Page 4 of Austen

She hadn’t heard a word from him since she’d returned to Key West.Probably because she’d just been the hired help.Hello.

Still, if she’d known how uber-wealthy he was, she might have given him the same stiff-arm she’d given the tiger shark.

Austen picked up a towel and started to dry her hair.“I studied shark behavior for two years in Hawaii.I was on a shark preservation and tagging team.”Hawkeye had picked up speed, and she turned her back to the setting sun.Her stomach growled.

“Dinner is on us,” Hunter said.“We have reservations at Latitudes.I’m sure they’ll let us add another person.”

She held up her hand.“No, I’m good.I’m heading out for a week of vacation tomorrow, and I need an early night.”In the distance, the city of Key West edged the horizon, the ocean a vivid aquamarine.

“Oh, Declan will be sad to miss you.”

Declan?

“He’s picking us up on his yacht in a couple days.”

The bait just hung there, and she couldn’t resist.“Really?Why aren’t you flying in?My brother Doyle is on his way back to the orphanage on a seaplane.”

“The airfield is still torn up on the island, and Declan’s chopper is being used to shuttle supplies back and forth from St.Kitts.And”—Hunter glanced at his wife—“one of us isn’t a fan of small planes.”

“I’ve tried the patch.I just can’t make it work,” Elise said.“We had an ugly incident over Denali once.”She made a face.“Thankfully, Dec offered to pick us up.”

Huh.Austen shouldn’t immediately assume it was because they were massive donors.Declan wasn’t like that.

But who was she kidding?He was probably just like every other billionaire.Still, she drew up a knee, wrapped her arms around it.“How is he?”

Elise had grabbed a towel, worked it through her dark hair, turning it curly.Petite and sweet, she and Hunter had been among Declan’s guests during the charity-event-turned-earthquake trauma.“Good.He set up the court date for us to adopt Jamal and Kemar from the island, which, after the landslide, was no small feat.I think he wants to get them out of there and into their new lives as soon as possible.We already had our home study done, so...”She reached for Hunter’s hand.“We’re very excited to bring the boys home.”

Austen had met the two boys during her stay.Jamal and his older brother, Kemar.“They’re very blessed.”

“Oh no.We’re the ones who are blessed.”Hunter wrapped his arm around Elise.“We’ve been waiting so long for a family...It hardly feels real.”

Elise nodded, tucked her hand into his.

“It’s like being set free from a long prison sentence,” Hunter said.“I’d sort of given up.”

“Not me,” Elise said.“I knew God had a family for us.We just needed to wait for it.”She turned to Austen.“You know the saying—‘A longing fulfilled is a tree of life.’”

Huh.Austen nodded as the boat hit a wave, thanks to a catamaran flying past them, and water sprayed them.

Elise laughed.

So apparently they were over their scare from the depths of the sea.

“Where are you going on your vacation?”Hunter asked as they slowed, moving toward the green buoys.

“Oh.Um...I’ll be doing some diving off Sosúa, in the Dominican Republic.”

“Dominican Republic?”Hunter said.“We dove theZingarawreck there a few years ago.”

“That’s not the wreck she’s diving,” said Hawkeye as he cut the motor.They were puttering into the Key West Bight harbor.“She’s looking for theSan Miguel, a Spanish ship that went down in 1551.”

She made a face.“No, I’m not looking for the ship.”

“Okay, Spanish gold, then.”Hawkeye’s mouth tightened around the edges.

“What’s that face for?”

“It’s the middle of pirate country,” Hawkeye said as they turned into their canal.“Right off Haiti.”

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