Winds of Danger

by Christy Barritt

  Winds of Danger

  Lantern Beach Romantic Suspense, Book 4

  Christy Barritt

  Copyright © 2019 by Christy Barritt

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Contents

  Complete Book List

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Also by Christy Barritt:

  Other Books in the Lantern Beach Series:

  You might also enjoy …

  Holly Anna Paladin Mysteries:

  The Worst Detective Ever:

  About the Author

  Complete Book List

  Squeaky Clean Mysteries:

  #1 Hazardous Duty

  #2 Suspicious Minds

  #2.5 It Came Upon a Midnight Crime (novella)

  #3 Organized Grime

  #4 Dirty Deeds

  #5 The Scum of All Fears

  #6 To Love, Honor and Perish

  #7 Mucky Streak

  #8 Foul Play

  #9 Broom & Gloom

  #10 Dust and Obey

  #11 Thrill Squeaker

  #11.5 Swept Away (novella)

  #12 Cunning Attractions

  #13 Cold Case: Clean Getaway

  #14 Cold Case: Clean Sweep

  While You Were Sweeping, A Riley Thomas Spinoff

  The Sierra Files:

  #1 Pounced

  #2 Hunted

  #3 Pranced

  #4 Rattled

  #5 Caged (coming soon)

  The Gabby St. Claire Diaries (a Tween Mystery series):

  The Curtain Call Caper

  The Disappearing Dog Dilemma

  The Bungled Bike Burglaries

  The Worst Detective Ever

  #1 Ready to Fumble

  #2 Reign of Error

  #3 Safety in Blunders

  #4 Join the Flub

  #5 Blooper Freak

  #6 Flaw Abiding Citizen

  #7 Gaffe Out Loud

  #8 Joke and Dagger (coming soon)

  Raven Remington

  Relentless 1

  Relentless 2 (coming soon)

  Holly Anna Paladin Mysteries:

  #1 Random Acts of Murder

  #2 Random Acts of Deceit

  #2.5 Random Acts of Scrooge

  #3 Random Acts of Malice

  #4 Random Acts of Greed

  #5 Random Acts of Fraud

  #6 Random Acts of Outrage

  #7 Random Acts of Iniquity

  Lantern Beach Mysteries

  #1 Hidden Currents

  #2 Flood Watch

  #3 Storm Surge

  #4 Dangerous Waters

  #5 Perilous Riptide

  #6 Deadly Undertow

  Lantern Beach Romantic Suspense

  Tides of Deception

  Shadow of Intrigue

  Storm of Doubt

  Lantern Beach P.D.

  On the Lookout

  Attempt to Locate

  First Degree Murder

  Dead on Arrival

  Plan of Action

  Carolina Moon Series

  Home Before Dark

  Gone By Dark

  Wait Until Dark

  Light the Dark

  Taken By Dark

  Suburban Sleuth Mysteries:

  Death of the Couch Potato’s Wife

  Fog Lake Suspense:

  Edge of Peril

  Margin of Error

  Cape Thomas Series:

  Dubiosity

  Disillusioned

  Distorted

  Standalone Romantic Mystery:

  The Good Girl

  Suspense:

  Imperfect

  The Wrecking

  Standalone Romantic-Suspense:

  Keeping Guard

  The Last Target

  Race Against Time

  Ricochet

  Key Witness

  Lifeline

  High-Stakes Holiday Reunion

  Desperate Measures

  Hidden Agenda

  Mountain Hideaway

  Dark Harbor

  Shadow of Suspicion

  The Baby Assignment

  The Cradle Conspiracy

  Nonfiction:

  Characters in the Kitchen

  Changed: True Stories of Finding God through Christian Music (out of print)

  The Novel in Me: The Beginner’s Guide to Writing and Publishing a Novel (out of print)

  Chapter One

  Wes O’Neill shoved his paddle into the water and glanced at Paige Henderson across the glassy surface of the Pamlico Sound. She stood on her paddleboard, her lithe figure illuminated by the glowing horizon. The woman made using the SUP look as effortless as walking down the street.

  “You’re pretty good at this,” Wes pushed his sunglasses up higher on his nose as the sun glared against the water.

  “And you’re surprised?” Paige raised an eyebrow and paddled closer to him, gliding across the water with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

  Wes halfway expected her to say, “Let’s race.” Instead, she grinned at him, the picture of the wholesome girl next door.

  “Surprised is a strong word,” he finally said. “Most people don’t do this well their first time out.”

  “Well, I’m a natural. What can I say?” As if to prove it, Paige balanced on one leg and stretched her other leg and arm out parallel to each other, like a ballerina warming up before a performance.

  “Showoff.”

  She glanced over her shoulder. “Your turn.”

  Wes pictured himself trying that pose and snorted. “Only if you want to see me end up in the water.”

  She flashed another grin. “Maybe.”

  “It would bring you too much satisfaction.”

  This woman had fascinated him since they’d first met, and Wes couldn’t pinpoint why. On one hand, there were so many reasons. Paige was smart, beautiful, personable. She was unassuming, cute, athletic.

  On the other hand, Wes had been immune to the lure of the opposite sex for a long time now. He hadn’t ever seen himself becoming romantically interested in someone again. Not after his last relationship and the string of events that happened afterward.

  Then Paige had shown up here in Lantern Beach, with her corkscrew honey-blonde curls, toothy smile, and freckled skin. Something had begun to slowly change inside him. He felt a new stirring. He felt . . . hope.

  Maybe it was because Paige seemed different from the other women he’d met in the past couple years. She had so much life and love inside her that he just wanted to know everything about her.

  They’d been hanging out for the last month and getting to know each other. Despite that, one part of Wes still wanted to hold Paige at arm’s length. If only he could undo the mistakes of his past. But those choices still tainted his future.

  “There’s a storm coming acr
oss the Pamlico.” Wes nodded across the miles and miles of open water to the west. “We should get back. These systems can come up fast around here, and we don’t want to get caught in it.”

  She followed his gaze. “That storm is a long way away. I think you just don’t want me to show you up.” Her voice held a humor-filled challenge, and she danced a little jig on the board—without falling off.

  And that was just another reason the woman fascinated him.

  “What do you know about storms?” he asked. Her statement had sounded authoritative.

  “My father was a fisherman. I grew up on the water.” A wistfulness floated through her voice, hinting at secrets that she wasn’t ready to share.

  She kept so many details of her past private, alluding to hurts too painful to speak about. Maybe they were both finally starting to open up, although Wes had to admit that there was a certain comfort in this phase of simply enjoying each other’s company.

  “So, your dad was a fisherman, but you’ve never been paddleboarding?” Wes tried to keep his voice light.

  “Paddleboarding is for the hoity-toity types. I grew up around real watermen, people who made their living by harvesting the treasures of the ocean.”

  He let out a low whistle “I see how it is. Sorry to make you do something fancy.”

  She shrugged. “Maybe I’ve always secretly wanted to try—I just didn’t want to be judged for it.”

  “Now the truth comes out.”

  She stuck her paddle in the water and splashed it. Brackish liquid sprayed across his face. Wes attempted to splash her back, but his paddleboard wobbled, nearly sending him into the water.

  Paige laughed with delight.

  They paddled toward the shore, only stopping when the tips of their boards hit the sandy shoreline they’d launched from two hours ago. Wes operated his side business from this area during the summer. The soundside beach wasn’t far from the lighthouse. This part of the island was surrounded by the dense, shrubby maritime forest that hugged a patch of sand.

  When Wes did his tours, he brought in a trailer loaded with kayaks and paddleboards and set up a temporary site to launch from. Since he didn’t own the land, he had to have a portable setup. The town did allow him to use a small parking area at the end of the sandy trail leading here.

  Summertime had just arrived, and he was gearing up for a busy season. Paige had requested a personal tour of the area, and Wes had no good reason to object. In fact, he’d looked forward to showing her his favorite little coves.

  Paige gracefully stepped onto the shore and grabbed her board, holding it to her side and looking like she could grace a magazine cover as the water sparkled behind her. “What next?”

  Wes let out a laugh and pulled his own board onto the sand. “Next? You’re ready for more?”

  “Hey, I paid for a three-hour tour.” Her eyes glimmered with humor. “We’re only two hours in.”

  Wes left his board on the shore and stepped closer. Close enough to see the flecks of gold in her eyes. To smell her coconut-scented sunscreen. To feel the invisible pull she had on him. “You paid?”

  She raised her shoulders playfully. “I mean, if making dinner for you for two nights is considered payment, then yes. And, if I recall correctly, that was our deal. You may have gotten the short end of the stick, however, since my spaghetti with meat sauce was runny, and I forgot to add chili powder to my tacos.”

  He’d noticed. But, like a smart man, he hadn’t complained.

  As he stared at her smiling face, he sucked in a quick breath.

  Paige was so beautiful. Everything in Wes told him to step closer. To tell her how he was feeling. To forget all the reasons he shouldn’t move forward with the relationship.

  What was wrong with him? He should know better than to get close. But that didn’t stop his heart from feeling the connection he sensed with Paige. It was like this woman could easily be his best friend and soulmate wrapped into one.

  He cleared his throat, not ready to take the next step but not ready to say goodbye either. “Maybe we could . . . get some ice cream instead?”

  Her smile slipped just slightly. “It’s a deal.”

  You know what? He was being stupid. He shouldn’t let the past hold him back like this. If he had feelings for Paige, he should tell her. Show her.

  As he tried to find his voice, he reached for her arm. “Paige—”

  Before he could finish, he heard something move in the distance and jerked his gaze toward the sound.

  What was that? It had almost looked like . . . he shook his head. No, he was just seeing things. It couldn’t have been. Not here. Not now.

  “Wes?” Paige followed his gaze and glanced over her shoulder.

  He didn’t say anything. Instead, he paced toward the sound. Had he been imagining things or had he seen a flash of movement? Almost like a person had been hiding behind the thick foliage, watching them.

  In fact, it almost looked like . . .

  No, the feelings Wes had for Paige had stirred up things inside him, played with his thoughts, his mind. Women had a tendency to do that.

  Yet he had to be sure.

  “Stay here,” he muttered.

  Each step felt heavy with anticipation as he continued toward the woods. He dodged some undergrowth on the edge of the forest as he squeezed past some trees.

  But the shadow was gone. No one was here. Only trees and bushes and marsh grass.

  He scanned his surroundings once more, looking for footprints or some other sign to indicate he wasn’t seeing things, wasn’t being paranoid.

  He bent down. The brush was slightly trampled right here.

  He moved the undergrowth to check if a footprint could be seen beneath it. There was no print. Instead, he found little white petals. Daisy petals.

  Daisies . . . Jennifer’s favorite flower.

  His heart pulsed in his ears at a dizzying tempo.

  “Wes, what is it?” Paige appeared behind him, a concerned expression on her face.

  Wes pressed his lips shut and stood. What did he even tell her?

  There was nothing he could say, he realized. There was no way he could tell Paige that he thought he’d seen his crazy ex-girlfriend out there hiding between the trees. That these petals could be evidence she’d been here.

  The ex-girlfriend who was off-balance enough to go to drastic measures. The ex-girlfriend who’d caused him to escape here to Lantern Beach, North Carolina, in order to get away from her antics. Her threats. Her obsession.

  Had Jennifer found him here?

  Wes swallowed hard. Because, if she had, his future suddenly wasn’t looking so bright. Nor was any possibility of a relationship with Paige.

  Chapter Two

  Against his own desire, Wes canceled on having ice cream with Paige. He told her that something had come up that couldn’t wait. He’d seen the questions in her eyes, but they were questions he couldn’t answer yet. Maybe not ever.

  Instead, he dropped her off, a new heaviness surrounding him as he said goodbye. He went back to his cottage and pulled up his computer.

  He stared at the screen a moment, his fingers refusing to cooperate and type.

  He was probably imagining things. He probably hadn’t seen Jennifer today. She’d moved on. Probably found love—and obsession—with some other poor, unsuspecting soul. It had been three years, after all.

  Those daisy petals . . . maybe they’d been from some other plant. Or a weed. Or . . . there were other explanations. Right?

  His lungs felt frozen as he forced his fingers into action. He typed Jennifer’s name into the Facebook search bar.

  Her picture appeared on the screen. She smiled, her glossy blonde hair falling neatly below her shoulders. Her blue eyes danced with life. Her smile was bright—almost too bright.

  Wes had first been drawn to those qualities. She’d been pretty and approachable and engaging. She’d been great at hiding the darker side of herself and putting her best foot forward
. That was what made her so unsettling.

  He scanned Jennifer’s most recent posts. It appeared she still lived in Virginia Beach. Her work history showed that, in the past three years, she’d worked as a receptionist at a car dealership, as an assistant at a nursing home, and as an admissions counselor at a small college.

  All in three years. That sounded right. She’d always had a hard time holding down a job.

  Because she was unstable.

  Uncountable pictures of Jennifer smiling with people filled her page. No doubt these were mostly new friends. She couldn’t maintain friendships any more than she could hold down a job. But, to look at the photos, she seemed so effervescent.

  Yet, beneath that façade, she’d been off-balance. Needy. Jealous.

  And dangerous.

  He looked at the date of her most recent post. Two weeks ago. Since then, nothing. Before that, she’d easily had two or three posts a day.

  It could be because the two of them weren’t friends on social media, so maybe Wes couldn’t see all her posts. His own account was set to private. Even his business listings . . . they contained only a business name and not his name.

  He didn’t want Jennifer to find him again. Ever.

  But what if she had?

  Wes sighed and leaned back, frowning as he stared at the screen.

  The truth was that he thought someone had been watching him the past two weeks. He’d brushed it off, figuring the feeling was nothing.

  One morning, his truck felt different, like someone had been inside. Again, Wes told himself he was paranoid.

  But what if he wasn’t? What if Jennifer had found him? She could be spinning her deadly web right now, just waiting for him to get caught in her trap.