“Why are we here?” Winter asked, leaning forward to check out Drummond’s Auto Service. The garage wasn’t large, and Keith Drummond usually threw in a free oil change when I brought the Roadster to him for service. I pulled up next to the wrecked black Roadster that I’d sold to Keith, rather than messing around with repairs.
“I left keys I need in the glove compartment, and I knew we would be driving past this place.” I grinned at Winter and hopped out, rushing over to the old Roadster. I opened the passenger door and leaned in, then quickly found the keys without much of a search. As I stood up, something poked at my mind. I stared at my ruined car and frowned. My brain chugged along, some thought just out of reach that seemed important. I went over to the white Roadster and stared at the black one.
When I got in and closed the door, I spun toward Winter in my seat. “Was Vance’s Porsche parked near your building?”
“No, I don’t think so,” he said, brow furrowing in thought. “Why?”
Frowning, I took out my phone and sent a text to Aaron Arthur, asking him to look for Vance’s Porsche. Since I didn’t know the license plate number, I told him it was silver and described the damage I’d done to it. He was the King we’d talked to about finding Winter’s money.
My phone vibrated in my hand.
Aaron Arthur: I’ll pass that info on.
Abrupt. To the point. I liked Arthur. Shoving my phone back in my pocket, I smiled at Winter. “Now we’re good to go.”
“Do you think my money is in Vance’s car?” Winter asked, eyes shining with hope.
I shrugged. “It’s just a hunch. It’s the only thing he had that he owned, right? He was sneaking around and living in your building while he worked his angle on you. So, if the cash isn’t in your building, and the Kings tore that place apart searching for it, where else might it be? Piers didn’t remember him ever sneaking off alone, and they were living together on the third floor.”
Winter smiled at me. “Well, I hope they find it. We should ask Piers how they got back to the building without the car.”
“Okay. Do you have his number?”
Winter nodded, and we both waited on pins and needles after he sent off a text. He sighed when his phone finally vibrated in his hand, then rolled his eyes. “He says that they took an Uber after they left the car. It wasn’t drivable with the flat and they didn’t have a replacement. Vance left it behind a buildingsomewhere.”
Laughing, I passed that info on to Arthur, and he sent me back a middle finger emoji.
The drive was quiet after that, and I snuck my hand over to snag Winter’s and hold it tight. We took the highway near Lake Ontario to the western edge of New Gothenburg, and I turned the Roadster in to a small two-lane road that went past some nice cabins and vacation rentals along the lake. I kept going until we reached a dirt path that wasn’t well maintained and finally brought the car to a stop in front of the Pine Point Lighthouse.
“Wow!” Winter said in delight. I’d strung a strand of Christmas lights around the wooden door in the base of the single brick tower that shot straight up toward the night sky. Snow clouds churned high above us and a few white flakes began to drift down. He laughed. “What is this?”
I shrugged and took both of his hands in mine. “I’m doing all right, but I’m not a rich man. I can’t fly you across the world on the drop of a dime the way some guys could, but I thought I would show you something new and keep you on your toes.” I winked at him.
He leaned across the console and hugged me. “I don’t care about money.”
“No? Then why do we have bikers tearing apart the city?” I kissed the shell of his ear.
He smacked my chest lightly. “I don’t like getting screwed over, either,” he said, narrowing his eyes. I got a thrill from the dangerous snarl that crossed his lips because it was fucking sexy. “Besides, if this all works out, I’ll fly us somewhere nice because we deserve a vacation.”
“Let’s go.” I got out, wincing at the blast of cold air that smacked my face, and went to the trunk to grab out the cooler.
“This is so pretty,” he said as he followed me into the cold, then shut the car door while glancing upward to where more holiday lights were strung around the upper windows of the lighthouse.
He smiled at me as I opened the wooden door and flipped on the light inside. The stone steps had been built in a spiral, and we went up, passing bare lightbulbs about every twenty feet. My right leg quickly began to ache, but I refused to rest or stop, and I was in pain by the time we reached the wooden platform at the very top. The round space was about twenty feet in diameter, with the large signal light right in the middle. A metal reflective collar insulated the unlit bulb to direct all the light out toward the lake once it was turned on. I set the cooler on the floor beside the simple square wooden table I’d set up earlier with a vase of red roses in the middle, which would allow us to look out at the lake while we ate. I’d brought the table here about a year ago, but I’d always been alone.
The pink and blue lights reflected on Winter’s hair and made him beautiful as he walked around to stare out the windows. I felt ready to burst with pride at being here with someone so amazing.
I walked over and flipped the switch to turn on the beacon, and Winter clapped and cheered. The brilliant green light cut a shining path over the churning gray water directly in front of the lighthouse.
“Why is it green instead of white?” he asked, curiosity bright in his voice.
I shrugged. “For the holidays. It’s just a plastic shield over the bulb.” I limped over and turned on two space heaters so he would be able to take off his coat while we ate dinner.
Winter walked around looking at everything with interest. “Do you own this place?”
“Nah. I have no idea who it belongs to. I found it when I was out running when I first moved to New Gothenburg. It’s not officially in use anymore. No one ever comes here, and no one has ever moved anything I brought to store here.”
He smacked a hand over his mouth and laughed. “Are you serious?”
