Page 48 of Me and Mr. Just Right

He couldn’t imagine doing to his family what his dad had done. Even when he was traveling for work, they texted and talked on the phone. And when they were annoyed or frustrated with each other, when he had to watch his millionth romcom or basketball game or be thrown into a surprise intervention—ahem—he’d never once thought about leaving it all behind.

Haydn pulled Jules into the kind of hug they rarely did anymore, arms fully around each other, his eyes stinging with tears. Jules held him so tight it was almost hard to breathe, but Haydn was glad for the grounding feeling it gave him. He wanted to believe Jules. Wanted to believe him with everything inside of him.

“How long have you been holding on to this for?”

Haydn chuckled wetly. “Years.”

“You’re not a leaver. You’re a stayer—who loves to travel. And I think you might be perfect for a woman who has to travel all over the world for her job. Just saying.”

They were just pulling apart when Bennett was at their side in three large steps, his brawny arms wrapped around the two of them. “I wanted to give you two some space, but space is overrated. This is like my dream come true,” Bennett said theatrically, which made the other two laugh until they cried and couldn’t catch a breath. It was the kind of emotional release that looked ridiculous but felt amazing.

“So what are you going to do about yourNature Adventure Magazine?” Bennett asked after they’d pulled apart and discreetly wiped their faces off on their shirts.

“That ship has sailed.” Full-time feature openings were rare at most magazines, andNaturewas especially competitive. He’d tried not to burn any bridges when he’d turned down the offer, but he knew they’d bristled at the rejection.

“What’s the plan, then?” Bennett folded his arms.

“I pitched a feature toRidges. I’m hoping for a three-to-four-page spread about our island—filled with pictures and stories, both historical and present.”

“That sounds amazing!” Bennett held out his hand for a high five, and Haydn hoped he didn’t notice that his return high five was lackluster.

“What did they say?” Jules said, one eyebrow raised. He’d noticed.

Haydn winced. “I haven’t checked yet.”

The look his brothers leveled at him was enough to make him squirm. “We’re checking right now,” Jules declared. “Let’s go.”

Nerves twisted Haydn’s stomach as they hiked to the hill on the island that sometimes got reception. He looked up at the overcast sky. Maybe today would be one of those days where he didn’t have any bars. He wouldn’t mind one more day of wondering. Tomorrow would be soon enough, right?

Not for Bennett or Jules, apparently. They flanked him from both the front and behind, as if afraid if they took their eyes off of him, he’d run back to the cabin.

The hike was too short, and when he got there, Bennett and Jules faced him with identical steely gazes and folded arms. “Check your email,” Jules said in a tone that wasn’t open to argument.

Haydn took a deep breath. He could do this. The worst that could happen was that they’d say no. Then he’d be right where he started—disappointed, but no worse off than before. Yet it felt worse off, because now he wanted something more. And that wanting could be painful.

Without thinking too much more about it, he opened his email app to find one from his editor.

Haydn,

Yes, let’s do the feature. I love it. Will Aurelia Halifax be featured in it as well? (How in the world do you know her? You’ve been holding out?) Our social media page views have gone crazy. I’ll slot you for November.

Oh no. No, no, no. He opened up his social media app, but it was taking forever to load.

“They’re a crap magazine anyway,” Jules said.

“Yeah, you can do so much better than them. They’re just holding you back,” Bennett added.

Haydn looked up at his brothers. “What are you talking about?”

“They said no, right?” Bennett pointed at his face. “You turned all white.”

“They said yes.” He shook his phone as if that would help the app open quicker.

“Then why—”

Jules’s voice was drowned out by the blood rushing in his ears as he pulled up theRidgespage and saw that their latest photo had over a million shares. The photo he’d taken of Lia laying out on the rock. Someone had recognized it as her, and it was being shared far and wide.

Bennett looked over his shoulder and read the caption: “Just outside of Petersburg, Alaska, a young woman rests in an island paradise. Photo credit: Haydn Forrester.” He looked up at Haydn. “Maybe no one recognized her.”

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