Damn it.
Was all of this my own fault?
It sure looked that way.
In front of me, Franny was saying, "Hey, do me a favor, will ya?"
With an effort, I yanked my thoughts to the present. "What?"
"Come for Euchre tomorrow."
Normally, I loved card games, and Euchre was one of my favorites. But now, between work and personal problems, I was already too buried to breathe. "Sorry, I can't."
"But you have to," she said. "Carol can't make it, and I need a partner."
"Oh, come on." I smiled. "You're friends with everybody on the island. Surely there's someone else you can ask."
"Yeah, but I'm askingyou." Her gaze turned steely. "It's the least you can do after not inviting me to your party."
This again?"But therewasno party."
"Well, thereisat my place. Acardparty. You know the address. Be there at eight, alright?"
And with that, she turned and flounced out the front door, leaving me staring after her.
Who was I kidding?Tomorrow night, I'd be there – and right on time, too, because…well, that's just who I was.
But tonight?
Tonight, I would be seeing Griff.
I would need to explain – and yes, apologize, too.
My heart gave an ominous little squeeze.
But did Griff want to seeme?
Or was it already too late?
60
Surprise in the Dark
Griff
It was nearly ten o'clock at night when I let myself in through the back door of the shop.
I moved quietly, out of habit more than necessity. As expected, the place was dark except for the narrow beam of my flashlight.
So far, so good.
But then, I froze as the beam landed on a familiar figure sitting at the work table.
What the hell?
My breath caught.It was Maisie.
She was curled up in the oversized wooden chair with her knees tucked up to her chest and her arms wrapped around them, like she'd been sitting that way for a while.
