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* * *
“I CAN’T REMEMBER the last time I saw you this relaxed, Holly.” Abby held her wineglass reverently as she sank into the soft cushions of her overstuffed sofa Friday night. Thanks to Twyla and Ursula offering to close, she and Paige had arrived at Abby’s cozy cottage behind the inn earlier than expected, diving into that wine—and conversation about boys—with as much gusto as obsessive, giggling sommeliers. “Is this the effect Sheriff Luke has on you?”
“It’s knowing I have a few days off Simon patrol.” She shouldn’t be feeling this free, but she was going to embrace it while she had the chance. They’d be back to their routine—and the grindstone—soon enough. “Have I thanked you for coming to Butterfly Harbor?” she said to Paige. “And by the way, I love your kid to pieces.”
“So do I,” Paige agreed. “You’re welcome.”
“I’m going to get a cavity with all this niceness,” Abby grumbled as she dumped out a bag of ridged chips into a bowl. “I want to hear about Holly and the sheriff. Spill, would you? Tell me all about those smooches of yours with our bad boy of Butterfly Harbor.”
Holly ran her finger around the rim of her glass. “He’s not so bad.”
Abby and Paige hooted. “I knew it. She’s hooked!” Paige announced. “You owe me twenty bucks.”
“Best bet I’ve ever lost. You seem happy,” Abby added as Holly nodded.
“Yeah.” And Holly was. “For the first time in a long time, I don’t have this weight pressing on me. I don’t know if I’ve ever felt this way about someone. As if he’s what’s been missing. I don’t know.” She shook her head, still trying to puzzle everything together. Was she in love with Luke Saxon? “I’m confused.” Except...she wasn’t.
“A good kiss will do that.” Paige toasted her with her topped-off wine. “At least that’s what my memory says.”
“You’ve got your own deputy to deal with,” Holly joked.
Paige’s face fell. “What? Deputy Bradley?”
“Deputy Bradley.” Abby snorted. “So formal. You need your eyes examined if you haven’t seen the way Fletch looks at you. He’s smitten.”
“And I’ve been transported into a chick flick.” Paige reached for a handful of chocolate. “He’s cute. And nice. But I don’t go for guys in uniform.”
“I’m sorry.” Now it was Holly who blinked in disbelief. “Is that even a thing?”
“It is for me,” Paige insisted. “Me and cops, not a good mix.”
“Oh, there’s such a story there. Hang on. I’m going to get another bottle.” Abby scrambled to her feet and disappeared into the kitchen.
Holly’s stomach twisted at the pained look on her friend’s face. “She gets excited about everyone else’s love life, even potential ones. I’ll detour her.”
“Thanks.” But a good chunk of Paige’s apparent happiness had disappeared. Abby was right. There was a story to be told, but Paige wasn’t ready to tell it.
“Not a problem. But when you’re ready, we’re here. Abby!” Holly yelled. “Tell me you made your blue-cheese guacamole?”
“What do you think I’m getting?”
“Here’s to a great weekend.” Holly hoisted her glass and knocked it against Paige’s. “And to new friends.” And...new loves.
* * *
JAKE AND LUKE put an end to the evening’s camping festivities at just before ten, about when Luke had to catch Charlie before she dropped sleepily into the roaring campfire, her flaming marshmallow hitting the ground. Calling Milkweed Lake a lake was stretching the definition, especially after the years he’d spent in Chicago. Illinois had lakes. Butterfly Harbor had...puddles by comparison. But the campground was an easy one—a starter for want of a better term. If trips like this became a thing, they’d venture farther out—and increase the difficulty.
Watching the kids haul themselves toward their tents, Luke felt Jake drop a hand on to his shoulder. “You’re doing great with them, Luke. Smart thinking pairing Simon up with Mikey Nelson.”
“I figured they had some stuff to work out.” Luke checked off another goal completed for the weekend. He’d wanted to find out what had been behind Simon’s Wi-Fi attack on the Nelsons’ computer system a few months ago. Discovering that Mikey had been bullying a sight-challenged student in his and Luke’s class explained everything. Once again, Simon had defended the little girl and fought for what he believed to be right. Albeit it not in the right way, but they were getting there. And Mikey had promised to apologize to their classmate once they were back in town.
“Thanks to you, my grandson is expanding his circle of friends.”
“Thanks to your grandson, I’m going to be lucky to get any sleep.” Holly’s warnings had echoed in his ears all day. Keeping an eye on Simon was definitely a full-time job, but he’d learned the same lesson Holly had. With Charlie nearby, Simon didn’t get away with nearly as much as he used to. She didn’t have any issue calling him on any misdeeds or perceived wrongs. Nor did she have any problems making friends with the rest of the campers. Luke had even caught the solitary Kyle grinning on a few occasions at some of Charlie’s antics.
Simon, on the other hand, refused to be convinced Kyle was anything other than trouble. Luke sighed. He couldn’t have everything. Not yet anyway.
“Once that boy’s asleep, you’re in the clear,” Jake said. “Stop worrying so much. Besides, your tent is right across from his. If you don’t hear him, Cash will.”
True. Of course, Cash was in doggy seventh heaven with all the attention he was getting from the campers. The few times he’d approached Kyle, however, the teen had moved away, ducking his head. It wasn’t the first time Luke wondered if Kyle had been responsible for the tied vines Cash had withstood, but if that was the case, why wasn’t Cash more leery of Kyle?
Luke was too tired to try to figure it all out tonight. He’d overdosed on hot dogs, lemonade, s’mores and ghost stories, and was more than ready to call it a night.
He and Jake made the rounds, checking on each pair of campers as they settled into their tents. Tomorrow was filled with the promise of swimming, games and a few character-building exercises Luke had implemented in Chicago. Building trust, building a sense of community around these kids, was the first step to keeping them moving forward.
As he crawled into his tent, confident the sleeping Simon and Charlie were down for the count, Luke patted Cash’s head and found himself wondering if maybe Holly was right. Maybe there was a place for him in Butterfly Harbor for longer than he’d planned.
Maybe, he really had come home after all.
* * *
“WHERE ARE YOU GOING?” Charlie’s exaggerated whisper had Simon glaring over his shoulder from where he’d been peering out of the front of their tent.
“Shh!” Simon pointed outside, where he could hear rustling, before folding his surveillance notebook and stuffing it into the back of his pants. “I think Kyle’s up to something.” Kyle might have been all nice and polite to Sheriff Luke last night, but Simon overheard him telling Henry he’d only come on this camping trip to check on something in the surrounding woods. Simon didn’t know what that something was, but he was going to find out.
“Wh-what?” Charlie rubbed her hands against sleepy eyes and slogged forward on her sleeping bag, her hair mussed from sleep. She yawned. “It’s too early to go anywhere.”
Simon looked down at his Proton Patrol watch and hit the illuminator button. 6:00 a.m. “That’s why I’m watching,” he whispered and poked his head outside the flap. The rest of the camp was silent; the campfire from last night was still sending up exhausted smoke tendrils.
Simon spotted Kyle heading away from camp, up the path Sheriff Luke and Grandpa had told them to avoid. “I was right. I’m going to follow him.”
“Simon, no!” Charlie grabbed him by his jeans and pulled him onto his butt. “You’re not supposed to get in any more trouble. Not if you want to go to that school. You promised your mom and Sheriff Luke. You promised me.”
“I’m just following him.” Simon rolled his eyes and stood up. It was creepy the way she could tell when he was lying. “I promise I won’t do anything else. If I see him doing something wrong, I’ll come back and tell Sheriff Luke.” If he didn’t find a way to stop him. “Okay?”
“I’m going with you.” She tugged on her shoes.
“No.” If he got caught it was one thing, but Kyle could be mean. Even to girls.
Charlie glared at him. “If you’re not doing anything bad, why can’t I go?”
They stared at each other. “Fine.” Simon sighed. “But be quiet.”
