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

Wylie poured coffee and finished making his breakfast while Carl dealt with the jimmied lock on the back door.


“How are you holding up?” Garry asked, snagging a slice of toast from Wylie’s plate as they sat down at the table.


“Pretty good. There’s jelly if you want it.” Wylie grinned, pointing to the fridge.


“Naw, this is fine.” Garry took a bite of the toast. “Are you really?”


“Yes. Well, I have to clean up the blood on the wall and the carpet, but when it’s gone…”


By then, Carl had finished with the door. Pulling out the remaining chair, he sat. “Tell all.”


Between them, Wylie and Garry did. Garry ended by saying, “Kingman called me just before I left. He said Alicia’s in intensive care at the moment. She’ll need reconstructive surgery on her shoulder at some future date, to quote him. He’s feeling guilty about that.”


“He saved Wylie’s life for God’s sake,” Carl pointed out. “He should feel proud. Well…okay, some of both I guess.”


Chapter 56