Tide Will Tell (Islands of Intrigue: San Juans) Read Online Free PDF

could see her puzzling over Stuart’s comment.
    Suddenly, it dawned on him why she had seemed so confused earlier. She hadn’t even known who Jessica and Stuart were. Was that possible? Hadn’t Mr. Cole told her about them? Josh considered. The Coles had been all over the news in the last year. Where had Kate been living, in a cave?
    Josh leaned in so that only Kate could hear. “Don’t worry. None of these other people are related to him.”
    “Oh.” An endearing combination of relief and gratitude eased the strain on her face. “Thank goodness.”

Chapter 6
    Relieved to finally be on her own and away from Jessica and her rowdy friends, Kate fumbled with her new key. She fumed. Her vision of living a peaceful life as the lady of the manor had slipped into something far less appealing.
    Reasonably, she had assumed Chase would walk her down to show her where she’d be staying, but he’d gotten another phone call and had promised to check in on her later. It was just as well. The way she felt right now, she might just pick a fight with him, which was the last thing she needed to do straight off the bat.
    She hated feeling irritated with Chase, especially when she’d looked so forward to seeing him. But how could he neglect to tell her about Jessica and Stuart? And why, when he allowed her to find out, had he done it so publicly? Didn’t he realize how humiliated she would feel?
    The lock clicked and she slipped the key into her purse. And why was she staying in the guesthouse while the actual guests got to stay in her house?
    The reminder of the ‘actual guests’ brought with it a not entirely unwelcome vision of Josh, which she tried unsuccessfully to shoo from her mind. She felt undeniably drawn to him, but that was normal, right? He was a nice guy who had the added advantage of being disarmingly great looking. But, it didn’t take a genius to figure he was probably Jessica’s boyfriend, so why did the thought of him leaving after the weekend send her spirit plummeting even lower?
    Grumbling to herself, she walked through the front door, then stopped cold. This place was heavenly. The far wall in front of her was made almost entirely of glass, just like in the main house but on a more comfortable scale. It seemed both homes were designed to be an audience for the breathtaking view of the crystalline water.
    How ungrateful could she get? This house was most likely a million dollar property all on its own. It just seemed puny in comparison to the main house, that was all.
    As she stepped toward the window, her tender knee folded under her weight. She let out a moan, clutching her leg. Stupid knee. If she wasn’t more careful, she’d need a cane to make it down the aisle.
    She ditched her shoes—good riddance—and moved reverently forward. This place wasn’t huge by any means, but it felt sumptuous, with an open-plan design intended to throw all the focus on the outdoor spectacle. It would be like living in a movie theatre with nature as the featured attraction.
    She wandered toward the windows and stone fireplace, then into the nice-sized dining area with the kitchen beyond.
    Remembering a time when she had loved to dabble in the kitchen, before her life had become all about scrounging to survive, she wanted to cry. After years of sharing a sparse condo kitchenette with a herd of cockroaches and a transitory string of roommates who showed little if any respect for one another’s food stashes, she stood in awe of the gourmet kitchen.
    Cookbook shelves lined one side of a trapezoid-shaped island. Turning her head sideways, she read some of the spines. Most of them focused on Pacific Northwest cuisine, which could come in handy if she decided to tackle something other than microwaved instant oatmeal. She should learn how to cook for real now that she was going to be a wife.
    A pretty basket filled with assorted teas sat out on the island countertop, daring her to indulge. Behind the basket, a silver tea