by Lena Gregory
She buried her face against him and kept crying.
Tank just held her and let her cry until she regained her composure. “You okay, now?”
She sniffed and nodded.
“Good. Now, come on. Let’s get out of here before Bee sees us and thinks something’s going on. I wouldn’t want to get shot at and get my butt kicked all in the same day.”
27
Cass moved through the upstairs room, greeting everyone she’d missed on their way in. The cleanup hadn’t been nearly as bad as she’d expected, and she’d been able to open the shop by Friday. Business had been booming ever since.
She laid a hand on Beast’s head. “You behave now, boy.”
He barked once.
Yeah right. She’d already lost a tray of cheese and crackers, but she didn’t have the heart to lock him up. It was a party for all of her closest friends, after all, and who was a closer friend than Beast?
“Thank you so much for everything, Cass. I can’t tell you what it means to me having everyone with me to celebrate.” Harry hugged her.
“You’re welcome, Harry.”
He stepped back and smiled, his eyes twinkling. “And thanks for making my last week so memorable.” His boisterous laughter followed him into the crowd as he walked away.
“Come on.” Bee grabbed her arm. “It’s time.”
“Oh, wow.” She hurried down the stairs behind him.
Stephanie sat at the table in the back corner of the shop. Alone.
Cass and Bee slid chairs on either side of her and sat.
“Hey. You okay?” Cass asked.
She offered a sad smile and nodded. “Yeah. I am.”
Bee squeezed her hand. “What are you doing sitting here all alone?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. Tank told me to wait here. Said he’d be right back.”
The back door opened, and Tank walked in, a huge bouquet in his hand. He handed Stephanie the flowers.
Bee got up and turned his chair to face Stephanie so Tank could sit with her. He took the flowers and put them on the table, then moved behind Cass’s chair, tears in his eyes.
Tank sat and held both of Stephanie’s hands in his. He glanced at Cass and Bee, then took a deep breath. “At first, I thought this should be a private conversation, but since Bee and Cass are our best friends, and they already know, well . . . I wanted them to be here with us.”
Stephanie frowned. “Already know what?”
“I’ve been talking to a woman, and . . . Look, Stephanie, we’ve been trying for a while now to have a baby, and it hasn’t been working.” He shook his head and looked into her eyes. “The disappointment in your eyes when the doctor said it probably wasn’t going to happen broke my heart. And I never wanted you to go through that pain again if I could help it. So, I didn’t want to say anything to you until I knew more. I spoke to a woman I know who runs a program for unwed mothers.”
Stephanie’s breathing hitched.
“She called me last week, and I met her in Southampton. A young girl she knows is pregnant and would like to put the baby up for adoption. I’ve already filled out all the paperwork, and . . . well . . . she’s considering our application. She’d like to meet with us next week.”
“Oh, Tank.” She flung herself into his arms and cried.
Tank ran a hand over her hair and held her close, eyes closed as tears flowed down his cheeks.
Bee sniffed and grabbed a box of tissues. He took a handful, then handed some to Cass and left the box on the table.
Stephanie turned to Bee and Cass. “And you guys knew?”
They nodded.
She threw her arms around them. “I love you guys.”
“We love you, too.”
Bee and Cass left them to share a private moment. When they reached the top of the stairs, Chief Rawlins stopped her.
“Do you have a minute, Cass?”
“Sure. I’ll catch up in a couple of minutes, Bee.”
“Sure thing. I’ll go check on Beast.”
“Thanks.” Not wanting to interrupt Stephanie and Tank, Cass led the way to her new office. “We can talk in here.”
Chief Rawlins preceded her into the room, and Cass closed the door behind them.
The chief got right to the point. “I’m impressed with you, Cass. And I just wanted to take a moment to let you know my door is always open.”
“Thank you.”
“And I’m sure Tank already told you, but we were able to arrest Vincent DiSilva for breaking into your shop. And for throwing the brick through your window. Apparently you were starting to make Leighton nervous, so he tried to get you to back off.” She pursed her lips. “Though I haven’t yet figured out how to get him as an accessory in Kelly’s murder.”
“So Leighton killed her alone?”
Chief Rawlins shrugged. “It looks like it, probably in a fit of jealous rage.”
Cass nodded. That was pretty much what she figured. “Oh, by the way, did you ever find out what she and Artie Becker were arguing about?”
“Yes. We brought Mr. Becker in for questioning again, and he admitted to confronting her about the painting. He thought he recognized the woman in the portrait as Kelly, but the necklace he’d given her was a dead giveaway. He also admitted to confronting Kelly and Vincent, but after Kelly disappeared, he was afraid to come forward. Too much similarity to his wife’s fate.”
Cass could see why he might have been reluctant to get involved, but still, Kelly was his daughter. She shrugged it off. In the end, it probably wouldn’t have mattered. In his own way, he’d at least tried to find her.
“The only thing left to wrap up is who the skeleton you found belongs to, but we don’t think it’s related to this case.”
“I have a sneaking suspicion it’s going to turn out to be an old fisherman.” Cass smiled at a fond memory of the vision she’d seen when she was on the beach with Leighton. She kept that to herself, for now anyway. Cass extended her hand to the chief. “Thank you.”
She smiled as she shook hands. “And thank you.”
Cass started to pull away.
Chief Rawlins gripped her hand tighter and held her gaze. “But one of these days, I want to hear the story about that fisherman’s ghost.”
Cass grinned and promised to fill her in, then sent her off to get something to eat and went in search of her friends. It was time to enjoy the party.
She found Bee guarding the food table. “Should I even ask?”
“One piece of sandwich someone left a little too close to the edge.”
Cass laughed. “Okay, so not a complete catastrophe.”
“Not yet, anyway.” Bee winked. “You know, I was thinking about something.”
“Oh?” Cass popped a piece of cheese into her mouth.
“Do you think they’ll let Leighton paint my sunset while she’s in prison?”
Cass choked down the cheese and took a mouthful of water.
“What? I already put a deposit on it, and I really wanted that painting.”
“I don’t think so, Bee.”
He sulked. “Just because she’s a killer doesn’t make her any less talented, you know.”
“You’re right.” She squeezed his arm. “I’ll find out who we can ask.”
He grinned. “It’s going to look great on that wall.”
Stephanie came up beside them and hooked her arm through Bee’s. “Tank told me what you did, Bee. Thank you.”
He kissed her cheek. “You know I’d never let anyone hurt my girls. I don’t care who it is.”
Tank stood in front of the room and called for everyone’s attention.
Cass leaned forward past Bee to look at Stephanie. “I thought you weren’t going to share it with everyone until you were sure things would work out.”
&nb
sp; She grinned. “We’re not.”
Tank held up his hands for quiet. “First, I’d like to congratulate Harry on his retirement.”
Applause thundered through the room.
He lifted his glass. “And offer a toast to the greatest partner I could have asked for.”
Everyone lifted their glasses in honor of Harry’s service.
Harry’s cheeks flushed purple with all the attention as he thanked them.
“And I figured now was as good a time as any to introduce my new partner.” Tank gestured toward the stairway. “Luke Morgan.”
Luke leaned against the railing. His gaze collided with Cass’s, and that slow, sexy smile that made her heart stutter spread across his face. He waved an acknowledgment to the crowd of onlookers, then headed straight for Cass.
He took her in his arms and brushed a light kiss along her lips, but this time, he didn’t stop. He deepened the kiss until Cass’s knees went weak, then pulled back and looked at her. “I wanted it to be a surprise.”
Her heart fluttered. “It definitely was.”
He glanced over her head. “We had concerns Bee would spill the beans.”
She whirled around to face Bee. “You knew?”
“Of course, I did, dear. He wanted to surprise you, but he also wanted to make sure you’d be happy about it. Who better to ask than your best friends?”
Cass threw her arms around Bee and Stephanie. She couldn’t think of a better way to spend a peaceful summer on Bay Island than with her best friends. And, hopefully, no bodies.
About the Author
Lena Gregory is also the author of Death at First Sight and Occult and Battery, the previous books in the Bay Island Psychic Mystery series. She lives in a small town on the south shore of eastern Long Island.
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lenagregory.com
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twitter.com/lenagregory03
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