Sunken Seas (A Rowan Gray Mystery Book 4)

by Lily Harper Hart

  “And yet it’s none of your business.”

  “What’s none of his business?” Quinn appeared at the edge of the table, widening his eyes when neither Nick nor Rowan opted to look in his direction. He sensed a great deal of animosity emanating from Rowan, enough that he thought better about resting a hand on her shoulder. “Is something going on?”

  Nick broke eye contact first, offering Quinn a friendly smile as he got to his feet. “We were talking about your life-saving efforts last night. Well done.” He clapped Quinn on the shoulder. “I’m glad we’re going to get to spend time together. I love being in the presence of heroes.”

  Quinn balked. “I’m not sure I would phrase it quite like that.”

  “You didn’t. I did.” Nick’s smile was so wide it almost engulfed his entire face. The sentiment didn’t make it all the way to his eyes, though. “I should get going. We’re due to dock in about two hours. I’m looking forward to it, but I have a lot of things to ready before then.”

  “Yeah, well … .” Quinn wasn’t sure what to say so he let it go. He waited until Nick was out of earshot to turn his full attention on Rowan. “Do you want to tell me what that was about?”

  Rowan pursed her lips. “He makes me uncomfortable.”

  Quinn took the seat Nick abandoned moments before and snagged her hand. “How? Is he saying things to you?”

  “Not like you mean,” Rowan replied. “He hasn’t been sexually aggressive or anything. He has been … weird.”

  “I’m going to need more information than that.”

  “I don’t have more information than that,” Rowan said. “Ever since that first moment I saw him at the restaurant, I’ve felt like I should know him. I can’t put my finger on it. It’s starting to mess with my mind, though.”

  Quinn licked his lips, his mind busy. “Well, if it’s one thing I know it’s that you’re intuitive and smart. You read people well. If you think you should know him, then maybe you do know him.”

  “Don’t you think I would remember if we’d met before?” Rowan challenged. “We’ve spent enough time together now that I should be able to place his face.”

  “I don’t know.” Quinn wasn’t sure how to appease her. “Maybe … .” He broke off, tilting his head to the side. “You know what? Give me your computer.”

  Rowan pushed her laptop across the table without complaint, watching as Quinn minimized the portal window and brought up a search window she’d never seen before. “What’s that?”

  “It’s what I use to run background checks on those applying for jobs. It’s not in-depth, but it does give me the basics. It also flags certain things that might require further investigation.”

  “Like what?”

  Quinn remained focused on the computer screen as he typed. “Like court files. I can’t read the court files with this program, but I will be alerted to their presence.”

  “Oh, so you know where to look.”

  “Exactly.”

  “And what are you looking for now?”

  “Whatever I can find on Nicholas Green.”

  Rowan was intrigued so she grabbed her chair and slid closer to Quinn so she could watch him work. “Do you think you’ll find anything?”

  Quinn’s grin was crooked as he slid a sidelong look in her direction. “Under normal circumstances it would drive me nuts to have someone watching me this way.”

  “Sorry.” Rowan made to move, but he stopped her with a shake of his head.

  “I kind of like it with you,” Quinn supplied. “That might make me sick … or a bit strange … but I can’t help it.”

  Rowan snickered. “I think you’re trying to schmooze me before our romantic dinner tonight.”

  “Schmooze?”

  “You heard me. Here’s a tip, though, pal … I think you’re going to get lucky regardless.”

  Quinn barked out a laugh, genuinely amused. “You are my favorite person in the world these days. Do you know that?”

  Rowan’s cheeks flushed with pleasure. “Thank you.” She lowered her gaze. “I feel the same way.”

  “I especially like how flustered you get when I say things like that.” Quinn leaned over and kissed the corner of her mouth before turning his attention back to the computer screen. “Let’s see what we’ve got, shall we?”

  Rowan flicked her eyes to the information scrolling across the screen. Much of it made very little sense to her, but Quinn seemed to grasp it. “Anything?”

  “Well, yes and no.” Quinn scratched at the back of his head. “Nicholas Green has only been with Outer Boundaries for a few months.”

  “That shouldn’t be surprising. Anthony told us that, right? I swear he said that.”

  “I think he did, but I didn’t pay much attention.” Quinn’s expression was hard to read. “Before that he worked for a travel company in Australia.”

  “Australia? That’s quite the change in locales.”

  “Yeah.”

  “What about before that?”

  Quinn shifted his eyes to Rowan, something dark flitting through them. “Well, that’s what’s really interesting. It seems that Nicholas Green hasn’t always existed.”

  Rowan stilled, confused. “I don’t know what that means.”

  “It means that he’s only been around – at least operating under this name – for the past ten years.”

  “Where was he before that?”

  “I don’t know. The ‘who’ and the ‘where’ both seem intriguing to me.”

  “But … I don’t know what to say. It seems important and yet I’m not sure how.”

  “It’s definitely important.” Quinn moved his hand from the laptop keyboard and rested it on Rowan’s thigh, giving her a reassuring squeeze as he scanned the deck for signs of Nick. He was gone, though. “We need more information.”

  “How are you going to get that?”

  Quinn smirked. “I have my ways. Don’t worry about that.”

  “Your friend on the mainland?”

  Quinn’s smile slipped. “Do you have to ruin all my fun? Men like to be mysterious, Ro. You’re squelching my vibe.”

  Even though it was a serious situation, Rowan could do nothing but laugh. “That is the funniest thing you’ve ever said.”

  Quinn was happy to have lightened the mood. “Good, but that doesn’t change the fact that this is weird. I’m going to have to do a more in-depth search.”

  “What do you think you’ll find when you do?”

  “I have no idea, but the possibilities don’t exactly make me happy.”

  12

  Twelve

  Quinn got in touch with his associate, gave him a brief rundown of what they were dealing with, and then wheedled and cajoled until Fred Delmore gave in and agreed to help.

  “I do more work for you than myself,” Fred complained as Quinn watched Rowan change into her new dress so they could disembark for dinner. “You’re a lot of work for a dude who is supposed to be in charge.”

  Quinn rolled his eyes. “It’s one search, Fred. There’s no reason to whine.”

  “I’m not whining.”

  “See, from where I’m sitting, it sounds a lot like whining.”

  “Then perhaps you should move your chair.”

  “I’m liking my view a lot right now,” Quinn said as Rowan leaned over to fasten the buckles on her shoes. “It’s very … pretty.”

  Rowan realized Quinn was talking about her and sent him a wicked smile over her shoulder. Fred, who could see nothing, read his friend’s voice perfectly.

  “You’re not alone, are you?”

  “What?” Quinn forced himself back to the here and now. “What does that have to do with anything?”

  “You’re with your pretty girlfriend,” Fred teased. “I liked the photos you sent to me, by the way. She’s quite the looker.”

  “She is quite the looker,” Quinn agreed, smirking when Rowan’s cheeks flushed with color. “She also knows we’re talking about her and she’s all kinds o
f embarrassed.”

  “I prefer women who don’t get embarrassed,” Fred noted. “They’re more willing to do lewd and outrageous acts if they don’t have the embarrassment gene.”

  “And on that note … .” Quinn made a clucking sound with his tongue.

  “Yeah, yeah.” Fred turned serious. “I’ll run the name, but odds are I won’t have any results for you until tomorrow at the earliest.”

  “I figured that would be the case. It’s fine. We’re going out to dinner tonight anyway. Then, tomorrow, we’re going to see the location of the ship find for the first time. I’ll have a lot on my plate.”

  “Does that mean you don’t want me to put a rush on the search?”

  “No, I definitely want you to put a rush on it,” Quinn countered. “I can’t shake the feeling that something odd is going on here.”

  “And it doesn’t help that this Nicholas Green fellow is interested in your woman.”

  “No, it doesn’t.” Quinn smiled at Rowan as she grabbed her purse from the bedside table. She was ready, which meant it was finally time to spend some quality time together. “See what you can get me. If it’s something big, send a text on my phone. I’ll have it with me.”

  “I’ll do my best, but like I said, I don’t expect to start getting the early stuff until tomorrow. The stuff from the deep run will probably take even longer than that.”

  “Do your best.”

  IT WAS A QUIET BUT beautiful night when Quinn and Rowan hit El Demonio. Rowan made the occasional visit to port stops during normal trips, but Quinn only bothered when she was with him. On the flip side, they liked a little variation for their meal offerings, and tonight was no exception.

  “I’m thinking Italian with a seafood flair.” Quinn linked his fingers with Rowan’s as he led her down the street. The sun was dipping in the sky and it would be dark long before they made it back to the ship. Still, it was a relatively safe area and he wasn’t overly worried. That didn’t mean he wouldn’t watch their surroundings as they cut through the heavily-populated tourist hub.

  “That sounds good to me,” Rowan said. “We should probably avoid too much garlic if we want to enjoy the whole night, though.”

  The double meaning of her words wasn’t lost on Quinn. “Or we could both eat garlic.”

  “Stink together?”

  “I just really like garlic. I don’t think it stinks.”

  “Okay, we can both eat garlic.” Rowan was in a good mood and she stopped at a small jewelry display, a pair of earrings catching her eye. “We don’t get to do this often, do we?”

  “What? Talk in sexy code?”

  Rowan giggled, the sound shooting through Quinn and warming his heart. “We happen to do that quite often.”

  “Not often enough.” Quinn watched her hold the earrings up to the side of her face, enjoying the way she smiled at herself in the mirror. He snagged the earrings from her before she could return them to the display and handed them to the man watching from the end of the kiosk. “We’ll take these.”

  The man beamed. “Very good choice.” He grabbed them and looked to the back so he could find the price, but Quinn had the money out to pay before he could request the cash.

  “You don’t have to do that,” Rowan supplied. “I could buy them for myself.”

  “Maybe I want to buy them for you. Did you consider that?”

  “No. I thought you were buying dinner.”

  “I can buy more than one thing.” Quinn claimed his change and handed the small bag with the earrings to Rowan. “Something to remember our night.”

  Rowan accepted the bag with a grin. “I think we would’ve remembered it no matter what.”

  “Because of all the sexy talk?”

  Rowan snorted. “Because we’re together.”

  “Ah, that’s far more sweet than what I was thinking.”

  They resumed their walk, Quinn swinging their hands in beat with their footsteps. It wasn’t until they closed in on the restaurant that he spoke again.

  “I don’t want you being afraid or upset.”

  The conversational shift took Rowan by surprise. “I’m not. I’m having a good time.”

  “I know that. I mean about Nicholas Green. We’ll figure out what’s going on. It could still be something simple.”

  “You don’t believe that, though.”

  “I don’t know what I believe. I can’t say that I trust him – he’s been far too interested in you from the start – but I’m not getting a creepy sexual vibe from him so I don’t know what to think.”

  Rowan arched an eyebrow. “Would you prefer a creepy sexual vibe?”

  Quinn shrugged. “It would give me something to go on. If I thought he was merely attracted to you, I could have a talk with him and make sure he understands to stay away from you.”

  “He hasn’t done anything overt,” Rowan argued. “He hasn’t touched me … or suggested he be able to touch me … or even looked at me in a way that indicates he wants to touch me.”

  “There’s a lot of talk about touching here,” Quinn noted. “How about we keep the touching talk between us? I definitely want to touch you later, but I’m hungry. You’re threatening to ruin my appetite.”

  “Ha, ha.” Rowan poked his muscled stomach. “He makes me uneasy, but it’s not in the same way that other people make me uneasy.”

  Quinn cast her a sidelong look. “Who else makes you uneasy?”

  “On this particular trip, no one. I’ve had my fair share of run-ins with pervs, though. There’s something about a single woman carrying a camera that makes gross men say the darndest things.”

  “Yeah, that makes me want to lock you in your cabin for the rest of our lives.”

  “That might be fun. We should plan a weekend around something like that.”

  “I’m open to that plan when we can make it work.” Quinn squeezed her hand as he directed her toward a restaurant he’d heard good things about. “This is the place.”

  Rowan beamed. “Bring on the garlic.”

  Quinn matched her smile for smile until he stepped into the restaurant and ran smack-dab into Anthony and Andrea. They sat at a table in the center of the small bistro, their heads bent together in conversation until they noticed Quinn and Rowan by the front door. The duo flashed bright smiles upon realizing their dinner party would be expanding.

  “Join us,” Andrea insisted, patting the chair to her left. “We were just talking about you.”

  Quinn tried to keep his smile in place … and failed miserably. “What are the odds?”

  Rowan tossed him a sympathetic smile. “It’s going to be okay. We’ll still have time to ourselves.”

  Quinn wasn’t convinced. “Do you think they’ll take it the wrong way if we turn and run?”

  “Probably.”

  Quinn heaved out a sigh, resigned. “Fine. I’m not going to forget this, though. I’m going to find a way to make them pay.”

  “I’m going to help you.”

  “SO, WHAT DO YOU two have planned tonight?”

  Andrea was amiable and chatty as she broke a breadstick in half and dipped it in olive oil.

  “It definitely wasn’t this,” Quinn grumbled. He’d been less than enthusiastic since sitting, forcing Anthony to get up and move closer to Andrea so he could have the spot next to Rowan. His dour mood wasn’t lost on his dinner companions.

  “You don’t have to sit with us,” Anthony offered. “We invited you because it was the polite thing to do. If you want to go someplace else … .”

  “Ignore him,” Rowan offered, patting Quinn’s knee under the table. “We’re both tired after last night. He gets crabby when he’s tired.”

  Quinn shot her a dark look. “I’m not crabby.”

  “You definitely seem crabby,” Andrea countered.

  “Yes, well … it’s been a long day.” Quinn leaned back in his chair and rolled his neck until it cracked. “I don’t mean to be rude.”

  Anthony snickered. “You
don’t care how rude you are. You’re just mad we interrupted whatever romantic date you had planned.”

  Quinn didn’t bother denying it. “So what?”

  “Oh, why can’t I find a man like you?” Andrea complained. “You’re actually upset about missing a romantic date. The last guy I was with thought a romantic date included ordering pizza and watching porn.”

  “That’s how all my dates go,” Anthony teased.

  Andrea was blasé. “Figures.”

  Rowan pursed her lips to keep from laughing. “That sounds kind of like the last guy I dated before I lost my job and came to work on The Bounding Storm.”

  “Tell me about him,” Andrea prodded.

  “No, I don’t want to hear about him,” Quinn countered. “Let’s not talk about old boyfriends and girlfriends. Let’s focus on current things.”

  Anthony tapped his fingers on the table. “Not all of us have current things to talk about.”

  Quinn straightened in his chair. “What do you mean? I thought you two were … you know.”

  “No, we just met each other,” Anthony countered. “We get along fine, which is good because we have to share responsibility on this job, but we’re not into each other like that.”

  “You’re not?” Rowan knit her eyebrows as she glanced between them. “How come? You’re both hot and in great shape. You look good together. Why not give it a chance?”

  “Because unlike you, we don’t have a home base,” Anthony answered. “In theory, it sounds great for us to have a nice roll in the hay … er, waves … and then go on our merry way. Do you know why that doesn’t work?”

  “I’m fascinated to hear why,” Quinn drawled as he grabbed a breadstick and shoved it in his mouth.

  “I can already tell that Captain Killjoy is going to be a great dinner companion,” Andrea drawled. “If I had the ability to be offended, I would totally be upset that he doesn’t want to eat with me.”

  “It’s not that,” Quinn protested. “I don’t really care about eating with you. I wanted to eat with her … alone.” He jerked a thumb in Rowan’s direction. “We’ve had zero chance to be alone in days.”

  “Didn’t you leave together last night?” Anthony challenged.

  “Yes, but we were both exhausted after a long day. I was still recovering from my hangover … which was your fault, by the way.”