Page 8 of Me and Mr. Just Right

She climbed under the quilt and soft sheets, and before she could continue to contemplate her past, her future, or any space in between, she was fast asleep.

Chapter 4

Haydnhopedthesea-saltspray sure to fly in his face during the boat ride to the cabin would have the power to wake him fully.

Bennett had arrived home from the store right about the same time Haydn had set the last filled trash bag on the curb. He’d vacuumed, washed the dishes, and taken three loads of laundry—including Bennett’s sheets—to the laundry mat a few doors down.

Bennett had come bearing dinner as well, and the two brothers had stayed up long into the night talking. Bennett had an old air mattress he pumped up for Haydn, which collapsed around him approximately two hours into sleeping on it. Haydn wasn’t that old, but he was definitely too-old-to-sleep-on-the-floor old.

They’d picked Jules up from the airport just before eight in the morning and headed straight to the marina. Rosie’s yacht was parked in her usual spot, making Bennett’s tiny fishing trawler seem like a hummingbird beside a hawk. The waves were already at three feet, and based on the incoming clouds, they were only going to get bigger as time went on. Haydn loved a good, strong storm—once they were at the cabin. He didn’t want to hit anything too big while they were out on the water, which meant it was past time to head out.

“It’s going to be a bumpy ride, boys,” Jules said. He hopped into the trawler with the grocery bags hooked around his arms. Of all of the brothers, Jules was the most athletic. He’d played basketball all through high school and college, before injuring his knee bad enough that he decided to retire his sports dreams and go into law. He’d kept up his workout regimen, though, and it showed.

Haydn was no slouch in the muscle department. His came from hiking and climbing and exploring the wilderness, but still, he had nothing on Jules.

Bennett’s muscles came from lifting people off their feet when he gave them bear hugs. And also from reeling in huge fish day after day. But mostly the hugs.

“Let’s get there quickly.” Haydn loved the fishing trawler. There was nothing like beingrighton the water, feeling every single wave below your feet.

They set off with a whoop. It was an hour-long boat ride to their cabin, which gave them all enough time to decompress from work and phones. Even Jules, who sent one last email in the car, had turned off his phone and was keeping an eye out for sea animals.

Every time they came through here, they saw something: seals, whales, otters, sea lions … and it never grew old. One might think, growing up in Alaska, a person would become accustomed to seeing the wildlife, but not the Forrester brothers. Or Rosie. She created stunning pieces of art for her boutique, based on the animals around the bays.

It was difficult to talk over the noise of the boat, but they didn’t need to be talking for Haydn to finally feel settled. This, here, was his happy place. The wide, open sea. Fresh air. And best of all, being with Jules and Bennett.

He loved traveling. He loved it too much. It was good for him to remember that he lovedthismore. Their dad’s restlessness had turned him into a resentful man who’d finally left. And if Haydn sometimes felt restless too, well … being restless wouldn’t define him. It wouldn’t compel him to leave. He sometimes struggled with that balance of living his life to the fullest without betraying his family, but he was succeeding. Mostly.

Guilt tugged at him for avoiding Rosie in Petersburg and not inviting her along. He promised himself he’d spend the entire next week with her, one on one, which was better for her anyway, since she and Jules didn’t always get along.

He needed his brothers this week to help him out of this funk he’d been in since he’d turned down his dream position—not that they knew about the job offer or how he’d passed on it.

Bennett needed them to help him through his broken heart—without Haydn’s commentary on how his no-romance policy had never left him crying over burnt carpet and empty food containers. Even if it was true.

And Jules? Just like he played basketball on a bad knee until he nearly destroyed it, he’d work without break until he keeled over at his desk unless Haydn and Bennett stepped in. They’d already lost both parents. No need to lose a brother too.

Haydn pulled three granola bars out from his hoodie pocket and passed them around. Having grown up on these waters, none of them got seasick, even in massive waves, something they all happily exploited by eating heartily on the boat.

By the time the house came into view, Haydn was fully awake and excited for the week ahead. Multiple houses dotted the little islands in this area, and summer brought the part-time residents and vacationers.

Jules jumped out of the boat to tie it to the dock, while Bennett slowly navigated the boat as close as he could get to the boards.

Haydn inhaled the scent of island crispness. Nothing smelled better than the air at their cabin. The brothers had all built it themselves over the last ten years. They’d started it after their dad left. This island, this house, was a part of them.

They grabbed the groceries and bags and did the short walk up to the cabin. Jules unlocked it and went inside.

“Who was here last?” he called over his shoulder to Bennett and Haydn.

“Me. Why?” Haydn had overnighted there three weeks earlier, when he’d first gotten the job offer for the new magazine. He’d thought a weekend at the cabin would help him figure out what to do, remind him why he couldn’t accept.

Haydn and Bennett went straight to the kitchen to set down their food. In the kitchen sink were a bowl and a plate, rinsed off, but not all the way clean. Haydn winced. He was usually a clean person, but he had been distracted that week. With them not being in the house very often, he had to be careful about putting food away so no mice or other forest animals would make claim to their house.

“Dude, you left food in the fridge too.” Jules grabbed Haydn by the neck and rubbed his knuckle playfully into his head, while Bennett took the opportunity to take light potshots at his stomach.

Haydn was an adult. A professional. A respected photographer. But he would always be their brother. If he didn’t love it, he’d definitely have to hate it. He twisted out of Jules’s hold and grabbed both of them around the neck to wrestle them down to the floor.

Unfortunately for him, he was the smallest, and they made quick work of slamming him to the ground. He groaned but smiled. Rosie would be calling them puppies right about now, before she threw a full cup of water on them and went running for the forest. She was small but competitive, and with three older brothers, she’d learned to play dirty.

“What’s first?” Haydn asked from his spot on the ground, feeling winded. “Fishing or hiking?”

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