Serenity Harbor

by RaeAnne Thayne

  Bowie didn’t need another reminder that his own time with Katrina was limited. Every time the thought popped into his head, it brought along a sense of dread and impending loss.

  “By the way,” Wynona went on, “don’t expect the usual quiet family get-together tonight. Charlene apparently decided it wasn’t enough excitement to throw a wedding party for the whole town last week. She’s invited everyone in the Helping Hands over to watch the fireworks at her place.”

  Katrina rolled her eyes. “Thanks for the warning.”

  Wynona looked around surreptitiously and lowered her voice, though Bowie was close enough he could still hear. “And speaking of warnings, here’s another one. I understand she’s invited several eligible and unattached gentlemen.”

  He didn’t miss the way Katrina’s color rose. “Why would she do that?”

  “You know why. This is her last chance. Mom’s Hail Mary pass. She’s desperately hoping you’ll fall for somebody and change your mind about the whole adoption thing.”

  Katrina’s blush intensified, and he wondered if she was avoiding looking at him out of embarrassment...or something else.

  “Are you kidding?” she exclaimed. “I can’t believe that woman. She really thinks I’m flighty enough that I’ll suddenly meet a guy in one night and abandon months of effort and thousands of dollars...not to mention a child who is counting on me? So nice to know my mother has such a high opinion of me.”

  Though she spoke in a caustic tone, he saw the shadow of old hurt in her eyes that made him want to pull her close and kiss it away.

  “Mom loves you and worries for you. You know she does. I’m settled, Marshall’s settled—or as good as—Elliot is too far away for her to smother. This is just her twisted way of trying to make sure you’re happy.”

  “It’s her way of meddling in my life, like she’s been doing all our life. She doesn’t trust me and doesn’t believe I’m capable of making my own decisions. I’m not StupidKat anymore. I haven’t been for a long, long time. Why can’t she see that?”

  Again, he wanted to pull her into his arms, but Wyn beat him to it. “She’s our mom. She wants to fix things. It’s what she does.”

  “I’m not broken anymore,” Katrina said. “But Charlene still sees me as her poor, pitiful daughter whose brain doesn’t work the way it should.”

  “Everyone else knows better,” Wyn said. “So what if she invites the entire Snake River rugby team? She can dangle all the carrots she wants, but that doesn’t mean you have to take a bite out of one. You can be polite and friendly and totally uninterested.”

  “Or I can stay home,” she muttered.

  “Your choice, honey.” A bell chimed on her watch, and Wyn looked down with a frown. “I have to run. My department has a booth at the fair, and I’m supposed to be there in ten minutes so I can take my turn handing out flyers and answering questions. I hope I see you tonight.”

  She hugged Katrina one more time, smiled at Bowie and Milo, then turned and disappeared through the crowd.

  “You know,” he said after she walked away, “we could probably see the fireworks just fine from Serenity Harbor. Just the three of us. I promise not to invite any rugby players.”

  He knew a few, but he wasn’t at all inclined to introduce them to his...to Katrina.

  She sighed, her color still rosy. In the late-morning sunshine, she looked soft and sweet and so lovely he had a tough time looking away.

  She scooped up the blanket Milo had been sitting on. “No. I can’t let her scare me away. I have people I care about whom I still want to see. Wyn and Uncle Mike. Marshall and Andie and her kids. I’ll go.” She paused. “You and Milo certainly aren’t obligated, though.”

  “Fireworks and rugby players. We wouldn’t want to miss that. Would we, Milo?”

  His brother shook his head vigorously. Katrina made a face.

  “Fine,” she said. “Just be prepared. You heard Wyn. My mom is getting desperate—and she probably thinks you have home-field advantage, since I’m, you know, living in your house.”

  If only that were true, he thought with regret. She didn’t seem to have any trouble rejecting him—as his aching head could still testify.

  “What’s next for our day?”

  Katrina shrugged. “The possibilities are endless. We could go watch the softball game, or we could go to the tractor pull. Given what a boat fanatic he is, my guess is that Milo would most enjoy the toy boat races.”

  “Boat?” Milo said.

  Bowie smiled at his brother. “Sounds like we have a winner. Let’s go.”

  * * *

  THIS WAS THE kind of evening that helped Haven Point live up to its name. The vast blue lake rippled softly in a light summer breeze, and her mother’s backyard looked charming, with hanging lanterns in all the trees and red, white and blue bunting on the railing of the deck.

  Katrina stood on the steps of the deck, savoring the rightness of the scene.

  Neighbors talked with neighbors, Uncle Mike and a group of his friends played horseshoes in a corner of the lawn and a group of children chased each other around, their laughter ringing above the lapping of water and the rustle of the leaves in the stately maples ringing her mother’s yard.

  Only one thing ruined the perfection, she saw. Milo stood to one side, wearing that look of curious concentration as the other children ran past, as if he were a pint-size anthropologist watching a newly discovered civilization.

  He didn’t seem to mind his “otherness.” She, however, minded very much.

  She was about to step forward and enlist his help carrying dishes out to the long, cloth-covered tables when young Will Montgomery—soon to become her nephew through marriage and about a year or so younger than Milo—stopped next to him.

  She couldn’t hear what he said to her temporary charge, but a moment later, both boys were heading to the sturdy redwood swingset and play structure Uncle Mike had just finished constructing.

  Gabi would love playing on that swingset with Will and Chloe.

  The ache in her chest deepened. Her daughter should be here. With her open friendliness and her sheer delight in every small moment of life, she would absolutely love a party like this. The children would adore her, too. Katrina didn’t doubt it for a moment.

  What if she couldn’t work through all the legalities and ended up having to relocate to Barranquilla with Gabi?

  She didn’t even want to think about that as she stood here beside the lake on a lovely summer evening. The fear lurked on the edge of her psyche anyway. Haven Point was her home, and she loved it here. Her family was here, a job she hoped to return to, even a couple of houses she had her eye on that would be perfect for a single woman with a child.

  She wanted that dream. But if she had to, she would try to build a new life in Colombia with Gabi. What other choice did she have?

  “That’s the expression of a woman with serious things on her mind.”

  At the voice, she looked over to find the gorgeous Jamie Caine joining her on the step, wearing his charmer of a smile.

  Everything was so easy with Jamie. With him, she could flirt and tease and slip right back into the role everybody expected of her.

  “Yes. Deadly serious. I was wondering when you would finally make all my dreams come true and break away from Eppie and Hazel so you could come talk to me. And look at that. Here you are.”

  His laugh was low and sexy and made several women in the vicinity turn and stare—but did absolutely nothing for her. She didn’t need to know why. The reason was over in the corner talking to Jamie’s brother, Aidan, and a couple of guys she didn’t know.

  “Eppie and Hazel are two tough crackers. I don’t like messing with them.”

  “You’re a jet jockey who flies giant airplanes worth millions of dollars. You’ve bee
n in combat, for crying out loud. Are you really afraid of two little old women?”

  “Hell to the yes,” he said, with so much genuine emotion in his voice she had to laugh.

  Out of the corner of her gaze, she saw Bowie turn at the sound—not that she was staring at him or anything. His gaze shifted to her and then to Jamie, and she saw something hot there that made nerves jitter in her stomach.

  At almost the same instant, Samantha Fremont approached Bowie with two drinks in her hands and gave one to him, earning a smile.

  Katrina quickly looked back at Jamie, trying to squash her completely unreasonable jealousy. “Hazel and Eppie scare me, too,” she admitted. “They’re something, aren’t they?”

  He nodded. “And while we’re speaking of dreams coming true,” he said, with that same charmer of a smile, “when are you going to take pity on me and finally go grab a drink with me sometime?”

  Jamie always flirted outrageously with her. Usually she enjoyed it and flirted right back. She never took him seriously, and that was just the way he liked it.

  “We both have drinks, don’t we?” She held up her own glass containing her mom’s famous raspberry lemonade. “Why don’t we count this?”

  “I meant just the two of us.”

  “The closest person is ten feet away. If you close your eyes and try really hard, you could pretend you and I are alone on a moonlit lakeshore.”

  He laughed, which this time drew her mother’s attention. Even from several yards away, she could see the hopeful expression on Charlene’s face and had to fight her sigh.

  She shifted her gaze away, then instantly regretted it when it landed again on Bowie, deep in conversation with Sam. Her friend’s features were animated and happy, and as Katrina watched, Sam placed a carefully manicured hand on Bowie’s chest. She was overwhelmed with the sudden ridiculous urge to race over and smack it away.

  What was wrong with her? She had no claim over Bowie. She worked for him, that was it—and she wouldn’t be doing that much longer. She certainly had no business wanting to dictate his social interactions. He could talk with anyone he chose.

  Besides, hadn’t she once thought someone like Sam would be good for him? Bowie needed someone sweet and kind and, especially, available.

  A cloud of depression settled over her like a gnat swarm. She tried to swat it away by flirting with Jamie for a minute or two, but it was obvious to both of them her heart wasn’t in it. She was almost relieved when Milo started heading for the water’s edge and she had to extricate herself from Jamie to avert trouble.

  Milo appeared unconcerned when she joined him.

  “No water, remember? We talked about it.”

  He held up a rock and pantomimed throwing it in, and she decided that would be fine. Right now, she had to wonder if chucking a big boulder into the water might actually be cathartic.

  “Go ahead,” Katrina said. “I’ll watch you from here.”

  She set her drink down so she could pull over a couple of her mother’s molded plastic lawn chairs and angled them so she had a good view of both Milo and the party.

  As soon as she picked up her lemonade and sank into one of the chairs, Wyn wandered over and sat down in the other.

  “I suppose this is the closest we’ll get to a going-away party for you,” her sister said.

  “I don’t need a party. I’ll be back home with my daughter before you know it.”

  “I’m going to pray that’s exactly what happens,” Wynona said.

  “Don’t jinx it. I can’t consider the alternative.”

  Some of her own fear must have filtered through her voice, because Wynnie reached over and squeezed her arm. “I know. Same here. I don’t want you to move permanently to another country. What would I do without my baby sis?”

  “I don’t want to talk about it. Let’s change the subject.”

  “Okay,” Wyn said, a wicked look in her eye. “I guess it’s obvious Sam has a new crush.”

  Yeah, that wasn’t a subject she wanted to discuss either. Still, she couldn’t resist following the direction of her sister’s gaze to where Samantha and Bowie still stood close together, engaged in conversation.

  Sam was really putting out the vibe. Katrina knew her well enough to see all the signs. She wouldn’t be going to so much trouble if Bowie wasn’t somehow encouraging her.

  “Looks like.” She tried to give a casual smile, but she had a feeling Wyn wasn’t fooled.

  “They look cute together, don’t you think?” Wyn said.

  “Adorable,” Kat said. The word came out more abruptly than she intended and earned a searching look from Wynona.

  Shoot. Her sister had been a trained police officer until a year ago, quick to read between the lines. She didn’t need Wyn suspecting she might be jealous.

  She didn’t want to be jealous. It made her feel petty and small and stupid. She had been the one to encourage Bowie to ask Sam out. How could she be jealous that he decided to take her up on it?

  If Wyn could read her emotions on her features, she decided not to say anything about it, much to Katrina’s relief.

  “Speaking of crushes,” she said after a moment, “did I see you deep in conversation with Jamie Caine a few minutes ago? Anything interesting going on there?”

  She couldn’t help thinking how much easier her life would feel right now if that were the case. “You’re as bad as Mom. That’s why I don’t dare talk to any man in Haven Point for long. If our conversation dragged on a minute or two longer, she would be ordering wedding cakes.”

  Wyn gave her a sympathetic smile. “For the record, Jamie is a great guy. You could do much worse. There’s more to him than a charming smile and a flirty disposition.’

  She knew that. She’d seen those same glimpses in Jamie’s eyes. There were reservoirs of something deeper, something he worked hard to keep concealed, for reasons she didn’t quite understand.

  “I appreciate the advice, but I’m not looking for any guy, charming smile or not.”

  “Don’t say that too loudly. Your priorities might shift a year from now, after things are settled with Gabi. You might change your mind about what you want.”

  “Maybe,” she said in what she hoped was a noncommittal voice.

  At that moment, Sam’s tinkling laugh rippled out over the grass, and she couldn’t prevent her gaze from finding her friend once again—and the man Sam apparently found so amusing.

  When she shifted back to Wynona, she found her sister studying her with an intent, probing look that made her feel exposed and vulnerable, like a suspect in an interrogation room.

  “Or maybe you’ve already figured out what you want,” Wyn said.

  She didn’t dare look at her sister. Wyn knew her better than anyone. She must have seen the truth Katrina didn’t even want to admit to herself.

  She was in love with Bowie.

  Despite her best efforts to keep him at arm’s length, somehow he had pushed his way into her heart.

  She was saved from having to respond by Milo, who wandered over to her and made the ASL sign for thirsty.

  “You want a drink? Mine is almost empty. Let’s go get something for both of us, buddy.”

  She took his hand and walked with him to the refreshment table, away from her sister’s sudden scrutiny and the difficult truth she didn’t want to face.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  “YOU MUST BE super good with computers,” Samantha Fremont said, toying with the straw in her drink.

  “Fairly good,” Bowie said modestly.

  “I sure wish I could figure out the accounting software we’re using at the store. Maybe you could come in sometime and show me what I’m doing wrong.”

  He gave a noncommittal answer—what did he know about small business accounting soft
ware?—and turned the subject by asking her about some of the other businesses in town.

  Bowie liked Samantha. She was sweet and funny and so earnest as she asked him about his job, how long he’d worked for Caine Tech, what he did there, how he liked it.

  During the ten minutes of their conversation, he had managed to shove his tongue firmly in his cheek and answered that he liked it fine and had been there a long time.

  He didn’t quite have the heart to tell her he was one of the cofounders of the company and had been with Aidan and Ben from the beginning—and was responsible for bringing to market some of the company’s most innovative products.

  A mere few weeks ago, he might have been interested enough in her to ask her out—eventually, maybe, once his life settled down a bit and he could breathe again.

  That was before he’d been kicked in the chest by a certain teacher with blue eyes and wheat-colored hair and a mouth that tasted like strawberries and cream and heaven.

  He searched for Katrina, almost without realizing it, and found her at the swingset, alternating between pushing Milo and doing the same for Andie Montgomery’s kid Will.

  As he watched Will pump his legs in and out and Milo try to figure out the movement, among much laughter and explaining from Katrina and Will, Bo felt that same jolt in his chest again, a breathless, restless, staggering ache he had never felt before.

  He was in love with her.

  The truth just about knocked him over, as if Milo had just kicked him.

  He didn’t know how he knew, since it was an emotion he was completely unfamiliar with, but somehow the truth of it settled over him like the twilight stretching across the lake.

  He loved Katrina Bailey. Her strength, her dedication, her compassion. The sweet way she cared for his brother. Her determination to rescue a girl she had come to care about.

  Now what the hell was he supposed to do?

  “Are you okay?” Samantha asked. “You’re looking a little pale and you were suddenly miles away.”

  He didn’t know how to answer her. “Yeah,” he finally lied. “Will you excuse me? I need to grab some water.”