Page 5 of Lakesides and Longing

He and his nine frat buddies all got Dobermans when they hit their first million and named them in order. Hayden snagged Una, and Lukas scored Dio. But it should’ve been Blake.

“The drug I created got me seventy-five percent of the way there, and Lukas jumped in there days before I could make up the difference.”

Paige narrowed her eyes. “Drug?”

“Yeah, I’m a pharmaceutical research scientist.”

“You know, natural remedies are way better than those chemicals you’re shoving down people’s throats. Also, naturopaths that use muscle testing to diagnose are far better than all those invasive tests.”

Blake opened his mouth to argue, but Lukas jumped in first. Which was probably a good thing. Judging by the smell of her house she probably thought essential oils and herbal medicines cured everything. As much as Blake knew the power of a good plant, he couldn’t stand people who dismissed modern medicine like it was evil. Maybe his mom would still be alive today if she’d trusted her doctors instead of the herbalist next door. The industry wasn’t perfect, but at least people didn’t lose children like they used to and life expectancy was significantly better than it was a hundred years ago. Plus, with all of the allergies he had, he’d never be able to do his job without allergy medicine.

“Stop trying to change the subject. It’s time to come home.”

Paige clenched her tiny fists. “I’m sorry you drove all the way out here for nothing. That can’t have been a comfortable ride.” It wasn’t a bad ride, but it had been long and Tess looked like she was about ready to pop.

Tess waved a hand. “It’s nothing. What if that kid had a gun?”

Paige climbed onto the stool next to Tess. She clenched and unclenched her fists. “It was nothing. Probably just a teenager who was dared to break into the weird house. I’ll be fine, and I’ll remember to set my alarm from now on.”

No one said anything for a long moment. Blake guessed Lukas was trying to come up with a better argument.

“Where’s your ice cream?” Tess asked. “You always have ice cream.”

Paige avoided her eyes. “I haven’t been to the store in a while.”

Blake snorted. “What like months? There is no fresh food in here at all, and your freezer is empty.”

Paige dropped her head. “Amazon Fresh doesn’t deliver out here, but Amazon Pantry does.”

“I thought you caught a ride to the store with your neighbor,” Lukas said. Blake wondered why she didn’t just drive herself. Though he supposed if he ran a stop sign and killed someone he might not want to drive either.

“She moved, and I don’t like the new one.” Paige dropped her eyes and wouldn’t look at any of them. Blake almost felt sorry for her because he knew how stubborn Lukas could be. Paige wasn’t getting away with anything.

“That’s it. You’re coming home with me. Go pack a bag,” Lukas pointed to the stairs.

The fury in her eyes flared. “I’m not going anywhere. You can’t make me.” She sounded like a petulant teenager. “Besides, Phil and Ida will be here next week. I’m fine.”

Lukas pinched the bridge of his nose. “Phil and Ida travel too much. You need a better solution. You can’t stay here by yourself. Can you get a roommate or something? Preferably someone who can bench press three hundred pounds.”

“I can do that,” Blake joked through a mouthful of Oreo.

Everyone turned to look at him.

“What? I can.”

Tess squeezed his bicep. “I knew those things had to be good for something.”

“No one’s moving all the way out here to be my roommate, and I’m not moving back. There’s too many people there.”

Lukas scoffed. “Mackinac hardly has that many people.”

“In the winter maybe, but it’s the first of June. In two weeks it will be packed. You know I don’t people very well.” She clenched her tiny fists and looked down.

Lukas rolled his eyes and then pointed at Blake. “You know, in college Blake was a bouncer. He drives pretty good too.”

“Wait a minute,” Blake said. “What are you implying?” He wasn’t sure how he suddenly got involved or why Lukas even thought she needed a bodyguard. It was one break-in and as long as she set her alarm, she’d be fine.

“You’ve got nothing going on this summer. You were just going to stay in the carriage house anyway. Why don’t you stay here? Take care of Paige and make sure she stays safe and eats real food. Then after the tourist season is over, you can go home, and Paige can come stay on the island.”

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