He pushed hair off his face. “Hear anything about the PI?”
“I don’t even know if he’s gotten here yet.” She huffed out a breath. “This isn’t good, Jack.”
“Things are things. No one can control what anyone else does. Is it good? No. But we’ll get through it.”
How he could be so calm, she had no idea. “Do me a favor? Keep the sheers closed. At least on the windows that face thewater, all right? Maybe we can get them to think you’ve gone home.”
“Whatever you say, Harper. It’s your place.” He tipped his head, eyes softening with concern. “I’m sorry, man. I didn’t mean to bring trouble to your door.”
“I know you didn’t. And it doesn’t change the way I feel about you being here. You’ll always be welcome. It’s just a complication you didn’t need.”
He nodded. “True that.”
“Listen, one more thing. It’s getting harder not to tell my sister what’s going on. The PI you’re hiring? That’s her boyfriend’s brother. She already knows something’s up.”
“Right. Cool, cool. You tell her whatever you want to. I just…I don’t want her to think badly of me. I really want her to do that painting of my dad, you know?”
“You’re serious about that?”
“Yeah, totally, man.”
“It won’t be cheap. Probably ten grand easily.”
He smiled. “Seems cheap to me.”
She laughed and gave him a quick hug. “Stay inside, okay? You need anything, you let us know.”
“You got it, boss.”
She went back to the main house, her eyes on the water. No boats.
Not yet, anyway.
Chapter Seventeen
Mitch answered the phone as soon as he saw it was Harper. “Hey, there. Miss me?”
She laughed softly. “Maybe I did. That’s not why I’m calling, though.”
He picked up on the change in her tone of voice, the subtle edge of something more serious going on. “What happened? Is it Jack?”
“You could say that.” She filled him in on a photo she’d seen on some celebrity gossip television show and what that could mean for Jack Marsh, but also for the rest of them, Mitch included.
Mitch groaned softly.
“I feel the same way,” Harper said.
Mitch exhaled. “We’re both used to publicity of various sorts, but I feel for Jack. He doesn’t need this with everything else going on. He can’t be happy about it.”
“Happy, no, but Jack doesn’t seem that upset about it. I guess he’s used to being followed wherever he goes. I don’t like it at all. Things were just settling down.”
“I understand. Lucas is supposed to call me as soon as his brother arrives. Do you want to go with Jack and me to talk to him?”
“I do. I’m about to tell Frankie what’s going on, too. Jack said I could. If he doesn’t mind, I’ll bring her as well.”
“It would be odd to go to Lucas’s without her.”
“Agreed. Well, I just wanted to give you a heads-up. I’ll see you in a bit. I hope you’re getting some words done.”
