Lindsey went utterly still. The only sensation of movement in her entire body was from her heart doing a free-falling plummet into her feet like a rock into the sea.

“Excuse me, I’m not sure I understand,” she said. She must have misunderstood him. “What was your name again?”

Something in her tone must have alerted Robbie to her distress because he was on his feet and standing beside her before she blinked.

“I don’t believe my name is relevant,” the man said. “However, your brother’s whereabouts are.”

“If you’re asking for my brother, then, yes, your name is most definitely required,” Lindsey said. “Privacy issues being what they are and all.”

Robbie nudged his head in beside hers so he could listen in on the call. Lindsey would have shoved him away, but she didn’t want to miss a word the man said, and it was reassuring to have someone witness to the call.

“Your brother is in grave danger,” the man said. “I know he came to see you.”

He waited, and Lindsey realized he expected her to say something.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” It sounded lame even to her, but she didn’t know what else to say. She had no doubt her nose was crinkling.

The man made an impatient noise, and she could hear him cover the receiver and talk to someone else. Maybe it was the beautiful woman’s husband, and he was sending his goons after them even as they spoke.

“It is imperative that I talk to Jack,” the man said. “His life is in danger.”

“From you?” Lindsey asked. “Are you the one who is hunting him?”

“No, you misunderstand—” the man said.

“I don’t think I do,” Lindsey said. “I don’t know where my brother is, and even if I did, I would never tell a man who won’t even give me his name.”

“It would put you in danger if I was to tell you,” the man said.

“Really?” she asked. “Or would it give a killer a name?”

“I am not a killer,” he protested. “I am a friend.”

“Without a name?” Lindsey asked. “I don’t think so.”

Lindsey refused to feel guilty for being harsh when for all she knew this was the strange woman’s husband who was looking for Jack and would like to kill him for having a fling with his wife.

“I wish I could tell you more,” the man said. He sounded sincere but Lindsey was pretty sure all bad guys mastered that at a young age. She bet this man, whoever he was, could lie without a tell.

“I’m sure you do,” she said. She couldn’t mask the sarcasm in her voice.

The man’s voice grew intense. “Listen, I have to go, but I’ll be in touch.”

The man hung up and a chill scurried down Lindsey’s spine like a runaway spider.

“Bloody hell!” Robbie swore. “What the devil was that about?”

The kettle in the corner began to whistle, and Lindsey hung up the phone and unplugged the kettle. She poured the boiling water into the teapot, which already held the stainless steel infuser full of tea. She covered the pot and let it steep.

She could feel Robbie staring at her, but she didn’t know how much he had heard and she didn’t know what to say about the surreal conversation. She found herself looking anywhere but at him.

“Sit,” he barked, and Lindsey did.

She was ridiculously glad to have someone tell her what to do because honestly she was kind of freaking out.

“Look at me,” Robbie ordered. “Lindsey, eyes up here.”

Lindsey forced her gaze up to his. He had the piercing sharp glance of the born observer. She found she could maintain contact for only a brief moment before her gaze shot off in another direction.

“Just as I suspected,” he said.

“What?” she asked.

“You’re hiding something, something huge,” he said. “Now spill it.”

“I’m not hiding anything,” she protested. “Do you think the tea is ready?”

“No.” He stared at her with one eye narrowed as if they were in a chess match and he was trying to determine his next move. “Why was that man asking about your brother? Who was he? What does he want with you?”

“No idea,” Lindsey said. She couldn’t help but feel her nose. Crinkled. Damn it.

Robbie stared at her without blinking. It was quite unnerving.

“All right, maybe my brother showed up here yesterday right before the body was found in the library, and maybe my brother was kidnapped by a beautiful woman last night,” she said.

“What?” Robbie squawked. “That’s huge! And you didn’t tell me? I have to tell you, Lindsey, I’m hurt. Really hurt.”

“It wasn’t my story to tell,” she said. “My brother showed up out of the blue. He said he needed a place to hide out, so I gave him the craft room. When I went back to check on him later, the window was open, Jack was gone and there was a dead man on the floor. What was I supposed to do?”

“Confide in your boyfriend,” Robbie said.

“You’re not my boyfriend,” Lindsey argued.

“Did you tell that manky mariner all of this?” he demanded.

“No,” she said. “At least not until Jack was snatched from the Blue Anchor last night and we set off after him in Sully’s boat.”

“Oy, so he got to play hero, did he? Driving you all over the bay in his boat?” Robbie asked. He looked quite put out.

“It was actually cold and wet and we were damn near blown up,” she said. Robbie’s inability to focus on the bigger problem was beginning to annoy her.

“Blown up?” he asked. “All right, that’s it. I demand to know everything that happened from the very beginning and none of this dodgy hole-ridden storytelling either. I want the tale in its entirety.”

Lindsey glanced at the teapot, and Robbie shook his head. There would be no evading him with menial tasks. “The beginning,” he repeated and set about pouring their tea himself.

With no choice left, Lindsey told him about the events of the day, starting with finding Jack in the library and ending with the phone call that he had just overheard. Robbie sipped his tea in thoughtful silence while he listened.

“You and the scalawag are damn lucky you didn’t get blown to smithereens,” he said at the end. “Just wait until I see him. I have a few things to get off my chest. What was he thinking going after the abandoned boat?”

“That it would give us a lead as to who took Jack,” she said.

“Don’t muddy the argument with logic,” Robbie said. “You’re lucky you survived.”

Lindsey nodded. She took a deep drink from her mug and let the tea’s soothing warmth heat her up from the inside out.

She glanced at Robbie and said, “I don’t know what to do. Emma isn’t just the chief of police, she’s my friend and I know she’d want to know about this, but Jack’s my brother and telling the police could get him killed.”

“Very true,” Robbie said. “You really have no idea who you’re dealing with and that’s always a dicey proposition.”

“And that man on the phone, I don’t know who he is or what he wants, but he sounded like he knew a lot more than I did,” she said.

“Not that much,” Robbie disagreed.

“What do you mean?”

“Think about it—the mere fact that he called you means he’s fishing for information,” Robbie said. “If he is the jealous husband, he doesn’t know where they are; otherwise why call you?”

“So Jack might be safe,” Lindsey said.

“For now,” Robbie agreed.

A knock sounded on the door. It was Violet and Nancy. They took in the scene at a glance and Violet gave Lindsey a broad grin while Nancy frowned. The two women were best friends, but when it came to Lindsey’s love life, they had differing viewpoints on with whom Lindsey should be spending her time.

Violet, being one of Robbie’s oldest friends, naturally wanted things to progress between Lindsey and Robbie. Lindsey knew it was more because Violet hoped Lindsey would give Robbie a reason to stay in Briar Creek than it was because she felt they were suited to each other.

Lindsey frequently argued the point that Robbie had a trail of broken hearts a mile wide behind him, and she had no intention of being one of those hearts. And yeah, he was still married, and whether it was in name only or not, Lindsey didn’t see herself taking up with a married man. The mere thought of trying to explain that to Jack or her parents was extremely unpleasant.

As for Nancy, she was firmly on Team Sully. This was not a big surprise either, given that Sully was a native “Creeker” just like Nancy, and to cap it off, he was a boat captain just like her late husband. It had been clear from the day Lindsey had seen Sully and Nancy together that they shared a bond. Sully had worshiped Nancy’s late husband, Captain Peyton, and Lindsey knew that in many ways Sully kept Jake’s memory fresh for Nancy, especially when he talked in his sailor’s jargon.

“Oh, you’re busy,” Violet said. “Well, we won’t interrupt.”

“I’m sure we’re not interrupting,” Nancy said, pushing her way around Violet. “We just wanted to see how you were doing.”

“I’m fine,” Lindsey lied. “But thanks for checking up on me.”

She wasn’t up to an inquisition today, but judging by the lack of movement on the two ladies’ part, they weren’t taking the hint to skedaddle.

“So this is cozy,” Nancy said. She glanced from Robbie to Lindsey. “I didn’t realize you’d taken to having afternoon tea.”

“She hasn’t,” Robbie said. “Not properly. We really need some scones, don’t you think, Violet?”

“With clotted cream and marmalade,” she agreed with a sigh. “Do you remember when we were treading the boards at the Prince Edward Theatre in London and then we’d dash over to the Soho Hotel for afternoon tea?”

“How could I forget?” Robbie grinned at her. “I think we gave the best performances of our lives so that the show would be extended for a longer season so we didn’t have to give up our high tea.” He turned to Lindsey. “You have to come to London with me on my next trip. I’ll take you to the best tea in town.”

He gave Lindsey his most charming grin, and she noticed that Nancy was scowling at him.

“Is it true that you and Sully were dancing at the Anchor last night?” Nancy asked.

Now Robbie frowned and Nancy looked sly. Lindsey had no doubt that this was the real reason for Violet and Nancy’s visit. To confirm the rumor that was no doubt spreading through their town with the speed and destruction of a wildfire.

“Yes, I was,” Lindsey said. She saw Violet stiffen and Nancy looked vanquished, which Robbie managed to squash.

“Only because he cut in, or so I’m told,” Robbie said. “Rather clumsy of him if you ask me.”

“No one asked you,” Nancy snapped.

“Hey, now, I might have asked,” Violet said.

Seeing that this was going nowhere pleasant, Lindsey decided to end the conversation posthaste.

“As much as I’d love to continue this charming chat,” she said, giving them a look that told them she was finding it anything but, “I really have to get back to work.”

“Of course,” Violet said. She hooked her arm through Nancy’s. “We were just passing through. I have a book on hold and Nancy’s supposed to be picking up a movie for us tonight. A comedy.”

“Action adventure,” Nancy said, allowing herself to be dragged from the room.

“Fine but it better be funny,” Violet said.

The door closed behind them with a snap. Then it opened again with Nancy giving Lindsey a look like a disapproving chaperone before she disappeared.

“And I thought the paparazzi were a bunch of nosey parkers,” Robbie said. “Small town living is, well, small, isn’t it?”

“Quite,” Lindsey agreed.

She gathered their mugs and the teapot to rinse out in the break room. Robbie took the teapot from her hands and followed her out of her office. In the break room, he happily dried while she rinsed.

“I know I don’t have to say it, but . . .” Her voice trailed off.

“You’re welcome,” he said.

Lindsey laughed. “I was going to tell you not to tell anyone about our conversation. But just to clarify, what exactly would I be thanking you for?”

“For taking your mind off of your troubles—it’s a specialty of mine,” he said with a wink as he draped the dish towel over his shoulder.

“Oh, is that so?” she asked. She couldn’t help but notice how handsome Robbie was. He had a certain energy about him that was almost palpable, and his reddish blond hair, green eyes and muscular build were not so easily ignored either.

“Yes, but also, for giving you my insight into the fact that I really do think your brother is okay.”

“For now,” Lindsey said.

They were standing side by side, and Lindsey felt the urge to lean into him for comfort coming on a bit too strong, so she made herself back up a step. Robbie grinned at her, letting her know he’d noticed.

“What’s your next move?” he asked.

Lindsey gathered the teapot and mugs to return to their shelf in her office. Again, Robbie took the teapot out of her hands and fell into step beside her.

“Well, it appears I have no choice,” she said. She arranged the delicate pot and matching cups on the shelf. When she was satisfied, she turned to face him. “I think it’s time I called my parents.”