any drugs, I should have said yes. Someone dropped Rohypnol
into my drink at the Waterview the night before, and it was probably still in
my system.”
“The date rape drug? Ah. That’s why
you can’t remember.”
“Right.”
He waited for her to say, Well, do you believe in me now? but she
didn’t, thankfully. He didn’t want to break this truce they had built between
them.
Instead she said in mock-outrage,
“You’re taking me to eat at a place where you know your drink was drugged?”
He shrugged. “Hey, the halibut and
the view can’t be beat.”
A few minutes later, they were
crawling through downtown Camden, the streets clogged with tourists. Jake
cursed under his breath and slammed on his brakes as a fat woman with a Maine, My Vactionland T-shirt leaped out
in front of his car, apparently more intent crossing the street right now than on preserving her life.
Hell, he appreciated the bounty brought by tourists—he got a lot of
out-of-state business from people who happened to see his boats in the
harbor—but even so, running down a few who thought Vacationland=Disneyland
would have been satisfying.
Great. He was daydreaming about
killing tourists for no reason except that they annoyed him and wore out his
brake pads. It was a good thing Emma really wasn’t psychic, or she might
rethink her apparent belief in his innocence.
That realization lifted his mood.
Emma thought him innocent. Why else would she be here? She wasn’t so hard up
that she’d risk her life for a free meal.
He turned in to the Waterview’s lot
and parked. At least there were spaces available today. The night he’d come
here with Ginny, the lot had been full, and he’d had to circle around nearby
side streets for almost fifteen minutes, looking for an empty spot. He clearly
remembered where he’d parked. But a half hour after he’d locked the car door
and run through the rain to the Waterview, all his memories had vanished.
“Jake?”
“What?”
“Are we going inside?”
“Sure.” He shook off his trance and
got out.
He’d built himself a life here. At
first he’d resented moving back, as he’d admitted, but now he wasn’t going to
let that life go, yanked away by the bull-headed police who refused to search
for other suspects. He needed an alibi, damn it, and he was going to do what he
had to do to find it.
He reached for the heavy brass knob
on the Waterview’s door. “Ready?” he asked. “Let’s go.”
Chapter Five
Emma kept her attention on Jake as
they entered the hostess’s area. He projected an easy confidence that she
imagined had helped rebuild his family’s fortunes. Still, she thought she saw
tension around his eyes that belied his casual manner.
“Afternoon, Rosie,” he greeted the
hostess inside the door. “Can you squeeze in two for lunch?”
Emma glanced across the room. It
was a rhetorical question—at least a quarter of the tables were empty.
“Hmm, let me see.” The hostess
stared at her seating chart for a long moment. “It doesn’t look good….”
Jake nodded in the direction of the
nearest empty table. “It looks good to me.”
Rosie looked back, unblinking.
Jake gave Rosie a smile. “How about
that one by the window? Is it reserved?” Emma sensed a shift inside him, as if
he’d thrown up a defensive wall, but his charm was unwavering. Still, something
had changed.
Why did she recognize the signs?
She didn’t know him that well. Four encounters did not a close friendship make.
Maybe she’d simply spent too much time looking at him. She’d probably seemed
like an idiot during the drive over here, watching him out of the corner of her
eyes while she pretended to gaze at the road or the trees or whatever. He’d
caught her a few times and finally given her a smile she’d been unable to
resist answering.
He wasn’t acting like a jerk today.
And she couldn’t decide whether that was a good thing.
“That table’s free,” Rosie finally
answered, and
into my drink at the Waterview the night before, and it was probably still in
my system.”
“The date rape drug? Ah. That’s why
you can’t remember.”
“Right.”
He waited for her to say, Well, do you believe in me now? but she
didn’t, thankfully. He didn’t want to break this truce they had built between
them.
Instead she said in mock-outrage,
“You’re taking me to eat at a place where you know your drink was drugged?”
He shrugged. “Hey, the halibut and
the view can’t be beat.”
A few minutes later, they were
crawling through downtown Camden, the streets clogged with tourists. Jake
cursed under his breath and slammed on his brakes as a fat woman with a Maine, My Vactionland T-shirt leaped out
in front of his car, apparently more intent crossing the street right now than on preserving her life.
Hell, he appreciated the bounty brought by tourists—he got a lot of
out-of-state business from people who happened to see his boats in the
harbor—but even so, running down a few who thought Vacationland=Disneyland
would have been satisfying.
Great. He was daydreaming about
killing tourists for no reason except that they annoyed him and wore out his
brake pads. It was a good thing Emma really wasn’t psychic, or she might
rethink her apparent belief in his innocence.
That realization lifted his mood.
Emma thought him innocent. Why else would she be here? She wasn’t so hard up
that she’d risk her life for a free meal.
He turned in to the Waterview’s lot
and parked. At least there were spaces available today. The night he’d come
here with Ginny, the lot had been full, and he’d had to circle around nearby
side streets for almost fifteen minutes, looking for an empty spot. He clearly
remembered where he’d parked. But a half hour after he’d locked the car door
and run through the rain to the Waterview, all his memories had vanished.
“Jake?”
“What?”
“Are we going inside?”
“Sure.” He shook off his trance and
got out.
He’d built himself a life here. At
first he’d resented moving back, as he’d admitted, but now he wasn’t going to
let that life go, yanked away by the bull-headed police who refused to search
for other suspects. He needed an alibi, damn it, and he was going to do what he
had to do to find it.
He reached for the heavy brass knob
on the Waterview’s door. “Ready?” he asked. “Let’s go.”
Chapter Five
Emma kept her attention on Jake as
they entered the hostess’s area. He projected an easy confidence that she
imagined had helped rebuild his family’s fortunes. Still, she thought she saw
tension around his eyes that belied his casual manner.
“Afternoon, Rosie,” he greeted the
hostess inside the door. “Can you squeeze in two for lunch?”
Emma glanced across the room. It
was a rhetorical question—at least a quarter of the tables were empty.
“Hmm, let me see.” The hostess
stared at her seating chart for a long moment. “It doesn’t look good….”
Jake nodded in the direction of the
nearest empty table. “It looks good to me.”
Rosie looked back, unblinking.
Jake gave Rosie a smile. “How about
that one by the window? Is it reserved?” Emma sensed a shift inside him, as if
he’d thrown up a defensive wall, but his charm was unwavering. Still, something
had changed.
Why did she recognize the signs?
She didn’t know him that well. Four encounters did not a close friendship make.
Maybe she’d simply spent too much time looking at him. She’d probably seemed
like an idiot during the drive over here, watching him out of the corner of her
eyes while she pretended to gaze at the road or the trees or whatever. He’d
caught her a few times and finally given her a smile she’d been unable to
resist answering.
He wasn’t acting like a jerk today.
And she couldn’t decide whether that was a good thing.
“That table’s free,” Rosie finally
answered, and
Similar Books
