“I’ll be at the boat at six. Will you?” Dalton reached out and shook the man’s hand.
“Such a slave driver. But for you? I’ll be there.” He squeezed Meg’s shoulder. “I hope to see you again.”
When he walked away, Meg followed him with her gaze up to the hostess stand. Jolene was back on the island and picking up dinner. “That’s odd. Lilly said her private chef was here today.”
“Emmett’s cooking’s so good, she might give her chef the night off from time to time. It seems like he’s doing it as a favor to Lilly.” Dalton frowned as he watched her. “Something bothering you, Nancy Drew?”
“Stop calling me that. But it feels strange.” She took a sip of her wine. It was much better than what her aunt had at the house. Which was expensive. What was this friendly dinner costing Dalton? “Anyway, did you know that Meade’s car is still parked at the ferry? How did he get from the ferry to Lilly’s house? He couldn’t have walked. He wasn’t in that great of shape.”
“You think someone picked him up?” Dalton turned and watched Jolene leave the restaurant, bags in hand.
“Yes. And I wonder why.” She finished off her mashed potatoes. “Lilly had already hired a new agent. Wouldn’t she have fired Meade before doing that?”
“Your aunt would know the timeline, right?” Dalton finished his dinner. “I was thinking we could go out to the boat and sit for a while and talk. I’ve got a bottle of wine from the Eagle Bay Winery that I won in a raffle at work last month. We won’t take her out unless you want to.”
“That sounds great, but can we pick Watson up first? I hate for him be alone and tear up the apartment.” She set her fork down, staring at the empty dish. “I cleaned my plate. I never do that. Romain thought it made me look unladylike.”
“Your ex is a loser.” Dalton’s lips twitched. “Come on. Let’s go before I have to wheel you out.”
“You’re so mean.” Meg swatted at him.
Their waiter came over to take their plates. “Chef has a dessert ready for you.”
“Oh . . . Well, can we take it to go? And I need our check.” Dalton met Meg’s gaze. “You may not want more wine after you eat one of Emmett’s desserts. He’s legendary for them.”
“I’ll get that dessert packed up, and no check. The chef said to tell you thanks for the lessons.” The waiter disappeared.
Dalton stared after him. “I can’t believe Emmett comped our bill.”
“I know,” Meg teased. “If I’d known, I would have ordered the surf and turf rather than the stuffed fish. I was trying to be nice to your wallet.”
After they’d picked up Watson, they made their way to the marina and Dalton’s boat. He held her hand as she stepped onto the boat deck, pulling her close. A tingle started in her hand, and she looked up into his eyes. “Thank you.”
He nodded, then dropped her hand and grabbed Watson from the dock. “Come here, buddy. You can curl up on my winter jacket.”
As Meg made herself comfortable near Watson, the gentle rocking of the boat felt calming. She took the glass of wine Dalton poured her and waited for him to sit down with her. There were lights strung up on the dock, but most of the light came from the almost full moon. “It’s beautiful out here.”
“And quiet. I bet you didn’t get that in Seattle,” Dalton said as he sat across from her. “So what’s going on with you besides work? You seem distracted.”
“I’m writing this book about how to do an investigation, and the more I write, the more I realize that I don’t know anything. So for this first book, I’m focusing on what a brand-new investigator would need to know.”
“Like what?” He sipped his wine as he watched her.
“Like everyone’s a suspect. I believe Uncle Troy is limiting himself, because he came in with a preconceived notion. He thinks Lilly killed Meade so he’s trying to prove that theory.” Meg rubbed Watson’s head. He’d gotten up and come over to comfort her. The dog could read her emotions. “I guess I’m as bad, since I can’t imagine her killing him. I need to be more in the middle to let the issue build and solve itself. Right now, I’m pushing, so the answer is what I want it to be.”
“You might not like what you find out,” Dalton warned. He must have seen her shiver, as he stood to put a blanket around her shoulders. “Let’s get that cake eaten and get you home. You look like you’re freezing.”
“It’s not bad. I’m not used to being outside this late.” Meg rubbed Watson’s fur. “Especially lately. If I’m not working, I’m typically tucked in bed by now. I know, I’m the life of the party, right? Hey, speaking of the party, isn’t it bonfire night? I’m surprised we didn’t go there.”
“Why? Did you want to go?” He sat next to her and handed her a fork and spoon wrapped in a white paper napkin.
“No, but I thought that was where you hung out on Tuesday nights.” She took a bite of the cake. “Oh, my goodness. This is heaven.”
“Emmett loves making desserts. If Natasha hadn’t found a loan to keep her afloat a few years ago, he would have bought her out and taken over the bakery. I’m glad he didn’t, because now we have two amazing places to eat.” He looked at Meg’s face and saw her reaction. “I take it she didn’t mention she almost lost the bakery.”
“No. Not one word. And we FaceTimed that whole year, almost nightly. It was before I started dating Romain, and with the lockdown, we were both stuck inside. I even asked her how the business was doing, and she said she had enough saved for a rainy day.” Meg took another bite, but this time, the dessert didn’t taste quite as sweet.
“I guess it rained too long,” he said. “Even for the Seattle area.”
