Reluctant Partners

hadn’t seen any water coming in, but it had been too dark and the water too choppy for her to get in the water and inspect the hull. She ran to put on her waders, then vaulted down into the engine compartment and switched on the pump. But that was just a stopgap measure; she had to get the boat into dry dock immediately.

She quickly changed clothes, then dialed Cooper’s cell phone as she clamored up to the deck to cast off. It wasn’t that she felt any obligation to notify him; nor did she have any desire to rub his nose in the fact he’d wrecked her boat. But she was keenly aware of the agreement she had made not to sail without a Remington on board until their case had been decided. Cooper would use any excuse he could come up with to give her trouble or argue that she was defying a court order.

Unfortunately, she got his voice mail. “Cooper, it’s Allie. The Dragonfly has sprung a leak and I’m taking her to Sinclair Marine, about three miles east. I have to do it now or she’ll sink.”

Allie didn’t have any of the other Remingtons’ numbers. She tried the B and B-she would have Miss Greer drag Cooper out of bed if necessary. But Miss Greer turned the ringer down on her phone at night because people called at strange hours. So Allie got no answer there, either. She left another message, then made one more phone call to Otis Sinclair, letting him know she was coming and to get ready for her.

At least the engines started.

She eased the Dragonfly out of her slip and turned east for her slow trip up the coast, limping along and praying the boat didn’t sink.

Chapter Six

Cooper hadn’t slept well. Memories of hitting that rock mingled with restless dreams about Allie and her gorgeous legs, and the mistrust he’d seen in those green eyes.

He was up before light and was glad to find Reece awake, too. They gathered up Remington Charters’ financial records, chucked them into Cooper’s briefcase, and left the B and B before their restlessness awakened any of the other guests or Miss Greer, who was a little bit scary first thing in the morning before she’d had her coffee.

Of course, the copy shop wasn’t open yet.

“Let’s go get some breakfast at the Old Salt,” Cooper suggested. “By the time we’re done, the copy shop will be open and we can return Allie’s records to her.”

“Miss Greer will be offended if we don’t eat her breakfast,” Reece pointed out as they climbed into Cooper’s rented BMW. Cooper had hired a neighbor kid to drive his car from New York to Texas, but it wouldn’t arrive for a few days.

“I don’t know about you, but Miss Greer has a strange idea of what constitutes a good breakfast.”

“Oh, I always go out and get something else after I eat her itty-bitty pastries,” Reece said. “I just wouldn’t want to hurt her feelings. She’s awfully proud of those cream puffs, or whatever they are.”

Whatever was right. Cooper found them nearly inedible. “Miss Greer will survive. We can’t be the first guests to turn down breakfast.” Leave it to Reece to worry about offending someone they hardly knew. He’d once dated a woman for six months when he saw no future in it because he hadn’t wanted to hurt her feelings by breaking up with her. “She’s not anybody’s grandmother, she’s someone we do business with.”

“She’s probably someone’s grandmother,” Reece pointed out.

“She’s never been married, and you’re too nice.”

“You’ve got a heart like a rock.”

“At least no one can stomp on it.”

It was a familiar argument, and Reece just rolled his eyes.

Even at this early hour the Old Salt was packed because they served the best breakfast in town. But Cooper and Reece managed to find a table on the deck. They ordered another decadent breakfast for Cooper and oatmeal for Reece.

Cooper took a long, satisfying sip of his coffee, leaned back in his chair, and cast his eyes toward the marina, wondering if he would catch any glimpses of Allie this morning. Did she sleep late when she didn’t have an outing scheduled, or was she an early riser like him?

“You sure know how to pick ’em,” Reece said.

“What?”

“Women. Your last girlfriend was a con artist, and now you’ve got the hots for a woman who hates your guts.”

“She doesn’t hate me. I mean, I don’t have the hots for her, as you so charmingly put it. And she doesn’t hate me.”

“You’re trying to take away her livelihood. You think she’ll put you on her Christmas card list? And if you don’t have a thing for her, why are you always staring at her? You’re looking for her right this second.”

“No, actually, what I’m looking for is our boat. And I don’t see it.”

That got Reece’s attention. He swiveled his chair around and peered off toward the marina.

“Am I crazy,” Cooper said, “or is the Dragonfly’s slip empty?”

“My God. You’re right.”

They stared at each other.

“She stole our boat.”

“Don’t jump to conclusions,” said Reece, always the voice of reason. “Maybe she just went to get gas and maintenance.”

Cooper was already reaching for his phone, intending to call 9-1-1 or the Coast Guard, or whoever it was you called to report a stolen boat. But he stopped before actually dialing. Allie had said something about getting fuel this morning. “Let’s go check at the marina.”

But Reece was staring out to sea. “Isn’t that the Dragonfly? Heading away from the marina?”

Damn it. It was. Cooper dialed. “I want to report a stolen boat.”

He explained the situation to the patient emergency operator. Reece put some money on the table for the breakfast they would never eat, and they took off. It looked as if Allie was staying close to the coast. They could follow along the coast road in their car and maintain visual contact until the Coast Guard could catch up with her.

“I knew she was up to no good,” Cooper said as they ran to his BMW. “She probably realized the jig was up once we took a good look at those financials. I’ll bet there’s evidence she was skimming the profits, embezzling. She’s probably been socking it all away in a Swiss bank account, and now she’s going to sell the boat to some black-market boat dealer who’ll use it to run drugs, and Allie will be on the first plane to Brazil.”

“That’s a very interesting scenario you’ve worked out,” Reece commented as Cooper drove like a maniac to the main road that paralleled the coast.

“Can you see her?”

“Yes. Slow down. You know, she’s not moving very fast for a woman with a hot boat. And why wouldn’t she set a course farther out from shore?”

“Not all criminals are smart.”

They followed along, sometimes pulling to the side of the road to let the Dragonfly catch up with them, sometimes zooming ahead when waterfront structures blocked their view.

“Allie doesn’t strike me as stupid,” Reece said.

“Yeah, well…you know, I was almost starting to like her. I was starting to feel bad about evicting her from the boat. I was actually starting to wonder if maybe Johnny had misled her, made her promises so she wouldn’t leave him. Just goes to show how gullible I am. She almost had me with her devoted-employee act.”

“I think I see a Coast Guard cutter.”

“Really? That was fast.” Cooper had mixed feelings about seeing Allie dragged off in handcuffs. She was a heckuva sailor. He’d been looking forward to sailing with her until their court date. Well, he’d have to learn as he went.

“They’re still pretty far away,” Reece said, “but they’re heading straight for the Dragonfly.”