“Wouldn’t that be nice?”

  “It sure would,” I replied. “That said, given the fact that your latest case just wrapped up, I’m a little surprised that you slept so poorly.”

  “Why is that?”

  “If anything, I thought you would have slept like a baby.”

  “In my experience, that’s not usually how things work.”

  “That’s a shame. With the weight of the investigation off of my shoulders, I ended up crashing out almost immediately.”

  “I have to admit, I’m a little bit envious of you. When I got into bed, I just couldn’t seem to relax. The adrenaline was still pumping in my veins for a while.”

  “Here’s hoping that you can catch up on your sleep tonight.”

  “That’s the plan. Of course, a quiet day on the beat would help as well.”

  “I will keep my fingers crossed for you.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Since things are quiet at the moment, maybe you can finally answer a few of my questions about why you moved back here.”

  “Melody, I thought we discussed this last night. I’ll tell you all about it over dinner sometime.”

  “Forget about some unknown time in the future. What’s wrong with just telling me now? We’re talking about a few simple questions.”

  “Just because the questions are simple doesn’t mean that the answers are as well.”

  “You know, the longer that you stall, the more questions I end up having.”

  “You are relentless, you know that?”

  “What you call relentless, I call curious.”

  “You can call it whatever you want. But it isn’t going to get you anywhere right now.”

  “Oh, come on. What’s the big deal? Give me something to work with. Even if it’s just a snippet.”

  “Melody, you’re the one making a big deal about this. Why don’t you just let it go for now?”

  “Because I’m an impatient person.”

  “You certainly are.”

  “I can’t help it.”

  “I’m not so sure about that,” he said. “Why don’t you try to find some restraint?”

  “You’re really not going to budge, are you?”

  “Honestly, I don’t understand why you care so much about this in the first place.”

  “Really? You’re a detective and you don’t understand why this would be such a big mystery to me? When you left Majestic Cove, it seemed like you were never going to come back.”

  “Well, I am back. And I’m ready to move on with my life.”

  “Don’t get me wrong. I’m happy about that. But you should be able to understand why I have questions. After all, you were gone for four years. Then you come back out of the blue. It’s only natural that I would want to know what prompted you to return.”

  He laughed nervously. “You really were born to be an investigator, weren’t you?”

  “Scott, that wasn’t an answer to my question.”

  “You’re just going to remain doggedly determined until I explain everything, aren’t you?”

  “Absolutely. So, why don’t you just tell me what I want to know?”

  “I know it’s going to sound like I’m trying to stall, but at the moment, I really do need to be getting to work.”

  “You’re right. It does sound like you’re trying to dodge my question.”

  “I’m telling you the truth, though. My shift begins in ten minutes.”

  “So, that’s it? You’re just going to keep me waiting then?”

  He nodded. “For now.”

  I let out a groan.

  “Besides, this isn’t the sort of thing that should be discussed in the middle of a busy bakery,” he said.

  “Okay. Then when is the right time and place to talk about it?”

  “I’ll tell you what. Do you have plans tonight?”

  “No. Why?”

  “How about I take you out to dinner? I’ll explain everything then.”

  “All right. That sounds good.”

  He smiled. “It’s settled then.”

  ***

  From there, Scott quickly ordered a donut to-go. When his order was ready, he left the bakery and headed off to work.

  Meanwhile, I had so many questions. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any answers. Talk about a frustrating situation for me. I hated being made to wait.

  Thankfully, Scott would finally explain himself at dinner, but that was a number of hours away. My mind would most likely be on fire by then. As it was, my thoughts were already all over the place. I kept thinking about all of the different scenarios that might have led to Scott returning home. Speculation was definitely running rampant.

  While my head drifted deep into the clouds, Kristina walked up behind me. I was so busy wrestling with my thoughts that I didn’t even know she was there until she opened her mouth.

  “He’s keeping some kind of a secret,” Kristina said. “I think it’s a pretty big one.”

  When I heard Kristina’s voice, I almost jumped out of my boots.

  I put my hand on my chest as I replied, “Where did you come from?”

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

  “It’s okay. I just didn’t hear you coming.”

  “That’s pretty surprising. I mean, as an investigator, I thought you pretty much had eyes in the back of your head.”

  “So did I. But my instincts failed me right then.”

  “This situation with Scott really has you rattled, doesn’t it?” Kristina asked. “Is it because he was being so vague and evasive?”

  “Wait a minute. Were you listening to our conversation?”

  “Of course, I was.”

  I laughed. “At least you’re being honest with me. Although, you don’t have to be so shameless about the fact that you were eavesdropping.”

  “Maybe not, but I couldn’t help myself. When two of my friends are talking and one of them behaves strangely, it makes me think.”

  “I don’t blame you. Scott’s behavior was pretty bizarre.”

  “I’m glad I’m not the only one who noticed it.”

  “The question is, why was he being so vague?”

  “I was hoping that you’d have an answer.”

  “I have no clue,” I said.

  “Do you have any guesses?”

  “Not that I’m willing to share right now.”

  “Wow. So, he has you stumped then?”

  “For the moment. But according to him, all of my questions will be answered at dinner tonight.”

  “I hope that’s the case,” she said. “Be sure to let me know what happens, all right?”

  “Of course,” I replied.

  Chapter Five

  All in all, it ended up being a pretty quiet work day for me. That was just the way I liked it. That was certainly better than running around with my hair on fire.

  By the time I left my office and headed home, I had spent a crazy amount of time trying to piece together why Scott had been so mysterious about his return to Majestic Cove.

  Thankfully, I would be getting answers in less than an hour.

  In the meantime, I had to get ready for our dinner. When I came in the front door of my mid-century modern home, I headed straight for my bedroom. As I opened my closet to pick out a dress to wear, my phone rang.

  My gut started acting up on me. My instincts were telling me to check the caller identification screen on my phone. Was Scott phoning me? Had something come up? Did he have to cancel on me?

  I would be really disappointed if that was the case, but I would understand. Detectives often got called back into work at a moment’s notice. Especially in the case of an emergency.

  I reached into my purse and grabbed my phone. When I saw my mother’s name listed on the screen, I could have felt relieved, but I didn’t. The odds were that my mother was just calling to check in. At the same time, there was also the slight possibility that she had some bad news to share with me.

  So, while part of me just wanted to let her call go to voice mail, deep down, I knew that I had to take the call. Not only for peace of mind, but also because my mom was a relentless woman. She was not a fan of leaving voice mails. Instead, she preferred to keep calling back until I answered the phone.

  With all of that in mind, I took the call.

  “Mom, is everything all right?” I asked.

  “I should be asking you that. You’re the one who just solved a murder,” my mother said.

  With all of my focus being on my upcoming dinner with Scott, I briefly forgot about the investigation that I had just wrapped up.

  “Oh yeah. Right. The murder investigation,” I said.

  “Honey, is something else on your mind?”

  “Actually, yes.”

  “Really?”

  “Mom, I need to get changed for my dinner with Scott. Before I do, I just need to make sure that you’re not in the middle of an emergency.”

  “Wait a minute. Did you just say that you’re going to dinner with Scott?”

  “Mom, please answer my question. If you’re not experiencing an emergency, I really need to go.”

  “Melody, I’m fine.”

  “Good.”

  “I’m also not getting off of the phone. You owe me an explanation. Why am I only finding out now that you and Scott have a date?”

  “It’s not a date. We’re just having dinner.”

  “I’m confused. How is that not a date?”

  “Because he didn’t ask me out in a romantic way.”

  “How did he ask you out then?”

  “I have some questions for him about his return to Majestic Cove. He told me he would explain himself over dinner.”

  “Is that all?”

  “I hate to disappoint you, but yes.”

  “So, you’re telling me there’s no romantic motivation behind this evening whatsoever?”

  “None.”

  “Are you sure about that?”

  “Mom, just because you want Scott and I to become a couple doesn’t mean it’s going to happen.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because we can make our own decisions.”

  “No. I mean, why aren’t you a couple? It doesn’t make any sense to me. You two are great together.”

  “Mom, we need to have this conversation some other time. I have to get changed for dinner.”

  “Wait a minute. If this isn’t a romantic dinner then why are you getting changed?”

  “I don’t want to wear my regular work clothes to the restaurant.”

  “Why not?”

  “Mom, why do you keep pressing me?”

  “Subconsciously, do you want more out of this dinner than just answers? Do you want something romantic to happen?”

  “You’re reading too far into things. I just want to change my clothes. That’s all.”

  “That’s really disappointing.”

  “For you, maybe.”

  My mother groaned. “Melody, when are you going to come to your senses?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You need to take advantage of this moment. Scott is single now, but that probably won’t remain the case for much longer.”

  “What makes you say that? Have you heard gossip about him being interested in someone?”

  “No. I just know that good men like Scott don’t come around very often. And when they do, they definitely don’t stay single for long.”

  “So, what you’re saying is that you don’t have any concrete details to share with me?”

  “No. But I have plenty of wisdom. You’d be a fool not to listen to me.”

  “Mom, has it ever occurred to you that you might be wrong?”

  My mother didn’t hesitate with her response. “No.”

  I laughed. “I walked right into that one, didn’t I?”

  “Melody, I’m begging you. Don’t take this opportunity for granted. You don’t know if you’ll get another chance with Scott.”

  “For the last time, this isn’t a romantic dinner. I’m trying to solve the mystery of why he returned to Majestic Cove.”

  “Fine. Be stubborn. But don’t say that I didn’t warn you.”

  Chapter Six

  An hour later

  Even though this wasn’t a date, I still put a lot of work into getting ready for dinner. There was no way that I was going to wear jeans and a t-shirt to the restaurant. I also wasn’t about to pull my hair back in a ponytail. That was more about pride than anything. There was a chance that Scott wouldn’t notice the extra effort that I had put in, but I wanted to look good for myself that evening.

  All told, I had just finished doing my makeup as I heard the doorbell ring. I took one quick look at myself in the mirror before exiting the bathroom. I had to admit, I looked pretty good.

  When I opened my front door, I must have caught Scott at an introspective moment, because he had a faraway look in his eyes. It seemed like he had just finished talking to himself.

  In addition, he also appeared to be a little nervous.

  One thing was clear. His demeanor was different than I was used to. Most of the time, he was cool, calm, and collected. I rarely saw him sweat. Imagine how surprised I was to see an uneasy look on his face right then.

  “Good evening,” I said.

  He turned to me.

  “Evening,” he replied.

  “You doing all right?” I asked.

  “Yeah. Why do you ask?”

  “You just look nervous.”

  “I have a bunch of things on my mind.”

  “You working on a new case or something?”

  “No. It was actually a pretty quiet day.”

  “That’s nice to hear. Especially given how wild things have been lately.”

  “Isn’t that the truth? For the last couple of weeks, there have been so many strange occurrences that I almost felt like I was back in the big city again.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Maybe I’m exaggerating a little, but Majestic Cove definitely hasn’t been itself lately.”

  “I know what you mean.”

  “Perhaps things are finally going to get back to normal around here.”

  “Wouldn’t that be nice?”

  “I certainly wouldn’t complain.”

  “Neither would I.”

  “By the way, you look really nice.”

  “Thanks.”

  “I almost feel like I’m underdressed,” he said.

  “What are you talking about? You look good,” I replied.

  “I guess I just didn’t realize that you were going to get all dressed up,” Scott said.

  “I wouldn’t call this dressed up.”

  “Really? In that case, what would you call dressed up?”

  “To start, I would be wearing something far more formal than this. After all, this is just a cocktail dress.”

  “I suppose you’re right.”

  “Anyway, don’t worry about being underdressed. You look good,” I said.

  “If you say so.”

  “So, should we head out?”

  He put his hand up. “Not yet.”

  I shrugged. “Why not?”

  “Aren’t you going to give me a tour of your place?”

  My eyes widened. “Oh, that’s right. You haven’t seen it yet.”

  “No. When I left Majestic Cove all those years ago, you were living in that apartment on Euclid Lane.”

  “In that case, here’s the grand tour.”

  ***

  After showing Scott around my place, we headed outside and got into his car. At that point, the drive to Adamson’s Majestic Cove Steakhouse began.

  Scott made small talk as he drove down McKinley Lane.

  “You have a really nice house,” Scott said.

  “Thanks,” I replied.

  “I’d love to have a place like that one day.”

  “Maybe you will.”

  “It’s something to pray about.”

  “Let me say this. The house didn’t look like that when I moved in.”

  “It didn’t?”

  I shook my head. “When I picked it up a couple of years ago, it was in desperate need of renovation. Honestly, it’s only pretty recently that I finished working on it.”

  “Wow. That’s good to know. When I buy a place, I want it to be move-in ready. I don’t have the time or the energy to renovate.”

  “In retrospect, if I could go back, I probably would have done things a little differently.”

  “Why?”

  “Since the house was in such rough shape, I was able to get an amazing deal on the purchase price, but I completely underestimated just how much work it truly needed. Before I knew it, I was in over my head. But I wasn’t going to give up.”

  “Of course not. You’re definitely not a quitter.”

  “If I ever move again, I’m definitely going to buy a place that has already been updated.”

  “That’s a good call.”

  “Speaking of which, where are you living these days?”

  “I’m currently renting an apartment on Langford Road.”

  “No way. That means you only live a few blocks away from me.”

  “I know. What a crazy coincidence. I had no idea that you were practically around the corner from me.”

  “Now that you know, feel free to come by more often.”

  “Before you get ahead of yourself, you should know that I might not stay at that complex much longer.”

  “Wait. Are you thinking of moving already?”

  “I’m considering it.”

  “Why?”

  “The residents of the building are a little louder than I’d like. After a long day of work, I like some peace and quiet.”

  “I’m with you on that. I can never have too much peace in my life.”

  “Honestly, it’s surprising what little peace I’ve experienced since I returned to Majestic Cove.”

  “Your job sure has kept you busy, hasn’t it?”

  He nodded. “More so than I ever expected. Then again, a lot of things about this town have been different than I anticipated.”

  “Like what?”

  “To start, I can’t believe that Edgarton’s Burgers and Shakes closed down.”

  “I know. That was a real blow. Especially for the milkshake landscape in this town.”