Promise Cove (A Pelican Pointe Novel Book 1) (39 page)

M
u
r
p
h
y
sh
r
ugged
.
“
W
ha
t
d
o
I
care?”

“
Y
ea
h.
R
i
gh
t
.
G
o
ss
i
p
i
s
th
e
s
ma
ll
t
own
w
a
y
o
f
lif
e
.
I
do
n
’t
w
ant
people
getti
n
g
the
wro
n
g
idea
a
bout
J
or
d
an
and
g
i
v
i
n
g her
a
hard
tim
e
.
”

M
u
r
p
h
y
shook
his
head.
“
I
’ll
make
sure
people
k
no
w
.
B
ut
N
ic
k
,
t
ell
her
a
bout
Sco
t
t
s
oon,
o
k
a
y?
The
lo
n
ger
y
ou
w
ai
t
, the
t
ougher
it’ll
b
e
.
”

Once
back
at
The
C
ove
th
os
e
wor
d
s
came
back
t
o
N
ick
as he
fin
i
shed
unloadi
n
g
the
bo
x
e
s
of
tile
floo
r
i
n
g
and
s
t
ac
k
i
n
g them
in
t
o
the
packed
g
ar
a
ge
J
or
d
an
ob
v
iously
u
s
ed
for
s
t
or
a
g
e
.
There
w
as
barely
enough
room
for
the
floo
r
i
n
g
.
A
s
he
t
ook
ad
v
an
t
a
ge
of
the
only
a
v
ai
la
ble
floor
space,
he
s
t
opped lo
n
g
enough
t
o
look
around
at
all
the
s
t
uff.
There
w
as
an as
s
o
r
tment
of
antique
dres
s
e
r
s,
ch
e
sts,
and
be
d
s.
H
e
sp
o
tt
ed bo
x
e
s
of
new
plum
b
i
n
g
f
i
x
t
ures.
There
were
t
wo
new
ped
e
s
ta
l
s
in
k
s,
an
o
ther
new
t
o
ilet
still
in
the
bo
x
,
new
faucets,
and a
che
r
r
ywood
v
ani
t
y
.
Behind
all
the
clut
t
e
r
,
he
sp
o
tt
ed
an old
t
ele
v
i
sion
s
e
t
,
and
wondered
b
r
iefly
i
f
i
t
migh
t
pu
ll
in
enough
of
a
reception
in
the
apa
r
tment
t
o
get
a
L
a
ke
r
s
g
am
e
.

Loo
k
i
n
g cl
o
s
e
r
,
behind the
clut
t
e
r
,
N
ick sucked
in
a
breat
h.
H
i
s
g
a
z
e
fe
ll
o
n
hal
f
a
doze
n
su
r
fboards
leani
n
g
up
a
g
ainst
the
far
w
a
ll.
Sco
t
t
’
s
su
r
fboards,
he
realized,
as
he wor
k
ed
his
w
a
y
past
the
dus
t
y
junk
t
o
get
a
bet
t
er
loo
k
.
B
ut Sco
t
t
w
as
gon
e
.
N
ick
w
as
here
w
ith
J
or
d
an
and
H
ut
t
on
doi
n
g
a
ll
th
e
thi
n
g
s
Sc
o
t
t
shoul
d
h
a
v
e
bee
n
d
o
i
n
g
.

E
ven though h
e
’
d prom
is
ed
M
u
r
p
h
y
t
o
t
ell
J
or
d
an who
he
w
as,
he
doub
t
ed
there
would
e
ver
be
a
r
ight
tim
e
.
S
he
would
n
’t
unde
r
s
t
and,
she
could
n
’
t
.
W
h
y
had
he
e
ver thought
comi
n
g
here
w
as
the
answer?
H
e
wondered
for
the
hundredt
h
ti
m
e
i
n
t
w
o
d
a
ys
wha
t
h
e
’
d
g
o
t
t
e
n
him
s
el
f
in
t
o and
how
he
w
as
g
o
i
n
g
t
o
get
out.
H
e
came
out
of
h
i
s
reve
r
ie lo
n
g
enough
t
o
cr
a
wl
f
u
r
t
her
in
t
o
the
a
byss
t
o
d
is
cover
four brand
-
new
bi
c
y
cl
e
s
hidi
n
g
in
the
co
r
ner
and
wondered
w
h
y
ther
e
wer
e
s
o
ma
n
y
.
Then
he
realized
the
bik
e
s
had
t
o
be
for
g
u
e
sts
t
o
u
s
e
for
sight
s
eei
n
g
in
the
area.
F
or
s
ome
rea
s
on, they
cau
s
ed
him
t
o
wonder
if
J
or
d
an
had
been
out
of
the hou
s
e
much
in
the
l
ast
y
ea
r
.
W
hen
w
as
the
l
ast
t
i
me
sh
e
’
d had
a
n
y
k
ind
of
f
un?
I
n
fa
c
t
,
he
wondered
what
exa
c
tly
a woman
w
ith
a
b
a
by
did
for
f
un.
Before
t
urni
n
g
back
t
o
fin
i
sh unloadi
n
g
,
he
de
c
ided
t
o
find
out.

S
t
andi
n
g
on
a
l
adde
r
,
d
r
ill
in
hand,
she
alm
o
st
had
the co
r
nice
moun
t
ed
over
one
of
the
bedroom
w
indo
w
s
when she
heard
foots
t
e
p
s
out
in
the
hall
w
a
y
.
L
i
s
t
eni
n
g
t
o
his
s
t
e
p
s grow
cl
o
s
e
r
,
it
d
a
wned
on
her
how
g
l
ad
she
w
as
that
he
w
as
back
from
t
own.
H
ow
sill
y
,
she
though
t
,
d
a
ys
a
go
she did
n
’t
even
k
now
the
man
ex
i
s
t
ed
and
no
w
…
S
he
reeled
in her
emotions.
S
he
could
n
’t
h
a
ve
mi
ss
ed
him.
H
e
’
d
only
been gone
a
couple
of
hou
r
s.
F
r
ustra
t
ed
w
ith
her
own
thoughts, she got down off
the
l
adder
and
met
him
goi
n
g
in
t
o
the
bathroom
t
o
s
t
a
r
t
work
on
the
t
oilet
a
g
ain.
K
no
w
i
n
g
P
elican
P
oin
t
e
w
as
n
’t
the
f
r
iendli
e
st
of
t
owns,
she
w
an
t
ed
t
o
k
no
w
,
“
H
o
w
’
d
it
go?
A
n
y
problem
s
?”

“
N
op
e
.
F
loo
r
i
n
g
’
s
unloaded
and
s
t
acked
in
the
g
ar
a
g
e
.
H
ope
t
ha
t
’
s
o
k
a
y
.
”

“T
h
a
t
’
s
f
i
n
e
.
Y
ou
do
n
’t
h
a
ve
t
o
put
the
floo
r
i
n
g
in
by
y
ou
r
s
elf,
N
ic
k
.
I
can
l
a
y
f
l
oo
r
i
n
g
.
I
f
y
o
u
were
n
’
t
her
e
I
’
d
h
a
ve
t
o
d
o
i
t
a
n
y
w
a
y
.
”
S
he
g
r
inned
.
“
Bes
id
e
s
,
i
t
s
eem
s
I
h
a
v
e
th
is how-
t
o
book
t
h
at
s
a
y
s
it
’
s
ea
s
y
as
1-2-3,
a
piece
of
c
a
k
e
.
W
h
y do
y
ou
supp
os
e
the
boo
k
s
mak
e
it
s
ound
like
d
o
-it-
y
ou
r
s
elf proje
c
ts
are
s
o
ea
s
y?”