Henry watches her go, then turns to me. The amusement fades from his face. He scratches the back of his neck, a gesture he’s had since we were kids. “It’s good to see you, Dean. Come back for dinner?”
“Can’t. Got tours all evening.”
Something that looks uncomfortably like disappointment flickers across his face. “Next time, then.”
I nod, and he turns to follow Hazel. The ache in my chest sharpens. I should make time. I know I should. But the water calls, and the water doesn’t ask questions or want things from me.
I head toward the office, a converted shed behind the main house that Bodhi claimed years ago when he took over running the family businesses. The path is worn smooth from years of foot traffic—Bodhi’s mostly, though Colter and Henry use it too. The shed used to be where Dad stored his tools and fishing gear. Now it’s got a desk, a laptop, filing cabinets, and a whiteboard covered in Bodhi’s neat handwriting.
The door’s propped open with a brick. I knock on the frame and step inside.
Bodhi’s at his desk, head bent over a spreadsheet, dark wavy hair falling across his forehead. He’s got that look—jaw tight, shoulders up around his ears, the particular stillness that means he’s been sitting in one position for too long. He doesn’t look up when I enter.
“Door’s open,” he says.
“It is. I’m already in it.”
He glances up, and something in his face shifts. The tension loosens a fraction. “Dean. Didn’t expect you today.”
“Need to talk.”
He leans back in his chair, and it creaks under him. He’s lost weight since the last time I really looked at him—which was probably too long ago. His button-down hangs looser across hisshoulders, and there are shadows under those Haven blue-gray eyes that I don’t like.
“About?”
I drop into the chair across from his desk. It’s the only other chair in the room, a folding one with a cracked vinyl seat that I’ve been telling him to replace for two years. “Reporter showed up this morning. Scarlett Crawford. The one from that viral coffee meltdown.”
Bodhi’s eyebrows go up. He sets down his pen and leans forward, elbows on the desk. “Malcolm’s reporter?”
“Seems so. She booked a tour with me for this afternoon.” I rub the back of my neck, feeling the familiar tension building there. “She’s staying at the Tidewater Resort.”
“Damn it.” Bodhi stands and paces to the small window that looks out over the lower pasture. His shoulders are up again, that defensive posture he gets when he’s thinking through a problem. “How’d she find you?”
“Abel booked her. Didn’t know who she was at first.” I pause. “She nearly fell into the harbor. I caught her.”
Bodhi turns, studying me with those sharp Haven eyes that miss nothing. “You caught her.”
“Her suitcase went in. She was about to follow it.” I keep my voice flat. “I pulled her back. That’s it.”
“That’s it,” he repeats, like he doesn’t believe me.
“That’s it.” I hold his gaze until he looks away first.
He sighs and drops back into his chair. “Malcolm’s been trying to get a reporter out here for years. Ever since those treasure hunt rumors started circulating.” He picks up a stress ball from his desk and squeezes it. “What’s her angle?”
“I don’t know yet. She’s got eighteen million views on that viral clip, but something about it doesn’t sit right.”
Bodhi raises an eyebrow. “You’ve watched it?”
“I did my research.” I don’t mention that I watched it three times last night, trying to figure out what was wrong with the picture. The woman on that video—screaming, entitled, melting down over a coffee order—doesn’t match the woman I met this morning. Not even close.
“Right.” He doesn’t push it.
“What do you want to do?” I ask. “I can kick her off the tour, forbid anyone at the marina from talking to her.”
Bodhi considers it. “No,” he says after a drawn out beat. “If she can’t book tours with us, she’ll book with Cordelia, which means Malcolm controls the narrative. Let’s keep her close. If she’s going to dig into the treasure story, I’d rather know what she finds.”
His speculative tone has all of my warning bells ringing. I scowl at him. “Don’t tell me you think there’s actually a treasure somewhere on the north shore for her to find.”
