“The sweeping? Maybe Ribsy made a mess in here? Or he’s a clean freak?”
“You know I’m talking about the kiss,” Cass said.
Hattie sighed and looked away. “It was sweet. And … nice. I woke up thinking I wish I’d kissed him back.”
“Maybe you should.”
“Definitely not. I don’t need that kind of complication. Things are bad enough with Trae as it is. I can’t believe he deliberately tried to cover up that shitty wiring job.”
“That’s the least of what he did. While you were in town, Tug and I discovered a soggy spot in the new sink cabinet in the kitchen. Somehow, while they were installing the new dishwasher, someone punctured the drain line, and water’s been leaking into the cabinet. We caught it in time, or the whole cabinet would have had to be replaced. When one of the carpenters pointed out the leak, Trae told him it wasn’t that big a deal.”
“Oh, God.” Hattie pushed her plate away. “I feel sick. How could he do that?”
“As long as it looks good, and he looks good, Trae doesn’t care. He’s got no skin in the game. Tug started raising hell with him and Trae just laughed and walked away.”
“Did you guys find anything else he covered up?” Hattie asked.
“That was enough,” Cass said. “What are you going to do about Trae?”
“What can I do? I’ve got a contract. We’ve got four days to finish and then the show’s over, and Trae Bartholomew and I are history.”
“What if the show’s a hit and the network wants a second season?”
“I can’t think about that right now,” Hattie said.
“How do you think he’s going to take the news?”
“His heart’s not going to be broken. I’m pretty sure he never meant for me to be anything more than a summer fling. More like a drive-by fling.”
“Pretty sure?” Cass asked.
“Maybe I flattered myself—at first—that I was more than that to him. But now? The blinders are off.” Hattie tossed another piece of chicken to Ribsy, who leapt up and caught it in midair.
“You know what else? Trae never even called to see if I was okay.”
“He’s such a douche,” Cass said. “Mo, on the other hand…”
“I thought you didn’t like Mo.”
“It’s the damn house I don’t like. But you have to admit Mo is super bossy.”
“Takes one to know one,” Hattie said.
Cass got up and fetched a bottle of water from the fridge and sat back down again. “You still haven’t told me what freaked you out so bad today, back there at the house.”
“It started with that damned septic tank pit. I can’t stop thinking about Lanier.…”
“By tomorrow morning you’ll never know it was there,” Cass said.
“I’ll always know. And now, I know way more than I wish I did.” Hattie ran her hands through her hair. “Elise Hoffman dropped in at the office to have a ‘chat’ with me today.”
“Who?”
“Davis Hoffman’s ex. Skinny blonde, went to Country Day?”
“What did she want?”
“She wanted to make sure I’m not sleeping with Davis these days.”
“Eew. Gross. Where’d she get an idea like that?”
Hattie filled her in on the Hoffmans’ marital woes, and the $40,000 loan.
Cass’s eyes widened. “You pawned your engagement ring? To buy the house?”
“I had to get the money from somewhere.” Hattie looked down at her plate, out the window, anyplace but directly at her best friend’s unflinching gaze. “I even hit up my dad.”
“Shit. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I was embarrassed. To admit the lengths I’d go to just to prove a point to Tug. And the world. That I could make a success of something, after the debacle at Tattnall Street.”
“That wasn’t your fault. Nobody blamed you.”
“Tug did. He lost a lot of money on that house, money he and Nancy can’t afford.”
“What are you talking about? Mom says they’re loaded, and she oughtta know cuz she does the books. He owns like, a dozen rental houses around town, and a strip shopping center in Pooler.”
“That can’t be. He hasn’t bought a new truck in a decade, and he and Nancy still live in the same house they bought when Hank was a kid. He brings a sack lunch to work most days!”