Page 7 of Visions of You

I hadn’t had a chance to talk to Maia’s new husband yet, but it was high on my list. I’d heard of Wyatt Taylor—he’d been a friend of my brother Evan’s. But he was family now, not to mention the father of my little sister’s baby. I needed to get the measure of the man. Soon.

Dad raised both brows as he stared at Hailey. “I have some news that might interest you. Felicia is cooking at the Big House this week, and I know for a fact she made her pineapple coffee cake this morning after you left with your dad. You want to run up and have some?”

Hailey was already off her stool before he finished, dumping Hemingway unceremoniously on the floor. “I’m outta here. See you guys later!”

I laughed as I watched her run out the front door. Upon returning that morning, I’d run up to the Big House right away to make sure she was okay. Then breathed a huge sigh that she had no idea I hadn’t been around last night. She sat in the kitchen eating French toast. I collected her and took her down to the Barn to inform her of our move but wasn’t about to admit I’d been in jail.

Now, Dad leaned back against the counter and bounced his eyes all over me, his forehead creasing. “You look a little rough around the edges. I know you like the stubble-beard look, but that doesn’t explain the rumpled clothes or bloodshot eyes. You all right?”

I rubbed my palms over my itchy eyes, then moved to the fridge. I couldn’t keep this from him, though his question confirmed Maia had held up her end of the bargain. A six-pack of Conch Republic IPA sat inside the stocked fridge, and I removed two. I slid one can over to him. “Not exactly. You might want a beer for this, Dad.”

Several minutes later, his forehead was even more lined as he stared at me. He snapped his open mouth shut. “Well, thank God Ben is dropping the charges.”

“Yeah. It wasn’t my finest moment. I just kind of snapped.”

Dad stared at me hard. “Are you that unhappy about moving back here?”

I sighed. This was hard to explain. “No, and it’s very important to me to get Hailey away from big city Miami. Even if it does mean uprooting her and putting her in a new school. But this isn’t exactly a happy homecoming either. Evan shot glares at me yesterday, Maia’slife is completely upside down, and I need to brainstorm about how to turn the resort around.AndI’ve been kicked out of the Barn.”

Hemingway meowed at my feet, and Dad and I both smiled.

I pointed to the cat. “He got kicked out too. I brought him with me.”

The smile lingered on Dad’s face. “I’m sure he’d rather be with the two of you.”

“Hopefully. He’s always considered the Barn his turf.”

“It means the world to me that you moved back here,” Dad said. “I haven’t been doing a great job with the finances, and it’s been hard to admit that.”

“I’m glad you called me, Dad. I just need a good night’s sleep,” I said with a tired smile. “There’s no way I’d sit by and let this place—or you—suffer without helping. We’ll get things straightened out.”

Dad came over and clapped my shoulder. “Give it some time, Son. You don’t have to eat the elephant in one day.”

The next morning,I dropped Hailey off at school personally. The bus would make a stop at Calypso Key, but I wanted to drive her on the first day. I needed to know she got there safe and sound. After returning, I strolled down the hill, at last freshly showered and wearing clean jeans and a work shirt. It was after 8:00 a.m. and my quarry should be at work by now.

After passing by the canal where our boats were tied up, I angled away toward a brick lane stretching between two one-story buildings. The dive shop lay on my right, and I passed Maia’s butterfly bush, an explosion of lavender and dark-purple blooms on one corner. Across from the dive shop, the gear storage and compressor rooms butted up against the canal.

The door to the gear room was wide open and I stepped through the doorway. A man several inches shorter faced away at the end ofthe room, slinging a scuba buoyancy compensation device over one shoulder.

“Good morning,” I said, leaning against the jamb.

He froze, then slowly turned around. When I saw Wyatt’s face, I recognized him from his days hanging around Evan, though now he was in his early thirties. His brown hair was short and neat, and he was clean-shaven. He wore the typical dive uniform of a resort staff T-shirt and board shorts.

He looked me straight in the eye. “Morning, Gabe. Welcome home. I trust you had a better night’s sleep?”

I narrowed my eyes and took a big step forward.

Wyatt straightened but held his ground.

We stared at each other, neither giving way, though a pulse throbbed in his temple. I thought about closing the distance further, but after the disaster with Ben Coleridge, the last thing I needed was another pissing match. I was here to learn more about my new brother-in-law, nothing more. I nodded. “Much better, even though Maia changed my living arrangements.”

A tiny smile raised the corners of his mouth. “She loves the idea of having you and Hailey next door, believe it or not.”

I relaxed my stance but kept my face even. “That’s good because we’re not going anywhere. Congratulations on your marriage and impending fatherhood.”

The air became charged between us once again.

And again, Wyatt met my hard stare without backing down. “Thank you. Maia and I didn’t plan this, but we’re both looking forward to the baby’s arrival. I intend to be the best father possible… and the best husband.”

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