“Not for you to know, Clarence. You said you’d keep our trip to yourself.”
“I have. No sense giving food to the tongue waggers. Did you know he’s got a job offer from a company in Bellingham?”
Her heart skipped a beat. Joe hadn’t said anything to her about a new job, much less moving.
“Some kind of company security job,” Clarence continued. “Wonder if he’ll take it.”
“Joe’s a good friend,” she said, covering up her surprise. As another wave washed over the bow, she glanced out the window. “It’s getting rougher; I’ll bring Lydia inside.”
“Good idea.”
For the rest of the trip, Clarence remained at the helm telling one sea yarn after another. The boat’s rolling motion and Clarence’s voice lulled her into a dreamlike state as she rode out the trip seated on the floor next to Lydia. She knew he wouldn’t take offense at her dozing nor would he lose his craggy smile.
When she awoke, rain drummed on the roof of the pilot house as they passed the old lighthouse and cruised into the small harbor north of Brandon. In the calmer water Clarence nudged the Bertie Blue into a slip. Pulling on her Gore-Tex jacket, she went out on deck, jumped onto the pier with the bowline in hand and secured it to the cleat, then hurried to the stern to do the same. Lydia leaped off the boat and trotted up the ramp to where Bertie stood wearing a yellow rain slicker.
“Storm came in faster than expected,” Bertie yelled to Clarence as he stuck his head out of the wheelhouse, waved, and shut down the engine.
“Hey Jen,” Bertie called out. “Come up to the house for a hot drink and sit by the fire.”
Bertie and Joe were the only ones who called her Jen. “Gotta get home,” Jennifer said as she walked up the ramp to get a hug from Bertie. “I need to get Lydia to the groomer before he closes.”
Bertie glanced at Lydia. “She does look ratty.”
“But she’s happy.” Jennifer laughed and gave her dog a scratch behind the ears. “I enjoyed your cookies. Delicious as usual. Thanks.”
“Take ‘em home with you. Clarence doesn’t need any more calories and neither do I.” She grinned. “Of course, I’ll bake him a hearty dinner tonight.”
“You’re the best cook around. You should open a restaurant.”
“No thanks. That would be too much work. I cook for fun.” Bertie followed her back to the trawler, and grabbed the duffle bag that Jennifer slung off the boat. The wind kicked up and the rain pounded down as Clarence and Jennifer carried the kayak to the parking lot and tied it to the roof of her old jeep. After she stowed her gear inside the car, Clarence and Bert hugged her good-bye, then waved as she left.
With Lydia in the backseat, Jennifer drove toward Brandon with the car smelling of wet dog. On the outskirts of town, she stopped at Shu Lee’s Dog Groomers. Inside the small shop, Shu Lee took one look at Lydia and shook his head. “It take two people three hour to untangle fur. Comb out difficult,” he said. “What you do?”
“Romped in the wild, and she loved every minute of it.” Jennifer stroked Lydia’s head. “Can I pick her up about six or is that too late?”
“We open, but no later.” Shu kept shaking his head. “You promise. Brush her every day. You no keep promise. Bad for dog!”
Shu always made her promise to groom Lydia daily, and she’d agree, then fudged the grooming and returned Lydia full of snarls. “I’ll try, Shu,” she said, handing Lydia’s leash over to him. “Be a good girl, Lydia.”
She dashed out to her car through the downpour and drove to the post office, dreading the usual litany from skinny old Miss Burns, the postmistress. The heat inside the building felt like a steam bath. She spotted Joe’s six foot four frame near the front of the line with a package under his arm. When he turned and saw her, he left his place in line to stand next to her. “Hi, Jen.” His ruddy complexion glowed and his deep blue eyes twinkled as he gave her his warm crooked smile. He looked great in his policeman’s uniform with his athletic build. Although he’d been three years ahead in school, they’d been friends. Six months ago that friendship had become something more, but both were careful to keep it a secret from Brandon gossip. So far they’d succeeded. “Glad you’re back.” he said quietly in his baritone voice.
She nodded, smiled and resisted the impulse to brush back the lock of his sandy hair on his forehead.
“Have fun?”
“It was marvelous and for the most part the weather was good.”
He glanced at the folks around them and lowered his voice. “How about a hike Sunday? Storm might pass by then.”
“Rain’s no problem, but I’ve got an appraisal to do in Seattle. If it’s complicated, I may need to spend the weekend doing research.” She wanted to ask him about the job offer in Bellingham that Clarence had mentioned, but this was hardly the place to do that. “I’ll let you know, okay?”
His grin made her feel warm. “You go first.” She moved behind him. “I know you don’t have much time for errands.”
“Okay, thanks.” He lifted his package. “My sister’s kid left his teddy bear behind.” After it was his turn at the window, and he’d settled up with Miss Burns, he turned back to her. “I gotta get back to the station. You take care, Jen.” He winked at her shielding his face so no one else could see. “Bye.” He hurried out the door.
“Bye,” she said and faced Miss Burns, who said, “He’s such a nice fellow. You two ought to get together. He’s not like, well, you know who.”
“Yes, Joe’s great.” Starting a conversation with Miss Burns was a mistake, and she’d learned the hard way that the best defense was to either agree with her or ignore her. “You’ve got my mail?”
“Well, of course. You know, dearie, we’ve been worried sick about you out on that island. Fog’s been thick as mush and now we got rain. Lordy, but it’s enough to make a body depressed. You give your mother such a time,” the postmistress rambled on. “Looks like you got a fancy letter from Seattle.” Miss Burns hung onto the letter longer than necessary, as if she wanted Jennifer to open it in front of her. Jennifer said nothing as she waited with an open hand.
The woman could gossip the day away if given a chance. Grasping the packet firmly, Jennifer said, “Thanks for holding my mail. And by the way, the island was lovely; so peaceful, not a soul to tell me what to do.”
“Humph.” Miss Burns breathed out her displeasure, while Jennifer retreated, smiled at the people in line, and made a quick exit. In Brandon everyone knew everyone else’s business. At times Jennifer felt she should take Clarence’s advice and move to Seattle where no one, except close friends, knew you. But she’d tied herself to Brandon, the bookstore and Joe.
She stuck her mail under her parka and ran for the car. Once inside, she went through the magazines and catalogues, tossing the throw-outs on the floor by the passenger seat. She took a closer look at the letters and bills then eyed the beautifully embossed envelope that had intrigued Miss Burns. She pulled open the flap. It was an invitation to the Wedgeworths’ open house three weeks from Saturday. Her appraisal of his collection must have sparked the invitation, because she didn’t know either of them personally. Intrigued, she planned to RSVP with a “yes.” Placing the rest of the unopened envelopes on the passenger seat, she drove into the center of town.
Books & Tea was located in a one-story building on the main drag across from Tucker’s Inn and Restaurant, the best place to eat and stay in the area. She turned left onto a side street, then right into the alley behind the store and parked next to Emma Mae’s old green sedan. Her aunt wasn’t expecting her until tomorrow, but Jennifer thought