah. But I wasn’t supposed to mention her name.”
Kendra smiled to reassure him. “Your secret is safe with me,” she said lightly, “but the minute Ms. Elder sets foot in Parable, everybody is going to know it. She is, after all, a superstar.”
Walker chuckled. “She considered wearing a disguise,” he admitted.
“A pair of horn-rimmed glasses with a big plastic nose and a mustache attached?” Kendra joked. Then, more seriously, she added, “It must be difficult, being so recognizable.”
“Casey copes with her fame pretty well,” Walker said, while Daisy sat gazing up at him in her usual adoring way. “And I assured her that while she has a big following around here, nobody’s likely to mob her or anything.”
That was true enough. People would be curious about her, especially at first, but if Casey Elder decided to become a permanent part of the community, she’d be welcomed with casseroles and supper invitations, like any other newcomer.
“I take it she liked the pictures you took when we went through the house the other day?” Kendra prompted, wondering about the connection between Walker and Casey and immediately deciding it was none of her business. She certainly wasn’t about to ask.
“She liked them, all right,” Walker answered, looking as though he wanted to say more but wasn’t sure he should.
“You told her the asking price?”
“She didn’t bat an eye,” Walker said with a nod.
He still had that peculiar look on his face.
“Walker,” Kendra nudged, “what is it?”
“Casey’s from Dallas,” he said uneasily. “I’m not sure she understands what it means to live in a small town, even though she writes and sings songs about it all the time.”
Kendra folded her arms, tilted her head to one side and waited. What on earth was going on here?
“Casey and I—” Walker began, stopping to clear his throat. “We have a—complicated relationship.”
So, Kendra thought, my hunch was right. They’re more than just friends.
“No need to explain,” Kendra said briskly.
Walker looked miserably determined to go on. “We were never married—never even involved, really, but—” He paused, swallowed visibly. “But Casey’s kids are both mine.”
Kendra barely kept her mouth from dropping open. What he’d said didn’t surprise her as much as the fact that he’d said it at all. “I don’t—” she began, and then gave up on completing the sentence.
“The thing is, they don’t know it yet,” Walker went on. “The kids, I mean. Casey and I want to break it to them gently, once they’ve gotten settled and everything.”
“It’s a secret, then,” Kendra said quietly.
Walker nodded, shoved a hand through his hair, slapped his hat against his thigh once, lightly. “Nobody else knows,” he said. “Not even Brylee.”
“Then why tell me?”
“I’m not sure,” Walker said, looking flustered. It was odd, seeing him like this, when he was usually so self-possessed.
Kendra made a lip-zipping motion with one hand. “I won’t breathe a word,” she promised.
Walker’s grin was appreciative and she could tell he was relieved. “Thanks,” he said. “Casey will be calling you one day soon. To make an appointment to see the house, I mean.”
“Great,” Kendra said. “I hope she likes it.”
“Me, too,” Walker said very quietly. Almost, Kendra thought, wistfully.
She shook off the romantic notion. Ever since Hutch had kissed her down by Whisper Creek, she’d been prone to overthink the whole concept of love.
Walker started for the door, and Kendra returned to her chair behind her desk, smiled a goodbye when he looked back at her over one broad shoulder.
“Interesting,” she told Daisy, once he’d gone.
Daisy went back under Joslyn’s desk and was soon snoring.
Kendra fidgeted. The urge to call Joslyn or Tara or both of them at once to find out if either of them knew anything about Walker and Casey Elder was strong, but she never really considered giving in to it. After all, she’d promised not to tell what she knew, and if there was one thing Kendra Shepherd believed in, it was keeping promises.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
SATURDAY MORNING ARRIVED right on schedule, although Madison had seemed certain it would somehow be postponed, if not canceled entirely.
The weather was warm and brilliantly sunny, the sky an achy blue that left sweetly tender bruises on Kendra’s heart as she stood at the kitchen sink, her arms plunged into hot, soapy water, gazing out the window as she finished washing the breakfast dishes. By her calculations, two bowls, a couple of spoons and the