Telltale (Shelby Hope Book Two) (Shelby Hope Novels 2)

by Stephanie Parrish

  "It was Alex’s idea to bring the VHF with us," Matt pointed out. "That’s how we heard your hail."

  "Grace was great, wasn’t she?" I asked.

  "Yeah," Matt said. "She really was. We went to that bar, and I told the story to Al, not really sure what to ask. He knew right away though. Said some girl had been asking him about the derelict boat."

  "Speaking of Grace, I’ve invited her to dinner with us tonight," Alex said. "She asked me if I really wanted to go to dinner with a criminal accomplice."

  I laughed.

  After we got back from lunch, I called Jane to fill her in on the latest. She’d left a voicemail for me sometime when I was talking to the police. She listened to the whole story, then said, "Well, I guess I feel less guilty for telling Grace where you were."

  "We’re all going out to dinner tonight. I’ll give her your regards. Wish you could be here with us."

  "Me too. Our paths will cross again, though, I’m sure of it."

  "I hope so," I said, smiling. We said goodbye.

  "What are you going to do now, Shelby?" Matt asked.

  "I’m going to take a nap, then go have a shower before dinner."

  "You took a three-hour shower last night when we got back. How much showering do you need?"

  "Last night was just a warm-up shower. I need a real one," I said, grabbing a pillow and curling up on the settee.

  "There are different kinds of showers?" Matt said. I started to smile, but my eyes closed and I was asleep before I could respond.

  ✽✽✽

  GRACE LOOKED VERY pretty at dinner that night. She was wearing a cotton skirt and a sleeveless blouse, and her hair was down. She seemed animated, much more relaxed than the uptight woman I’d met at the Dismal Swamp. I complimented her, and she smiled. "Well, I think I had an epiphany last night, Shelby. And part of it was thanks to you."

  "Thanks to me? What do you mean?"

  "Well, I realized that I don’t actually enjoy blogging, or being a reporter, or whatever it was I was doing. I enjoy finding things out. So I’m going to figure out what I really want to do in terms of a career, something that involves research and investigation, and I’m going to go back to school. I’ll do something where I can apply—what did you call it?—the good side of stubborn."

  "Good for you," I said. "But what does that have to do with your clothes?"

  "I think I was trying really hard to be professional, to be taken seriously. Maybe to make up for not really knowing what I wanted to do. And like I told you, I’ve upset a lot of people. I don’t really like doing that. I’ve decided to relax a little."

  "Cheers," Alex said, holding up his glass. We all toasted Grace, who blushed and squirmed, but enjoyed it.

  "By the way, what happened with the dinghy that you, er, set free?" I asked.

  "Oh. Well, I told the police about it, and they found it while they were looking for Rumbar and his friends. They took it back to the owners. I went to talk to them this morning. I apologized and gave them a gift card to cover the gas, the anchor, and the clothes we took. They were really nice about it. In fact, I think they were kind of excited about the whole thing, once I explained it to them. So they’re not going to press charges."

  "That’s good news," I said.

  "Yeah, it really is," she said. "Also, I told them I’d dedicate my last blog to them. I think they’ll enjoy that."

  "When are you going to publish it?" I asked.

  "Oh, later this week. I heard the DEA got involved after what you told the police about Rumbar’s drug smuggling. So I’m waiting to hear the whole list of charges against Ivan and his friends before I write anything else." She grinned. "I guess I’ve learned my lesson about jumping the gun and writing things before I’m sure the story is ready to publish."

  After dinner, we said goodbye to Grace, then walked slowly back to the marina, enjoying the evening. When we got back to the boat, Alex’s phone rang. He wandered off, then came back a few minutes later, looking happy.

  "What is it?" I asked.

  "That was Nathan. He’s in Savannah. He finally got that project taken care of, and he flew into Savannah. He checked into a little bed and breakfast there. He asked me to drive down and meet him there. We’re going to stay there a couple nights."

  "You mean tonight? You’re leaving now?"

  "Yeah." Alex grinned at me. "A mini-vacation, sort of."

  I could feel my cheeks getting hot. My first thought was, I’ll be all alone with Matt for two days.

  Matt’s face was expressionless.

  "Uh, what brought this on?" I asked.

  And all alone with him for two nights.

  "Nathan said it was a little luxury trip, to make up for his being away," Alex said. "He said he was going to drive up here tonight, but then he heard about this really great place and asked me to meet him there instead, if I didn't mind that I'd get in kind of late. I’m just going to grab a few things and then see about getting a rental car. I guess we’ll see you day after tomorrow."

  During the twenty minutes it took Alex to pack and reserve a car, Matt didn’t say much. Frankly, I felt nervous and flustered, and I couldn’t quite meet his eyes.

  Finally, Alex said, "Okay, we’ll see you soon," and kissed me on the cheek.

  "Bye, have fun," I said. "Tell Nathan hi."

  Matt said, "See you."

  We followed him up to the cockpit. Alex stepped off the boat, leaving it gently rocking, then Matt handed him his bag. We could hear his footsteps fading away into the night.

  I wondered what Matt was thinking. He sat down in the cockpit and looked out over the water.

  "You want a glass of wine?" I asked.

  "Yeah, thanks, that would be nice." His tone was neutral.

  I went below and poured two glasses. My hands were shaking a little bit. Come on, girl, you have to talk to him. Just get on with it.

  Taking a deep breath, I climbed back into the cockpit and handed Matt his glass. He didn’t scoot over to make room for me to sit next to him. Puzzled, and a little hurt, I sat down across from him.

  "Shelby, I want you to know, I didn’t ask him to leave."

  "What? What are you talking about?"

  "I didn’t ask Alex to leave. I didn’t know they were going to do this, that Nathan would want him to meet him in Savannah instead of coming here."

  Confused, I said, "I still don’t understand."

  "As soon as Alex told us he was leaving, I was afraid you’d think I put them up to it. I was afraid you’d think I was trying to pressure you by getting them to leave us alone together for a couple days. I didn’t. I’m not."

  Oh.

  I said, "Is that why you had such a weird expression on your face?"

  "I didn’t know I did, but if you say I did, then, yeah, that’s why. And you looked a little uncomfortable yourself."

  "I did? I guess it was just surprise. I didn’t know Alex was going to leave either. And, by the way, I didn’t think you’d put them up to it. How could you? Alex just found out himself."

  "Then why did you look so tense?"

  I took a big swallow of my wine. Well, it’s now or never.

  "Do you remember the conversation we had, just before you left?"

  "You mean the one where I bared my heart to you, and you cruelly didn’t say anything?"

  "There was an emergency, Matt, you know," I said, defensively. "I didn’t mean to be cruel."

  "I know, I know, I’m just teasing you." He grinned at me.

  "But also, I didn’t really know what to say. I’ve been thinking about it, a lot, since you’ve been gone. And I know what I want."

  Matt stopped smiling. His expression was a mixture of hope and apprehension. I hesitated, not quite sure how to go on. I leaned forward and put my hands on his knees.

  "You know that my Rule is because I don’t like losing good friends."

  "Yeah, I understand that."

  "So, what I’ve been struggling with is what happens if we don
’t work out? Will I lose you? Will we still be friends? Will I be able to stand it if you move on to someone else?"

  Unexpectedly, Matt laughed. His hands wrapped around my wrists, holding tight.

  "What’s funny?" I demanded. "I’m baring my heart to you now, and you’re laughing."

  "Silly girl. You’ve already gotten through the relationship and have us breaking up, and you still haven’t told me how you feel. About what I said." He paused, then said quietly, "And about me."

  Right. Okay, he had a point there.

  I laughed then myself, a little shakily, and said, "I realized something a few weeks ago. I finally understood that you…that you’re the one I want. I just haven’t wanted to admit it to myself. My Rule was dumb, an adolescent notion I held onto for too long. And it kept me from knowing sooner how I feel about you. Kept me from thinking about you as anything other than my friend." His hands, still holding tight to my wrists, trembled. "But, it’s you, Matt. You’re the one."

  I slid forward, off the seat, so that I was kneeling in front of him. He let go of my wrists and put his hands on my shoulders, looking into my eyes.

  "Really?"

  "Really."

  He leaned down, rubbing his cheek against mine. He had a little beard scruff going on. I loved scruff. I rubbed back. I could feel the curve of his smile against my cheek. "So you’ve decided you’re willing to take a chance? Bend the rules a little?"

  "Yeah." Gonna bend the rules a lot, actually.

  He pulled me closer. I wrapped my arms around his waist. He nuzzled my neck. Against my skin, he murmured, "Are you still worried about our friendship? Losing our friendship, I mean?"

  "Yes."

  "Let me say this, Shelby. You can’t get rid of me, not after all this time, not for any reason. You should know that by now. Unless, of course, you leave me and marry some other guy. And even then, I’d respect your choice. Although I might have to kill the other guy."

  I smiled. I was still smiling when he kissed me.

  A little while later, I gently freed myself and stood up. I held out my hand, and Matt stood. He pulled me close, winding his hand into my hair and tilting my head so he could kiss me again.

  "Matt?"

  He leaned back a little so he could see my face.

  "Yeah?"

  "What are we going to do with two whole days and nights alone?"

  Matt grinned. "Are you kidding?"

  Acknowledgments

  I’m grateful to everyone who helped with this book. Thank you to:

  John McQuarie, retired Phoenix police detective, who explained crime scene and police procedure to me during an entertaining and interesting lunch, then provided feedback on the draft. His help was invaluable, and any mistakes are mine.

  Harry Lippert, Lana Frost, and an anonymous reader, who gave me excellent bad guy names.

  Chuck Brantley, who made great suggestions on several technical details.

  Shinpu-Ren Family Karate for their excellent course on self-defense techniques.

  My beta readers, who cheerfully volunteered their time to read and critique the story.

  And most of all, Terry, my husband, who helped edit the drafts and who offered advice whenever necessary, and also gave me support and encouragement all the way.

  Some notes on the setting:

  Several years ago when we stayed in Elizabeth City, we met Fred, one of the founders of the Rose Buddies. We spent an enjoyable evening during which he told us part of the story of how the group got started. Those of you who have been through Elizabeth City may have had the opportunity to meet the real Rose Buddies, a great group of people who welcome the cruisers and who make visiting there a real pleasure. Thank you to these folks who take the time to help the boaters.

  If you've traveled by boat through this area of North Carolina, you may notice that although many of the settings in the book are real, some locations, distances, and geography have been changed for the story.

  About the Author

  Stephanie Parrish and her husband Terry own a Morgan 382 sailboat and have cruised parts of the Intracoastal Waterway, Florida’s east and Gulf coasts, the Florida Keys, Mexico, and the Bahamas. Please visit her at www.shelbyhopebooks.com.