Josh: Cool. Thanks. I’m in Ohio for the night. See you in the morning.
“I guess you’re going to be busy over the next few days,” she said as he closed the messages app. “We better get in a little more quality time before you leave.”
“I’ll sneak away,” Owen promised. “With Josh in town, they won’t even notice that I’m gone.”
Chapter Seventeen
Owen could not have been morewrong about his spending time with Kerry going under anyone’s radar.
The first thing Becca told Adam after he arrived was that her dad had gone on at least three dates with the midwife. Owen willed himself not to burst into flames as his internal narrator corrected her. One date and two sex-filled visits to Kerry’s apartment, but it was best for all of them if his daughter thought he was keeping things wholesome.
“You’ve been spending a lot of time with Kerry, huh?” Adam went in for the high-five, which pained Owen to the core. He held up his hand reluctantly, and his brother hooted. Out loud. “Way to go. I thought that was all secret still.”
“You knew?” Becca turned on Owen. “He knew?”
“He had guesses, which I told him were none of his business because Kerry and I were just friends.”
“Were.” Adam waggled his eyebrows. “Past tense.”
“Shut up.”
The rumble of Will’s car out front was a blessed change of subject. And then, right on his heels, there was another rumble. Becca squealed and bounced Charlie in her arms. “That’s Uncle Josh, I bet! Let’s go see what he’s driving, it sounds deadly.”
She wasn’t wrong. And sure enough, behind Will’s Duster was a burly ’71 Cutlass sedan. The rebuilt car gleamed. Adam whistled. “Holy shit. Look at that.”
The last time Josh had come home, a few years earlier, he’d had an ugly vintage Mustang, which he sold on his way back south. This was a sweet upgrade. It looked like he’d done some serious customization on it, too.
By the time they got to the cars, Will was already under the hood.
“Man, it’s good to see you,” Owen said, holding out his hand to Josh.
His brother took it and pulled him, clapping him on the back. “Will says he’s still having trouble with his car.”
Owen laughed. “That’s not the only reason we’re happy to have you home.”
Becca came in for a hug next, which made Charlie cry, and that made Adam laugh. “He likes his mom and his grandpa, and that’s about it.”
“Grandpa,” Josh said, looking Owen up and down. “That’s kind of wild.”
“I’m getting used to the name.” Owen gestured to the house. “You want to come in?”
Josh glanced at the watch on his wrist. “Actually, I want to show you something. Can we go for a drive?”
Adam hopped in with Josh, Will drove himself—just in case he broke down—and Owen took Becca and Charlie in his truck.
Josh led them on a merry chase through the neighbourhood, slowing on Main Street before speeding up again and heading down the hill to the harbour. He parked in the abandoned lot across the road from the water and rolled down his window. Will parked and got out of his car, and Owen pulled up next to Josh to find out what the heck was going on.
His middle brother glanced at his watch again, then pointed out to the water—and then higher, to the sky, where a plane appeared from the north. A float plane, and Owen’s heart swelled at the surprise.
“We’re just waiting for one more person to join us,” Josh said.
Seth.
They all piled out, Becca putting Charlie in the stroller because he’d fallen asleep on the drive, and after crossing the road, they watched as the plane circled the harbour, then came in for the landing.
Pine Harbour had a much smaller marina than neighbouring towns, just a few slots. Seth taxied to the end of the row and tied up there. Owen glanced at Will, who looked just as surprised as he was. Will grinned at him. “Sometimes the kids are okay, eh?”
“What a good surprise.” He cleared his throat and lifted his voice. “Adam! How long have you known about this?”
