Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Dex
M y phone alarm hadn’t been enough to wake me. Fortunately, I had a gull to back it up. Gus had discovered that the alarm coincided with his breakfast, and when I didn’t stir, he took it upon himself to stand on my chest and make a low cooing sound. I opened my eyes and squinted into the dim light in the cabin. “Hey, Gus.” I reached over and turned off the alarm. Gus, satisfied that he’d done his job, hopped to the ground and waited for me to get the morning moving, and by “moving,” that meant opening a can of sardines.
I’d been tired, but sleep hadn’t come easily. There was too much chaos in my head. I’d left Aria’s house feeling unsure of everything, and that was mostly because of our last few seconds together. I’d stopped abruptly on the way to the door, and she’d accidentally smacked into me. I grabbed her arms to keep her from falling backward, and in those few seconds, I found myself wanting badly to pull her into my arms for a kiss. Aria was gorgeous and smart and clever and all the things I loved in a woman, but I hadn’t expected that reaction. For one thing, she’d been dating my brother, and while Kellan and I weren’t friends, I would never consider coming between him and a girlfriend. When I stood up for Breanna, it was only to protect her. She might have looked at me a little differently after that, but there was never anything between us. I would never have considered it because I knew Kellan loved Breanna, and he was heartbroken when they broke up.
Aside from the obvious taboo of making a move on my brother’s girlfriend, there was the second obvious obstacle—Aria had, up until yesterday, shown mostly anger and mistrust toward me. That had changed some, but last night, she’d driven down to the marina to find out if what Kellan had told her was true, that I was basically a flake who would pack up and leave the second the urge hit me. Kellan was right. There was a good chance of that happening. After all, I’d come to Whisper Cove to find the coins and get Quinn out from under a lengthy prison sentence. Once accomplished, I had every intention of pulling my tugboat out of the marina and moving on. I had no particular destination—just a place where I could finally feel like I belonged.
The last thing I needed was to start having feelings for Kellan’s girlfriend, even if they appeared to be on the outs. I was in Whisper Cove to help Quinn, and that had to be my primary focus. I’d searched some rocks and tidal pools yesterday, and it all felt so hopeless. Quinn would never have shoved a box of priceless coins into a rocky crevice where any beachcomber could find it. And so many of the rocky outcroppings were underwater part of the day. There’s no way he would have stuck his treasure in a place where the tide could roll in and wash it away.
I showered and got dressed. This time I was ready for action in a short-sleeved T-shirt and jeans. I fed Gus, pulled on my coat and headed down the dock. The ocean and the marina were quiet at this time of the morning, when there was no more than a whisper of daylight and the fog was cold enough to seep into your bones. I lifted the hood on my coat and pushed my hands into my pockets. I walked with purposeful, confident steps toward the café, but those same sure steps faltered when I reached Aria, and she peered up from beneath the hood of her coat. Her brown gaze drew me right in. It was something I’d noticed almost from the start, from those first harrowing moments when she stared up at me, wet and shivering, on the dock.
Awkward smiles and greetings followed. There was my proof. I hadn’t imagined the moment between us when I held her arms and we stood face-to-face, inches apart. She walked straight to the coffeepot, and I headed into the kitchen.
It seemed the awkward silence was going to lurk around for a while. I focused on getting my ingredients gathered, and she worked on making sure the coffee was brewing and the tables were ready for guests. We worked that way for about ten minutes until she carried a cup of hot coffee back to the kitchen.
“You were reading my mind,” I said, and reached for the cup. My big hands were impossible to avoid. Our fingers touched as I took the cup, and I was sure I heard her suck in a breath. I could still feel the heat of her fingers even after she pulled them away. And then it happened again. We locked gazes.
She broke away first. “I’ll be in the office starting my purchase orders. Call if you need anything.” She scurried away as if the floor beneath her was hot lava.
I got to work breaking the dozens of eggs I’d need for breakfast. There was a knock on the door. “Aria, I think Isla’s here with the breads. Should I get it?”
“I’ve got it, thanks.” Aria walked to the front door. “Kellan. What are you doing here?”
I put down the egg I was holding, took off my work apron and walked out to see what was going on. Kellan was standing in the doorway. His hair looked ruffled, and he hadn’t shaved—unusual for him. The second he spotted me cold rage filled his expression.
“I see he’s still working for you.”
Aria glanced back at me, then turned back to Kellan. “I told you he had a two-day trial.”
Kellan pushed past her so forcefully, she shrank back in fear. I’d never seen her look anything but strong. Kellan stopped in front of me. There were dark circles under his eyes. He pointed a finger right in my face, but I didn’t flinch or move away from the finger.
I looked straight back at him. “Since you can’t seem to handle me working here, I won’t. But I’m not going to leave Aria hanging today. I’ll finish the day, and that will be the end of it.”
Kellan’s jaw shifted back and forth. “It’s not enough. I want you to get out of town, today.”
I shook my head. “Not going to do that.”
I could see from the corner of my eye that he had his fist curled. It wouldn’t be the first time my brother punched me in the face. I never fought back. It would be too dangerous … for him.
“If you want to hit me, fine. But not in the café, and you know I’m not going to fight back. But if it makes you feel better, then slug away.”
“This is ridiculous,” Aria said. “You’re not going to hit your brother.” Kellan finally looked at her. There was that adorable defiant chin lift I loved to see. “I finally found a cook, and now, I’ll be back to square one. If you cared about me at all, you’d have been happy that I found someone, but it seems your lifelong pettiness about your brother has buried itself so deeply in your soul, it clouds your judgment and your reasoning. I’ve also discovered a side of you that you kept very well hidden for the first six months. Your short temper is a major turnoff. I’ll leave it up to Dex if he wants to continue working for me or not. And you and I are officially through. I can’t be with someone who has to have control of everything. I’ve been independent for years, and I will continue that way until the day I die. So, goodbye, Kellan. I hope you find happiness in your life.”
Kellan’s face scrunched up with anger as she spoke, and while I’d always stuck to my number one rule of never laying a hand on my brother, I was ready in case his temper made him lose control.
He stared at Aria, and she stared right back at him hard.
“I want those earrings back,” he sneered.
“I will mail them back to you today. Now, I have a business to run.”
He looked around at the dining room. “Business, right,” he scoffed. He shot me one more murderous glare and stormed out.
Aria stared at the door for a long moment. Her body began to relax as she released the breath she’d been holding. Then she turned, walked straight toward me and sank with relief into my arms.