I rolled over to the other side to get off the bed. "No million dollars hiding under there?"

"Ha-ha. No."

He had my bag on the end of the bed, and I grabbed it, sliding the strap over my shoulder just for him to take it off and carry both our bags on one arm.

Show-off.

But I let him do it because he looked hot, being all helpful. And it meant I didn't have to carry a bag. My phone beeped as he stopped at the front desk to check us out of the room. I pulled the device from my pocket, expecting another photo and outfit change for NB.

Instead, the name Tony Baloney flashed across my screen.

I always answered for the bounty hunter. If anyone in Pelican Bay had the best odds of helping me get in trouble, it was Tony.

"What's up BFF?" I asked in lieu for a hello. Tony and I didn't do standard greetings.

He grumbled something about not being normal, but I ignored it. Sometimes he just liked to complain before he got to the point. "Are you still in Florida with Broadrick?"

"Yeah, what's up?" I stepped away from the front desk, but Broadrick's gaze followed my movements.

If I showed too much excitement for whatever Tony had planned, Broadrick would get interested and ask too many questions.

Tony hesitated for a moment. "Is Broadrick close enough to hear?"

"Umm." I double-checked my spot. "Not really."

He had superhuman hearting at times. I blamed the government. They probably put something in their Wheaties. My heartbeat quickened. If Tony wanted to make sure Broadrick didn't hear, his call had to be for something good. Juicy good. Hopefully dangerous.

"When are you getting home?" he asked, using a softer voice.

I glanced at Broadrick, caught him staring at me, and dropped my gaze to the floor. "A couple of hours. We're checking out now, and this weekend I have my sister's open house."

"Hmmm." The taps of his thumb along his steering wheel made it through the line. "I've got a mission I need help with."

My lips curled up on their own accord. "What kind of mission?"

Guns. Handcuffs. Runners. High-speed chases. You never knew with Tony. Normally I didn't get an invitation to the high-action events, but at his point he had to trust me more. That meant he'd finally decided it was time to let me in on the important cases-the high-profile, high-action stuff.

I turned around to stare at the giant stone fireplace that took up one wall of the open seating area with high-back chairs.

"It's top secret. And with the sensitive nature, I'd rather discuss it in person rather than over the phone."

Ohhh. Top secret and sensitive. This had to be an excellent case. I made a fist and did a tiny bump in the air in front of me. I bet we'd have a car chase.

Fancy pants Killdear Island didn't have car chases. They didn't even have cars. What kind of adventure could anyone get into on this island without a car? Not much.

On the island, they'd have golf cart chases, which were just not the same. How fast did a golf cart go? Ten miles an hour? Nothing scary happened at such a slow pace. Unless you were on roller blades or something. And I wasn't into rollerblading.

"Sounds great. I'll hit you up once I'm back, and we'll take this one down together," I said, trying to hold in my excitement. I didn't want to do anything to make Tony change his mind about how exceptional of a partner I'd be for his current court skipper.

"Yeah. Yeah, that's what we'll do," he said, dropping his voice again.

Strong arms reached around me and wrapped around my neck. For a second, I panicked, but then I picked up the undertones of Broadrick's cologne. "Gotta go, but I'll keep you posted."

We hung up, and Broadrick kissed the side of my neck when I lowered the phone. "Good call?"

"How did you know?" I asked, spinning in his arms until we were chest to chest.

He chuckled. "You did a little jump at one point and almost squealed."

"I did not." I hit him on the arm. Vonnie Vines would never give herself away like that. "Tony needs my help on something when we get back to Pelican Bay. Very boring stuff, I'm sure."

"Ah," he said with a little head lift. "Well, let's get headed that way. Our ride is picking us up out front."

I wrapped my arm in his free one, since he had both bags on his other shoulder. "You mean our golf cart escort?"

"Only the best for you, babe."

We made it to the front sidewalk, but no golf cart was in sight. Not even an empty one parked on the street. "Did they forget us?"

Broadrick checked his watch. "No, we're a little early. Do you want to wait inside?"

"Hell no. Let's soak up more of the sun while we can." The heat was already sweltering this time of year, but I didn't want to miss out on the sunshine. The rays in Florida seemed to warm my skin more thoroughly than the half-cloudy sun of Maine.

We stood quietly for a minute until I sucked in a big breath of ocean air. "There is something about being by the water."

Broadrick nodded. "There's nothing like the open seas."

Sometimes I forgot my man was a SEAL. Love for the water was probably the number one job description. It's something we both shared.

"This has been fun," I said, staring up at Broadrick.

He smiled, lowered his head, and froze as my phone rang. "Tony again?"

I checked the caller ID. "No, my dad."

He didn't know we were in Florida because I didn't want them to worry that we wouldn't make it back in time and might miss Vivi's open house.

"Vonnie?" my dad said as soon as I answered.

Did he think he called a wrong number?

"What's up, Dad? Is everything okay?" He wasn't a guy who normally called just for fun. If he rang, he had a purpose for the call.

He hesitated. Not a good sign. "I'm just seeing what you're up to today and how things are going, pumpkin."

My stomach sank. That wasn't good at all. "Did someone die?"

Broadrick, sensing something was wrong, let go of my arm to stand beside me. He gave me a quiet expression asking what, but I shook my head.

"No," he answered quickly but then paused.

I walked two steps forward and turned, hitting Broadrick on the side when he followed me. "Dad, just tell me."

Was it my mother? Vivi? Aunt Claire? Pearl? One of the bakery girls?

"Well, your mother and I have been talking," he spoke slowly, and I paced again, throwing my free hand in the air. Maybe my mother was finally ready to talk to me again after the issue with my uncle. "She thinks it's best if you don't attend Vivi's graduation party."