Page 29 of The Summer Plans

I can’t tell her what really happened. Making friends in your thirties is so hard, and I’ve been fortunate enough to still be besties with one of my grade school friends. That’s rare. I don’t want to throw away decades worth of friendship because I have the hots for her brother. Though, I don’t think Raven would be mad if she knew I had a crush on him back then. She’s very logical. And practical.

I just wanted a week away with the kids. I wanted to enjoy my birthday in paradise. And I’m thankful you want me to help you get this house ready to sell. But you might want to talk to your niece. She’s trying to talk RJ into keeping it.

I love my brother and my niece, but I have a plan for this house. They’ll have to deal.

CHAPTER 9

RJ

Broccoli Bay is so small that apparently Tony either knows the owner of every business on the island or runs it himself. When I reached out about setting up a snorkeling excursion, he offered to take us to the perfect spot. He approaches in a different boat than the one he uses to shuttle tourists between the island and mainland. It’s a smaller catamaran with steps on the back that make getting in and out of the water easy.

Once the boat approaches the dock, the kids race to be the first to board. Tony stands there nodding as we climb into the boat. “I thought you said five?”

“Shit. Yeah, the teenager changed her mind about getting in the water.”

“No swears!” Logan shouts from across the boat.

“Sorry,” I call back.

“You’re lucky I have another set of gear.”

“Sorry, I didn’t even think about that. And what do I owe you?” I reach for my wallet.

Tony waves a hand at me. “The owner of the house said to charge everything to her account.”

“For the snorkeling?” I clarify.

He shakes his head. “Everything.”

He pushes us off the dock and heads to the helm. I take the open seat next to Summer on the bench. “Hey, when you ordered from the market, did you give them your card?”

She blinks in confusion. “No, they said they’d charge it to the account. I figured it meant Raven’s account, and they’d either give me a bill at the end or I’d repay her after the trip.”

Turning away from her, I pull out my phone. Knowing my sister, she won’t let either of us square up with her later. I should be grateful that I have someone in my life who can pay for us to take trips like this. But my sister has taken care of me our entire lives, even when I was fully capable. I may not be rolling in money, but I’ve lived a modest life and have done okay for myself.

Me

No one on the island is accepting my card.

Do you have anything to do with that?

Raven

Your money is no good on Broccoli Bay.

Raven. You’re already letting us stay here. You don’t have to pay for everything.

Let an old widow do what she wants with her money.

You’re not old.

I’ll be forty this fall.

Still not old.

Raven, this is too much.

Don’t be an idiot. I’ll always take care of you, baby bro.