A Spot at Starlight Beach (Spotted Cottage #3)

Twenty-nine

He pulled her away from her mom, her sisters, Reggie and Granny, right in the middle of Granny’s story about haggling prices with a shopkeeper when she lived in Poland.

Mackenzie stopped. “I might need to go back to –”

Cameron cut her off. “Come on. One song. It sounds like a good one.”

Why was he being so pushy?

She looked over her shoulder. Every member of her family looked away at the same time.

They weren’t going to rescue her.

Maybe she could make an excuse? That she needed to check on the food, or powder her wig, or count the seashells on the seashore?

“Is your mom going to sing tonight?” Cameron asked, moving her once again.

They reached the dance floor. They needed to start moving. Otherwise, they’d be in the way.

She put one hand in his, and the other on his shoulder. “No.”

He stepped forward, stomping on her foot.

Mackenzie gritted her teeth. “I didn’t know we were going to salsa.”

“Sorry,” he said, looking down. “Let’s start over.”

He pulled her back and stepped left, then right. This time she was able to follow.

“I’m impressed with this setup,” he said. “You should know you have a knack for it. A way with people.”

“Thanks.”

“Are you at least going to get Bailey Jo to sing?”

“No way,” she said. “I think she wanted to avoid having to perform.”

By I think she meant I know. This wasn’t a karaoke bar. She wasn’t going to drag people onstage to perform for free.

“You have to make her!” He threw his head back and laughed. “I’m sure she’ll be a good sport about it.”

“It doesn’t seem fair,” Mackenzie said slowly, looking down at her feet. Her toe throbbed.

“Just tell her it’s for charity.” Cameron grinned. “For the fish.”

She looked up at him. “You mean Lottie?”

Cameron threw his arm out, sending her into a twirl. One, two, three times around.

Her head spun. She stopped. “Lottie is a whale. Whales aren’t fish. They’re mammals.”

“Yeah, I know. It was a joke.”

He spun her again one, two times. She broke free of his hand.

“The smuggler thing. Was that a joke too?” she asked.

“About Liam?” He grabbed her hand again. “No. That was true. If I were you, I wouldn’t mention it to him.”

“Why not?”

He sighed. “Criminals don’t like being called out.”

Criminals . Her stomach lurched. “I think I need to get something to eat.”

She stepped backward, away from him.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“I’m just a little dizzy. I’m fine,” she said.

He put his arm around her shoulder. “Let me get you something.”

His touch felt heavy, dragging her down. She wriggled out. “I just need a second.”

The song ended. She made her escape through the barn’s open doors just as Russell’s voice boomed over the microphone.

“Hey everyone! I don’t want to spoil the fun, but I wanted to thank all of you for coming out to support Lottie. We’ve had our share of setbacks, but I’m confident that, with our amazing team, we can get through anything. I’d like to thank Sheila, of course. You kicked it all off. Our contractors…”

Silence, that was what she needed. She’d lock herself in a bathroom – if she could get to it.

A wall of bodies had formed at the entrance of the barn.

“Excuse me,” Mackenzie whispered, trying to push through. She could still feel Cameron’s touch on her skin, burning, grabbing, pulling. Was he chasing her? She didn’t dare look back.

It was like he was all over her suddenly. He hadn’t been like that when they’d danced the other night.

Maybe that was what changed. She’d opened the door to something romantic and he turned into an eight-armed octopus.

“And, of course, a huge thanks to my assistant Mackenzie Dennet. She stepped in at the last minute and rescued all of this.”

Oh no.

She stopped and spun around, a smile frozen on her face. “Thank you!” she mouthed with a nod.

“You’re not getting out of it that easily,” Russell said with a laugh. “Get up here.”

The bodies around her parted, and a path opened to the stage.

Oh, now they’d get out of her way?

She drew up her shoulders and walked, the smile frozen on her face until she reached the stage and accepted the mic from Russell.

“Hi, everyone.” She stared out. The sun was setting now, the sky getting its first hints of yellow and orange. She licked her lips, scanning the crowd, looking for her mom or Eliza or Granny.

One face stood out. Liam. He leaned against the side of the tent, his expression flat.

Her heart skipped a beat. She cleared her throat. “It’s been an honor to be a part of this project. I will be hitting all of you up for more donations in the coming weeks.”

Laughter rippled throughout the crowd. She looked back at Liam. He stared, arms crossed.

“This project is the culmination of thousands of man hours, people from all walks of life working together to right a wrong from decades ago.” She was getting too philosophical. She sucked in a shaky breath. “Enjoy the food, enjoy the music, and enjoy the night!”

She passed off the microphone and stumbled off the side of the stage, falling to her knees. The drummer jumped to help her back up. She thanked him before rushing off.

Where was Liam?

Cameron had to be confused. Liam wasn’t frightening. His family couldn’t be criminals.

Though he did brag about bribing officials in South America…

Mackenzie wasn’t afraid of asking him what was going on. But what would he have to say for himself?