“So,” Polly was saying in a conversational tone, “you ever meet Brad Pitt?”

Here I half expected her to ask him whether Lance Ledeaux was his real name, and instead she was grilling the dude about the celebrities he knew. I should have guessed Polly would go straight for the jugular.

After assuring Polly that Brad was every bit as handsome in person as he was on-screen and twice as nice, Lance turned toward me. “And you must be Kate, the brave detective. Claudia’s told me so much about you.”

Detective? Had the man actually called me a detective? Hmm… Maybe I was being hasty in my rush to judgment.

He took my hand and held it-a little too long.

Up close, his face was smooth and unlined, making me wonder just how much younger he was than Claudia. “Welcome to Serenity Cove Estates,” I said, gently extracting my hand from his grip. “I hope you’ll be happy here.”

“I’m certain I will be. In spite of being a small community, Serenity Cove Estates seems to have a lot to offer.”

He beamed down at me. His choppers were the dazzling white of toothpaste ads. In that instant, he did look vaguely familiar. Was he the actor I’d seen in denture commercials? Darn these senior moments!

“Someday soon,” he said, continuing to bestow upon me his mega-kilowatt smile, “maybe we can sit down, and you can tell me all about your, ah, let’s say, your close encounter with a diabolical villain. It’s got the makings of a great screenplay.”

“A screenplay? Really?” I grimaced inwardly at hearing myself ask this in a breathy voice. Now who was simpering? My brain was turning into pudding.

“It’s got all the right elements, my dear Kate. Mystery, adventure, danger, and, of course, a lovely damsel in distress who saves the day.”

I nodded furiously in agreement. I was beginning to like Lance more and more each minute. No wonder Claudia was smitten.