When Wylie Lewis sells his half of the detective agency he owned to move into the house his grandfather willed him in the small town of Earlston, he expects he'll have work to do refurbishing and redecorating it. He doesn't expect that Garry Parish, the handsome restaurant owner who lives two doors down, would offer his assistance, as well as put him in contact with Carl, a handyman who could do most of the manual labor.<br><br>Wylie also doesn't expect to be the sheriff's prime suspect when Nelly, a young woman who works for Garry, disappears a week after Wylie arrives in town. As if that isn't bad enough, a second woman, Emma, vanishes a few days later.<br><br>Wylie, Garry, and Carl team up to try to locate them before the sheriff decides to arrest Wylie, but things take a deadly turn when they find Nelly's body. Will they be able to discover who the killer is in time to save Emma, while Wylie and Garry deal with their growing attraction to each other? Or will Wylie become the killer's next target, with deadly results?

New Man in Town

“My cousin,” Roger stressed the word, “felt sick so I sent her home.”


Wylie grimaced and apologized for his error, saying, “I’m sorry. I thought she was your wife. That’s what happens when I jump to conclusions.”


“Not a problem. Most people do at first. Are you going to get another one of her drawings?”


Roger smiled knowingly. “But first you have to check out all the other shops, just in case.”


With a grin, Roger said, “Go for it. When you see what’s there you’ll be back.”


Wylie laughed and agreed he probably would be, before taking off to find out what the other shops and galleries had to offer. It was pouring rain at that point so, like the few tourists he saw, he raced from one shop to another in an attempt to keep from getting thoroughly soaked. In the end, he did return to purchase the companion piece to the painting he’d bought a few days earlier, telling Roger he’d be back to pick it up after he ate lunch.


Chapter 26