“Zach,” Cal said with pleasure. “And Miss Cavannaugh.” His pleasure at seeing her seemed no less genuine.
Zach suspected the Johnsons’ reactions to Caer were typical—and typically split according to gender. She was so stunning that a man would have to be have dead or of a different persuasion not to notice her, while Marni, like most women, might well feel threatened, not just by Caer’s beauty but by her own husband’s reaction to the other woman. Marni was a very attractive woman herself, but she was in her thirties and insecure that her own youth and beauty were fading. She never reacted this way to Kat, but she’d known Kat a long time, not to mention that Kat was more interested in music than anything as mundane as anyone’s appearance, including her own.
Right now, she was obsessed with her father.
And Amanda.
“So Sean is doing well?” Marni asked.
“Very well,” Caer assured her.
“And now that he’s safely back home, are you going to explore America?”
“I’ve been retained through the end of the year,” Caer told her.
“But you’re already checking out the city, aren’t you?” Marni asked sweetly, but with an edge.
“Kat wanted some alone time with her father,” Zach put in.
“How anyone can be alone in that house full of bitches is beyond me,” Marni said beneath her breath, but just loudly enough to be sure the words were audible.
No one had asked her, and silence seemed to stretch as everyone tried to think of a way to get back on more casual ground.
“Marni,” Cal said uncomfortably, breaking the silence at last. “That was unnecessary.”
“I’m sorry,” Marni said, and she appeared to be sincere. “I guess I’m not being very welcoming, am I, Miss Cavannaugh?” she asked Caer. “It’s been a tense six months here, since Sean and Amanda were married. Kat’s so unhappy. And Amanda loathes it when Kat comes back to town. Poor Sean, I don’t see how he manages.”
Cal rose and set an arm affectionately around her shoulders. “Marni really cares about Sean, and it upsets us both to see him this way.”
“Not to mention that Kat’s convinced Amanda poisoned her father somehow,” Marni said.
“Kat is certainly concerned about her father,” Zach said noncommittally.
“And let’s face it, we’re all fearing the worst about Eddie,” Cal said softly.
“Cal,” Zach said, “what happened that day? Were you out on another charter? What about you, Marni? You spend a lot of time in the office, right?”
“Of course I spend a lot of time in the office,” she said indignantly. “I work very hard. We all know that Cal’s the new man, and he and I both put in our fair share of effort.”
“Marni, I’m not casting aspersions, I’m just wondering where you were when Eddie booked that charter and took it out,” Zach said.
“Oh,” she said, then, “Oh,” again, as if she realized she had been oversensitive and felt a little silly. “It was the day Sean was leaving for Ireland. I was out buying him some new wool socks for the trip, those special socks that are supposed to support your feet when you’re walking,” she said. “We intentionally didn’t schedule anything for that day.”
“And it should have stayed that way,” Cal said bleakly.
Marni shook her head sadly. “If only one of us had been around.”
“Marni, don’t start with that,” Cal said. “If only Eddie hadn’t accepted that last-minute reservation. If only there had been a storm, and no one had gone out. We could play that game all day.”
She nodded.
“So, Cal…?” Zach said.
“What?” Cal asked, frowning.
“Where were you that day?”
“Oh,” Cal said. Apparently his mind had been on his wife. He smiled at Marni, then looked back at Zach apologetically. “At home, napping. There was no need for all of us to be in the office. Eddie said he had stuff to do, though I don’t actually know what it was.” He, too, sounded defensive.
“Hey, I’m just asking, hoping you might have seen or heard something you forgot until now,” Zach said.
“How I wish,” Marni told him fervently.
“Sorry,” Cal said. “All we have is Eddie’s note in the book.”
“Right,” Zach said. “Hey, will you excuse me? Detective Morrissey is waiting for me so I can take a look around the Sea Maiden. I was hoping you could show Caer around the wharf, let her get a look at the boats.”
“Sure, I can show Miss Cavannaugh our little fleet,” Marni said.
Zach glanced at Caer. If she was worried about being left in the care of a jealous she-wolf, she betrayed no sign of it.
“I’d love to see the boats,” she said. “And please, call me Caer.”
Zach promised to be back as soon as he could, then left to meet Morrissey.