Gansett Island Boxed Set Books 1-16 (Gansett Island Series)

by Marie Force

  The calming effect she had on him was one of the things he loved best about being married to her.

  “You gonna tell me what’s wrong?” she asked in a sleepy, sexy-sounding voice.

  “Nothing’s wrong. Holden’s with my mom and Charlie, so I’m taking advantage of a lazy morning with my wife.”

  “I’m not talking about right now. I mean in general over the last few days. You’re brooding over something.”

  They’d been living together for more than a year, but the way she paid attention still took him by surprise.

  “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, but I’m right here if you need me.”

  He covered the hand she’d put on his chest. “I know.”

  “And despite the two linebackers you’ve graced me with, I’m pregnant, not fragile.”

  “I definitely know that. You’re Superwoman.”

  “Talk to me, O. Tell me what’s on your mind.”

  Because he hated having distance of any kind between them, he pulled the folded piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to her.

  “What’s this?”

  “Read it.”

  He watched as her eyes skimmed over the single sentence and widened with shock. “Oh my God! Is he for real?”

  “Unfortunately, yes.”

  “Has he called?”

  “Twice so far. I haven’t accepted the call. Yet.”

  “Owen, your mother would not want you to do this for her. She and Charlie are perfectly content the way they are.”

  “How can I live with being the reason they aren’t able to get married?”

  “You are not the reason.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “He wants you upset and riddled with anxiety waiting for the phone to ring. You’re not going to give him the satisfaction.”

  “I’m tired of running in fear from him. What if I take the call, see what he wants and buy my mother’s freedom in the process?”

  “What if he says something that sets you back twenty years? Have you thought of that?”

  “He doesn’t have that kind of power over me anymore.”

  “Doesn’t he?”

  Owen sighed deeply, filled with feelings of defeat that he’d thought were in the past. “I hate that he does. I hate it more than anything.”

  “I know, honey, and that’s why I don’t want you to talk to him. You’ve been so unburdened since the trial ended. I can’t bear to see you go back to how you felt before it.”

  “And I can’t bear the idea of my mom not being able to move forward with Charlie because of me.”

  “Owen…”

  “I know it’s not technically because of me, but I can do something about it.”

  After a long pause, Laura pushed herself up to one elbow to look down at him. “What if I take the call? His note doesn’t say it has to be you.”

  “No way. Not happening.”

  “Why not? He’s nothing to me. He can’t hurt me.”

  “You don’t know him. You don’t know what he’s capable of.”

  “Sure, I do. I was here when your mother arrived on the island after he beat the hell out of her. I’ve witnessed the wounds you carry with you. Don’t tell me I don’t know what he’s capable of. I do know, and I’m not intimidated by the idea of taking a phone call from him.”

  “I can’t let you do this. It’s just… I can’t.”

  “Would you do it for me? If the shoe were on the other foot?”

  “Yes, but—”

  “No buts. I’ll take the call. I’ll see what he wants, and I’ll take care of it.”

  “Laura…”

  “I’ll take the call, Owen.”

  “Okay,” he said, hating the relief he felt at knowing he didn’t have to talk to his father. What kind of man did it make him that he was letting his pregnant wife do his dirty work for him?

  “There,” she said with a big victorious smile, “was that so hard?”

  He couldn’t help but return the smile. “You’re such a hellcat when you want to be.”

  “Why thank you. I may be a hellcat, but I’m also a wife who loves her husband too much to let anyone hurt him ever again.”

  “I love you, too, babe. I want you to promise that if he says anything offensive, you’ll hang up immediately.”

  “I will. I promise. Now help me out of this bed so I can pee and brush my teeth and then fool around with my husband while our son is otherwise occupied.”

  “I do love your agenda, Mrs. Lawry.”

  “I do love you, Mr. Lawry.”

  Chapter 5

  Though he wanted to get back to the island—and Erin—as soon as possible, Slim went with Luke and Sydney to Women and Infants Hospital in Providence. He hoped he could provide some support to his buddy, who was silently freaking out about the possibility of a problem with Syd’s pregnancy.

  The doctors asked Luke to wait outside while they evaluated Sydney in the hospital’s emergency department. When Luke put up a protest at being separated from her for even a few minutes, Slim was glad he’d come along. He took his friend by the arm and led him to the nearby waiting room, forcing him into a chair.

  “You need to breathe,” Slim said.

  “I can’t do anything until I know she and the baby are okay.”

  “If there’s anything wrong, they’re in the best possible place.”

  “She can’t lose this baby, Slim. She’ll never survive another loss.”

  He wanted to assure Luke that Sydney wasn’t going to lose the baby, but he couldn’t know that for sure. “I know it’s hard not to go to worst-case scenario, but at the first sign of trouble, you got her here as fast as you could. There’s nothing else either of you could’ve done that you didn’t do.”

  Luke sagged into his chair. “She’s been so happy, making plans, talking about names. It’s like she’s finally allowed herself to hope again.”

  Slim ached at the thought of that hope being ripped away from someone who had already had more than her share of heartache, having lost her first husband and her children in a drunk-driving accident several years ago.

  “I talked her into trying for the baby. If she loses it…”

  “Luke, buddy, you gotta be positive for her.”

  Luke bent his head and dropped it into his hands.

  Slim rested a hand on Luke’s back, offering what comfort he could and knowing it was nowhere near enough.

  “I’m so glad you were on the island and able to bring us over.”

  “So am I.”

  Taking a deep breath, Luke sat up. “I hope I didn’t mess up your day too badly.”

  “Don’t give it a thought. What I was doing will keep until later.” He couldn’t wait to get back to Erin, to resume where they’d left off, to kiss her and touch her. Okay, enough of those thoughts, or he was going to have an embarrassing situation to contend with.

  “So you’re sticking around for the holidays?” Luke asked while staring at the door to the exam rooms.

  Sensing his friend was desperately seeking something to take his mind off what might be happening with Sydney, Slim said, “There’s this lighthouse keeper, you see.”

  Luke tore his gaze off the doors to look at Slim. “You and Erin? Really?”

  “Seems that way.”

  “I wondered if anything would come of that after Alex and Jenny’s wedding, but then you left.”

  “And I’ve talked to her almost every day since.”

  Luke returned his attention to the doors that stood between him and the woman he loved. “Wow, that’s awesome. She seems really great.”

  “She is, but she’s really guarded, too. She’s been through a lot in her life. You know that Jenny’s fiancé, who died on 9/11, was Erin’s twin, right?”

  “Yeah, I did know that.”

  “From what I can gather, her life has been in somewhat of a tailspin since then. I’m trying to take it slow, but whenever I’m with her, I seem to forget abou
t that plan.”

  “It was like that with me and Syd when we first got together, too. After losing her family the way she did, she wasn’t sure she wanted to risk her heart again. I’m glad she finally decided to take the leap.”

  “She is, too. You guys are great together.”

  As if he couldn’t bear to stay seated any longer, Luke got up and began to pace. “What could be taking so long?”

  “I’m sure they’re just being thorough.”

  Luke rubbed his chest. “I feel like I’m having a heart attack.”

  “It’s probably anxiety. Try taking some deep breaths.”

  Luke was still rubbing his chest fifteen minutes later when a nurse came through the doors.

  “Mr. Harris? You can come on back.”

  Luke bolted for the doors.

  Slim watched him go, hoping and praying he’d get good news on the other side. While he waited to hear more, he sent a text to Erin.

  At the ER with Luke and Syd. Waiting to hear what’s up before I head back. Do you miss me yet?

  She replied right away: Who is this?

  Ha-ha. You’re very funny!

  Hoping for good news for Syd. It’s nice of you to wait with them.

  Luke is losing it. I’m glad I came.

  Did they say what’s wrong?

  Not really, and I didn’t want to ask. I’ll give it another hour or so and see if they need a ride home.

  No problem. My other boyfriend is here entertaining me while you’re gone.

  So wait, I’m your boyfriend?

  No, the other one is. You’re my fling.

  You’re so going to pay for that when I get back.

  I’m very scared…

  I’ll give you a heads-up when I’m on the way back so you can get the BF out.

  That’s very sporting of you. See you soon! Be careful in that tin can you fly around in.

  Sweetheart, I’m an ace in that tin can. You ought to let me show you sometime.

  Slim chuckled with amusement at her witty retorts. He’d become addicted to their conversations over the last couple of months, mostly because of her delightful sense of humor. She made him laugh more than any other woman ever had, but it hadn’t escaped his notice that she didn’t seem to have any desire to take off with him to Florida or Anguilla, or anywhere else for that matter. In the time they had left together, he’d have to see if he could get her to talk to him about why she didn’t want to spend more time with him.

  You ought to let me show you sometime…

  Ugh. Erin stared at the text on her screen. If she let this relationship with him continue on the current path, eventually she’d have to tell him how she felt about flying. Talking about it with Jenny earlier had been hard enough. She didn’t want to consider how hard it would be to tell him.

  The conversation with Jenny kept cycling through her mind as she waded through her overflowing email in-box, looking for fresh ideas for the Ask Erin column she wrote for a Philadelphia newspaper. The column was on hiatus for the holidays, but with the afternoon suddenly free, she’d decided to try to get a jump on some material for the new year.

  She’d initially been hired to write high-profile obituaries and other death notices for the paper—and hadn’t that been a good time? She’d stumbled into the writing of the column, filling in for someone who was on maternity leave. The original columnist had chosen not to return to work, and Erin was offered the column full time. When she had the chance to move to Gansett, she’d arranged to continue writing the column remotely. So far it was working out well, and the change in scenery had been good for her. Not to mention the amazing new friends she’d made since moving to Gansett.

  It was nice to live close to Jenny, too. Having her nearby was like being with family, and Erin couldn’t wait for when Jenny and Alex started a family so she could dote on their kids. She tried not to think too much about the children her brother and Jenny might’ve had together. Toby and Jenny had wanted to be young parents, so their children would have been approaching high school age by now.

  Erin couldn’t think about that, or she’d send herself spiraling. It had happened far too often for her not to recognize the signs. She’d gotten through Jenny’s wedding in the fall, in large part thanks to Slim’s support, and she’d find a way to deal with the emotional wallop that the eventual birth of Jenny’s first child was sure to bring. Erin had no doubt she would be treated as a beloved aunt to Jenny’s children, but she was painfully aware that they wouldn’t actually be her nieces and nephews.

  “Enough of that,” she said out loud, as if saying the words would steer her thoughts away from the perilous path to nowhere good. She clicked on an email and tried to lose herself in someone else’s problems, a practice that had been strangely cathartic since she’d been writing the column.

  Dear Erin,

  I’m not sure if you can help me, but I don’t know where else to turn.

  So many of her letters were from teenage girls who were afraid to tell anyone else their problems. Even if she didn’t feature their questions in the column, she replied to every one of them, hoping her words might make some small difference to a struggling teen.

  I caught my brother stealing from a local store and confronted him. He said his friends dared him and it was a one-time thing. Then I saw him do it again. We were at the drugstore, and he put things in his pocket and walked out without paying. His friends weren’t there. It was just the two of us. I want to find a way to stop him without getting him into trouble with the police, and I don’t want him to hate me for ratting on him. Please help me. I can’t sleep or eat or do anything but picture my brother in jail.

  Sincerely,

  Tara

  Dear Tara,

  Your brother is lucky to have a sister who cares for him as much as you do. I understand your desire to protect him, but you can only do so much. If you’re unable to speak to one or both of your parents about what your brother is doing, I urge you to talk to another adult you trust, a teacher, school counselor, neighbor or coach, someone who can help you navigate this situation. Tell them what you’ve told me and ask for help. Your brother may be angry at first, but one day he’ll thank you for keeping him out of big trouble. Please write to me and let me know how your situation resolves itself.

  Hugs,

  Erin

  She had a team of experts on retainer whom she could call on to advise her on how to answer questions when needed, but some, like Tara’s, were more clear-cut. The girl needed to tell someone she trusted and allow them to relieve her burden. She hoped Tara would write back to let her know the outcome.

  Sometimes people wrote back to say her advice had backfired and made a bad situation worse. Erin tried to learn from that kind of feedback, but the disclaimer at the bottom of each column and email absolved her of any binding responsibility toward the people she corresponded with. And the paper’s legal team vetted every answer before it went live online or in the paper.

  Dear Erin,

  My life has been destroyed by the discovery that my husband is having an affair—with my friend. I’m devastated, angry, hurt and so many other things I can’t begin to put into words. Having been betrayed by two people I loved is ruining me. I can’t find a way out of this unbearable pain. Please tell me how to make myself feel better and how to live without these two people who were so important to me.

  Debbie

  God, what to even say to this one?

  Dear Debbie,

  I’m so sorry this has happened to you. Sometimes there are no words that can bring comfort in a situation like this. But I will say that over time, you’ll find a way to go on, even if that seems impossible right now. It’s important to change your routine, to meet new people who interest you and to make new friends. New hobbies and new activities, such as joining a gym or taking a dance class, can lead to new people. Some would say that forgiveness can help you find the path forward. That may or may not work for you, but I put it out there as a possibili
ty you might want to explore. You won’t ever forget what happened, but perhaps if you can forgive them, you can set yourself free in the process. In the meantime, rely on the people who bring you joy and please let me know how you’re doing. I’ll be thinking of you and wishing you well.

  Hugs,

  Erin

  She answered three more inquiries—one from a woman coping with the loss of her mother, another from a bride-to-be who’d changed her mind about getting married and was looking for a graceful way out, and a third from a young man who wanted a certain girl to notice him as more than a friend. Though she hadn’t personally experienced any of these situations, she’d known her fair share of grief and found that approaching her replies with empathy and compassion went a long way toward helping the people who wrote to her. That the column had been picked up for national syndication thanks to her hard work counted as her greatest professional accomplishment since she left law school.

  Erin loved the work, the challenge of sinking her teeth into meaty dilemmas, and she appreciated the distraction of helping other people deal with their problems. By the time she crafted her fifth reply, she looked up to notice the sky getting darker. It was time to make her dip for tonight, along with an extra batch for Alex to eat with a spoon.

  She checked her phone to see if Slim had texted, but there was nothing new. Thinking about Sydney and hoping for a positive outcome, she got busy in the kitchen while also continuing to ruminate over the idea of whether taking one flight with Slim would help her over the hurdle that was keeping her grounded.

  Chapter 6

  For Mac McCarthy Junior, the day after his parents’ anniversary party had been long and trying. He’d awoken far too early and was tired, cranky, hungover and sexually frustrated. Somehow, a night that was supposed to be kid-free thanks to Maddie’s parents had turned into two kids with fevers in bed between him and his wife. He’d been kicked in the head and the gut—twice each—and Hailey’s foot had just missed the family jewels.