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and the lobstahman was very upset. ‘What should I do?’ he asked. ‘Well,’ said his buddy, ‘if I was you, I’d set her again.’”
    At this the room exploded in loud, raucous laughter. All except for Lucy’s friends, who were seated at their usual table.
    “I’ve lived here for more than twenty years,” she said, joining them, “but I’ll never appreciate Maine humor.”
    “It is a terrible joke,” agreed Rachel Goodman, who was known for her soft heart. She often convinced her lawyer husband, Bob, to take hopeless cases pro bono.
    “Especially considering that poor man they found in the harbor,” agreed Pam Stillings, who was married to Lucy’s boss, Ted.
    “It could almost put you off eating lobster,” chimed in Sue Finch, who prided herself on her gourmet cooking. “But not quite,” she added, and they all laughed.
    “So tell us, Lucy. What’s the inside scoop on Old Dan?” asked Rachel, taking a sip of the healthful herb tea she’d taken to drinking instead of coffee. Jake’s didn’t serve it; she brought the tea bags from home and ordered a pot of hot water.
    “No inside scoop this time. You know as much as I know,” replied Lucy.
    “Ted told me Old Dan’s brother is in town, along with his wife and child,” said Pam, checking that the dangling silver earrings she’d worn since college were still in place.
    “For the funeral? That was fast,” said Sue, who was checking her BlackBerry for messages. She was in the process of opening a new business, Little Prodigies Preschool, and it was never far from her mind.
    “No, no. He’s an actor,” said Lucy. “He’s going to direct the spring show at Our Lady of Hope.”
    “And she said she didn’t have the inside scoop!” exclaimed Rachel.
    “So what can I get you ladies this morning?” asked Norine, the waitress, setting a cup and saucer in front of Lucy and filling it with coffee. “The usual?” she asked, going round the table and topping off the others’ cups. “Hash and eggs over easy for Lucy, egg white omelet and whole wheat toast for Rachel, French toast for Pam and”—she cocked a disapproving look at Sue—“black coffee for her.”
    “I ate at home,” said Sue, who weighed herself every morning and restricted herself to water if she gained an ounce over what she considered to be her ideal weight, 110 pounds.
    “Like hell,” growled Norine, marching off to give Jake the order.
    “What’s it to her if I don’t want to look like a blimp?” complained Sue.
    “You really shouldn’t skip breakfast,” advised Rachel. “It’s the most important meal of the day.”
    “That’s absurd,” countered Sue, taking a sip of coffee. “The most important meal is cocktails….”
    “And you never skip that!” finished Lucy.
    “Darned tootin’,” said Sue, grinning.
    “So what’s this Dylan like?” asked Pam. “Ted says he’s very Irish, whatever that means.”
    “You could say that,” said Lucy. “And he’s very much the actor. He was wearing a white fisherman’s sweater and a silk scarf. Very eye-catching.”
    “Interesting,” said Sue, who was by far the best dressed of the group, in a clingy black turtleneck sweater and tailored wool slacks. Unlike most of the women in Tinker’s Cove, she even wore heels. “What about the wife?”
    “Also very dramatic,” said Lucy. “She was wearing a cape, a long one with a hood, and she has gorgeous red hair. They have a little girl, too, and she’s adorable.”
    “And he’s going to direct the show? Is that what you said?” asked Rachel. “They came all this way for an unpaid, volunteer job?”
    “No, he’s getting paid. Father Ed told me they’d hired a professional,” said Lucy. “The wife, that’s Moira, said it’s a busman’s holiday. Combining a family visit with a job.”
    Hearing Rachel humming a scrap of a tune, Lucy glanced at her curiously.
    Rachel blushed. “It’s from the show they’re putting on: Finian’s Rainbow . I was in