“What brought you here?” Her eyes darted around the bar. “This place?”
I explained that my life as a publican didn’t come into play until Nelson’s departure a few years earlier. “My friend and I were partway through a surfing holiday when we stumbled across Kaimte. The waves were the initial pull.”
“Is your friend still here?” asked Shiloh.
I almost sounded sad when I told her no. “She gave the cardboard village up for the bright lights of New York.”
“A girlfriend?”
I grimaced as I pondered the question. I wasn’t sure how to define my relationship with Charli, but girlfriend wasn’t it. “No, nothing like that,” I finally replied. “Just good friends – purely platonic.”
It was a notion that Shiloh seemed to struggle with. She frowned and began picking at the last of her label. “In my experience, platonic relationships never work, especially when you live together.”
“Awesome news.” I wiggled my eyebrows at her. “Based on that theory, you’ll be in my bed by the end of the week.”
She laughed but didn’t get a chance to hit me with a comeback. We were interrupted by the arrival of the first customer of the night, and it wasn’t one I could be bothered being particularly polite to.
“What do we have here?” he asked, sidling up behind Shiloh. “New talent?”
I thought Louis Osei was a dick, and as hard as he might try, it was unlikely he’d endear himself to Shiloh either. He stood so close to her that she shuffled forward on her stool.
“What can I get you, Louis?” I asked, trying to divert his attention.
He spoke to me, but only had eyes for the nervous brunette he had pinned against the bar. “This beautiful woman.”
I reached for a beer and slammed it on the counter. “You’ll have to settle for a drink,” I replied sternly. “She’s with me.”
Louis straightened up, throwing both hands out in surrender – a gesture that didn’t match the sly look on his face. “Forgive me. I didn’t realise.”
“Well, now you do.”
Caveman isn’t usually a role I play, but in this case, it was necessary. Shiloh already had adjustment issues. The last thing she needed was a night spent rebuffing the advances of Louis.
What he lacked in charm, he made up for in muscle. I had no idea why he needed the protection of the two henchmen who followed him like a shadow, but while he schmoozed at the bar, they stood six feet behind him like loyal guard dogs.
I craned my neck, looking past Louis. “Alright, fellas?” I asked sarcastically.
One nodded. The other continued his pointless stare-down, and Louis continued working on Shiloh. Her skin must’ve crawled when he put his hand on her back. “When you tire of him, come and see me,” he murmured in her ear.
Either frightened or disgusted, she didn’t say a word.
I slammed another two beers down on the bar, inadvertently splashing Shiloh in the process. “For your friends,” I offered. “On the house.”
Smirking, Louis straightened up and with a click of his fingers called his goons forward to collect their drinks. “I’ll take your beer,” he told me. “The rest will come in time.”
I understood his cryptic comment perfectly. Shiloh, however, did not. As soon as Louis and his goons left, she leaned across the bar and whispered a desperate question. “Was he talking about me?”
I watched the group of men take up residence at the table furthest from the bar. “No,” I promised, handing her a napkin. “He’s talking about my pub.”
Louis Osei had been trying to buy me out for years, and the more I refused, the more determined he became. The last offer I rejected came with the threat of him burning the place to the ground, and I didn’t doubt for a second that he was capable of doing it. I’d heard whispered tales of everything from gun running to drug smuggling where Louis was concerned. None of it had ever been proven, but it was fair to assume that the import–export company he ran was far from legitimate.
“He wants to buy the Crown and Pav but I’m not interested.”
Shiloh dabbed at her beer-stained shirt with the napkin. “He’s a little on the creepy side, isn’t he?”
“Nothing to worry about.” I smiled, mainly to put her at ease. “Just steer clear of him.”
Groundwork
SHILOH
Sheltered and slightly nervous was the picture I’d painted of myself to Mitchell, which meant I’d already descended into the shady world of lies and illusions.
I couldn’t dwell. My alter ego might’ve been creeped out by Louis, but steering clear of him was never going to happen.
Louis Osei was Tweedledum.
A lot of groundwork had been done where Louis was concerned. Studying his file had been as compelling as any good novel. No tangible link had been made between him and Jorge Creek Mining Company. It was the dealings of his shady shipping company that made for good reading.
Corruption was rife throughout Kaimte, and it extended all the way up to the government. Friends in high places come in handy, and Louis had many. In exchange for hefty bribes, port officials happily turned a blind eye while he held incoming shipments for ransom on the wharf. Nothing got through without Louis’ say-so, and the only way to get it was to cough up exorbitant amounts of cash. The simple but lucrative scheme had worked without a hitch for years, and it was up to me to find out whether any of the proceeds were being used to buy stolen diamonds.
I turned my head, covertly studying the crooked party at the far table. Louis might’ve built an empire based on fear and intimidation, but he wasn’t fearless. He was smarmy and suave, but the edginess to his demeanour was undeniable. His eyes constantly darted as he scoped out his surroundings, and his goons were just as vigilant. It took only seconds before one noticed me, and it wasn’t a pleasant exchange. His vacant stare and menacing scowl were so unnerving that I had to look away.
My heart nearly thumped out of my chest as the gravity of the situation set in. Surveilling Glen Harris would be relatively simple because we worked together, but there was no way I could get that close to Louis.
All I could do was wait for the other agent to make contact. The best I could hope for was that he had some semblance of a plan.
***
The Crown and Pav really fired up after dark. All the tables on the beach were occupied and a loud blend of laughter and chatter filled the air. Mitchell was run off his feet, and the most help I could offer was to stay out of his way. I perched at the end of the bar for the whole night, sneaking quick conversations when he had the time.
“Sorry about the spilled drink,” he said. “Can I make it up to you with another beer?”
I folded my arms, trying to hide the stain on my once-white top. “No thanks,” I replied. “I already smell like a brewery.”
A roguish grin swept his face. “You’ve sat on one drink all night,” he teased. “You’re not good for business, Shiloh.”
I twisted on the stool, checking out the merry crowd behind me. “It looks like a full house to me,” I replied. “Do you work every night?”
He swiped a cloth along the length of the glossy bar. “Except the weekends.” The corner of his mouth lifted. “Crazy Mimi works those shifts.”
If the detailed description he followed through with was even half true, her nickname was well deserved. He described Mimi as a moody and volatile woman with a fascination for the macabre.
“She’s petrified of the devil,” he told me. “She spends her whole life trying to stay out of his way.”
I leaned across the bar, following his hand as he motioned to a posy of dried leaves hanging above the door.
“Bay leaves,” he explained. “Apparently they keep demons out.”
His smile led me to think he wasn’t completely sold on the idea.
“You’re not a believer?”
He flicked the cap off a bottle of beer and set it in front of me. “I’m more afraid of Mimi than the devil,” he confessed. “She’s much e
asier to deal with when I let her have her way. If she wants to hang bunches of leaves in the bar, so be it.”
***
Last call was at eleven. Mitchell spent the next hour trying to clear the beach in front of his pub of stragglers, which was akin to rounding up wayward livestock. No one was in a hurry to leave, even once the awning was lowered and the outside lights were turned off.
I would’ve given up and left them to it, but Mitchell stood watching until the last bloke staggered up the hill to the car park and stumbled at the top of the trail. The police officer in me kicked in.
“He’s too drunk to drive,” I muttered.
“He’s tanked,” agreed Mitchell unconcerned. “Chances are, he doesn’t have a driver’s license either.”
“Seriously?”
Mitchell collapsed the last of the umbrellas and hoisted it over his shoulder. “The rules don’t apply here, Shiloh,” he explained with a grin. “Welcome to Kaimte, baby.”
Adonis
MITCHELL
Leroy’s ridiculous meddling hadn’t had the desired effect. Presumably he was hoping for a turf war that ended with me being overthrown and evicted, but it wasn’t to be.
There was tension when we arrived back at the shack that night, but it was the good kind brought on by the dilemma of only having one bed. Shiloh’s solution was that we share.
“We’re both adults, right?”
Her optimism proved how little she knew me, but I agreed to the dangerous plan and set about making the bedroom as girl-friendly as I could.
It was a confusing shift because I hadn’t given a damn about making her feel welcome when she first arrived.
“It’s probably a good thing that you chucked my clothes out,” I teased. “It’s less mess for me to clean up.”
Rehashing the not-so-stolen clothes debacle was a mistake. She hadn’t bought my story for a second, and I’d just given her reason to call me out on it. “Your neighbours picked them up, didn’t they?”
I glanced at her, trying not to look too sheepish. “Melito took them for safekeeping.” I swiped a flattened pillow off the bed and thumped it back into shape. “But you know that already, don’t you?”
A smile swept her face. “Leaving them there was a terrible strategy, Mitchell. I knew they hadn’t been pinched the second I saw your shirt.”
I took a few slow steps forward, using the pillow as a buffer between us as I pressed her body against the wall. “It was a fine plan,” I murmured in a low tone.
Her brown eyes locked mine. “Amateur at best.”
Chuckling blackly, I released my hold on her and dropped the pillow on the bed. “Which side do you want?”
She gazed at the bed. “The safe side.”
I folded my arms, eyeing her with mock suspicion. “How do I know you’re not a threat to my safety and virtue?”
“Because I’m tired,” she said simply. “I need at least two days of sleep before I can even consider robbing you of your virtue.”
I grabbed the collar of my T-shirt and dragged it over my head. “Two days, eh?” I muttered, mainly to myself. “I can hardly wait.”
***
I had no idea how long it would take for Shiloh to sort out company housing, but for now it didn’t matter.
I can’t tolerate high-maintenance women for long – even my own sisters – but Shiloh was down to earth and held no airs and graces. Instead of screaming when she spotted a nasty black spider in the bathroom the next morning, she picked up a shoe and walloped it.
“Impressive technique,” I praised from the doorway.
“Thanks.” She dropped the shoe and brushed past me. “I killed the last one with your toothbrush.”
***
The shack didn’t have many redeeming features, but the location was world class. If anything could help Shiloh adjust to life in Kaimte, the view from the front deck was it.
We sat outside for a long time that morning, enjoying the sun before the heat took hold. The water was calm and so was the mood.
Shiloh leaned on the railing of the veranda, staring out to sea. “This really is beautiful.” She breathed out the words in a long sigh.
“You’re welcome to stay as long as you need to.”
She glanced over her shoulder. “I’ll sort something out as quick as I can.”
I nodded in support of her plan, but didn’t mean it. I might’ve tried harder to make her stay, but I was distracted. Vincent wandered out onto the deck next door wearing nothing but a pair of purple board shorts.
He spotted us too, calling out to remind me that we had plans that evening. “An extravaganza,” he boldly claimed. “Melito is already baking.”
I couldn’t smell anything cooking, but I had no problem catching a whiff of coconut oil as Vincent greased himself up in preparation for a day in the sun.
“There will be plenty of food and drink for everyone,” he promised, rubbing his big belly like a lucky Buddha.
He set his sights on Shiloh. “How are you settling in, beautiful lady?”
“Fine thanks,” she politely replied.
“And what do you think of our Adonis?” Vincent motioned toward me with a nod. “Are you as smitten as we are?”
Shiloh giggled as if the notion was absurd. “Not yet,” she replied. “I’m pacing myself.”
Unknown Element
SHILOH
I began to worry that I was becoming distracted. The cardboard village was a haven of sunshine and good vibes, and hanging out with Mitchell tended to throw me into holiday mode. I’d spent a lot of time getting to know him in the past day, and it was completely without motive. He was funny, interesting and unashamedly flirty, which left me with a feeling of hopelessness that wouldn’t have existed if I were solely focused on the job I’d been sent to do.
I had two days to get my act together. When Monday morning rolled around, I vowed to be on my game.
***
The party started at dusk, and the guest list was huge. People milled around on the beach in front of the shacks, making the most of Vincent and Melito’s extraordinary hospitality. True to their word, they’d been cooking up a storm all day. Melito passed trays of Greek pastries around and Vincent kept the ouzo flowing like water. After being introduced to more people than I’d ever remember, I stole a minute away by wandering further down the beach.
I mistakenly thought I was invisible out of the glow of the roaring bonfire, but Vincent soon appeared. Before I could protest, he upended a bottle of ouzo into the plastic cup in my hand.
“Drink until you see stars,” he recklessly urged before disappearing again.
I couldn’t take another sip. The powerful taste of anise wasn’t remotely pleasant.
“Not a fan?” asked Mitchell, sidling up beside me.
“I can’t drink any more of this,” I complained. “It’s poison.”
He took the cup and poured it onto the sand. “What is your drink of choice?” he asked, cocking one eyebrow. “We’ve established that it’s not beer or ouzo.”
Before I could speak, his hand flew up. “Think carefully,” he warned. “If you tell me you have a thing for champagne or fruity cocktails, this romance is over.”
“Idiot,” I mumbled, dropping my head to hide my laugh. “What romance?”
He took a step forward and whispered in my ear. “This one.”
I had a vague game plan when it came to dealing with the likes of Tweedledum and Tweedledee, but no idea how I’d handle Mitchell. He was the unknown element I’d been warned to look out for – far more dangerous than any crook.
“Red wine,” I replied, getting back on task. “I’d take merlot over champagne any day of the week.”
“I’ll keep that in mind and add it to my list.”
“What list?”
Even in the low light, his smile was bright. “The list of things I know about Shiloh Jenson.”
His words hit me hard, in a place that was supposed to be off limits. Shiloh Jenson wa
s a work of fiction, and it was a book that was never meant for him.
Team Demon
MITCHELL
If I had been planning to ramp up the flirty exchanges with Shiloh, my posse would’ve been entirely responsible for keeping me in the friend zone. Vincent and Melito were eccentric nutters, but Mimi’s calibre of crazy was out of this world.
She came barrelling down the beach a little after midnight, moving so fast that sand flew in her wake. She must’ve spotted us sitting on the sand because she made a beeline for me.
“Mitchell! Mitchell!”
I ignored her at first, but she yelled louder. “I’m talking to you, dumb boy.”
Shiloh leaned closer. “A friend of yours?” she asked.
“Brace yourself,” I muttered from the corner of my mouth. “It’s mad Mimi.”
The crazed woman ground to a halt in front of us. “I’ve been calling you all night,” she snapped, hands on hips. “Answer your phone.”
“And miss out on the pleasure of having you yell at me in person? Never.”
Shiloh directed her laugh at the sand but being discreet was pointless. Mimi’s sights were firmly set on her. “Who are you, girl?”
“I’m Shiloh,” she replied, politely extending her hand.
Unimpressed, Mimi rudely left her hanging. “Where are you from?”
“Australia.”
“You know him?” Mimi pointed at me.
Shiloh withdrew her hand. “I do now.”
“He has the protection of a thousand angels,” she told her. “The devil can’t have him.”
The random comment should’ve sent her running for the hills, but it didn’t. “I’ll be sure to let him know he’s off the list,” Shiloh replied.
As far as first impressions go, Shiloh had made the worst one possible. Her remark didn’t go down well. Mimi’s faith was the simplest of religions to understand. Angels are good and the devil is bad. As far as she’s concerned, you’re friends with one or the other. Unfortunately for Shiloh, she’d just implied that she was on Team Demon.