When Harmony took her drink, she noticed faint raw lines along Zach’s wrist, thin and parallel, like something rough had slid against his skin recently. Rope? Rock? Tool? He didn’t seem bothered by scars.
She shook the worry away. Today wasn’t a day for it. As a matter of fact, for a while, it felt like a perfect summer afternoon—laughter echoing, bottles clinking, and teasing layered over the crash of waves.
Parsons Beach was a sweep of pale sand edged with cliffs and amethyst shimmer. The sea was impossibly clear, and every wave broke with a glint of violet. Cass squealed again as a wave splashed all the way up to her waist.
“It’s like swimming in champagne,” she called.
“Only deadlier,” Mary answered. “The currents out here don’t forgive mistakes, so be careful.”
Tosh grabbed another drink. “Then we’d best make some good mistakes with a hell of a lot of smiles before one takes us down.”
“Spoken like a professional,” Zach said as he mixed a drink. “How’s business, Tosh? Still selling dreams to fools?”
“Dreams, drinks, and bad advice,” Tosh said easily. “This island runs on all three.”
“Add women to that list,” Torie said, slipping off her cover-up. “Or are those just part of the inventory?”
He grinned. “They’re the marketing.”
Harmony watched the exchange, amused, her notebook already in her lap though she hadn’t written a word yet. Cass nudged her.
“You’re cataloging again instead of participating.”
“I can’t help it. They all speak in metaphors and feed my soul.”
“Maybe it’s foreplay,” Cass whispered.
Both women laughed. It was easy to do on such a beautiful day in an absolutely magical place.
Cass jumped up, and Harmony leaned back, letting the wind wrap around her like an old memory. She heard Cass squealing and watched as her friends got up to no good.
Cass kicked water at Zach, who pretended to block it. He laughed. “Careful, I bruise easily.”
“You’re built like a damn tree, so I don’t see how,” Cass shot back, running away.
Harmony smiled, but it felt like she had to remind her face how to do it. The laughter around her sounded off as if the island was demanding a performance, and they weren’t giving it what it wanted. Complete joy seemed out of reach.
Torie noticed Harmony’s quiet. “You good?” she asked, seeming more concerned about someone else than herself.
Harmony gave her a smile. “Just taking it all in.”
“Some love it, and some don’t appreciate it,” Torie said with a shrug.
Mary moved her blanket closer to the rocks. “There’s less wind here.”
“More shade, too, which I don’t like,” Tosh told her, staying where he was.
“We could find more privacy,” Torie said, scanning the empty shoreline like she expected someone to materialize.
Her gaze kept darting not just to the water, but to the cliff tops, as if she half-expected a figure to be standing there, watching. Each time she found nothing, her shoulders tightened instead of relaxing. Interesting.
“It doesn’t get much more private than this,” Tosh pointed out.
Harmony followed Torie’s gaze, but there was nothing but cliffs, tide pools, and the distant curve of the harbor. A prickle ran along her arms. Zach appeared again and sat beside her.
“I’m going to keep asking how you are,” he said with a smirk.
“And I’ll keep telling you I’m fine,” she quickly answered.
