Page 36 of Killer Honeymoon
Gary sighed. “Just let me handle the situation.”
Les placed both hands on his hips and inched closer to Gary, who impressively stood his ground. “Give me one good reason why I should trust you to handle anything? I’ve tried all your suggestions to no avail. I’ve offered Frank an obscene amount of money, which only made the old bastard angrier.”
Sawyer and Royce looked at each other and mouthed, “Obscene.”
“In fact,” Les continued, “none of your tactics have panned out.”
Gary stiffened, and a chilly expression washed over his features. “Now, wait a minute. I’ve helped you buy all but two of the properties along that strip. I’ve ingratiated myself into this community to feed you the information you need to acquire the properties. If not for me, you wouldn’t even be as close as you are to realizing your condo project.”
“Without those last two properties, the rest don’t matter. So far, all I’ve done is accumulate more vacation rentals.”
“And you’ve earned a hefty profit from them. I don’t understand why you can’t be a little more patient. Frank is an old man. He’s not going to live forever. What’s the rush to build the condos?”
“What about the couple across the street from Frank?” Les asked, completely dodging the urgent question.
Royce and Sawyer looked at each other once more and gestured back and forth between themselves.
“I’ve introduced myself to them,” Gary replied. “My timing could’ve been better, but my plan is on track.”
Les harrumphed and took another step closer until he was nearly in Gary’s face. “I want you to step up the timeline. Don’t let me down or else.”
“Or else?” Sawyer and Royce mouthed to each other.
Both men leaned closer to the door, eager to hear the next part, but they jumped back when the shopkeeper turned up the volume on the radio to listen to a breaking bulletin about the impending storm. Gary and Les also jolted apart and continued walking down the sidewalk.
“Damn it,” Royce whispered. “I need to know what Les Moore has on Gary.”
Sawyer nodded. “More importantly, what kind of plan does Gary have for us?”
“We need to find out. There aren’t enough tourists out and about yet to blend in with the crowd, so following them is out.”
Sawyer lowered his sunglasses to peer at Royce over the rims, then hit him with a diabolical smile. “So let’s reel Gary in like a big fish.”
“I love it,” Royce said. “But not as much as I love you.”
Sawyer leaned in to kiss him and—
“Are you planning to buy those hats?” the shop owner asked.
Royce jerked, and Sawyer’s lips landed on his chin. Sawyer stowed his irritation and turned to face the man. “We’ll take the sunglasses and swim trunks too.”
“We will?” Royce asked.
Sawyer winked at him. “And a few of these shot glasses.”
Royce just shrugged and retrieved the shopping basket. Snippets of the broadcast penetrated Sawyer’s thoughts. “Meteorologists predict this storm could be the worst they’ve seen in more than two decades… Hurricane-force winds and waterspouts could develop in the next few hours.” Sawyer had seen the water tornadoes form over the ocean before, but he hadn’t witnessed one on Lake Erie. “Ferry travel to Put-in-Bay from Sandusky and Port Clinton has been suspended, and anyone wishing to return to the mainland will need to board the last ferries leaving in an hour.”
Sawyer placed one last shot glass in the basket and tipped his head toward the counter.
“Bad storm is coming,” the shopkeeper said when he started ringing up their purchases. “Do you fellas need to head back to the mainland? If so, you’ll want to get on one of the last ferries leaving the island in an hour.”
“We own a home here,” Sawyer said. “We’re prepared to batten down the hatches and wait it out.”
By the time they exited the souvenir shop, Gary and Les were nowhere in sight.
“Anything you want to check out before we head back and get ready for the storm?” Sawyer asked.
“Nah, but I wouldn’t mind you modeling those tiny shorts.”