“Look, I’m hoping it’s a quiet night and we don’t need to bother. If things kick up again, well, she’ll find out then. Best she carry on blissfully ignorant for now. Besides, I’m sure you and I, no matter how hard we try, are acting like something’s not quite right. One of us has to look like it’s just a normal day. We can just play off Nikki’s vibe. Most of all, we don’t let on to Katy that things have taken a turn.”

“That may be very easy to do. I don’t think she’s going to be awake much today.”

“All the better. And if she’s good to go tomorrow, we’ll help you pack.”

The thought of leaving filled Andrew with equal parts relief and regret. Sure, he and Kate could savor the rest of the summer together on a kind of staycation back home. But it wouldn’t be the same. He could easily picture the disappointment in her face, despite the nightly harassment. One thing they weren’t were quitters. Going home now would be the biggest fail of their lives. But with Kate so sick, her heart so bad, he couldn’t continue to allow the stress to build. That would be the ultimate fail.

“I need a drink,” Ryker said.

“Hair of the dog?”

“Hair up my ass. If I don’t unclench, I may pop.”

Andrew got them each a beer. They both agreed it was important to only have a couple. They needed to be as clearheaded as possible. There was no telling what they were in for tonight.

* * *

Just as Andrew predicted, Kate slept through the day. She didn’t even move a muscle while they were making dinner, plates and pots and pans clacking. Nikki had taken a shine to kayaking and pestered Ryker about buying a pair when they got home. She had obviously shaken off her hangover, a new bottle of wine three quarters done. The more she drank, the louder her voice got. Ryker kept throwing glances at Kate to see if Nikki had woken her. Andrew knew when it got like this, he could bring in a marching band and she wouldn’t budge.

They sat around the dining room table, Nikki digging into her bag of off-color jokes.

“Okay, stop me if you know this one,” she said. “What’s the difference between a bedpost and a dead baby?”

Ryker groaned. “This is one for the kids,” he said, burying his face in his hands.

Andrew was glad they hadn’t clued Nikki in to the stalker details. She’d been doing a bang-up job keeping his mind off the coming of the night. “I have no idea where this could possibly go.”

Waving her wineglass for emphasis, Nikki said, “You can’t fuck a bedpost.”