Page 81 of On The Beach

"I'll make her a cocktail, extra strong, with a little something special slipped in," Molly, the anesthesiologist and the Volnay family dealer, said.

I stifled a groan, picturing Belle's reaction when she realized what we'd done. "A little something? You make it sound so harmless."

Molly narrowed her eyes at me. "She's my daughter, Mick, and I'll be very precise about the dosage. I am, after all, an anesthesiologist."

"And a damn good one," her husband declared.

Yes, she was, and she's put her Harvard Medical School education and thirty years of expertise to good use by getting her daughter to go lights out. Excellent!

Anna clapped her hands as if we were planning a surprise birthday party instead of orchestrating a minor kidnapping. "Perfect! And I'll pack her bag while she's sleeping it off."

I nodded, feeling a surge of dread. "I'll have the charter plane ready."What the fuck was I saying? This was madness."We'll take off that night, so by the time she wakes up, we'll be on a beach in Reef Harbor."

Charles chuckled, folding his arms with a look of satisfaction. "I don't think I've ever seen Belle this stressed. She needs the break, whether she admits it or not."

In any other family, that would mean conversations and plans for a vacation; in this family, it was…well, weird. I kind of liked it.

Just then, Anna's husband, Dan, wandered in, glancing around the room with a look of curiosity. "What are we plotting?"

"Oh, just drugging my sister, packing her into a plane, and flying her to a tropical island," Anna said with a grin.

Dan raised an eyebrow, taking it in stride. "Sounds like a plan. And…ah…good luck."

I sat back, feeling like a moron. I'd done some fucked up shit, but this was right up there with blowing up my life. "I need all the luck. She's going to murder me when she wakes up."

Molly patted my shoulder. "She'll be too relaxed to murder anyone."

"Easy for you to say, you'll be safe and sound in Boston."

"True," Molly agreed without a morsel of regret. "I'm sure you'll do a great job calming her down once you get there."

"Yeah, and pigswillfly."

Anna raised her glass in a toast, and we alljoined in. "Here's to Operation Belle's Vacation. May she forgive us someday!"

Cato thought it was a fucked up idea when I called to tell my Reef Harbor buddies about when we'll be arriving and if someone could do me the favor of getting a bed installed in my hut…again.

"I think it's romantic," Franco said.

"It's a crime," RiRi muttered.

"The crime is gonna be Belle fucking up Mick when she wakes up," Cato offered.

"She needs rest," I said with false confidence.

She was going to hate that I handled herwithher family's help. Hercrazyfamily's help.

CHAPTER 28

bet your bottom dollar

BELLE

Iwoke up slowly. I was so tired, but I knew I had to get to the lab.

Mick had insisted we go to my parents for dinner. I drank something, ate something, and then crashed on my mother's couch as I had done a week ago. I planned to get a few hours and then get to work.

Mick was being a pain in my ass talking about balance—work-life balance. I was on the verge of a clinical breakthrough; I didn't have time…. I blinked, the hum of an engine filling my ears as I struggled to shake off the strange, thick fog clouding my mind. My head felt heavy, and my eyes were barely adjusting to the low…cabin lights before it hit me. What the fuck? I was on a plane?

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