Page 34 of Refuge for Ailsa

“I’d say yes, but I told Ailsa I’d bring some for both of us. But dinner tomorrow night? Still on?”

“Oh, yeah. Not missing that for anything,” Morris said with a laugh.

“Holding you to it,” Conor said and slapped Tavish on the shoulder as the men turned to leave.

With two Reubens and a sack full of French fries, Tavish headed back to the marina. He still had three hours before he had to be on patrol, and that was plenty of time to eat with her and just spend some time talking and learning about the store. He wanted to know how to do things around there so he could help out when he was off. It wasn’t enough to provide for them financially. He wanted to provide for her emotionally and physically too. Having some help would mean she could relax a little and not be so worn out in the evenings.

When the marina came into view, he smiled. His girl would be there for him. As icky as the morning had been, he needed something pretty to look at. And he knew exactly who that was.

* * *

She took a shower,moisturized her hair and face, and headed to the office once she was dressed. Starlight followed along at her heels, and she loved the feeling of having the dog with her.

It was always quiet in the middle of the week. The weekends, not so much, but Wednesdays were slow. Everyone was at work, and they hit the lake on Friday afternoon. There were Fridays when she hadn’t gotten away until nine that night because so many people were coming in, needing supplies and fuel, sunscreen, bug spray, and anything else the store sold. Everybody else looked forward to Fridays. She just wanted them to be over. Thank god she’d leased out the bar to a local or she’d never get a free minute.

Two hours in, the front door jangled, and she heard Starlight let out a low growl. That was weird. She hadn’t heard the dog growl before, but if she became a problem, she couldn’t come back to the office with Ailsa. Standing and heading that way, she called out, “Welcome to MyrtleBay Boat Store. Can I help you with anything?”

A man was standing at a rack of tee shirts, thumbing through them. “Nah. Just looking around.”

“You have a boat?” she asked as she glanced down at Starlight. The dog was still rigid and watching like a hawk.

“Nah, but thinking about getting one. You got any slips open?”

“A few. What kind of boat?”

“Umm, maybe a pontoon? Know anybody who’s got one for sale?”

She almost said something about the Bentleys’ boat, but stopped herself. “Not right off hand, no, but there are always a few around here withFor Salesigns on them. You’re welcome to walk around through the marina, see if you can find one.”

“I just might do that. Thanks.” He hadn’t said one wrong thing, but something about the man made Ailsa very, very nervous. From the corner of her eye, she could still see Starlight, and the dog was vigilant in a way Ailsa hadn’t seen before.

“Well, if you need anything, just let me know.”

“Thanks.” She headed for the office, but the man stopped her. “Uh, so, is this the marina where that murder took place?”

Oh, shit. Is he a reporter? I bet he’s a fucking reporter.“Yes. Fourth of July.”

“Wow. That was crazy, right?”

“It was.”Say as little as possible, she told herself.

“Yeah, what was up with that? Did you see it?”

“Uh, kinda.”

“They said she was screaming stuff.”

Ailsa shrugged. “I couldn’t hear anything. I had music playing.” She pointed to the speakers in the ceiling as some SteelyDan wafted from them.

“Oh.” He pulled out a tee, looked at it, and put it back. “I heard he’s into the mob in Chicago for a bunch of money. Had you heard that?”

“No, sir. I haven’t.”What the fuck? I want him out of here.“I don’t know anything about that.”

“That’s what they’re saying. You know, insurance money to pay them off.”

She wanted to ask, “Who is thistheyof whom you are speaking?”but she didn’t want totalk to him. Instead, she just stood there, watching him.

He moved on to some keychains, then some sunglasses, and he tried on at least three pair before putting them all back. “This is a nice store. So does it belong to you, or are you just working here?”

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