Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
Aria
I sla showed up with some butterscotch blondies and a stack of color samples. My sisters all lived together in Nonna’s two-bedroom cottage. Now Isla spent half her time in the city with her boyfriend, Luke. His sister and grandmother had bought a penthouse apartment in the city as well. Luke’s sister, Rachel, and Isla had become fast friends, and his grandmother, Hazel, was a sweetheart. His mom and dad were a different story altogether, but Isla had figured out how to handle them without causing herself too much grief. I’d moved out of the cottage back when I started the café. I loved my sisters, but it was nice to have a quiet place of my own.
“Now, I’m leaning again toward a soft peach color, possibly paired with a cheery teal trim.” Isla was talking and moving a mile a minute. Her dreams were all falling into place—her dream man and her dream bakery. I envied her. She always knew exactly what she wanted, and she kept her focus straight and steady. Of course, ending up with the incredible Luke Greyson was somewhat of a fluke. The whole thing had started out as a fake wedding date situation, but after spending a weekend with my sister, Luke realized she was the one.
Isla placed the blondies on the counter and tossed out the color cards. I noticed she’d marked a few dozen colors. At least she’d narrowed it down from a million.
I always enjoyed a visit from one of my many sisters, especially Isla and some of her delicious treats, but I had to admit my mind wasn’t really on color choices this evening. Isla went on about some of her favorites and her vision of how her bakery would look as I poured us each a glass of milk to go with the blondies.
“What do you think?” she asked at one point. I turned back from the refrigerator with a questioning look. Isla sighed. “All right, what’s up? I can tell something’s bothering you. You’ve been quietly listening to me babble on about seafoam green and blush pink. What’s going on? Is this about the gull incident?”
That incident had stuck with me all day, but now there was something much weightier on my mind. “Kellan gave me earrings for our six-month anniversary.”
“I thought those were new. How exciting. Sounds like things are getting serious.” We carried the blondies and milk to the couch and sat down. Isla turned to face me more. “Why am I not getting big enthusiastic vibes from you?”
“No, I’m excited. Really.”
“Yes, clearly,” Isla said wryly.
“It’s just—I guess they were badly timed. He’d planned this nice, romantic lunch, but when I got there, he was talking to his brother, and he was really tense and angry after he hung up. Apparently, he doesn’t get along with his brother at all. I didn’t even know he had a sibling because he’s never mentioned him.”
“Lots of people lose that sibling connection when they grow up,” Isla said. “Not everyone can be the Lovely sisters.”
“That’s just it. They were close in age, but even growing up they had nothing to do with each other. That’s strange, right?”
“Not necessarily. Maybe his brother is really unlikable. But that’s not what this is about, is it?” Isla knew me too well.
I pushed off my slippers and curled my feet up behind me. “For a brief second—when Kellan handed me the small velvet box?—”
Isla sat forward with comprehension. “You thought it was an engagement ring, and you were thoroughly disappointed when it turned out to be earrings.”
I scrunched up my face. “You got half of that right.”
It took her a second to understand what I meant, and when she did, a frown followed. “Oh, Aria, you were worried he was going to propose. It’s understandable. You’ve only been dating six months. I’m sure you’re not ready, especially after your engagement to Paul.” Isla occasionally brought up my rather unfortunate engagement, which I pulled out of late in the game when I realized I liked Paul, but I didn’t actually love him. She always used that near catastrophe as a way to remind me to stay true to myself and to my heart. It was something Nonna drummed into us our entire childhood. I still wasn’t exactly sure how I managed to stray so far from her advice back then, but I was sure it had to do with telling myself I needed to settle down with a sensible man because I was, after all, the family rock. Being married to a man like Paul made sense for the role I was given as my sisters’ main guardian.
I nodded. “I’m sure that’s the reason behind the apprehension. We haven’t known each other long enough.”
“I’m going for another blondie. Want seconds?” she asked.
“Yes. Seeing all those color samples, I think I’m going to need some stamina.”
She returned with another blondie for each of us. I took a bite. “These remind me of that butterscotch fudge Nonna used to make for Thanksgiving.”
Isla cheered. “Yay! That’s the flavor I was going for. I’ve already added this recipe to the list of autumn treats for the bakery. I can’t believe this is finally happening.” Isla took a bite of blondie. She moaned in delight. “Isla Lovely, you’re a baking genius.” She washed it down with milk.
“I’m so excited for you, Isla. Anything I can do to help? Although I’m not a great example, considering I haven’t been able to find a cook. Be prepared for the stress that comes with trying to find a reliable coworker.”
“Well, Layla is already planning on working there full time. Not sure if it’s a good or bad thing to employ family.”
“It depends on the family. Hey, wait a minute, Layla will only work for me part time and only when I desperately need her. How come she’s already signed on full time with you?”
Isla shrugged. “You’re too bossy, big sister.”
“Great. I’m not too bossy when it comes to sorting out all of your problems.”
“And we love that you’re always there for us. Now, what’s the scoop on the mysterious stranger with the gull? I figure since you’re always in town at the café that you’d have seen him. Did he leave on the bus?”
“I suppose, but he was back at the marina after I took Oscar his sandwich. In fact, oddly enough, he returned on a motorcycle. And that darn gull nearly panicked me right back into the water?—”
Isla nearly dropped the blondie from her napkin. Her eyes rounded. “You fell in the water? You never said.”
I sighed. I always found it difficult to admit to my younger sisters that their oldest sister, the one they counted on as their rock, had lost control of a situation. And boy, had I lost control of it. “I panicked and I don’t know how I managed it, but I lost my footing and fell off the dock with one big, humiliating plunge. And I can tell you, in no uncertain terms, that the warm waters of summer are long gone. Dex jumped in after me.”
“Dex? The bird?”
“No, the bird’s name is Gus.”
Isla sat up with interest, like she used to do whenever Nonna was telling us a story with a handsome prince. “You’ve been holding out on us. So not only do you know the handsome stranger’s name, you had more than a casual interaction. He pulled you out of the cold water. Very heroic.”
“Uh, did you miss the part where I mentioned it was his gull that sent me into the water?”
She waved me off. “What’s he like?”
I sat back with my treat and gave it some thought. “He’s definitely a bit mysterious and unsettling.”
“Unsettling? That doesn’t sound good.”
“That’s just it. I’m not sure if it’s necessarily a bad unsettling. Although, one thing is not a mystery. He’s head-to-toe gorgeous, all six-foot-plus of him, and when I say six-foot-plus, I’m talking about his shoulder span.” I tilted my head. “That might be an exaggeration, but he’s tall and muscular.”
“Gorgeous and a muscular build.” Isla lifted her finger and drew two checkmarks in the air. “Check, check.”
I laughed. “Oh boy, my sister is pulling out her ‘perfect man checklist.’ I assure you those are the only two qualities worth noting. He came to Whisper Cove by boat, an old tugboat conversion that hardly looks seaworthy, and we know nothing else about him. Maybe he’s here for nefarious reasons.”
“Well, that would certainly help liven up the season and give Ella some ideas for her novel.” Isla placed her empty glass on the coffee table, kicked off her shoes and relaxed back. “And don’t forget—you always liked the roguish characters in Nonna’s stories.”
“I think I’ve outgrown all that. It’s true Nonna’s pirates and highwaymen were the characters who really grabbed my attention, but I need someone steady and trustworthy.”
“I guess that’s where Kellan comes in. He is definitely steady and trustworthy.”
“Yeah, he’s definitely that.” I couldn’t believe how badly today’s lunch went. Even though we finished a nice meal and even flirted, the whole thing had felt forced. My mind skipped back to my latest run-in with Dex on the docks. I’d all but told him to leave the cove. I wasn’t sure why I reacted so harshly to him. I assumed it had to do with still being embarrassed about the morning. A vision popped into my head and I laughed. “Dex’s gull does like to perch on his shoulder, so he’s definitely got a pirate vibe. I just hope that’s the only pirate trait.”
Isla’s brow lifted. “But you used to love pirates.”
“That was when I pictured them all looking like Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom. I’ve watched a few pirate documentaries, and it seems they were nothing like their Hollywood stand-ins. Blackened teeth, when they actually had all their choppers, leathery skin and I’ll bet they didn’t smell like aftershave … or rum, for that matter.”
We both had a good laugh. “I’m sure he won’t stay long,” I said.
“Whisper Cove doesn’t have a lot to offer at this time of year. Enough about the hunky stranger. Ava texted me?—”
“Yes, she called me, too. She’s let another one go. The string of broken hearts that girl is leaving behind will be long enough to circle the globe.”
“I told her all these men are going to have to start a support group. I love these breakups because she always comes home afterward. I can’t wait to see her. And yes, she mentioned I needed to bake brownies.” Isla stood from the couch. “And now, big bossy sister, solve my next problem.” She lowered her hand and helped pull me up from the couch. “I need a color choice for the bakery.”