Chapter Eleven
Connor removed his hard hat and used the back of his hand to wipe away the sweat on his brow. The construction crew they’d hired was on a lunch break, and he removed his earplugs before taking a swig of water. They’d made decent progress digging the hole for the foundation of the museum.
Unfortunately, no amount of digging or the distraction of needing to answer a million questions could take Connor’s mind off what happened over the past twenty-four hours with Abby.
First had been the mind-blowing sex. They’d always had an active and creative sex life, but last night put their past escapades to shame.
The intimacy went beyond satisfying their physical need.
He’d told Abby he loved her, and she said it back.
She loved him.
He wanted to shout it from the top of the lighthouse.
Except overshadowing the joy of hearing her admit her feelings was the way they’d ended things earlier.
The last thing Connor had expected was to find orange spray paint cans and the newspaper article in Abby’s closet.
Had he handled it right by basically accusing her of being responsible for the vandalism?
Not at all.
In his defense, given the paint and newspaper were discovered in Abby’s apartment, it was natural to wonder if there could be a link to the vandalism. At least indirectly connected, in Connor’s opinion.
Could she blame him for jumping to conclusions? Abby had made a huge fuss about the pier expansion. Enough to draw attention from the media and cause the foundation team, mayor, and town council to consider other options to avoid further problems and bad press.
Still, what did it say about his opinion of her—of their relationship—that he, for even a moment, thought her capable of something illegal?
And now what? Had he blown his chance with her?
Meanwhile, if Abby hadn’t put the paper and paint in her closet, who had? Could Natalie be responsible? How about Abby’s nephew? Hadn’t she said Liam had been getting into trouble? The necklace Connor found was something a young boy would wear.
Frustrated, he walked along the rocks that bordered the lighthouse. From early childhood, it had been a favorite place to hang out. He used to take stale bread—when there was any—and feed the pelicans. There was a group who used to populate this portion of the island. One in particular had a distinctive scar on his bill, and Connor and his friends had named him Percy. He and the rest of the pelicans disappeared after Hurricane Samantha.
Hopefully, creating the nature trail would attract pelicans and other wildlife to the island. But until the vandals were caught, Connor hesitated to put forth more effort in building the trail.
Which led him back to his dilemma with Abby.
“Hey, bro,” Jason said as he made his way across the rocks. “Nice day for digging.”
Connor caught the wrapped sandwich his brother tossed him. “Yeah, perfect conditions. We keep up this pace and we should have the foundation dug in a couple of days.”
They ate in silence, the only interruption from the faint sound of music in the background, the waves crashing against the rocks, and a few seagulls circling overhead.
“You want to tell me what’s wrong?” Jason asked.
“Nothing’s wrong.”
Jason balled up the wrapper from his sandwich and threw it in the bag. “You blew off our morning meeting and were thirty minutes late getting here. And I can tell by your cranky disposition it’s not for a good reason.”
One of the frustrating things about having lived in a small space with someone was the lack of privacy. Jason and he had shared a room their entire lives until they bought the townhouse in Tampa. Which meant Jason knew firsthand the good, the bad, and the ugly of Connor’s moods. And vice versa.
“Last night, I told Abby I love her,” Connor said.
“I’m not surprised, but admitting it…Wow. Does she feel the same way?”
“She does…or she did. I’m not sure how she feels anymore.”
“What happened?”
Connor sighed and set aside his half-eaten sandwich. “I was helping her clean up a mug she broke and was looking for a dustpan in a closet. I found three cans of fluorescent orange spray paint and a newspaper article about us renovating Erickson Pier.”
“Coincidence?”
“You tell me. The paper had the words GO HOME written in the margin.”
Jason winced. “What’d you do?”
“I asked her where it came from. She claims to have never seen it there before.”
“Do you believe her?”
“I believe Abby wasn’t responsible for the vandalism. That was after I all but accused her of it.”
“Not good, bro.”
“No shit.” Connor picked up a pebble and pitched it into the ocean. “How did the stuff get there? There has to be a connection to the string of vandalism.”
“You think Natalie is responsible?”
Connor shrugged. “Maybe. Didn’t you catch her son smoking at mini-golf?”
“I did, but it doesn’t mean he’s involved,” Jason said.
“How about the necklace I found? It was a cheap trinket…something a boy would wear.”
“You mention it to Abby?”
“I mentioned finding it just before your text came through and I left.” Connor thought about their conversation. Had she seemed paler than usual when he described the necklace, or had it been his imagination?
“I don’t know, man. You call Ethan?”
“She was going to.”
She needed to call Ethan in order for it not to appear as though she was hiding evidence. If she was innocent and protecting the real culprit, it was as bad as doing it herself, in Connor’s mind.
And if that was the case, Connor didn’t know what it meant to their relationship.
After Connor left, Abby had cleaned up the kitchen, and now paced the back room of the soap shop. She had made more soap samples last night and left them out to set. Now, rather than wrapping them like she should do, she was trying to figure out the best way to approach her sister and ask if her son could be responsible for the vandalism.
She texted Ethan and asked him to come over around nine thirty, which would give her and Nat a chance to talk first. Plus, it prevented Abby from wimping out and not turning over potential evidence…or Nat convincing her not to.
They had to tell Ethan.
Regardless of how the paint and newspaper got in her closet, Abby didn’t see any way they weren’t connected to the vandalism.
Her integrity and business relied on her doing the right thing.
Not to mention her relationship with Connor.
His eyes had been cold when he asked her about the paint cans. Had he believed she could be responsible for the vandalism around town?
Could she be with a man who could think that about her?
And what about the necklace Connor found at the museum site? Based on the description, it sounded exactly like the one Liam owned.
What if Liam was responsible for the vandalism? How would it affect her family? Her business?
The rattle of the door handle got her attention, and Natalie pushed open the door, carrying a large box and a plastic recycled grocery bag.
“Morning. I picked up the baskets from Emma and other decorations like we talked about,” she said, setting the items on the floor. “I’m excited to organize the main room displays today.”
“We need to talk first.”
Natalie wrinkled her brow. “What’s wrong? Did you and Connor get into a fight?”
Abby took a deep breath like she did before jumping into a pool. “Connor found something in the closet off the kitchen upstairs.”
“Okay, what did he find that has you rattled?”
“Orange fluorescent spray paint cans and a Pelican Bay Herald featuring the article about Beach House Flippers renovating Erickson Pier.”
“That’s weird,” Natalie said.
“Someone had written GO HOME in the margin.”
Abby could see Natalie processing, and her eyes widened when she realized what conclusions had been drawn. “Please tell me he doesn’t think you were responsible for the vandalism at the pier.”
“There’s been vandalism all over town. Several other Maguire Brothers properties have had similar words painted in the same color. Even the area by the lighthouse, where they marked off the location for the museum, was affected.”
“Is he accusing you of being involved? If so, then he’s an ass and not worthy of you.”
“The thing is, Nat, he found something at the lighthouse. Something that worries me.”
“What?”
Abby reached across the counter for a framed photo she kept on a table in her living room and set it in front of her sister. It was of Abby, Natalie, Liam, Olivia, and their mom taken at Christmas last year.
“Connor found a necklace at the museum site.” She pointed to the chain Liam wore in the picture. “And based on his description, it matches this one.”
Natalie scoffed, but picked up the picture. “Jake gave this to Liam for his birthday last summer. They’d gone to a Phillies game, and he bought Liam this pendant to remember their day together.”
“I remember. He never takes it off. Have you seen him wear it recently?”
“I’m not sure. I yelled at him the other day because he trashed his room.”
“Could he have been searching for the necklace, not realizing where he lost it?”
“It’s possible.” Natalie put her hand over her mouth. “What if it is him, Ab? Ethan has been all over this vandalism case. What if my son is responsible?”
Abby put an arm around her sister. “I don’t know what to believe, but I think it’s possible Liam and his band of friends may somehow be involved.”
There was a knock at the door.
Ethan.
Now they’d have to tell the story to him and hope they were wrong, or there was a reasonable explanation for Liam’s odd behavior.
But something told Abby the odds wouldn’t be in their favor.
Either way, she owed Connor an apology for getting angry at him for jumping to conclusions. Even though she wasn’t responsible for the vandalism, Connor wasn’t that far off the mark. If he hadn’t had to rush off, they could have figured it out together. But she’d gotten angry, and he had to get to the job site.
Would he understand, or would their relationship be ruined just when they’d found their way back to each other?