Page 16 of Square Deal

“Hey, babe. What are you doing calling me from your honeymoon?” I said, trying my hardest to keep from blurting out,I hooked up with your husband’s best friend.

“Layover in Boston before the long flight,” Maddie said. “But I actually need a favor.”

“Yeah, of course.”

“Luca just got a call from the alarm company saying a sensor was tripped at our house. It's probably just the storm making the power flicker. Do you mind riding over there to check it out?”

I backed out of my drive and headed toward the bay. “Yeah, I’mheading over there now.” It was barely sixty seconds before I pulled down Maddie and Luca’s driveway.Perks of living in a small town.“I don’t see any cars,” I said, peering around the steering wheel and studying the house. “The front door is closed. No lights are on.”

“That was fast,” Maddie remarked.

“I was already in my car.”

“Why? You usually sleep in the day after a wedding. I was worried I would wake you up.”

“Long story.”

Maddie laughed. “Dear God, please tell me you didn’t murder Isaac and spend all night disposing of his body.”

No, but I spent all night getting very well acquainted with his body.

“Nah, I just had things to do before the weather gets bad,” I lied. “I’m gonna get out and walk around. See if anything’s out of place.”

I got out of my car and circled the front porch, pulling on the door handle. Still locked. All the windows on the first floor were closed and, unless a ninja broke in, there was no way they were getting in the second-floor windows. I walked around the side of the house, to the back where the man cave had a set of double doors that led out to the waterfront. Circling the bushes, I trudged through the soft dirt, cursing the fact that I was still in those damn heels.

“Everything looks good around the back. It might have just been a short in the system or something,” I said as I pulled on the backdoor to make sure it was locked.

It opened.

I squealed and nearly toppled back, not expecting the door to give way.

“What was that?” Maddie asked when she heard me shriek.

I looked into Luca’s man cave, where we held poker night, and huffed.

“HJ? Do I need to call the cops? I’m calling the cops.”

“No cops,” I hissed. I would have told her to call pest control, but they didn’t handle this particular species of vermin.

“Are you okay? What’s going on?” Maddie clipped from her side of the call.

“It’s all good,” I lied. It was very muchnot good.

Because Isaac Lawson was standing in Maddie and Luca’s house, wearing that stupid smirk on his face that I could not wait to smack clean off.

On the other side of the call, I could hear Maddie freaking out. Rather than trying to talk her down, I just said, “I’m gonna call you back.”

Isaac leaned on the black lacquered bar like he didn’t have a care in the damn world. Well, he had another thing coming.

“What the hell are you doing breaking into Maddie’s house?” I shouted. “Aren’t you supposed to be, oh—I don’t know—anywhere but here?!”

“And here I thought you’d be glad to see me. How was breakfast?”

“Short-lived,” I hissed. “I had to sneak out of the room because housekeeping came in. Oh, and you and your animal alter ego shredded my blouse, so I was basically streaking through the inn to get to my office. Thanks for that.”

Isaac strode toward me, but I held my hand out to keep him at arm’s length. I couldn’t let him get closer. This was not how it was supposed to go. He was supposed to be—well, I didn’t know where he was supposed to be. But it wasn’t here. Thankfully, he stopped in his tracks.

“Start talking, Lawson,” I clipped.

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