A Crabby Killer by Leighann Dobbs Read Free Book Online Page B

heart warmed at the rare expression of pure joy on Sarah’s face. Claire knew something weighed heavily on the young woman and, as a result, she rarely smiled. A puppy seemed like just the thing Sarah needed.
    “Are you going to adopt him?” Claire asked.
    Regret washed over Sarah’s fine features as she put the puppy down in a playpen filled with three others just like him. “No, I can’t. I mean, I have the restaurant and all.”
    “You need to take more days off from that restaurant. Then you might have more time and won’t have to sneak off to meet young men at the festivals,” Mae teased with a mischievous smile on her face.
    Sarah’s face tightened. “I wasn’t … I mean … I’m sorry, it won’t happen again.”
    Claire felt sorry for Sarah, but she really didn’t need to act so upset when Mae was obviously teasing. Claire figured she must have been meeting Shane McDonough behind the tent. She’d seen the way the two of them looked at each other, but why meet in secret? She didn’t see any reason for it. They were often seen together at the restaurant and it was no secret that they were very close.
    “Meow!”
    Claire looked down to see the Maine Coon cat that frequently appeared at her patio door. “Is this cat up for adoption?”
    “Oh, no. That’s Porch Cat. You know him, don’t you?” Mae asked. “He’s just making the rounds.”
    Mae held out a small, orange, square cat treat and Porch Cat sniffed it thoroughly before deciding it was okay to eat. He gently took it from Mae and ate it, making little crunching sounds.
    Porch Cat looked up at Claire and winked, then turned and trotted out of the tent, flicking his tail in the direction of a tent across on the opposite side of the pier and two spaces down. Claire looked in that direction and saw it was Barnacle Bob’s tent and he was in it.
    Claire grabbed Jane’s arm. “Let’s go over there. I have a question for Bob.”
    Jane gave the golden retriever puppy one last scratch behind the ears, and they said good-bye to Mae and Sarah, then headed to the other tent.
    Inside, several large displays highlighted the different boats in Barnacle Bob’s fleet and the tours they offered. In the middle was a podium where Bob’s daughter, Lisa, was taking cruise reservations.
    Bob peered over Lisa’s shoulder at the reservation book. He was in his late fifties, tall with skin that was leathery from years on the ocean running the family business. He usually looked fit and healthy, but today his unshaven face was pale and haggard with dark circles under his eyes.
    “Hey, Bob. Rough night?” Claire asked.
    Bob’s head jerked up and he fixed red-rimmed eyes on Claire. “I’ll say. I haven’t felt this under the weather in a long time.”
    “Do you have that flu that’s going around?” Claire asked.
    Bob ducked his head. “I wish I could say that was it, but I have to admit I had a bit too much to drink last night and I slept in. Haven’t done that since I was in my twenties.”
    Claire laughed. “I remember sleeping in a few times when I was that young, too. But it’s not like you to tie one on.”
    Bob glanced at Lisa. “Certainly not. I actually didn’t even think I drank that much, but judging by the way I feel this morning, I must have.”
    “Where were you drinking?”
    Bob scrunched his face up as if trying to remember where he had been drinking was painful. “I remember starting out at Duffy’s Tavern . I only went in for a beer to celebrate my divorce.” He looked sheepishly at Lisa. “Anyway, someone kept putting drinks in front of me and I kept drinking them. After that, the next thing I remember is waking up. I guess I’m a lightweight when it comes to drinking. I’m usually only good for a couple of beers.”
    Claire felt a pang of sympathy. Bob was acting like the divorce was no biggie, but she knew how crushed he was when Molly hit him with those divorce papers last year.
    “I’m sorry about the divorce,” she