Caleb stared at the biggest diamond he’d ever seen. He didn’t know gems, but this rock was enormous. More important, it meant they’d all soon be family. “I’d say you achieved your objective, Miss Dahlia.”
“I’m marrying your uncle, so please call me Aunt Dahlia.” She squeezed Uncle Augo’s hand. “Since the ring I wanted was so expensive, I decided to buy it myself. I figured that’s okay, because I did the proposing.”
“Sounds fair to me.” Caleb reached over and gave his uncle a slap on the back—the closest thing to a hug that Kennedy men gave each other. “Congratulations on catching the big fish, Uncle Augo. The big,littlefish.”
“You caught a big, little fish too. We livestreamed the concert that night and heard you say so.” Uncle Augo slapped Caleb’s back too.
“Yeah, well, it wasn’t supposed to come out that way. The sound man apparently didn’t get a message I left him, so he thought I wanted him to record and live stream the whole concert from the boom mic. So the concert, the new song, and my proposal are out there for everyone to hear.” He looked around for luggage but saw none. “Are we taking anything to the hotel? Other than a cart to carry that enormous diamond?”
Miss Dahlia—AuntDahlia—burst into her famous giggle and held her ring high, letting the sun hit it. “We hired a wagon for our luggage. Since Uncle Clarence is stable now, I decided to stay here a while. So we went to my house and picked up a few things I’ll need.”
“The bugs are gone, so you can have any room you want.”
“Aunt Dahlia, I moved into a third-floor apartment in the parlor wing this morning. There’s plenty of room for you.”
“Good. Take us home, Harry.” Aunt Dahlia climbed into the carriage.
“I sure will. You don’t have to give me a tip either, since you just got engaged.”
Well. That was different. From the looks of things, this island could change anyone.
“Thank you, Harry.” Uncle Augo reached into his back pocket, pulled out his wallet, and produced a large bill. “But that’s not the way it works. Chivalry says the engaged man gives the gifts.”
“Hey, thanks!”
Minutes later, the carriage stopped at Island House Inn. Caleb still didn’t know how this would all work out, especially since the two women in his life loved the rickety old place. But everything else seemed undecided in their lives, so why not their location too? For now, he went to Granddad’s room to help him to the parlor for a family lunch, where Aunt Annabelle basked in her match.
After the meal, Ariel’s phone rang. She checked the screen. “It’s Enzo Cabrini.”
Aunt Dahlia pressed her hands together and held them against her lips as Ariel took the call. “Do you know who Enzo is, Caleb?” she whispered.
“Never heard of him.”
“He’s my friend who owns Tarisio, a New York auction house for rare stringed instruments. Ariel sent him a picture of your father’s violin and asked what it could bring.”
“Good. I don’t want to keep it in the safe forever.”
Ariel ended the call, her face pale. “I have news.”
Oh. Bad news. “It’s okay if it’s low. If he offers less than ten thousand, I’ll keep the violin.”
“Enzo is ninety-five percent certain it’s a del Gesù.” She hesitated as if choosing her words carefully. “Caleb, it’s valued at considerably more than my net worth.”
He sat stunned for a moment. “What will we do with that much money?”
Uncle Augo snorted. “Pretty much anything you want.”
Caleb sat in silence for a time. “This will take a lot of thought and prayer. But one thing I don’t have to think about is moving my whole family back into the parlor wing. I’ll put an elevator in too, Granddad.”
“Good. I want my apartment back,” Uncle Augo grumbled. “And my little dog. I’m going to go find her. She’s hiding to punish me for being gone so long.”
“I’ll check the lobby.” Granddad stood and pushed his rolling walker in that direction. “I know all her hiding places.”
Uncle Augo leaned in close to his fiancée. “What would you think of living here, Dahlia?”
She hesitated a moment as if in thought. “I love this place. Let’s live here in the summer and in Nashville in the winter. What do you think, Ariel?”
“I’d like us to be together most of the time. We all stay here in the summer, and we all leave for Nashville at about the same time. Granddad and Aunt Annabelle too, if they want.”
