Page 6 of Secrets Hidden In The Glass

“Nine miles from point to point. Three miles across. From May to early September, it’s jam-packed. You just missed the rush.”

She let her arms settle at her sides, deciding that it was easy to talk to Nate. “How do you keep up?”

“I deputize eleven additional part-time officers to help the three full-timers I already have.”

She glanced toward the Tahoe, realizing the burden of his responsibility—the safety and welfare of islanders and thousands of visitors alike. And he was young—late twenties or early thirties at the most. “That’s a lot.”

“We deal with it.” He stood straight and pulled a key out of his pocket. “This is for you.”

She frowned. “My key works fine.”

“This is actually why I stopped by. It’s for my place. You can use the washing machine there since the one here is out of commission.”

She shook her head. “I don’t want to be any trouble.”

“It’s part of the whole ‘I’m your landlord’ deal, and one of the amenities in our agreement isn’t working.”

She shook her head again. “Nate—”

“That’s a rented vehicle?” he nudged his head in the direction of the Land Rover.

She followed his gesture, glancing over her shoulder at the SUV. “Yes.”

“You’re turning it in soon?”

She nodded as she looked at him again. “Today. I’m going to rent a bike.”

“You can’t be lugging dirty laundry a mile and a half into town on a bike.” He took her wrist and set the key in her palm. “Consider this a temporary fix.”

She stared at the glistening silver. “Yesterday, Mini Sanderson left my rental agreement taped to her door and now you’re just handing me a key to your home.” She looked into his eyes. “This would never happen in Manhattan.”

He smiled. “It’s a small-town thing. The washer’s yours whenever you need it. Although I might get a little pissed if you decide to use it at midnight.”

She returned his smile with one of her own. “I’m more of a Saturday morning kind of girl.”

“See? There you go then. Everything should work out fine.”

She stuffed the key in her pocket. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He reached down and grabbed the basket of shoes at her feet. “How about a hand?”

“Oh, you don’t have to.”

“Four hands are better than two.”

She nibbled her lip as she looked at the items next to her on the ground and the small pile by the cottage. She did have a lot of stuff to bring in. “All right. That would be great.”

“Good call.” He started on his way, lifting the huge Samsonite suitcase as if it weighed nothing and bringing it inside.

Snagging her camera case and the snack tote, she hurried after him. “Um, you can put it in the bedroom if that’s okay.”

“Sure.” He walked through the living room, down the short hallway, and into the room off to the right and set the items down. “Is this everything?”

She nodded, setting her stuff on the bed in the now crowded space. “I put most everything else away already.”

“That’s a great camera. Gotta love a Nikon.” He gestured to the bag. “By the looks of that thing, you’ve got yourself a nice little setup.”

She fingered the zipper. “That’s what I’ve been told.”