Page 3 of Visions of You

Tapping her index finger on the wheel, her face became calculating, and she shot me a quick glance. “Okay. I’ll keep my mouth shut. For a price.”

I groaned. “What?”

“The Barn. You move out as soon as we get back.”

I scowled at her. “Seriously? You’re uprooting me and yournieceon our second day?”

Maia lifted a neat brow, humor glinting in her eyes now. “Maybe you should have thought about that before you entered the O.K. Corral last night.”

I didn’t reply and just stared at her. She gave me a hard look before turning back to the road, remaining silent too. Maia and I might be the oldest and youngest of our siblings, but we were cut from the same cloth. She wasn’t going to give in. And she had bailed me out of jail.

“Fine,” I said begrudgingly. “Your friend can have the Barn apartment. But I’m keeping the shop. I plan to make furniture for the resort.”

Now that Maia had gotten her way, she inclined her head regally. “Agreed. This will be better anyway. You and Hailey will be closer to Wyatt and me, not to mention Dad and Evan. And with April in the Barn apartment, she’ll be near the dive shop. I’ll even help you move today, helpful sister that I am.”

I grunted and crossed my arms.

She glanced at the dashboard clock and frowned as we drove over the short bridge that connected Big Pine Key to Dove Key. We continued down Calypso Causeway, the main street of the island. “April texted yesterday and said she’d be here early, so I’ll need to duck out and get her settled in a guest cottage. Meanwhile, we need you and Hailey out ASAP so I can get her apartment cleaned today.”

The sun’s glare was killing my eyes, but my shades were in my car. Hopefully. “It’s not her apartment. It’s mine. I’m just letting her use it.”

Maia broke into musical laughter. “Gabe—it’s hers. And don’t be a grumpy jerk to her about it, okay? It’s not her fault you’re an irresponsible idiot.”

I glowered at my sister but couldn’t deny the accusation. At least when a Coleridge was involved. But she just gave me an opening to shoot back. I glanced at her stomach. “Well, I’m not the only irresponsible one, am I? The only reason she’s here as our new divemaster is because you and your boyfriend don’t know how birth control works.”

Maia’s happy expression fell, which only made me feel even more like an asshole. But I was in too shitty a mood to be conciliatory. Shepulled into the parking lot of a dingy local hangout known as Salty’s. I breathed a relieved sigh at the sight of my Mercedes convertible sitting unharmed in one corner of the gravel lot.

“Wyatt isn’t my boyfriend—he’s my husband. Something else you’re going to have to get used to.”

“That would be easier if I’d been invited to the wedding.”

“It was very spur of the moment! And I did invite you.” She stopped next to my car.

Now it was my turn to snort. “Spur of the moment because it was a shotgun wedding. It wasn’t exactly easy to rearrange my life so I could move down here with Hailey, you know.”

Maia’s expression softened as she reached out to take my hand. “I know it wasn’t. Thanks, big brother. I’m glad you’re here. We all are.”

I turned my hand and interlaced my fingers with hers. I wasn’t at all sureIwas glad to be back home. But when Dad had called and said he needed my help, refusing wasn’t an option. I had to find a way. “Thanks, little sister. And thanks for being here for me today.”

As I crossed to my car, I waved goodbye to Maia and dug my keys out of the large manila envelope. Coffee and a shower would be my first order of business before I vacated the apartment I’d only moved into yesterday. Because of family.

Nothing was more important to me than family. Hailey might be at the top of that list, but Dad and Calypso Key weren’t far behind. And Maia needed me too, even if she wouldn’t admit it.

For better or for worse, I was back home again.

Chapter Two

April

I glancedin the rearview mirror, trying to memorize the wonder now falling behind me. Seven Mile Bridge spanned the distance between Marathon and Big Pine Key, soaring over the expanse of aquamarine water beneath. Nothing but seven solid miles of ocean and the occasional small island lay on either side of fabled Highway One.

Amazing.

Though I was sad to leave the famous bridge behind, the end of the fabled structure couldn’t squelch my excitement. I spared one last glance at the scene around me—a rare experience worth the hype.

My driver’s window was down, and my elbow rested on the ledge as I enjoyed the warm breeze drifting in. I was still getting used to my two-year-old Honda CR-V. I’d sold my old car before leaving St. Croix—it was easier to just buy a new one than mess with the hassle of shipping it.

A flutter rippled through me as I exited the highway and turned south.

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