15. Chapter 15 – Rae #2
Keeping Simon was never the point. Everything I’d done was to help my family.
Simon’s dad had been threatening to end the lease on San Juan Marine Repair.
Dating Simon meant he couldn’t exactly kick us out.
It’d been my one move. So I’d done it. Lived with the farce to protect our family business.
But my dad’s pride would never handle me revealing that.
Even if I hadn’t fixed the problem, I’d bought us time. Years longer than I initially planned. Enough to save money for a down payment on the land our shop stood on if Simon’s dad moved forward with his plans.
I forced my expression to remain placid. Not to betray my inner thoughts. “Simon and I are friends. There are no hard feelings. I wish him well.”
And I did. Maybe we’d used each other, but I couldn’t complain. I’d gotten what I wanted from our deal. Even if having him dump me to marry someone else was borderline humiliating, I’d survive.
“Matt is making noises about ending our lease after this year.”
My dad said it bluntly. As if it was my fault.
And in one sense, it was. But Simon and I weren’t going to live a lie forever.
If my dad was half the businessman he thought, he’d have planned for this.
I had. I’d scrimped and saved. Living on my boat kept my expenses low, allowing me to build a nest egg.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” I said evenly.
He grunted. “Just thought you should know what your little breakup cost us.”
I flinched, every muscle tightening. Not snapping back took every ounce of control I had.
“I’m sorry,” I said.
And I was. But not for the reasons he suspected. Poison seeped beneath my skin until I was numb. Never an affectionate man, he became colder with every disappointment. And life had handed him a lot of them.
He didn’t know what to do with a daughter after my mom left, and it showed.
So he treated me like my brothers. Which was fine, because I loved the marine business.
Engines made sense in a way my family never did.
I just wished he’d listen to me. Years of being overlooked, dismissed took their toll.
Until I expected the loneliness. And learned not to need so much. To take steps on my own .
He flicked a hand toward the door, dismissing me.
I fired off a text to Simon. He might not see it until after his honeymoon, but I had to know.
Rae: our deal still stands?
Slowly, I covered the block to Harbor Brews, not thinking, just following my feet. Frozen in a mental loop of the conversation with my dad.
Zach looked up from behind the counter. A few customers were clustered at tables, but I’d caught him in between ferries. The pleased light in his eyes faded as he read my expression, his mouth turning down in a frown.
“What’s wrong?” he asked softly, brows furrowed.
I scrubbed my hands across my face. “Nothing. My dad just called me into his office.”
“Why?”
He said it with such concern, it chipped away at the ice that encased me in a wintry prison, holding me locked in my father’s disappointment.
“To let me know he was upset that Simon and I called things off.”
“No sympathy for his heartbroken daughter?”
“I’m not that good of an actress.”
Something flickered in his eyes.
“Then why is he disappointed?”
“San Juan Marine Repair, of course.”
He circled the counter, extending his arms. I stepped into the shelter he offered, inhaling the sharp scent of coffee that clung to him.
His arms wrapped around me, gluing me back together in a tight hug.
Part of me wanted to nestle closer, but it’d only take one bored gossip to set the town on fire.
I needed Simon’s dad on my side for what came next.
Stirring up rumors of a love triangle between me, Simon, and Zach wouldn’t help my plans.
“Thanks,” I said, pulling away reluctantly. “You give good hugs.”
Simon. My dad. My brothers. When was the last time, other than my girlfriends or Zach, that I’d had a hug? Forever.
“Anytime.” He traced a hand from my shoulder to my elbow. “I mean it. Anytime .” He grinned. “Or, if you prefer, we can make a standing appointment.”
I arched a brow. “For hugs?”
“Or other things,” he added. His quick reply made me smile. “In case you missed it, I’m downright thrilled you’re single.”
I chuckled. “I think I got the message.”
“Did you?” Something about the way he said it, the way his eyes held mine, steady and searching, made me pause. “Speaking of families, Hurricane Vanessa has officially summoned you, and the kids, of course, for family dinner this week.”
I groaned, and Zach’s face split into a grin, his dimples flashing.
“I love your mother. Do you think she’d murder you if she heard that nickname?”
Zach chuckled. “You know my mother better than that. She’s heard it and claims it with pride. It’s part of her success in getting us to do her bidding.”
“You say that like she’s some kind of evil mastermind. Your mom is lovely.”
“ And an evil mastermind. Don’t let her sweet exterior fool you. She’s one hundred percent Gran’s daughter.” He leaned across the counter, eyes flashing. “So. Tomorrow night? You, me, the kids, and all my local relatives?”
“It’s a date.”
“Yeah, it is. ”
Something about the promise in his tone thrilled me. Little zings of pleasure prickled beneath my skin, washing away the last of the tension from the confrontation with my dad.
“See you later at home?” I asked, the words slipping from my lips naturally.
It wasn’t, really. But somehow, with Zach there, it felt like one.
“You know it, baby.”