A Stranger on the Beach(35)

“I hope you don’t drive under the influence.”

“Never.”

“I heard you missed work last night.”

Aidan was annoyed with the direction of the conversation. But he was hardly surprised.

“Already with the interrogation? I just stepped foot on the boat.”

“Okay, you’re right. Get that line?”

The sun glittered on the water. The wind was in Aidan’s hair as he cast off the dock lines and joined his brother at the helm. If the only lecture was one small mention of his truancy last night, then he’d gotten off easy, and they could enjoy the day. Tommy steered the boat expertly out of the crowded marina, picking up speed as they hit the open water. They cruised for a while, not talking, squinting through their sunglasses at the waves. Eventually they reached a sheltered cove that was known for its striped bass. Tommy cut the engine, and they dropped anchor.

The wind died down. They sat there for half an hour without a single bite, enjoying the sunshine, a couple of morning beers, shooting the shit about football and the like, before Tommy finally got to the real point.

“This woman you’ve been hanging out with,” Tommy said, his eyes on the horizon. “The chick from the bar.”

“I knew it,” Aidan said, shaking his head.

“Knew what?”

“That you had some ulterior motive for taking me out here. It’s never that you want to hang with me.”

“I do want to hang out with you, and there is no motive. We’re together, so I’m asking about your life.”

“About Caroline?”

“Yeah. What’s up with that?”

“What do you mean, what’s up?”

“Are you seeing her? Is this something ongoing?”

“Why is that your business?”

Tommy shot him a look, which was easy enough to decipher. Tommy thought that anything Aidan touched was his business. And Aidan had touched Caroline.

“Because I care. I worry about you. How much do you know about this woman?” Tommy said.

“I know enough. I know what I need to.”

“Did you know she stiffed every contractor on the island? Unpaid bills from here to Kalamazoo.”

“I don’t believe it. That’s not even possible. Those guys don’t run balances. They take their pound of flesh along the way.”

“I’m telling you what I heard. Plus, I heard some concerning things about her husband.”

Aidan looked at his brother sharply. “Concerning, in what way?”

“That he might be mixed up with some bad characters. Involved in some crooked business dealings. That sort of thing. And if he is, and you’re getting with his wife, the guy could go medieval on you.”

“Have you seen him?”

“No. I haven’t. Have you?”

“He’s some uptight Wall Street type in a fancy suit. I’m not afraid of him.”

“Maybe you should be.”

“If there’s something I should be worried about, then tell me. You say you have information that this guy is involved in something criminal. So, tell me the details.”

Tommy met his gaze. “I don’t know any details, and if I did, I wouldn’t tell you. I know you, Aidan. And I don’t need you going vigilante out of some foolish sense of chivalry. Forget this woman. She’s bad news.”

“Come on, Tommy, please,” Aidan begged, worried now. “I need to know what Stark is mixed up in. If there’s something shady with the guy, I have to protect her.”

“Protect her from her own husband? What are you even talking about? This is a married woman.”

“She’s getting a divorce.”

Now, based on what he’d seen at the restaurant last night, Aidan had his doubts whether Caroline was really getting divorced. Watching her greet her husband with that kiss shook him. If the divorce was off, that was a serious setback for their relationship. But it was only a setback. There were steps Aidan could take to change it. He could be her savior, her defender, like he’d promised, like she’d asked. From what he’d overheard at the restaurant last night, Stark was dealing in big money with this Russian woman. And now here was Tommy suggesting that Stark was mixed up in shady business. It added up to something that could pose a threat to Caroline, or even to her daughter. He had no intention of letting her get hurt, or of letting her slip through his fingers, either. They were destined to be together, and this was his route to winning her, forever.

“Whether she’s getting divorced or not,” Tommy said, “you don’t have a frigging clue what you’re walking into. You’re gonna end up screwing up your life again, and I won’t have it.”

“Do you know how you sound, trying to scare me off her? What are you, jealous? You can’t let me have a relationship.”

“I’m trying to protect you.”

“I can take care of myself.”

“Can you?” Tommy said.

“Yes, I can, but you refuse to see that. You can’t stop thinking of me as a screwup. Finally, after all these years, I meet a woman that I feel something for, that I can build a relationship with. Why can’t you let me live my life?”

“Maybe because the last time you fell for someone, I had to get you out from under a murder rap.”