Page 36 of Escape to the Sun

“Sherri’s incredibly lucky.”

“She is. And so are you. Because you’re here now…with me.” He wiggled his eyebrows and she laughed. “Seriously, though. She just wanted a break for a bit from the running of things and besides, I think she just wanted to give you space to do things your way. It’s no big deal.”

He didn’t make it sound like a big deal. Maybe it wasn’t and she was just worrying about nothing. It certainly felt like something, though.

“I swear,” Ash added when she didn’t respond. “It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it. Sherri’s just like that. What’s been going on around here? I heard lots of laughter.”

For a minute, Heather contemplated pressing the issue, but there didn’t seem to be much point. Besides, Ash said she was just on a vacation. Although, why she didn’t tell Heather that herself was kind of a mystery. Still, it didn’t seem like something she needed to worry about. At least not until there was something to worry about.

“It’s been a busy morning around here.” She pointed at the dock, where all the guests were lounging while they took their turns on the paddleboards, having given up on trying to go two at a time. If all her days were like this, Heather would have no problem getting used to life at Casa del Sol. Who was she kidding—she’d already gotten used to it.

“We should go join them,” Ash said. “It does look like a lot of fun.” He turned to head out to the dock but she hesitated. “You coming?”

She nodded. She wanted to let it go. But the thing with Sherri still niggled at her brain. Something just didn’t feel right.

“Are you okay?”

She nodded again, but Ash crossed the space and took her hands in his. “Ash?” He nodded. “You’d tell me if something was really wrong, right? I just need to know that you’ll be honest with me if it’s needed. Then I won’t need to worry.”

A flash of something crossed his face so quickly she couldn’t be sure she’d even seen a change, and then just like that, his smile was back. He squeezed her hands. “Of course.”

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