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“You look like you’re either trying to pass a kidney stone or solve the world’s problems. Which is it?”
Megan tried not to sigh as the familiar voice intruded into her moment.
“Good morning, Verla,” she greeted the longtime head housekeeper at the inn, who had been with them for years.
Verla McCracken was in her early seventies but refused to retire. During the year the inn shut its doors to rebuild after a disastrous fire, Verla had busied herself traveling the region and visiting with her grandchildren, but had begged for her job back the moment the inn was ready to reopen.
She was thin and wiry and could probably bench-press a camel.
“Beautiful day, isn’t it?” Megan said conversationally, turning back to the weeding.
“Sure is. The kind of day that makes me want to jump into the lake in my skivvies.”
She did not need that image in her head. Before she could scrub it clean, Verla went on.
“I saw a car parked at Cedarwood Cottage. Our favorite author must have turned up in the night. Should I add the cottage to the cleaning schedule?” Verla asked eagerly.
Though Megan didn’t think she and the other woman had all that many things in common, they both, oddly, found Elliot’s books fascinating. Unlike Megan, Verla had been thrilled that Elliot had decided to make the Silver Beach cottage his temporary home for a few weeks.
Almost against her will, Megan looked past the line of pine and spruce toward Elliot’s place. He wasn’t anywhere in sight, and she couldn’t immediately ascertain whether that feeling in her chest was relief or disappointment.
“I don’t know. His rental contract only calls for twice-weekly housekeeping service, but I can ask if he would like that expanded to daily service.”
“Have you talked to him yet?”
Megan tried not to think about that strange, awkward interaction in the moonlight—or about the bizarre, heated dreams that had kept her tossing and turning all night.
She needed a social life.
“Briefly. He came in last night just before I went to bed.”
“He still as hot as ever?”
Ew. Verla was old enough to be Elliot’s grandmother.
“I can’t say I really noticed,” she lied. “He’s a guest here. That’s all that matters.”
Verla snorted, clearly not impressed by Megan’s somewhat pious response.
As if on cue, Elliot chose that particular moment to come jogging into view along the pathway around the lake. He wore shorts and an FBI T-shirt that clearly showed the man had serious muscles and was, indeed, as hot as ever. He ran with an odd, stiff sort of gait and it took her a moment to realize the cause was likely because his shoulder was still in a sling and he was bracing it somewhat as he moved.
What had he done to hurt himself? She found it surprising that neither of his normally chatty sisters had mentioned anything about an injury. They usually delighted in telling the group about whatever Elliot was doing—his latest book award or FBI commendation. None of the Baileys had said anything about an injury.
She had to wonder again why he had chosen to pay the rental fee to stay here rather than with his mother or one of his siblings.
“Hey, Elliot.” Verla waved at him eagerly. He paused, turning toward them. Then he trotted in their direction.
“That is one fine-looking man,” Verla murmured as he approached them.
On closer inspection, Megan could see pain lines bracketing his mouth, and his right hand below the sling was clenched into a fist. None of that took away from the impact of him, lean and hard and dangerous.
“Nice morning for a run,” she said, though she wouldn’t know. She hated running. She didn’t mind walking or hiking or riding her bike but would rather scrub all the inn’s toilets than throw on running shoes.
Okay, that might be a slight exaggeration. Anything was better than scrubbing the hotel toilets.
“It’s beautiful,” Elliot agreed, though he said this with all the enthusiasm of a man selecting among brands of dental floss. “I’m having a little trouble with the desk lamp in the second bedroom. I tried swapping out light bulbs with the bedside lamp and that didn’t do the trick. The cord appeared a little frayed, which leads me to the assumption that the malfunction is somehow related to that.”
Why couldn’t he just say the lamp had a bad cord? “Right. I forgot about that. A previous guest brought it to my attention and I meant to switch it out before renting the cottage again but the matter completely slipped my mind. I’ll be sure to send another one over today.” She would take the one off her own desk if she had to, but hopefully it wouldn’t come to that.
“Thank you,” he said, as formally as if they were discussing international trade treaties among countries. “At your earliest convenience would be fine. I’m not in a big rush, though I do see myself working there when possible. I just wanted you to know. Any frayed cord could pose a fire hazard.”
Thank you, Safety Patrol Leader.
She forced a smile, trying not to be snarky. “I appreciate the notice and will take care of it this morning.”
He nodded and turned toward the direction of Cedarwood Cottage but Verla waylaid him.
“Hey, Elliot. You might not remember me. Verla McCracken. You played baseball with my son Cort.”
He shifted and gazed down at her diminutive form, then offered Verla a smile much warmer than anything he had yet to bestow on Megan.
“Oh, yes. I remember. You always brought the best treats after games for Cort to share with the rest of us. My favorites were your sweet rolls with the maple frosting. I’ve had dreams about your sweet rolls.”
She laughed, looking pleased and completely charmed. “I’ll be sure to make you some while you’re back in town.”
“I would never refuse your sweet rolls, Ms. McCracken. How is Cort these days?”
“Good. He works for the car dealership in Shelter Springs. You need a new Toyota, he can hook you up.”
His teeth gleamed in the sunlight as he smiled again. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“He’s got the three cutest kids in the world. A boy and two girls. Oldest is six and the youngest is only a few months. Want to see a picture?”
Before he could answer, Verla whipped out her phone and scrolled through until she found a picture Megan had taken of her grandchildren, all sitting together on a bench with the oldest girl holding the youngest girl and a little towheaded, grinning boy in the middle.
Megan had to admit, they were pretty darn cute.
“Beautiful,” Elliot replied dutifully.
“I’m sure he’d love to see you while you’re in town. His wife is a big fan of your books. Megan and me are, too.”
His gaze shifted to Megan, brows lifted slightly. “Is that right?”
“Oh, yes. She got me hooked on them and I passed them along to Marie. That’s my daughter-in-law. You’ve got a way of telling a story that just hooks a person in.”
“Uh, thanks,” he said.
Verla launched into a review of his latest book. Elliot listened, nodding in all the right places, though he looked uncomfortable, and Megan had the distinct impression his attention wasn’t wholly focused on the other woman’s words.
She was trying to figure out a way to step in and distract Verla when a familiar pickup turned in to the parking lot and pulled up next to them.
Megan swore under her breath, wanting to kick herself. She’d never told her brother Elliot was renting a cottage at the inn. She had meant to the moment she realized who had made the reservation, but somehow she could never quite bring herself to raise the subject, knowing it would lead to an uncomfortable discussion.
She should have. She should have called him right away. If she had, she might have avoided what was bound to be an awkward confrontation now.
Elliot spotted the pickup truck almost as soon as she did. He tensed slightly, a reaction she had a feeling he would have had regardless of who was driving, until he could establish there was no threat.
He didn’t know her brother was driving. He couldn’t, she realized, her mind quickly racing for the best way to avert a scene between two men who had become outright hostile to each other after Elizabeth disappeared.
The moment Luke parked the pickup, Cassie jumped out and rushed over to her, full of energy and excitement and life.
“Aunt Meg, guess who gets to be the starting pitcher at tonight’s game?”
As always, her heart overflowed with love for this girl. She couldn’t imagine ever loving a child of her own womb as much as she did her niece and nephew.
“Um, Miranda.”
“As if! She’s too busy making sure she doesn’t break a nail. No! It’s me. Last night at practice, Coach Hunter says I did such a good job as the relief pitcher that she’s willing to take a chance. Are you coming to watch?”
“Of course. You know I wouldn’t miss it.”
She loved small-town ball games. It was one of her favorite aspects of living in Haven Point.
“What about you, Bridger?” she asked her nephew as he and Luke approached them. “Are you playing tonight, too?”
“Sore subject,” Luke said, with a warning look.
Because of the angle of the shrubs, he couldn’t see Elliot yet, she realized. If only she could keep the two men apart.
“It’s not fair.” Her nephew pouted. “I’m ready. My arm doesn’t even hurt much anymore. The cast has been off for two weeks.”
Bridger had broken his arm a few months earlier in a bad tumble while spring skiing at the end of the season. He wasn’t handling being benched very well.
“Coach said you can play in two more weeks.”
“By then, it will be too late. We’re losing every game and won’t have any chance of playing in the league championship.”
“But if you let your arm finish healing all the way, the doctor said you won’t need surgery on it,” she reminded him.
“I guess.”
“Thanks for letting them hang out here this morning, especially on such short notice,” Luke said. “I know it’s Saturday and you have plenty of things to do for your photography exhibit.”
He appeared distracted—nothing new for him—and still hadn’t yet noticed Elliot. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if he didn’t even see the other man and simply climbed back into his pickup and drove away?
“No problem. I’ll put them to work.” Through her nerves, she managed to muster an evil grin. “We’ve got weeds to pull.”
“Sorry. I wish I could help,” her nephew said, putting on an apologetic expression that didn’t fool her for a minute. “If I can’t play baseball, I guess the doctor wouldn’t like me pulling weeds either.”
“Does that mean I have to do all of it by myself?” Cassie’s eyes widened and her shoulders slumped dramatically.
Megan patted her niece’s shoulder. “We’ll work together. Don’t worry.”
“Guess I’d better get going. Those rooms won’t clean themselves,” Verla finally said. Luke glanced in her direction and she knew the moment he spotted Elliot. Shock flickered in his eyes, replaced by an angry hardness that he quickly concealed.
“Elliot. I hadn’t heard you were in town.”
“I only checked in last night.”
There it was. Meg closed her eyes briefly then opened them to find her brother gazing between the two of them in shock.
“You’re staying here? At the inn?”
“Yes. In one of the cottages. Right next door to Megan, actually.”
Luke’s expression darkened further and tension seemed to broil off the two men, thick and heavy like the August sky above the lake just before a thunderstorm.
“Hi. I’m Cassie Hamilton and this is my brother, Bridger. I’m nine and he’s seven and a half. He always gets mad if I forget the half.”
To her surprise, Elliot’s features softened a little as he looked at the girl. “Hi. I’m Elliot. And the half is very important.”
“That’s what Bridger says. He says we’re only eighteen months apart, not two years, and I don’t have to be so bossy all the time.”
“That’s probably true. But sometimes you have to take charge, when it’s the right thing to do.”
“That’s what I always say. Like if he was just about to sit on a big spider, I would have to be bossy and tell him not to.”
“Somebody has to make the hard decisions and say what needs to be said. But it doesn’t always make you the most popular person, I’m afraid,” Elliot said.
“Hey, I hurt my arm, too. I was skiing and I fell. What did you do?” Bridger asked.
Elliot glanced down at his sling as if he’d forgotten all about it. “Long story. It was a work thing. Nothing as fun as skiing. But it’s fine, really. Sorry about your baseball game. You’ll be playing again before you know it.”
Bridger seemed to take comfort in that and Elliot gave a general wave to the group. “I should go. Bridger, Cassie, it was nice to meet you.”
A moment later, he took off in the direction of Cedarwood Cottage, leaving a tense awkwardness behind him.
The children didn’t seem to notice anything. “Can we go make waffles in the breakfast room before we start weeding?” Bridger asked his father.
“If it’s okay with Megan.”
“Please, Aunt Meg? Can we? We only had cereal at home,” the boy said, looking disgusted at the apparent dearth of culinary options available to him that morning.
“It’s fine,” she said. “We’re only half-full, so there should be plenty of breakfast left.”
“I’m heading that way,” Verla said. “Here. You can help me push the cart.”
The kids jumped in willingly and headed for the door, chattering to the housekeeper about school getting out in only a few more weeks and what they planned to do with their summer vacation.
