Summer in Eclipse Bay

toast for Nick's breakfast."
    A thunderous hush fell on the adjoining aisles. It seemed to Octavia that the whole of Fulton's had suddenly gone silent.
    "My secret is a little Dijon mustard on the toast under the eggs." She winked. "Trust me, it really adds some zip. You should have seen Nick's face when I put that plate down in front of him. Talk about a man who looks like he thinks he's died and gone to heaven."
    Megan and Sandra were no longer watching her. Their gazes were riveted on a point just beyond her shoulder.
    I'm getting an audience,
Octavia thought. Terrific. Another little scene, the details of which would be all over town by sundown. The really interesting thing was that she did not give a damn. Not right now at any rate. Right now she was on a roll.
    "If you think that the thing with the mustard is kinky, wait until I tell you how Nick got his coffee this morning," she said in a gossipy tone. "Talk about getting down to the good stuff. So, there we were, sitting at the breakfast table and I can tell that he's ready for a second cup, you know? I mean, he's
really, really
ready for it. Wow. This man is
hot
for another cup, if you get my drift."
    "Might be a good idea to give everyone some time to cool off before you tell them about the coffee thing," Nick said behind her. He sounded amused, but there was the barest hint of a warning in his voice. "I'm not sure Eclipse Bay is ready for the details of my second cup of coffee."
    She spun around. Reality came back with a jarring thud.
    "I think it might be a good idea to check out now," he said.
    She wondered just how big a fool she had made of herself. He was right. This was a very, very good time to check out.
    "Okay." She whipped the cart around and headed for the checkout counter, leaving Sandra and Megan still tangled up in Canned Veg amp; Beans.
    "I hope you don't mind me interrupting back there," Nick said, falling into step beside her. "It's just that some things are personal, you know? That stuff about the second cup of coffee? That's special to a sensitive guy like me."
    "Oh, for heaven's sake, Nick, you didn't even have a second cup of coffee this morning and you know it."
    "Are you sure?"
    "Of course I'm sure. Can't you remember what you had for breakfast?"
    "It's all a blur after the eggs and mustard."

Chapter 21
    At four o'clock that afternoon he went back to the gallery to check on Octavia. She had looked good during the scene with Sandra and Megan at Fulton's, but underneath he thought he had detected some additional strain.
    "She's not here," Gail said the instant he walked through the door. "She went home early."
    "She never goes home early," Nick said.
    "She did today."
    He was getting more concerned by the minute. "Is she okay?"
    "I don't think so." Gail exhaled deeply. "She's lived in town off and on for over a year and she's been hanging out a lot with Hartes and Madisons, but, that doesn't mean she's completely acclimated to our quaint little traditions here in Eclipse Bay. In spite of the way she handled Sandra and Megan, I think she's a lot more upset about the gossip that is going around than she's letting on."
    Nick frowned. "You really think it's bothering her? Seemed like she was dealing with it fairly well earlier."
    Gail watched him very steadily. "The brawl last night was bad enough. But the fact that everyone is talking about how you spent the night at her place is a real problem, I think."
    "Why? Everyone knows that we're seeing each other. It's no secret. She's aware of that."
    "No offense, but I do believe that you're missing the point here," Gail said. "You were seen driving away from her cottage at eight o'clock this morning."
    "Seven thirty-five, and so somebody noticed my car coming from the direction of her cottage early this morning. So what? Not the first time."
    "Yes, it is, as a matter of fact."
    "You're right, I am missing something here. You want to run that by me again?"
    Gail picked up a stack of brochures announcing the Children's Art Show and made a pretense of straightening them. "Eight o'clock or, to be precise, seven thirty-five, is well after dawn at this time of year."
    "What about it?"
    "Pay attention, Nick." She slapped the brochures back down on the counter. "The word has gone out that Octavia has broken the curse."
    "Yeah? So?"
    "You do know about the curse, don't you?"
    "That idiotic story about me that claims that I never spend the entire night with a woman?" He waved that aside. "I've heard