Page 70 of All I Desire

I follow Angus out of the room and into the den.

“Limoncello or Sambuca? Both direct from Italy,” he inquires, pausing at a rattan bar cart stocked with bottles.

“Sambuca would be great, thanks.” I walk around the room, pausing at a wall of photos.

There’s Nat at her college graduation, beaming. I grin. A quick scan of the other photos shows the Hastings boys in various pursuits: fishing, football, the Marines, taking some sort of oath in what looks like a courtroom. That last one’s probably Tate, the brother who’s a lawyer.

I move to another photo. It’s black and white and in a thin black frame. It’s of a young man with dark hair screaming into a microphone. He looks like a punk rocker, shirtless and with a Black Flag tattoo on his left bicep. Hunh. I wonder what that’s doing here on the wall of family pictures.

Mr. Hastings comes over and hands me a glass. He points to the photo. “1980, at the Vortex in London.”

I glance at Mr. Hastings, then back at the photo. Something about the brow and jaw matches. Then my gaze shifts to the faded tattoo on his arm. “That’s you. Holy crap.”

“Yup. I was the front man for a punk band back in the late 70s and early 80s.”

“Wow. And then…” My voice trails into a laugh, because for the first time tonight, Mr. Hastings is chuckling.

“Then I met an ethereal hippie chick, moved to a Florida island, bought a resort, and the rest is history.”

I knock back a gulp of my drink, the liquid anisette burning my throat in the most pleasurable way. “I’ll bet you have some tales to tell.”

“Oh yeah. Definitely. How about you? This your last stop, or are you just here to open a business and leave? Lotta people do, you know. I’ve seen people come and go over the years.” He motions to a couple of comfy-looking, green chairs nearby.

I sink into one. “My daughter just started school here, so I’m on the island for the long haul. She’s ten and had a rough time over in Fort Lauderdale with some bullies, so her mother and I thought it best that she have a fresh start.”

Mr. Hastings nods slowly. “Natalia mentioned something about that.”

“Yeah, she was great at organizing that brunch for Chloe. The kid really enjoyed it.”

There’s a pause, and I sense that I’m about to find out why he brought me in here.

“My daughter seems enamored with you.”

There it is. Not unexpected. Natalia will always be his little girl, a feeling I totally get.

“And I’m enamored with her, Mr. Hastings.”

“Call me Angus.”

I smile.

“Matthew, did she ever tell you she was in a bad relationship in high school?”

“She did mention something about that, yes.” I shift in my seat. This is a bit uncomfortable, discussing Natalia’s past relationship with her stern-looking dad as he sits across from me.

“Her brothers and I are quite protective of her after that, if you know what I mean.”

I clear my throat. “As the father of a girl, I get that. As the father of a girl who was bullied, I am all too familiar with how that feels. Unfortunately.”

“We don’t tolerate bullies in this house.” His voice is low and a touch menacing.

I nod.

“That little prick she was tangled with, he was the worst kind of kid. Entitled, rich, arrogant. The worst part is that he extinguished the light in her for a few years.”

I swallow. “I care about your daughter.”

“I’m sure you do. But it’s my job to protect her when I can, so this is my opening salvo to you.” Although he’s smiling now and sounding friendlier, his blue eyes are like steel.

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