Against the Tide (15 page)

Her chin inched up. “I'm not afraid.” He almost smiled as she let him lead her down the hall and opened the door to the sunroom. His big Jacuzzi bubbled in the middle of the room.

“Oh my God, you have a hot tub?” She walked toward it as if in a dream, stuck her face into the warm, humid air rising off the top.

“I bought it when I remodeled. Had to add a room just to have a place for it.”

“It must be paradise when you get home after a long day out on the water.”

He nodded. “You like single malt? I've got some Oban my brother Nick bought me for Christmas.”

She turned. “I love good scotch. The smell of peat and that earthy flavor. A little goes a long way, though. I haven't had any in ages.”

He walked over to the sideboard against the wall, turned over a pair of snifters, and poured a dollop of liquor into each one. Liv accepted the glass, inhaled the mossy aroma of peat. “Too bad I didn't bring my bathing suit.”

Rafe walked up behind her, pushed her hair off her shoulders, and pressed his mouth against the nape of her neck. “A bathing suit, darlin', is the last thing you need.”

She turned to look up at him, an interested gleam in her eyes. “Maybe you're right.”

“Oh yeah, I'm right. You won't believe how good it'll make you feel.”

“It? Or you?”

His mouth edged up. “Both.”

A smile bloomed. He felt it like a kick in the stomach.

“After . . . you know . . . earlier, I don't doubt it for a minute.” She looked at the tub, then at him. He figured she was weighing her options, telling herself she ought to go, remembering the way he'd hauled her out of the café and guessing he might do it again.

Rafe took the snifter out of her hand and set it down next to the Jacuzzi, drew Liv into his arms, and kissed her.

He figured it wouldn't take her long to figure out she wasn't going home till morning.

Chapter Seventeen

Sunlight filtered through the curtains as Rafe crossed the bedroom, walked out into the hall, and quietly closed the door. He'd give Olivia another few minutes, then wake her. He knew she didn't want to be late for work and neither did he. But it was early yet, a little before five a.m. Making his way to the kitchen, he put a pot of coffee on to brew, went out and grabbed the newspaper off the porch.

The headlines were more the usual sort for the little town, he saw as he spread the
Star
open on the counter.
FISHING SEASON OFF TO STRONG START. TOURISM PREDICTED UP 10 PERCENT
. Another column read,
GRIZZLY SPOTTED NEAR HORSETAIL FALLS
. Just small-town news. No murder. No mayhem.

He skimmed down, saw the follow-up story on the man who'd died out at the pipeline terminal. The article said terminal security had concluded the man's death was accidental. The authorities believed it was alcohol-related.

Rafe scoffed as he read the rest of the story. Apparently the guy had been drinking and fell off the storage tank. Dumb-ass had died of stupidity. In Alaska it happened all the time.

Rafe read a few more articles and checked the clock. Ten minutes more and he'd wake Olivia—again. His mouth edged up. He'd already nudged her awake once this morning. Fortunately—and another mark in the plus column for her—both of them seemed to like morning sex.

The coffee finished brewing, the rich aroma filling the kitchen. Walking over to the cabinet, he took down two mugs, poured one for himself. He started to fill a cup for Liv when his cell phone began to play the Coast Guard song.

His brother's name popped up on the display. Rafe pressed the phone against his ear. “Hey, Nick, good to hear from you.”

“Got some news. Waited as long as I could stand before I called. Hope I didn't wake you.”

“I'm up and rolling. What's going on?”

“We're pregnant.”

Rafe heard the grin in his brother's voice. “'Bout time,” he said, knowing how much this meant to Nick. “Congratulations.”

“Samantha's known for a while, but we wanted to wait until we were sure everything was okay.”

“That's great, Nick.” Having a family was his youngest brother's lifelong dream—though it was almost comic to hear his tough-as-nails, former Army Ranger, ex-homicide detective brother using the term
we
when referring to being pregnant. “When's the big event?”

“Middle of December. Samantha's already picking out baby furniture.”

“And you're helping, right?”

“Well, yeah. I'm gonna be a dad, you know?” And clearly he was over the moon about it, though Nick had had to find the right woman and take on the Russian mob before he'd figured out what he really wanted.

“Boy or girl?”

“We don't know yet. Doesn't really matter.”

“No, it doesn't.”

“So what about you?” Nick asked. “What's happening in your neck of the woods?”

“Got some bad news. You remember Scotty Ferris, the kid who worked for me? He was murdered. Funeral's this afternoon. I'm trying to help the cops figure out who did it.”

“Be careful, big brother. Murder's my line of work, not yours.”

“I hear you.”

“You and Sally been over for a while. You seeing anyone interesting?”

Rafe glanced up at the ceiling as if he could see Olivia sleeping naked in his bed. “Actually, I am.”

“Wouldn't be that sexy little brunette you had your eye on down at the Pelican Café last time I was there?”

“One and the same.”

Nick chuckled. “Imagine that. She's a beautiful woman.”

“Liv actually thinks if she doesn't wear makeup no one will notice.”

Nick laughed. “She doesn't realize what a discerning eye you have when it comes to women. She as fine as she looks?”

“Finer.”

“So what's her story? She's fairly new in town. I remember you told me that. She owns the café, right?”

“That's right.”

“What else?”

“What do you mean, what else?”

“What else do you know about her?”

He didn't know jack, and now that she was in his life, it was starting to bug the hell out of him.

“Not enough. I was really hoping she'd open up and tell me herself, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen. You think you could run a background check? You don't have to spend a lot of time, just give me the basics. Olivia Chandler, Valdez, Alaska. That's about all I know. Is that enough?”

“For now. I'll run with it, see what turns up, and get back to you.”

“One more thing. Whatever you find, it's just between you and me. Not Dylan. Not anyone in the office. Nobody.”

A moment of silence fell. “Not the police, is that what you're saying?”

Rafe didn't answer. He had no idea what his brother would find out, but he didn't want to take any chances. “Just you and me. I need your word.”

“You don't have to ask.”

“Thanks. Give Samantha a hug for me.”

“You bet I will. Take care, big brother.” Nick hung up the phone.

As Rafe walked back to the counter and filled the second mug, guilt slipped through him. He hated going behind Olivia's back, but if they were ever going to have a chance of making this thing work, he needed to know what the hell was going on. Olivia was keeping secrets. That meant she'd had problems in the past, problems that might affect her future.

For the first time, he realized making things work with Liv was exactly what he wanted. Whatever she was hiding, he needed to know, needed to find out what he was up against.

The guilt slipped away. Olivia was his now. Whether she was willing to admit it or not.

Rafe was a man who protected what was his.

 

 

At eleven thirty that morning, Liv crossed the café and turned off the orange neon
OPEN
sign. She turned over the hanging
CLOSED
sign so it showed through the half-glass front door. They were locking up for the day as soon as the customers finished eating.

Today was Scotty's funeral. Cassie had stayed home to get ready. Her mother was picking her up, and everyone who worked in the café was going. Scott's body had been cremated. The service was a memorial being held at the Community Church at one o'clock. Rafe only had a half-day charter, so he'd be back in time to attend.

Afterward, he was taking Cassie and Lois and a few close friends, including the staff from the Pelican and the guys Scotty had worked with, out on
Sea Scorpion
to scatter his ashes.

Olivia's throat went tight. Such a useless, tragic waste of a young man's life.

She thought of Scotty, and an image of Chip Reed came to mind. He was a good-looking guy who seemed to have no lack of women. True, he had an inflated ego and was way too cocky, but a lot of young men were that way. For a while, he'd fooled Cassie into thinking she loved him, but eventually she had figured out how little he really had to offer.

Cassie had dumped him, but was that reason enough for Chip to commit an act of brutal, senseless murder? And why wait so long? Chip and Cassie hadn't been together for nearly two years.

Cassie didn't believe Chip was guilty. Ben Friedman didn't believe it. In fact, none of the other guys at the card game believed Chip was the killer.

If not, who was it? Liv's thoughts circled around to the two men she and Rafe had talked to at the motel. They'd been interviewed by the police on several different occasions, but Rafe thought something was off about them. Maybe they'd heard something that night but didn't want to get involved with the police. Maybe they knew more about the murder than they were willing to admit.

The notion had been nagging her, gnawing like a dog on a bone.

She glanced at the clock. It was time to get ready for the funeral. With a sigh, she headed upstairs to change.

 

 

Rafe steered
Sea Scorpion
out of the harbor, into the open waters of the Sound. The funeral at the church was over, a brief memorial where family and friends said good-bye to a young man they loved.

A number of those same friends filled the boat, along with Cassie and Lois, and the guys who played cards with Scotty and were there the night he was killed—all but Chip Reed, who was still locked up in jail.

The
Scorpion
crew was there, including Jaimie and Zach; and Mo Blanchard and Josh Dorset, the other two charter boat captains. The gang from the Pelican was aboard: Katie McKenzie, Wayne Littlefish, Charlie Foot, and Nell Olsen.

Standing behind the wheel, Rafe sent his gaze in search of the tall woman dressed completely in black, her glossy dark hair pulled into a severe twist at the back of her head. Standing alone at the rail, Liv stared across the water toward the high mountains rising in the distance. Rafe hadn't talked to her since he had driven her back to her apartment early that morning.

He gave the wheel over to Mo and headed in her direction, came quietly up beside her and just stood there for a while, letting her get accustomed to his presence.

“How you doin', baby?”

She turned and looked up at him, her face pale above her black sweater. She shook her head. “I feel so sorry for her. Cassie loved him so much.”

Rafe's gaze went to the younger woman. Her face was paper white, her arms wrapped tight around the urn that held Scotty's ashes, her light brown hair whipping in the chilly afternoon breeze.

“I've never loved anyone that way,” Liv said. “I'm not sure I ever want to.”

Rafe thought of Ashley Richards, remembered the pain of losing her that had nearly brought him to his knees. “There was a woman I loved once. It was a long time ago.”

Liv's gray eyes swung to his face. She must have caught the flash of grief that still lingered when he thought of Ash. “She died?”

He nodded. “Car accident. I was in college. I told myself I'd never get in that deep with anyone again. I didn't want to risk the pain. Now . . .” His gaze went to Liv. “Maybe it'd be worth it.”

Olivia held his stare for several long seconds before she glanced away. “Maybe I just never met the right man.”

“If you did, could you love him that way?”

Her eyes filled with tears that the wind scattered against her cheeks. “Even if I wanted to, I couldn't.”

“Why not?”

She didn't answer, just shook her head. “I'm sorry . . . It's not a good day.”

“No, it isn't.” Rafe looked up at a sky so blue and clear, it didn't seem real. “Though God gave us the best He knew how.”

She tilted her head back, followed his line of vision across the cloudless sky to the mountains beyond the glistening sea. “Yes, He did.”

“You like being out on the ocean?”

“I do. My dad had a sailboat when I was a kid. I used to go out with him all the time. I loved every minute.”

He liked hearing that. He liked that she was opening up a little. He liked a lot of things about Olivia Chandler. “He still around?”

“No. Dad had a heart attack the summer I graduated high school. Mom left when I was six. We never heard from her again.”

“Brothers and sisters?” he asked casually, expecting her to retreat any minute.

Liv shook her head.

Rafe felt the engines slow as Mo came to the spot they had chosen. “Time to get this done.”

She swallowed. “Yes.”

Rafe leaned down and pressed a soft kiss on her mouth, settled a hand at her waist and drew her close.

Fifteen minutes and buckets of tears later, Scotty's ashes floated away with the current, his young life stolen, his last remains disappearing forever into the sea.

It was over. Scotty Ferris was gone.

For the first time that day, Rafe let the anger surface he'd been keeping locked away. His jaw felt tight, adrenaline pumped through his veins. It shouldn't have happened. The kid deserved to live. Cassie deserved to live the life Scotty had promised. Her baby deserved its father. Someone needed to pay.

Rafe's hand unconsciously fisted. Unfortunately, he didn't know if directing his anger at Chip Reed was where it belonged or if there was someone else. And until he knew for sure, knew without a doubt that Reed had killed Scotty, this wouldn't be finished.

Not for him.

Standing once more behind the wheel, Rafe pressed the throttle forward. The boat picked up speed as they headed back to the harbor.