Page 55 of Death of a Grill Master

Bruce beamed. “You’re just saying that.”

“I’m not. This is … better than the shrimp linguine at Café This Way. And they don’t have to make out with you after.”

“Yet another reason I win.”

They toasted with glasses of pinot grigio. The air outside had cooled since sunset. Jazz played softly from the Bluetooth speaker, Ella Fitzgerald crooning about moonlight and love.

Bruce reached across the table and took her hand. “Tell me you’re not thinking about the case.”

Hayley tried.

She really did.

But the furrow in her brow gave her away.

“It’s date night, babe. We agreed.”

“I know, I know. You’re right. I’m a terrible wife.”

“No, you’re just a distracted wife.”

“Fine. One question,” she said. “Then we talk about literally anything else.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Just one?”

“Ish.” She leaned back. “Zane’s looking guiltier by the minute. The dive logs, his proximity on the night of the fireworks, his evasiveness when I asked about the missing wet suit gear …”

Bruce twirled his fork. “You still suspect the Larkins?”

“The Larkins had every reason to resent Hank, but that doesn’t make them murderers. Plus, given what we know about the bullet’s trajectory, they couldn’t have fired the shot from their boat. Hannah Holloway? Pretty much the same deal. She was bitter, not bloodthirsty.”

“And Doug Marsh?”

Hayley frowned. “He worries me. Nobody knows much about him. He’s charming, handsome, a spice merchant on the side when he’s not doing your taxes, apparently. But Liddy barely knows the guy. It’s a classic Lifetime movie setup.”

Bruce sipped his wine. “I spoke to the county DA.”

Hayley sat upright. “You what?”

“Casual conversation. At the club. He said they’re putting together a case against Chase Wingate. They want something clean. Solid. Stamp it solved and move along.”

“Of course they do.” Hayley stabbed at her linguine. “He’s rich, powerful, and despised by half the town. That’s easy math for a prosecutor.”

“Do you think Chase is capable of murder?”

“Sure. But I don’t think he pulled the trigger. His brand of cruelty is more … drawn out. Calculated. He’s more of a killer in the boardroom as opposed to on a boat.”

“Then who?”

She sighed. “Doug. Or Zane. But I keep circling back to Tina Whitmore. Her disappearance … it’s connected. I feel it.”

Bruce pushed his plate aside and leaned forward. “Just promise me one thing.”

“Anything.”

“Don’t tell any of this to Liddy. She’s already fragile. You cast one shadow over her new romance, and she’ll never forgive you.”

Hayley held up her hands. “It’s not like she isn’t already painfully aware of the suspicion circling around him, but I worry she may turn a blind eye to what she doesn’t want to see. And that could be dangerous.”