Carson gave an exaggerated pout. “Just because you’re hung up on the caretaker and aren’t getting any doesn’t mean you have to be an asshole.”

I hadn’t talked to Carson in weeks, maybe a month, only trading texts here and there. He had no idea that things had changed for me and Shay, and I wasn’t about to let him in on that fact. But I should’ve known that he would ferret it out anyway. He’d known me for way too long.

“Wait a second. You don’t have the hard-up scowl. It’s something else…You tapped the caretaker!”

“Carson…” I warned in a low growl. “Don’t talk about her like that.”

A huge smile split his face. “Damn. It’s serious. Pleased for you, man. But you’re kinda stealing my thunder.”

“And what thunder is that?”

“I’m in Seattle.”

I straightened on my stool. “What?”

He spun around, giving me a view of the studio space he was in. “I got invited to do an installation piece here.”

I caught a glimpse of more than a few sculpture elements Carson was already working on. “That’s great. How long have you been in town? And why the hell didn’t you tell me you were coming?”

“A few weeks, give or take. I wanted to get the work going before I made plans to come check out your new digs.”

I winced. Now wouldn’t exactly be the best time for Carson to come to Harbor. He’d want to hit up Anchor and Shelter, to check out every bar and restaurant. And with the increased press presence on the islands, I was trying to keep a low profile.

“What’s wrong? You haven’t given up island life and moved already, have you?”

“No, nothing like that.” I spilled it all. Everything that had been happening over the past month. The murders, my call with the FBI, and Shay trying to stay under the radar through it all.

Carson let out a low whistle. “Man, you have some seriously bad luck. Are you holding up okay?”

I was starting to think that maybe I was cursed. “Things are calming down a bit now. Reporters are starting to leave. But the people who live here…we’re all waiting for the other shoe to drop. Might not be the best time to visit.”

Shay hadn’t left Harbor since the day of the murder. Reporters had begun arriving just as we were leaving, and we’d both known it was too risky. Griffin said that pretty much everyone had left now that a few days had passed and there were no new developments. But spending a bunch of time on Anchor or Shelter with Carson wasn’t a smart move.