Page 7 of Island Homecoming

“Not much, no,” Nash agreed. “But you could come into the office and source the supplies you’ll want to use back here.”

A timer on his dad’s phone went off and Nico loaded the steaks onto the platter to rest as Roxy appeared, a platter of kabobs in one hand, a bowl of pasta salad in the other. Nina was behind her with the flowers.

The conversation and focus changed. “I decided we’ll eat out here,” Roxy declared. “These gorgeous days should be enjoyed.”

Within minutes, Nina had created a lovely centerpiece with the flowers, a pitcher of sweet tea, and a carafe of sangria. As the food was ready and they were all settled around the picnic table, Nash said, “This is a feast, Mom. Y’all went a little overboard.”

“No such thing for my two best kids,” she protested with a wink for her husband.

Excited, Nina shared the news about her new contract with the B&B while they loaded their plates and poured drinks. “To Nina!” His father raised a glass and they all gave her a well-deserved toast.

“It’s dreadful what those girls have gone through in the last year.” Roxy shook her head.

They all agreed with her. Nash didn’t like to dwell on it, but it was impossible in a town of this size not to know that the sisters had lost their mom to a long battle with cancer.

“Is their dad staying on?” he asked his sister.

Nina shrugged. “Doesn’t seem that way. I’ve only spoken with Celeste. She seems to be in charge and has a clear vision about the mood and hospitality they’ll offer. She wants fresh flowers on arrival days in the rooms and fresh arrangements in the common areas.”

“That’s fantastic,” Nico said. “Do they have specific requests or do you get final say on the design?”

“I have final say.” Nina positively beamed. “There’s a budget of course, but this way I have the flexibility I need to protect the profit margin.” Her business savvy was off the charts. One more thing they’d both learned from their parents. “With a couple more contracts like this I won’t have to worry over month-to-month revenue anymore.”

“Is it really a concern now?” Roxy queried, a flare of concern in her warm gaze.

Nina cut into her steak. “No. Not with the Inn bringing so much more business to the island.”

“Growth is a good thing,” Roxy murmured.

To Nash, it sounded like she was trying to convince herself. He caught his dad’s eye. “Everything okay?”

“Your mom’s trying to stay positive after the whole mess with the drug seizure. I keep telling her there are bad apples in every bushel.”

Roxy snorted. “The person behind it has to be someone who passed through here and thought we were just too dumb and too small-town to notice.”

“I don’t think it’s that way at all, sweetheart,” Nico countered. “Those drugs washed up. Couldn’t have been planned that way. Brookwell wasn’t the real destination.”

Nash rolled his eyes, so only his sister would see it. Their mom liked to stew and worry over keeping Brookwell Island beautiful and peaceful.

But Nina was frowning. “Mom might have a point,” she said.

“Your mother always has a point,” Nico agreed with a patient smile. “And maybe she’s right. But Chief Caldwell has this situation under control.”

Clearly irritated, Roxy sipped her sangria. “He needs to get those drugs out of this town.”

“And he will,” Nico soothed. “We’ve never had reason to doubt him.”

“What exactly happened?” Nash asked. He’d heard the chatter and assumed it had all been exaggerated by the rumor mill.

“You really need to watch the news,” his mother scolded. “There’s no excuse for not being informed.”

“It’s peak season mom. I’m busy.” He rose with the sun and went to sleep early to balance it out. Besides, the news was rarely uplifting. “Would you please inform me?”

“The sass will never grow out of you.” She turned the sangria glass absently. “A few packages washed up near Rusty’s old dock a few days ago. Cubes wrapped in plastic. He called the chief, of course, and hauled them in. The police confirmed the packages contained drugs and took them as evidence.”

“Curious about how they came ashore, Caldwell kept searching,” Nico picked up the story. “He went out with someone from the Coast Guard, is what I heard, and monitored the tide line for more clues. They found more packages floating on the surface. Basically, a watery line of bread crumbs led them to an abandoned boat packed with pot and cocaine, but no people.”

“Evidence of people,” Roxy said, her voice tight. “Evidence of a fight.”

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