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“I can’t. I don’t think I could take the ribbing I’d get at work.”
“The force is a lot more accepting, Henry. You’re not alone, you know.”
“I know, but it doesn’t make it any easier. Plus, it’s unnecessary because I’m not interested in having a relationship.”
“You mean you won’t allow yourself to have one.”
“Maybe.”
“Let’s get this over with,” Samantha said. “Drop me off at the access road, and I’ll hike to the cottage. We can’t sit here all day.”
“Maybe letting Laura tell Shelly Lily was pregnant will be the next reveal,” Henry said. “What do you think?”
“Clear it with Chadwick, Henry. Peterson said the pregnancy was so early, Lily probably didn’t know.”
“But she had the morning-after pill script just in case.”
Henry dropped her off at the southern-most access road, near the marina. Samantha hopped out of the van and walked down the incline, looking around at the area, the marina to her right, the park and parking lot behind her. Gulls circled above, waiting for pizza crusts to be tossed out of car windows. The atmosphere was oppressive. Samantha imagined Shelly Markham hiding in the shadows, observing her fiancé having sex with another woman. What kind of emotion would that invoke? Unimaginable.
She got the wire off Laura, and after she shut off the transmitter, she decided to ask Laura about Dan.
“I’m interested in him. Real interested. I know he has a rep, but I don’t care. I met him when we questioned Shelly but didn’t exchange a word.”
“You are? Wow. I’m not sure how much longer Shelly will be over there. I’m sure you heard what she said.”
“We did. Are you going to clue him in?”
“No! I couldn’t embarrass him like that. Dan and I go way back.”
Samantha got back to business. “Shelly is a piece of work. We’re going to look at surveillance video at the drugstore where Lily’s apartment is and the marina. If it shows Shelly anywhere in the area, we might have enough to approach Alison.”
“Good luck.”
“I’d better get out of here. Henry’s down at the access road, but I’m afraid Shelly will venture out again.”
“Okay. Let me know when you want me to reach out to her again.”
Five minutes after Samantha left, Laura saw the van driving down Sea View toward town. She was going to get back to work when there was a knock on the side door. Moving the curtain aside, she saw Dan standing on the other side of the glass, looking at her.
“Why aren’t you at work?” she asked him when she opened the door.
“I just heard the news,” he said, staring at Laura’s flat belly. “Congratulations.” His facial expression was unreadable, a first for Laura.
“Thank you, Dan. We’re so happy.”
“Are you? That’s good. Are you going to get married?”
“Maybe. I just found out last night. I don’t feel in a rush to get married. I know Will isn’t going anywhere.”
Dan fidgeted, moving from one foot to the other. “Are you going to let me in?”
“No, I don’t think I will. Not this morning. But I do have some other news for you. Samantha Cordis, the redheaded detective? She told me she’s interested in you and wants an introduction.”
“I’m with Shelly right now.”
“Yeah, but I don’t think that’s going to last.”
“No, probably not.” He looked at her with such longing that she almost cried. She still had a little jealousy when it came to Dan, but having him involved with a normal woman—a cop, no less—would be healthy. She loved Will. She was going to have Will’s baby. It was better for Laura if Dan was occupied.
