Adam left his parents’ house and walked into town, checking all the usual haunts he and his brothers preferred along the way, but no one had seen Grant all day. In town, he thought about walking to the end of the breakwater to see if Grant had been foolish enough to venture out there alone—in the dark—but thought better of it. If he was out there, he was on his own. Adam didn’t see the point in risking his own safety on what was probably a fool’s errand anyway.

At the Sand & Surf, he ducked inside to see if Grant had turned up there. His cousin Laura was working the front desk and let out a happy squeal when she saw him. She got up fast and then sat back down just as quickly.

“What’s wrong?” he asked as he went around the reception desk to hug her.

“Bouncing back slowly from the stomach bug,” she said, grimacing. “Too slowly.”

On closer inspection, he discovered her face was unusually pale and drawn. “I heard it whipped through the island.”

She nodded. “I was one of the unlucky ones who got it, but I can’t seem to shake it off. It lasted twenty-four hours for everyone else. Figures, right? But you’re not here to listen to me complain. I was sorry I couldn’t make your dinner. Our front-desk person called in sick, so I’m covering for her.”

“You missed the grand unveiling of Gansett’s newest couple.”

“Who’s that?”

“Seamus O’Grady and Carolina Cantrell.”

Laura’s eyes widened, and her mouth fell open. “Get outta here. Really?”

“Yep. Although I think he’s a lot more relaxed about it than she is. She broke out in hives in the middle of dinner.”

“Holy cow! This is huge! Janey has been holding out on me.”

“On everyone, apparently. Besides Joe and Janey, who only recently found out, no one knew except for my mom, and she only heard about it today.”

“Very interesting. I’ll have to get the scoop from Janey. So what’re you doing home?”

“Came to check on the boys and see my folks. Crazy doings around here lately.”

“You know it,” Laura said, shaking her head and making her blonde ponytail swing side to side. Her blue eyes filled with tears. “That was one long-ass awful day.”

Adam hugged the cousin who’d been like a second sister to him.

“I cry every time I think about it,” Laura said, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.

“You haven’t seen Grant tonight, have you?”

“No, he hasn’t been in.”

“Does he usually come by?”

“If Steph is working, he stops in for a drink or dinner. I haven’t seen her tonight, though.”