I slid my foot into the shoe and bent over to lace it up while NB desperately tried to lick my face. "Hey, B. I'm going to head to the office to grab those files."

Eric had no trouble dropping off his stepdad's files at the front desk yesterday. Since he knew his way around town. Also, the Kensington building was a big black monstrosity that you couldn't miss, but still. He was totally suspicious since he told me he hadn't been here in years.

Broadrick didn't answer.

"Broadrick?" I asked as I finished lacing the second shoe and stood up.

Nothing.

Hmm. Where did he go? The house wasn't that big.

NB followed me as I went in search of the tall SEAL. He was acting almost as suspicious as Eric.

"Broadrick?" I asked, stepping into the bedroom where he had his cell phone stuck against his ear. He already had on a black Pelican Bay Security polo and a pair of jeans.

He rarely took calls. Unless his mom called.

I leaned against the door to listen.

Broadrick's gaze caught mine and he tensed.

Definitely sus.

His odd behavior put me on high alert.

"We'll catch up later," Broadrick said before ending the call and jamming his phone in his pocket.

I moved further into the room. "Who was that?"

He shrugged, playing at nonchalance. But I didn't buy it. "A SEAL."

"Which one?"

"Dalton." Broadrick stepped around me and skirted out of the bedroom.

Like he was on the run. From me.

"What about?" I asked, walking after him to keep up.

He stopped in the kitchen and grabbed a treat for NB, but bribing our dog didn't distract me. "A project for Ridge."

I narrowed my eyes at him and took the second treat from his hand. He didn't get to give the dog all the treats. I wanted to win his love, too. NB jumped on my legs and I made him sit before giving him the food. "You aren't out of the military until December."

Which meant he couldn't work for Ridge in any official capacity. He still had a bunch of classes the government was going to make him take to "ease into civilian life." And while he might not have any more missions, he warned me that he may have to report to base a few times. He'd use as much leave as possible, but if Uncle Sam called, he had to answer.

He tipped his head to the side. "I'm helping in a consultant role without pay."

"Without pay?" Was he out of his mind? If he wanted to work for someone without pay, I had jobs for him.

Broadrick chuckled. "We're calling it a sign-on bonus when I take the job in January."

I lifted a shoulder in acceptance but still had questions. It better be a big ass signing bonus.

"Consulting role in what? Getting shot?" I asked, pointing at the bandage visible from underneath his polo collar. Yes, I was still salty about the injury.

"Babe, nobody shot me."

"But basically, you were," I argued as we moved toward the front door.

Broadrick rubbed his temple and lifted his head to stare at the ceiling for a beat. He mumbled something to himself.

"I'm telling your mother. I bet she'd agree with me."

Broadrick dropped his head, his eyes wide with fright. "Don't joke, Vonnie. She might end up coming for a visit."

He acted like that was the worst idea he'd ever heard.

"I'm sure she'd be fine. She worries about you, too." Plus, weren't girlfriends supposed to meet the parents? Kelvin introduced me to his entire family, and we were only fake dating for the day.

Broadrick ran his hand against my chin. "I'm sure you'll get to meet her soon, and then you'll understand why it's best to have distance."

"She's in Texas." That was a lot of distance.

He nodded. "I've suggested they consider retiring in California. Give me a few more states of buffer."

I laughed as he handed me NB's leash. "I've never been to Texas."

"It's hot, but I promise I'll take you soon. Until then, what are your plans for today?"

Oh yeah. That's what started this entire thing. I clipped the leash to NB's collar. "I'm headed to the office for a bit. To go through files." No one ever told you how much of being a PI was just searching through old files.

Broadrick checked his watch. "Can you walk NB? I've run out of time arguing about nonexistent bullet wounds and Texas mothers."

I didn't like his tone, but since I already had NB's leash, I agreed. "We'll check out the beach."

He gave me a kiss on the temple and held the front door open as NB and I walked out. "Thanks, babe."

I let myself smile as we walked toward the beach. At one point last year I figured Broadrick and I would never be together. Now he was in my town, practically living with me at my place, and we had a joint dog. I didn't know when it happened, but we'd grown as a couple and individuals.

Now I just needed to solve a murder, clear my name, and find a new mentor, and I'd be back on track to becoming the best PI in Maine.

NB and I crossed the road as we neared the public beach and stuck to the sidewalk so I didn't get sand in my shoes. I closed my eyes, letting the little dog lead the way, and sucked in a big fresh breath of salty air. Waves violently crashed against the shore on the spring day and birds cawed overhead as they searched the water for brunch.

I loved living by the water. The sights, sounds, the salt in the air. A gust of wind blew in from the ocean, and I tucked into my spring coat harder to fight against the chill that soon left as the wind carried it down Main Street.

We stopped to let NB bark at the birds. He liked to pretend he could catch one, but we both knew if they came close, he'd run in the other direction. He jerked on the leash and then settled down enough to watch them with his back straight. If the leash magically dissolved, he'd be ready to go the second he noticed any slack.

With the free time, I pulled out my cell phone and snapped a picture of the clouds over the water. I had a few thousand similar photos, but I just never got enough. Next, I opened the web browser and did a quick search to use the free time.

"Why do partners kill each other?"

A list of results loaded instantly, even with the crappy signal in this part of town. I scrolled through the items. There were some psychological studies, a few recent trial updates, and too many message board discussions on the topic.

All of them were in relation to romantic partners.

I updated my search to include the word business.

"Why do business partners kill each other?"

New results loaded, and I scanned them, not learning anything new.

If Mick's wife was on camera at work and his stepson was at home asleep, that shortened the list of suspects. And sadly, I was still included. After NB's walk, I planned to dig through Mick's old case files, but a wiggle in my gut told me the answer wasn't in the files. It was someone closer to home.

The three big motives for murder included money, love, and revenge.

Mick did a lot of cheating cases, and while one of them might have wanted revenge, death was pretty drastic. Those clients would stand out. Revenge just didn't seem like a good enough reason in this case. I had to connect too many other missing points.

NB gave the leash a serious tug and brought my attention away from the screen and my murder-related thoughts.

"Hold your horses," I told the dog and then followed his gaze to our right.

A woman with long flowing brown hair wearing a pair of cut-off shorts, a short sleeve T-shirt, and flip-flops wandered onto the beach. She had a chair in one hand and a big pink mesh beach bag in the other. Home girl was ready for a beach day.

A few thousand miles south.

"Where does she think she is, NB?"

He didn't answer.

She struggled against the winds, her feet sinking into the cold sand at the public beach. Someone had to rescue her... before she realized she needed a rescue.

"Hey!" I hollered and walked in her direction.

She stopped in the sand with a frown and tried to wave back, but her hands were loaded down.

"Are you okay?" I asked as we approached. It seemed like the polite thing to do, even though we all saw that she was not okay. "It's a little windy out today."

The wind whipped through her hair, sending it over her face. She blew it out of the way. "Yeah, I guess I didn't realize it wouldn't be warm yet."

"Not from Maine?" NB sniffed at her feet, pushing more cold sand over her toes.

She shook her head. "Indiana."

Ah. Land locked and warmer. "It's not beach weather here until... June." Sometimes later, but I didn't want to destroy her dreams.

Her face fell. "Oh. I'll be gone by then."

"Vacation?" It's why most strangers ended up here.

She nodded. "I guess my boss was right. I should have come in the fall when the trees changed colors, but I just have so many splendid memories of Maine with my family as a kid."

"Yeah, it's a great place most of the time. Except the beach in May." Although, not kidding, when you lived here, it was different. We'd gotten into the water on Memorial Day weekend more than once as a kid. "I'm Vonnie."

She took my hand to shake it. "Braisley. So, what do you do here if you can't sit on the beach?"