Doc stands up a little straighter, his shoulders stiff. My fingers twine with his. Two minutes later, a small white dog on a leash trots out from between the two cabins, followed by a second who’s her exact opposite. Twice her size, black, sleek. And clearly totally in love.
“Pixel, stop,” Ryker calls, and the white dog freezes, one paw up in the air. “Wait for Torrent.”
As soon as the black dog catches up, Pixel yips, and the two start to play.
The big man carries his daughter in a bright yellow harness strapped to his chest, while Wren gapes at the view. “Fudgesicles, this is gorgeous.”
Ryker drapes his arm around her shoulders. They’re so completely focused on one another, they don’t notice all of us watching them. Until West carries Cam back out on the deck and stops, clearly not ready for the scene in front of him. “Uh, Ry? Did Pixel make a friend on the ferry?”
Ryker laughs, his big hand bracing Harlow against him. “That’s Torrent. He’s a year old, and thinks she’s the best thing that ever happened to him. The jury’s still out on us.”
Later that night,with the fire pit blazing on the beach and everyone full of hamburgers, veggie burgers, and Gladys’schocolate chip cookies, I snuggle up against Doc’s side on a thick blanket.
“I’m going to have to raise my prices,” Cam mutters. “All these free Oversight installs are eating into my profits. Raelynn and Nash’s place, Doc’s house in West Seattle, your place here… Not to mention all the work that went into fixing that hole Xavier found.”
“Hidden Agenda is paying for all of those,” West says. “Tell Lucas to stop giving us the family discount.”
The big man with the easy smile chuckles and pulls his toasted marshmallow off the skewer. Lucas supervised the install today and only joined us a couple of hours ago. “Honey, do you really want me chargin’ your family retail?”
“Of course not. But we’re raising our prices. When you present our proposal to Pueblo Software next week, mark it up five percent.”
“Hallelujah!” Lucas smashes his s’more together with a big grin. “It’s only taken youmonthsto agree with me this time.”
“You know…Hidden Agenda could invest in Emerald City Security,” West offers.
“Oh,hellno.” Cam shoves at him. “One of us is completely legit, stud. And that one of us is staying that way.”
“We’ll send it through Second Sight. You’ll still be legit, angel. Just…better funded.”
The two debate all the way back to the cabin, West cradling Cam to his chest so she doesn’t have to navigate the shifting sand with her weak leg.
Gladys is the next to leave. Lucas walks her across the beach to her place, the two of them bantering back and forth like they’ve known one another forever. Inara and Royce turn in not long after.
Finally, it’s just Ryker, Wren, and Harlow left with us. The two dogs passed out an hour ago, curled up together at the edge of the blanket.
Wren nurses the baby, leaning back against Ryker’s chest. “It’s so quiet,” she says. “And the stars. I’ve never seen so many. I love the city, don’t get me wrong. But this…we need to come up here more often.”
Ryker skims his hand down his wife’s arm and stares out into the inky darkness off shore. Before sunset, Wren carried Harlow down the beach and let her toes touch the water. She squealed and laughed the whole time, while Ry stared on in awe.
“You and Natasha have a good thing going up here, Doc,” Ry says. “I wouldn’t blame you if you decided to retire. You can’t tell me flying back to Seattle whenever West needs you won’t be a hardship.”
“I did it four times last year and you never even noticed. Besides, the resort is only open April through October. The rest of the year…we’ll be in town.”
“Fu…dging horsepucky,” Ryker mutters. “Four times?”
“With how bad city traffic is, it’s faster for me to fly down from here than drive from our place in West Seattle.”
Every time Doc talks about us—about our plans, our life, our…anything—I can’t believe how lucky I am. He didn’t give up on me. Not even when it could have cost him his life.
The baby falls asleep in Wren’s arms, and she carefully lays her in the carrier. “There’s something in the air up here. She never goes down this easy.”
“Little bird, is that your way of suggesting we invest in some property?” Ry asks.
“Maybe…”
“There’s a place for sale just down the road, McCabe—Ry.” Doc grins. “But the neighbors are real troublemakers.”
Ryker leans back on his hands, with Wren snuggled up next to him. “As long as they’re family, they can make as much trouble as they want.”
