Dmitri turned a patronizing smile toward Ginger. “Mrs. Delavie, may I stay with my lovely fiancée in your home?” He bowed and swept his hand across his chest in a theatrical gesture.
“That wouldn’t be proper,” Ginger said. “However, I can recommend an inn not far from here.”
As Dmitri’s face turned scarlet, Kai pressed a hand to his solid chest. “Dmitri, darling. It’s her home, and it might be a little crowded. The Seabreeze Inn is quite nice, and we know the owners. You’ll be more comfortable there, I promise.”
“But my darling, it’s been a long time. Don’t you miss me?” He slid his hand down Kai’s back.
Marina’s lips parted. She couldn’t believe what she was witnessing. Did he honestly think that Kai would persuade Ginger for him? This situation was worse than she’d imagined, and it showed her just how fragile Kai was at the moment.
“Of course, I do.” Kai stepped back. “But my grandmother is right, and I’m awfully tired. Had I known you were coming…”
Clearly frustrated, Dmitri flexed the muscles in his jaw, containing his displeasure. Marina was sure that he was accustomed to having his way. Wealthy, powerful, confident—she could see why Kai had been attracted to him, but Dmitri certainly wasn’t her type.
A conciliatory smile creased his strong face. “It won’t be long before we’re in New York.” He pulled Kai toward him. “And then you’ll be all mine, won’t you?”
“Of course, but I have to finish my contract with the touring company first,” Kai replied.
“Then you’ll be glad to know I spoke to your boss. I persuaded him to let you out of your contract. He is already holding auditions for your replacement and sending you a release. Isn’t that great?”
Kai’s eyes blazed, and she took his arm. “It’s late, and as you pointed out, I need a bath. Why don’t I walk you to your car?”
From the measured sound of Kai’s voice, Marina knew her sister was upset. Why didn’t she say something? Marina felt like screaming, especially after the conversation they’d just had. Come on, Kai, she thought, willing her sister to find her backbone.
Dmitri nodded toward Ginger and Marina. As they disappeared around the corner, Kai’s voice rose in the night.
Marina stepped onto the porch, and Ginger held the door open.
“Dmitri is a rascal,” Ginger said, turning.
“That’s too kind.” As Marina followed her grandmother inside, she asked, “Did you have much time to talk?”
Ginger huffed. “Two minutes would have been enough. He’s self-centered, egotistical, and views Kai as a pretty little possession he can brag about. A trophy wife. He seems eager to remove her from her family and friends so that they can associate with the right people in the business.”
“How do you know that?”
Ginger’s deep green eyes held her gaze. “That’s what he told me.” She swished her caftan around her. “Would you like a cup of tea or a glass of wine?”
“Definitely wine.” With her dirty clothes, Marina didn’t dare sit down on the canvas slipcovers that Ginger brought out every year, even if they were washable. She’d already had to wash them once after Scout had clambered onto the sofa with wet, sandy paws.
“Let’s sit in the kitchen. I’m such a mess.” The red Formica kitchen table and chairs were worn, but they were practically indestructible. Marina tucked the caviar into the refrigerator to save for a day when they had something to celebrate.
Ginger brought out a bottle of pinot noir and glasses from the wine alcove by the dining room. “I’m sure Kai will need one too, after that. But I haven’t asked you how the dinner went. Successful, I hope?”
“Actually, I’m pretty proud of what we did. I couldn’t have managed without Kai. And we had the sweetest deckhand helping us, too. I made lobster pizza with caviar, vegetable kebobs, Caesar salad, and crepes for dessert.” Marina didn’t mention that Jack was there.
“The pizza was an interesting choice,” Ginger said, sounding intrigued.
Her grandmother’s kitten heels tapped on the wooden floors of the old cottage and then onto the Saltillo tiles in the kitchen. She placed the glasses and wine on the kitchen table in front of a colorful hand-painted Talavera pot filled with chives and basil and tarragon for quick snips when they didn’t want to walk to the garden.
The window above the kitchen sink was cracked open, and the sound of Kai and Dimitri arguing was quite clear. Marina was relieved that Kai was standing up for herself. Maybe she’d been too quick to judge. She gestured toward the window. “We really shouldn’t—”
“Of course we should.” Ginger held a finger to her lips.
Yet as they listened, Marina feared Kai was in more trouble than she had realized.
6
Jack started up the path to the mid-century home beach rental that John and Denise shared with Vanessa. Turquoise shutters—the color of the sea in the late afternoon—set off the white cottage. The cottage was close enough to the beach to get the fresh sea breeze, so all the windows were open.
Vanessa had asked him to come this morning, saying that she was better in the morning, especially with what they needed to discuss, so Jack had shifted his schedule. Generally, he liked to write and sketch early. If he were working with Ginger on a story, she preferred to start early as well—if she wasn’t hiking to the ridge. She was an intriguing woman with a sharp mind, even at her age. Not that he’d asked or that it was important.
Her granddaughter was even more vexing. He and Marina had a coffee date scheduled for next week, and he found himself looking forward to it more than he should.
Since that dinner party on the yacht, something else had been running through his mind, too. Jack slowed his pace.
He couldn’t explain it, but he’d sensed that something was amiss on Princess Anne. It wasn’t the Russian captain and crew or the way Charles had sternly informed them that some areas were off-limits during the tour of the yacht. It was a feeling Jack sometimes had, like an extra sense that picked up on abnormalities and lies.
More than that, when he’d seen Carol and Hal in the village, he’d stopped to chat and asked how long they’d know Anne and Charles. To his surprise, the couples had met only last month in Los Angeles at a party. Yet from the way Anne and Charles spoke, they were old friends. Could Carol and Hal have forgotten? As celebrities, they met many people. Yet that wasn’t likely, Jack decided.
He wondered why Princess Anne was docked in Summer Beach. People with grand yachts usually flocked together like rare birds. Anne and Charles were vague about where they were going next. Oddly, they seemed to be waiting.
For what?
Jack shook his head as he approached the steps. As Hank said, there weren’t many stories to investigate in Summer Beach. Maybe he was reading more into the situation. Most likely, they were simply a well-to-do retired couple out for fun.
Yet Charles had been evasive about his line of work when Jack had asked him. Investments. That could mean anything. Jack had pressed him. Stock market came the answer. So Jack asked Charles about a high-profile merger and the broader implications.