Talking to the source of all information Coleman-related had been simultaneously useful and piqued Laurel’s curiosity even further.
Why had Dana acted so strangely? Especially considering the most recent thing Mark had done was give Becky a fresh start after escaping a bad situation.
Laurel marched in Allison’s front door, kicked off her boots, and headed straight to the kitchen. “I got your stuff, and I want to gossip.”
Her sister-in-law’s dark eyes sparkled with mischief as she rose from where she’d been sitting on the couch, baby in her lap and four-year-old Micah stacking toys on the coffee table. “It’s good to know you’ve finally been totally corrupted.”
“Ha. If you think this is a recent event, you obviously weren’t paying attention back when Rafe and I were constantly seated outside the principal’s office.” Allison went to put Ariel in the playpen at the edge of the kitchen, but Laurel held out her arms. “Here. Give her to me. Auntie needs some lovin’.”
The little girl’s blondish curls stuck up every direction, and Laurel settled the one-year-old in her lap and smoothed her fingers through the soft tangles.
Allison went to unpack the groceries. “Who’s the topic of gossip?”
“Mom. Our mom—Dana. Oops.” Her phone buzzed in her pocket, and Laurel wiggled to grab it. “That should be an update from Jaxi.”
Allison had her phone out as well. “I got it. Baby girl for Becky and Trevor. I’m so glad for them.”
“Me too.” A small knot inside her tightened, but Laurel pushed the feelings aside, squeezing Ariel a little closer and concentrating on how good the news was. “Becky deserves all the joy possible.”
“Agreed.” Allison put her fists on her hips. “Now, take a step back. You want to gossip about Mom? What did she do? You never gossip about Dana, which I figured meant you’ve got the constitution of a saint, considering you live together.”
“She doesn’t usually do anything that’s gossip-worthy,” Laurel admitted. “She’s wonderful, and I love her to pieces. Which is why I want to find out—has she ever mentioned Mark Coleman to you?”
“Becky’s Uncle Mark? I mean, Gabe’s uncle, but the one who helped Becky out?” Allison shrugged. “Sure. I mean his name came up in conversations even before he dropped Becky off at his place. And what with the Colemans working together now, we’re planning on using a bunch of his territory that met the organic standards to expand operations. Gabe tried to get in touch with him a bunch of times, but he’s been sending all correspondence through Trevor. And Trevor said Mark basically told us to do anything we want, he’s okay with it.”
Which was not remotely the direction Laurel wanted this gossip to go. “But has she ever mentioned Uncle Mark outside of owning Coleman land? Like some reason that she would have to blush around him?”
Allison jerked to a stop, the bag of nuts in her hands sliding to the counter with a crash. She turned, all her attention fully on Laurel. “Okay, so this wasn’t a hypothetical question. You saw Uncle Mark and Mom, and Mom was blushing?”
“Over at Becky’s. Mom kept trying to keep me out of the way, and the instant we were done, she scooted out of there like her pants were on fire. And she didn’t do more than give me his name.”
Her sister-in-law blinked in surprise. “No hello, how are you doing, so good to see you, when are you coming over for dinner spiel?”
“None of it.” Laurel dipped her chin firmly. “That’s the part that made me suspicious.”
“I hear you, but there’s not much else I can say,” Allison admitted. She thought hard for a moment then shrugged. “Uncle Mark didn’t live in Rocky at all while I’ve been here. If Mom knows him, it’s something from the distant past.”
Which meant if Laurel wanted to know more, she had to talk to her mother-in-law.
Or…
Ariel squirmed in Laurel’s arms. She caught hold of a strand of Laurel’s hair and tugged. “Pre’dy.”
“Careful, baby.” Laurel detached the death grip, gently easing herself free and moving Ariel far enough back she wouldn’t get tugged again. A moment later, Micah was there, holding a truck for Laurel to admire.
She spent the next half hour playing with her niece and nephew and chatting with Allison, but when she slipped away, that sense of concern had grown so strong, Laurel needed to do something with it.