much.” She said it easily enough, but she wouldn’t meet Alice’s gaze.
“I’m not buying it,” Alice said. “If that’s all it was, you’d be moving heaven and earth to patch things up between them.”
“The same way you are?” Molly asked testily.
“Exactly.”
“Maybe I’m just not as inclined to meddle in something that’s none of my business.”
Alice gave her a wry look. “Since when?”
“Since it’s Daniel Devaney we’re talking about, if you must know. The man gets on my nerves, that’s all.”
“Oh, really?” Alice thought she was finally getting a lot closer to the truth. “It’s only a tiny little leap from getting on your nerves to getting under your skin. Do you have a thing for Daniel?”
Molly looked as scandalized as if Alice had accused her of stealing from the poor. “Don’t be absurd. The man would never give me a second look, and I don’t waste my time pining for idiots.”
Now there was a telling comment, Alice thought. She wondered if Molly realized she’d all but admitted to having feelings, even if they were feelings she was fighting.
“Is he as handsome as his brother?”
“They’re identical twins,” Molly retorted, then rested her chin on her hand and leveled a speculative look straight into Alice’s eyes. “You tell me, does that make him handsome?”
Alice couldn’t seem to prevent the blush that crept into her cheeks. If she expected total honesty from her friend, then she needed to repay it in kind. “It does in my book,” she admitted.
Molly sat back with a satisfied look. “I thought so. How far has it gone?”
“It hasn’t gone anywhere. We went out on his boat on Saturday, had dinner and played cards. Just a relaxing day. Nothing more.”
“You were down in that cozy little place of his below deck till well after midnight and all you did was play cards? I am very disappointed in you,” Molly chided.
Alice regarded Molly curiously. “How did you know I was there past midnight?”
“I wasn’t down there peering in the portholes, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Molly retorted. “Your car was still there when I closed up here. If you didn’t want me to notice it, you should have parked someplace else or left earlier. The point is, you were with the man and wasting time on cards.” Her expression brightened. “Was it strip poker at least?”
“No, it was not strip poker!” Alice said with feigned indignation. “As a matter of fact, the stakes were much higher.”
“Oh, really? Maybe you didn’t let me down after all. What were they?”
“If I won—which I did—he would make peace with his family.”
Molly stared, obviously shocked. “Patrick agreed to that?”
Alice grinned. “He didn’t expect to lose.”
“You did tell him that Jess taught you to play poker didn’t you?”
“I did, and apparently he wasn’t overly impressed.”
“Foolish man.”
Alice shrugged. “His gullibility served my purposes very nicely.”
“So now you’re trying to figure out how to bring about this reconciliation?” Molly concluded. “Is that why you were asking about Daniel? You think he’s the obvious link?”
“You disagree?”
“Let’s just say I wouldn’t turn to Daniel if my life were on the line, but that’s just me.”
Alice grinned. “Interesting. All that vehement protesting and your cheeks are bright pink.”
“Don’t make too much of that. The man infuriates me.”
“My point exactly,” Alice said. “I think I’ll see what I can do about hooking up with Daniel Devaney while I’m on break from school.”
“Patrick won’t thank you for interfering in his life,” Molly warned.
“Sometimes you just have to do what you think is best and to hell with the consequences for yourself,” Alice said.
“You don’t care if Patrick is furious with you?”
“I’d prefer it if he weren’t,” Alice admitted. “But I’m willing to take the risk.”
“You’re a braver woman that I am,” Molly said, regarding her with admiration. “Just don’t expect too much from Daniel. And don’t go dragging him down here for this big reconciliation. I don’t want him on the property.”
She sounded dead serious. Alice studied her more closely. “How did he let you down, Molly?”
“I never said he let me down. I believe I said he was a pompous, self-righteous jerk.”
“Because he let you down,” Alice repeated confidently. “That just gives me one more thing to straighten out.”
“I do not want to be your spring break project!” Molly shouted after her as she headed for the door. “I doubt that Patrick does, either.”
“That’s the problem with having a friend who has good intentions and time on her hands,” Alice called back. “We just go on about the business of