Tabitha paused before greeting the next customer. "Is that the question?"

I thought for a second. "Umm. No. Yes."

The coffee machine drizzled hot water into the pot, brewing a fresh batch as Tabitha considered her answer. I rarely drank the stuff warm and did not see the appeal, but the tips and money from finding Brent meant I'd be able to pay rent and eat, so I poured another cup full.

"Why did he leave?"

I snorted. "To win me back." If a girl believed that.

Tabitha smiled. "Do you want him to?" She turned to the next customer, and I bagged up their muffin order while she took the payment.

Did I want to give Broadrick another chance? My heart said, "Fuck yes, bitch." My head, on the other hand, had more brains. Literally. She was throwing up all kinds of red flags and warning sirens.

Because of the age difference and his military duties, we'd always had a long-distance relationship, but that didn't mean it was bad. When we were together, things felt right. He held me in his arms and we planned our future. He made my world safe.

I'd given Broadrick my heart long before I met him in person, and when he threw it back at me, I didn't know how I'd survive.

But I did.

I wasn't sure if I could a second time.

"I don't know," I answered her honestly.

Tabitha's nod was full of understanding. "Well, figure that out first."

"Hot chocolate with extra whip, please," the next customer ordered and then continued her conversation with the friend beside her. "I'm just saying, Ella, if you don't get your mother-in-law under control now, then she'll run your life forever. This is your baby and your nursery. She doesn't get a say in paint colors."

"I know, but what can I do? He always takes her side."

I stopped my work to listen to their gossip. It might be useful during the evening phone tree if they started dropping more details. Everyone knew Mrs. Ashford would be a horribly demanding mother-in-law when her son married Ella. They'd barely made it a year, and it seemed our predictions were coming true.

We'd broken the news of Ella's pregnancy last week, but if they were already planning a nursery, she might be further along than we realized. I'd have to update Pearl.

"You can't let her run your home. If you don't put your foot down now, she'll never quit."

I tried listening to their conversation and making the hot chocolate, but a figure out the large window facing Main Street caught my attention.

Broadrick.

I'd say he was definitely stalking me, but Pelican Bay was such a small town that you were never sure.

The hot water splashed over the cup, burning my thumb as I stirred the cocoa packet. "Shit."

Broadrick stopped two feet from the end of the window, leaving our bodies almost parallel to one another. He turned his entire body so his front faced me and then, with one long drawn-out movement, winked.

What the fuck?

Did that asshole just wink at me?

He stood there, letting me glare at him until I realized this was perfect. "Tabitha," I called, hitting the air to get her attention.

"What?" she asked, handing over a printed receipt for the hot chocolate.

"Look out the window right now." I pulled on her arm, taking my gaze from Broadrick.

"Vonnie, chill," she said, finally turning to see my mystery SEAL. "What?"

"That's Broadrick." I pointed to the spot I left him, but there was only thin air.

Where the hell did he go?

Tabitha patted me on the arm. "Breakups can be hard, Vonnie. It's his loss. There is someone so much better for you out there."

"What?"

She turned back to help the last customer. "Look at my situation. Right when I swore off men forever, I found Ridge and my whole life changed."

"I'm not making this up. Broadrick is real. I swear he was right outside."

My heart jumped into my throat. Did my friends not believe me? Did she think I hallucinated him? The disbelief hurt. Was everyone in town laughing at me? Poor, sad, Vonnie making up boyfriends.

I wanted to argue. To prove to her I hadn't created Broadrick as an imaginary boyfriend originally and that he was back in town for real, but the roar of Harleys scattered my thoughts.

Five pimped-out bikes stopped as a group in front of the bakery and leather-clad men left their machines.

"Do we have a fresh pot?" Tabitha asked, surveying our coffee set up.

"Yup, just brewed." I grabbed five large to-go cups and set them on the counter, pouring coffee in.

Most small-towns had secrets, but in our small town we didn't keep them in the closet. No, we dressed them up in leather and put them in a semi-famous biker gang. They came in at least once a day, and every dude there ordered a large to-go coffee black.

Not the most adventurous order, but fitting for their position in town. We had a large population of men trying to out-man their peers. From former Navy SEALs, juiced-up cops, firefighters, and the biker gang, the waters ran deep with testosterone.

Tabitha and I served the bikers. Their leader Dominick-The Impaler-grabbed his coffee first and placed a twenty in the tip jar. Anessa declared the bakery neutral ground in the town, but it was an unspoken rule the bikers didn't hang around and chat in the bakery unless they wanted Anessa and Tabitha's men-also known as the former SEALs-to come pouring in from all the exits to watch them.

With the bikers gone, the bakery slowed, and we used our first sluggish period to wipe tables and restock supplies.

"Thanks for filling in for me. If you want to take a quick break, I've got things here," Tabitha said, wiping her towel against the last table.

"Thanks." I slipped out the front door and grabbed the scrap of paper from my pocket with the information I'd found on Ashley.

Those two were way too chummy at the funeral to not be suspicious. We definitely needed to have a chat.

Jimmy's ex answered her phone on the fourth ring. "Hello?"

"Hey, is this Ashely Hart?" I asked in a sing-song voice, trying not to betray my motives.

"Umm, yeah. Who is this?" Her voice cracked. She seemed awfully worried about a random phone call.

"I'm from Vines Investigations and I'm wondering if you can meet with me to chat about a recent case I'm working." Silence permeated the phone for so long. I pulled it from my ear to make sure she hadn't hung up. "Ashley."

"What investigation?" she whispered, so I barely heard her.

I couldn't tell her the truth. "There's a missing dog in your neighborhood. I'm curious if you've seen him?"

Ashley laughed nervously. "Oh, I doubt it. I've been busy and barely home the last few days."

Hmm. Not home, because she's been busy murdering Jalinda Jones and then shacking up with Jimmy?

"It will only take a minute of your time."

"Well... I guess you can stop by. Can you come tomorrow in the morning?"

"Nine a.m. work for you?" I asked, wanting to nail down a time. Unease skittered up my spine.

The exhaust brakes from a large truck sputtered on her end of the call and a door closed with a heavy thud. "Sure, tomorrow would be best. Any time before ten."

"Great, see you then," I said and hung up, but I didn't go back into the bakery.

The sun was setting on the end of Main Street as I tapped my phone against my hand. Something wasn't right on the call.

My gut screamed I needed to see Ashley right that second or I might miss my chance forever. After an issue with three drug dealers last year, I learned to always trust my gut.

I ripped open the bakery door and leaned my head inside. "I gotta run for a few minutes. Are you okay here?"

Tabitha popped up from behind the counter. "Sure, but what's up with this box?"

Shit. I almost left Samantha.

She'd have to come with me to track Jalinda's killer.