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smiling at her. She tried not to notice how handsome he looked in his white, button-down shirtand dark pants. Her eyes swung to the tall woman with long curly hair. Christy gave her a friendly smile.
    “Christy, this is Roseann Cole,” Dan said.
    The woman’s brown eyes took in every detail of Christy’s appearance as she said, “Hi, Christy. Nice to meet you.” She spoke with an anxious, high-pitched voice and wore a bright orange shirt that glowed like a hunter’s vest. Her lipstick matched the blouse. Christy tried to conceal her dismay over Dan’s date as Jack pulled out a chair beside him.
    “Your aunt has the sweetest voice this side of heaven,” Jack said, an unmistakable glow in his blue eyes. It was good to see Jack looking so pert and actually out on the town. He tended to hole up at Rainbow Bay, a clover-shaped inlet six miles east of Summer Breeze. Following an afternoon rain, beautiful rainbows arched the sky over Jack’s gray bungalow, where he lived with memories of the wife and son he had lost. Yet he loved the place, and he lived to fish.
    “You were wonderful,” Christy said, smiling at Bobbie.
    This time there was no mistaking the fear in Bobbie’s eyes as she looked at someone across the room. “Thanks, honey. Seth was here earlier, but he was expected somewhere else.”
    Christy nodded. “He’s a very busy guy these days.”
    “I’m so impressed that you’re a writer,” Roseann said. “I’m not much of a reader, but I so admire anyone smart enough to write books that get published.”
    Christy studied the woman, trying to understand what Dan saw in her. However, she had to admit that Roseann seemed like a sweet person who wanted to be friends.
    A deep voice boomed from behind Christy. “Well, Bobbie, maybe you’ll make enough money singing to pay me what you stole.”
    Christy whirled and stared at the short man who stood behind her. He wore a black ten-gallon hat and a white shirt with pearl buttons. A huge belt buckle advertised a famous beer.
    “Eddie,” Roseann said, reaching for his hand, “sit down and be nice. Bobbie invited us to sit here. You heard her yourself before you took off for the bar, so don’t say things like that to her.”
    “Eddie, you’ve been drinking,” Bobbie said, “and I know how you get after a few drinks. You think you’re six foot five instead of five foot six. You start looking for a fight. So why don’t you leave before you get your rear end whipped again?”
    “Not until I get what I came for,” he said, glaring back at her.
    Christy realized this man was Eddie Bodine and that Roseann must be his girlfriend.
    “Where’s the money?” Eddie demanded. “Better yet, where’s the vacuum cleaner?” His voice rose, and a hush swept over the crowd.
    “The vacuum cleaner?” Bobbie cried. “Don’t tell me you drove all the way from Memphis to Florida because the vacuum cleaner wasn’t written up in the divorce papers!”
    Eddie leaned forward, his dark eyes narrowed beneath the cowboy hat. “Don’t play dumb with me. I know you too well. And you knew what was hidden in the vacuum cleaner.”
    “You’re crazy,” Bobbie said, reaching for her purse and pulling out the bottle of pills.
    “What is it?” Jack leaned over to her. “Are you sick?”
    “Forgot to take my medicine.” She twisted the top of the bottle, but the cap wouldn’t come off. Christy could see Bobbie’s hands shaking, and she jumped out of her chair to help. Before she could, however, white pills exploded across the table and floor.
    Christy and Jack scrambled to pick them up as Roseann stood and grabbed Eddie by the hand. “You oughta be ashamed of yourself, Eddie.”
    An older man appeared with a broom and dustpan and began to sweep up the pills.
    “Wait!” Bobbie hollered, stopping him. “I don’t want them thrown away. They’re too expensive. I’ll wipe them off when I get home.”
    The little man looked startled, then turned and disappeared