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telling him? I’m an expert when it comes to keeping secrets from the spouse. You sure that’s what you want?”
    She shook her head. “You don’t know about him and Erickson. The Governor is really his family. Besides, Jack’s run a successful news outlet for a long time without me. However he sees his role, it’s OK with me. I’ve quit the business, Sam. I don’t work news or secrets anymore.”
    “So he knows all about me?”
    He caught her off guard, and she stammered, “No … not exactly … we’ve never exchanged lists of past lovers, if that’s what you mean.” Her eyes narrowed. “What are you thinking? That I didn’t tell him about you because I’m still carrying a torch? That I’ve run off and married a rebound guy?”
    He smiled that bad-boy grin that always drove her a little crazy. “Well, he’s a pretty big swing from me, Toughie.”
    “Sam, you weren’t that hard to get over.” She laughed over the lie.
    He shrugged. “Probably not. But you were always so goddamned guilty about what went on between us, I can’t help wondering if tying up with Mr. Green Jeans isn’t some kind of self-inflicted punishment.”
    Expecting defensiveness, her mild tone surprised him. “Sam, all you see is a small-town guy who runs a little daily. And it’s easy to snark about Jack’s close relationship with Erickson. But there’s so much more …”
    “Yeah, I saw it, all six feet, six inches of it. A little brawn goes a long way with you, kid. Farther than I’d have guessed.”
    She didn’t rise to that bait either. In fact, a funny little conspiratorial smile snuck in at corners of her mouth. “Well, the fact that he is so goddamn beautiful didn’t hurt a bit. But he’s smart, Sam. He sees the opportunities in being small and nimble, and he’s doing some really innovative stuff. He’s helped set up news bloggers in every little town in the county, and the Journal homepage delivers them based on the viewer’s zip code. He’s got that blog network selling and sharing ad revenue. And there’s more than just advertising. He’s actually brokering online sales between customers and local businesses. Do you know any other operation this size that has a full-time web developer? His site had the first iPhone app in the state. On top of that, he really cares about this town and the people in it, and they love him for it.”
    “Yeah, yeah, a real Renaissance man. But if he’s so inn-o-va-tive,” Sam drawled the word, “why does his newspaper still print in the afternoon? I thought p.m.’s were all killed off a couple decades ago.”
    “Well, the guy he bought the Journal from didn’t want to make that change, and Jack has known for years that morning papers are yesterday’s news.” Tess snorted, “Even you’ve got to admit that, Sam. Jack found that it really suits going digital first to update the website all through the day and then pull the print edition together from that work. The traditionalists who don’t read online get fresher news and they usually have more time to read it in the evening after work. He’s actually had an increase in subscribers. Think the Trib can say that?”
    Sam shrugged, “Not my problem anymore.” He hooked his thumb at the wall behind him. “At least Stretch recognizes talent when he sees it. He sure must be bustin’ his buttons, hanging your work like that.” Hidden in the dark were four framed pictures he’d studied earlier. Clearly hers, they were the same orchard scene, each in a different season, the same red wheelbarrow in the foreground, a little rustier in each one. Hung together, they made a strange impact, the feeling so different, yet the composition meticulously identical.
    “Oh.” She was surprised he’d even noticed, “I did the first one …” She frowned suddenly, then murmured, “It’s just a pretty spot out on the farm.”
    “Out on the farm,” he repeated. “That’s where you live? Out on the farm?” He smiled broadly