“I was just telling Colleen that I couldn’t watch that crime stuff that she does. It would give me nightmares.”
He leaned down and gave her a quick peck on the lips. “I don’t know, some of that stuff is interesting. I prefer to listen to the podcasts because I’m always on the boat.”
“Want to sit down? We can get another chair,” Colleen offered.
“No, thanks. I actually need to get home and take a shower. I somehow managed to get fish guts all over me today on one of my charters,” he said, pulling at his shirt. Colleen scrunched her nose.
“You know, I could’ve gone the rest of my life without hearing you say that.”
“Sorry. I thought you could take it,” he said, poking her in the arm. “Besides, I just came by to say hello to my beautiful girlfriend and ask her if she would like to go on a fancy date with me tomorrow night?”
“A fancy date? What’s the occasion?” Janine asked, looking up at him.
“Do I have to have a special reason to take you out?”
“I guess not. It’s just that we’ve both been so busy lately that I wasn’t expecting something like this.”
He walked around behind her and put his hands on her shoulders, squeezing them before pressing his lips to the top of her curly hair. “You just get all dolled up and I will pick you up at six o’clock.”
As he started to walk away, Janine called him. “Where are we going?”
He didn’t turn around but yelled back, “Just make sure you wear shoes you can dance in.”
Janine stared at Colleen, a smile forming on her face. “What is he up to?”
“I don’t know, but it sure sounds fun whatever it is.”
Chapter 6
Emma nervously walked down the road toward the inn. Why on earth would she agree to this? It had already been a long, tiring day and now she had to stay on her game while eating dinner with a bunch of strangers.
It was already obvious that some of the women she met were picking up on the fact that she had run away from her old life. Nobody was asking any direct questions, although she was sure that would be coming soon. Julie and Janine’s mother wanted to know her backstory, that much was obvious.
As she walked up the front steps, she tried to gather herself. Just act normal. Just act normal. She’d been undercover enough times in her career to get through a simple dinner.
Before she could knock, Julie opened the door, a big smile on her face. “Emma, I’m so glad that you could make it. Come on in!”
As she walked inside, she was struck at how quaint and beautiful the place was. Obviously a historic home, it had been renovated in a way that preserved the history while also still feeling comfortable and modern.
“Thanks for inviting me. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a home-cooked meal. Even back home, it was always takeout.”
“Well, we can’t have that! In fact, we have a Sunday family dinner just about every week. You are welcome to come anytime.”
Emma smiled. “Thank you. I just might take you up on that.”
A tall, very good looking man walked around the corner. Emma could tell he had a very easy-going nature about him. She assumed that he was Julie’s husband.
“Emma, I’d like you to meet Dawson, my husband.”
She reached her hand out and shook his. It was large and rough, and she could definitely tell that he probably worked with his hands quite a bit. “Nice to meet you. Thank you for having me over for dinner tonight.”
He waved his hand. “One thing you’ll learn about our little island is that everybody is family. You’re always welcome in our home.”
“Dawson grew up here. This home actually belonged to his grandmother, and he renovated it himself before opening it as an inn.”
“Well, that’s impressive. It’s a beautiful place, and you have such a wonderful stretch of beach.”
“Yes, we do. We spend quite a lot of time out there.”
“I don’t blame you. I would spend all of my time out there if I were you.”
Dawson chuckled. “You don’t have such a bad place there yourself. I’m sure the view from the lighthouse is absolutely stunning. I can’t wait to come for a tour. I’ve just been so busy lately that I don’t know when I can schedule it, but I promise I’ll come by and pay for a ticket.”
“It’s a stunning view, for sure. I am very blessed to live there.”
“Dinner’s ready,” a woman said, poking her head out from another room.
“Thanks, Lucy. We’ll make our way into the dining room,” Julie said.
“We better hurry up. You know how ornery she gets if we let the food get cold,” Dawson said with a laugh.
As they walked into the dining room, a little boy came running from seemingly nowhere and plopped down at the table.
“Dylan, that was very rude. You don’t run through the dining room, especially when we have a guest here.”
The little boy hung his head. “Sorry.”
“Thank you. Now, why don’t you say hello to Miss Emma. She’s running the lighthouse tours now.”
He looked up at her, his eyes wide. “You get to go inside the lighthouse?”
Emma smiled. “All day, every day. Have you seen it yet?”
“No. I have to go to stupid school all day. But mom said that we can go soon.”
Julie looked at him. “Don’t say stupid. That’s not nice. And when he finishes his science project, his reward will be
