Harbour Falls (A Harbour Falls Mystery #1)(17)

“I need to discuss something with you,” Adam said, suddenly serious and somber.

Helena was returning with the cappuccino, and she smiled and said “hi” to Adam.

Adam nodded to her, and Nate said, “Let’s give the girls some private time. We can talk in the back room.”

Helena set the steaming mug on the table and sat down. “What was that all about?”

I watched as Nate followed Adam through a door in the back of the café that I guessed led to the mysterious back room. “I don’t know. Um, Adam said he wanted to talk to Nate about something.”

“Hmm,” she said, “I overheard your conversation. So you ran into Adam last night, eh?”

“Uh, kind of,” I muttered. My cheeks warmed; surely I was blushing.

Helena didn’t ask for details, thank heavens, but her eyes did meet mine. She leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially, “You should go for it, Maddy.”



“I don’t think so,” I replied a little too quickly.

She drummed her perfectly manicured fingernails on the table, seemingly contemplating something. “I’ll tell you a secret, but you have to promise to keep it to yourself.”

What is it with this island and secrets? I thought. Out loud, though, I said, “Sure, my lips are sealed.”

Keeping her voice low, she said, “Bet you never knew Adam wanted to ask you out back in high school.”

I almost spit out my cappuccino and then checked to make sure the back room door was definitely closed. “No way. He never even looked my way, and besides, he was dating Chelsea.”

“That girl was a bitch,” Helena snapped. “He would have been better off if he’d dumped her back then.” Not knowing how to respond, I just sat and let her go on. “Believe what you want, Maddy, but I know for a fact Adam had a thing for you. And I bet he still does.”

“How can you be so sure?”

She nodded to the back room. “Nate told me.”

“It doesn’t matter.” I sighed. “That was a long time ago, and I don’t get the impression he’s interested now. I mean, not really.”

Sure, Adam may have flirted last night, but Helena was making it sound like he’d once been genuinely interested in me.

She was about to say something else, but just then Adam and Nate emerged from the back room. As Adam headed toward our table, Helena got up and whispered to me, “I have your number on the order form. We’ll talk more later, OK?”

I nodded, and from back at the coffee bar, Nate called out, “Hey, babe, can you give me a hand over here?”

It was like they were both conspiring to give Adam and me alone time. Maybe they were. I took a sip of cappuccino as Adam slid into Helena’s vacated seat. “Hey,” he said, leaning back in his chair and throwing me off with a particularly captivating smile. “Sorry about bringing last night up in front of Nate.”



I wanted to play it cool, because, really, he didn’t look remorseful in the least.

But I couldn’t help but break into a smile of my own. Not when he looked this damn good—hair still damp, eyes a sea of blue. So I gave up on being mad and said, “No problem.”

Another dazzling smile and then he said, “It stopped raining.” A vague gesture to the window. “Do you want to take a walk with me?” Adam’s voice was liquid silk, his tone softly sweet but dangerously alluring.

Unable to resist, I said, “Yeah, sure.”

So much for my grand plan to stay away from him. Hell, I was already caving. But after hearing Helena’s revelations, I wanted to spend more time with this man. I didn’t care to talk about the case, think about the case, nothing. I just wanted to enjoy this moment with a gorgeous guy who, just maybe, had a thing for me. Still.

We left the café—but not before saying our farewells to a smug-looking Helena and Nate. Clever matchmakers, I thought, smiling, as Adam and I walked side by side through town, passing the brightly colored buildings. “I love all the colors,” I told him. “I’ll have to come back next year when everything’s open.”

“You should,” Adam replied. “It’s a lot different in the summer.”

“What made you choose the art deco theme?” As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I winced. I’d promised Ami I’d not say anything to anyone about knowing Adam owned the island. I was sure she’d especially meant the owner himself.

But Adam just chuckled. “Ami?” he asked, quirking an eyebrow.

We reached the top of the hill that led to the dock parking lot, and I slowed. “Please don’t be mad at her. I was the one digging for information.”

Maybe that wasn’t the best thing to say, but I didn’t want Adam to be angry with Ami. Much to my relief, he said, “It’s fine, I’m not mad.” And he really looked OK with it. “Come on,” he added. “We just have a little further to go.”



I knew we were nearing the southern edge of the island, but I had no idea what our destination was. Adam led me to a narrow, gravel pathway that cut through some lowlying scrub grass and shrubbery. We walked to the end of the pathway, to a point where the land just appeared to drop off to the sea.

Cautiously, I peered forward. A set of uneven steps, crudely cut into the cliffs, weaved their way down to a narrow peninsula. The blanket of thick fog at the base made it impossible to see more than the outlines of the rocks below. “Where are we going?” I asked, turning to face Adam, as the wind, icy cold this close to the sea, whipped hair into my face.