Page 5 of A Touch Enchanted

It was a warning. And a personal one at that.

We approached Finn and Thora. Just looking at the fish lining the shore had me in a chokehold of anger and loss. If the curse wanted a fight, it would damn well get one.

“I called my dad,” Finn said. “He’ll know what to do to get this cleaned up before the tourists come out tomorrow. Though maybe we should just let them stumble on this.” He swept an arm out, his lip curling in rage and disgust. All of us who lived here had a deep love of the sea. This hit especially hard. “Might make things easier in the long run.”

Violet snapped her attention away from the fish, the distinct scent of rot already beginning to waft in the air. “Make things easier, how? Are you trying to drive tourists away?”

Guilt stole over Finn’s expression as Thora gave him a look that clearly said he’d blown it. Obviously, they’d been planning something over the last few days. And considering that the two of them were staying with my brother dearest, I could only assume it was something they’d cooked up with Wes and Audrey. Without bothering to fill us in.

I crossed my arms over my chest. “What the fuck is going on?”

Thora bit her lip as she glanced between Finn and us. “We’ve been discussing the possibility of shutting down the island for the summer.”

Violet’s face paled, and the urge to reach out and pull her against me made my arms itch. But she wouldn’t thank me for it. That wasn’t my place anymore.

“What do you mean, shut down the island?” My raised voice scared off a nearby night heron picking at a half-eaten soft pretzel someone had discarded in the sand. “You can’t be serious.”

There was no way we could shut down the island for the summer. Of course, Finn and Thora would be fine. So would Wes and Audrey, and me for that matter, but ninety percent of our residents depended on tourist income to survive the winter. Violet’s parents, in particular, wouldn’t last a week. She’d never go for something like that.

Finn and Thora shared a look, silently communicating a dozen things I couldn’t begin to interpret. I trusted them and my brother implicitly, but I didn’t like that they’d been leaving us out of the loop. Even if I’d spent the last few weeks being a frustrating pain in the ass.

“We had reservations at first, too,” Thora said carefully. “But maybe you should come back to the house with us, so we can discuss this in more detail.”

Violet frowned. I placed a hand on the small of her back, wanting to give her even the smallest bit of comfort, but she shook me off and trudged ahead. Not a surprise. My Cricket had a steel spine she’d learned how to harden in times of distress. Thora’s confession had rocked her, but she wouldn’t let it show, wouldn’t lose her cool until she heard the full story. Because that was another thing about Violet: she always gave people the benefit of the doubt.

Even when they didn’t deserve it.

I let out a long-winded sigh and followed behind her. It was a short walk to Wes and Audrey’s house from the pier. Shale and pebbled rocks crunched under my feet as we approached my brother’s house, tucked along the private crescent point of the beach.

The moon hung, full and luminous, over the jutting black rocks of the cliffs. The scent of salt and seaweed whipped on the currents as waves crashed against the shore. We walked up to the sliding glass door, where light spilled onto the back deck from the living room.

Finn knocked on the glass and shot a grin over his shoulder. “Always gotta knock before entering. You never know what you’ll walk in on around here.”

I raised my eyes skyward. I could only imagine that living with Finn was good practice for when Wes and Audrey started having kids.

Audrey pulled the blinds the rest of the way and opened the slider, giving Violet a wide and warm smile that cooled significantly when she laid eyes on me. Not that I could blame her. Violet had been her best friend since we were kids, and she was pissed as hell at me for avoiding her these last few weeks. God help anyone who hurt the people Audrey loved. Her loyalty and vengeance knew no bounds.

When she caught sight of Violet’s grim expression, she pushed past me and gripped Violet’s hands. “What happened?”

As Violet told her about the fish on the beach, Audrey’s face darkened. She shot me another look, one that promised a swift ass-kicking unless I got my shit together. Been there, done that. I couldn’t tell her why I’d really been avoiding Violet, though. She’d tell Violet, and then Violet would feel obligated to let me down gently. Just like she had with the dozens of other guys on this island who were ass over feet in love with her.

It would fucking kill me.

“The fish aren’t my biggest concern right now.” Violet glanced at Thora with an uneasy expression. “Are you really considering shutting down the island for the summer?”

“It’s complicated.” Audrey swallowed and wrapped an arm around Violet’s shoulders. “We should probably have a drink before we talk about this.”

Violet hesitated for a beat, but eventually followed her inside. I stayed close, determined to be there for Violet, whether she wanted me to or not. After what happened between us in her apartment, I was done running. It couldn’t have just been the magic responsible for the heat between us. If only I could convince her of that.

Getting her to give me another chance wouldn’t be easy. I’d hurt her. Something I’d thought at the time was the right thing to do, even though I’d second-guessed it every day since. She was quick to forgive, but not so much to forget.

She perched on the edge of the loveseat, and when I sat beside her, she glared at me and scooted farther into the opposite corner. I just leaned back with my hands laced behind my head, a smile that I knew would drive her nuts playing on my lips. As she let out a frustrated huff, I chuckled. Her bright blue eyes burned with anger. That was fine. I could handle her anger, welcomed it even. Anger beat the hell out of indifference.

Wes nodded at me, his eyes narrowing in warning as he looked between Violet and me. As much as I appreciated how protective everyone was of her, she didn’t need it. Violet might’ve been gentle and sweet on the outside, but she was more than capable of handling herself. Only a fool would doubt that quiet strength she wore like a second skin.

“Where’s Sandy?” he asked.

“Having a sleepover at Mom and Dad’s.” My chocolate lab loved spending the night at my parents’ house. They traveled too much to have a dog of their own, so they made up for it by spoiling mine rotten. “I’m picking her up tomorrow on my way to the park.”

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