Page 45 of Against the Current

Far too good for Trisha, Dana might have said. But Jackie was fighting those instincts.

When the server came with coffee, omelets, and biscuits the size of both of their fists combined, Ryan said, “This looks excellent, Gina.” Gina was what was written on the server’s name tag.

Gina, who was maybe thirty-five, said, “It’s the best brunch on the island.” She leaned a little closer, maybe because she thought Ryan was handsome, and added, “Tons of celebrities and rich people come in here. Once, I got a one-hundred-dollar tip on a five-dollar order.”

Jackie and Ryan gave her a bug-eyed smile.

“Which celebrities?” Ryan asked.

Gina thought she had them wrapped around her finger. Nobody else was in the diner except for a guy nursing a cup of coffee, and she had time to kill, so she pressed on, telling them about Nicole Kidman and Anthony Hopkins and the woman inThelma and Louise.

“Susan Sarandon?” Jackie asked.

“No,” Gina said, shaking her head.

“Geena Davis?”

“No,” Gina said.

Jackie wanted to laugh. What other woman was inThelma and Louise? But she didn’t want to belittle Gina, so she raised her shoulders. “I haven’t seen it in years.”

“We’re thinking about buying a house around here,” Ryan said. “My wife and I are eager to get out of Boston, and my mom is going to come live with us. We hope.”

“They just want a live-in babysitter,” Jackie said. “But I’m more than willing. You know how grandparents are.”

Gina laughed. “I’d be lost without my mom. I have two kids at home.”

“You get it,” Jackie said.

Ryan sipped his coffee and looked thoughtful. “Do you have any real estate agent recommendations? Maybe we’ll meet with one later today.”

Gina looked surprised to have been asked something like that. “You’re in luck,” she said. “I’m related to one. Well, sort of. My ex is related to one. He’s the father of my kids, so.”

“What’s the real estate agent’s name?” Ryan asked.

“Quinn,” Gina said.

Jackie’s heartbeat slowed. She’d half expected Gina to say Sarah Strong and lead them directly to the source.

“Do you have a way we could talk to Quinn?” he asked.

Gina pulled her phone from her apron and showed him Quinn’s phone number. “You can give her a call and say Gina put you in contact. I’ve never asked, but maybe she’ll even give you a discount or something.”

Gina sounded far more sure of herself than Jackie suspected she should be. If Quinn was a valid real estate agent, she didn’t just hand out discounts willy-nilly.

Ryan and Jackie fell all over themselves, thanking Gina for the phone number.

After that, Ryan asked Gina offhandedly if she’d met any of the clients who’d recently purchased homes in the area—people he said were friends of his.

“But they didn’t work with your relative Quinn,” Ryan said. “They worked with a real estate agent named Sarah Strong. Does that name ring a bell?”

Gina chewed on the inside of her cheek and thought for a moment. “Sarah Strong. Yeah. I think I’ve heard of her?”

Suddenly, a few bells at the door alerted the arrival of what looked to be three new tables. Apparently, it was time for the lunch rush.

Gina said, “Maybe you should call Quinn and ask her about Sarah?”

Ryan thanked Gina, and she hustled away to grab menus and greet everyone. Ryan made eye contact over the table and said, “If Sarah is selling all these houses, maybe Quinn dislikes her as much as we do?”

---