Chapter 15
KAI
Jasmine was radiant in a teal sundress that set off her eyes when she appeared at the door of her bungalow. I stopped in my tracks, halfway to the porch, to take in the sight. My stomach fluttered the way it only did for her.
Since she was already on her way down the steps, I walked around to open the passenger door of my Jeep. “You look gorgeous,” I said as she approached.
“Thanks, handsome. You’re looking pretty dapper yourself.”
My gaze traveled up her tanned legs as they swung into the Jeep. “Nothing compared to you, beautiful,” I said, leaning in to kiss her softly. Her lip gloss tasted faintly of coconut, and it made me want to forget the family barbecue altogether. “My family can’t wait to meet you.”
“I’m excited too. Nervous, but excited.”
“No need to be nervous,” I said. Still, a tightness coiled in my gut.
I hadn’t brought a girl home in years, and the last time ended in disaster.
It’d been at least two years since Chrissy Malone, who’d ditched me for a multimillionaire two weeks later.
I had to listen to my mother telling me I deserved better for a month straight.
“I wish my mom was here to meet you,” I said, my voice trembling slightly at the end as we turned onto US-1. I had no doubt she would have seen Jasmine as a woman deserving of my heart, and I choked up at the thought.
Jasmine seemed to sense my pain and reached across to pat my knee. “Aww. I do too, babe. I know you miss her a lot.”
“Tons.” I laced my fingers through hers.
“But I’m better now. We all are.” Trevor’s wedding a few months back was the first gathering that wasn’t heavy with the shadow of grief, nearly a year after we lost her.
We were better, but I still couldn’t talk about losing Mom without choking up, so I shifted gears.
“So, the issue with the smugglers… only Reef and Spence know.”
“You don’t have to worry about me bringing it up. I’ve gotten good at pretending it never happened,” Jasmine said casually, but her body language was anything but relaxed. She sat up straight in her seat, her nails picking at the hem of her dress, a dead giveaway.
“Also, I should tell you that Ava is bringing her friend Ted. She calls him her gay boyfriend. They’ve been besties since high school.”
“Okay, so he’s not her boyfriend. Got it.”
My gaze flitted to the rearview mirror where I saw a black Chrysler 300 passing a car in the median behind me.
Lifting my foot off the gas pedal to let them pass us too, I was ready to grumble about the Miami drivers.
But the 300 slowed down to fall in behind us.
A chill ran up my spine. Sweat prickled my palms against the steering wheel.
Was that the same car I saw yesterday when I left the marina?
I sped up to create space between us, looking up into the mirror as I answered Jasmine. “Yeah, no, they’re just friends.”
“And Trevor is the brother who just got married? What’s his wife’s name again?”
“Corinne. She’s a marine biologist. They’re expecting a baby in a couple of months, so she’s a bit larger than usual right now,” I chuckled as I checked the mirror again. The 300 was keeping a safe distance that made it difficult to see the occupants.
“Yeah, that happens,” she giggled.
“So there’s Trevor and Coulter, who are younger,” she said with a pensive squint. “And Spence, who is older.”
“Correct. And remember, Trevor’s nickname is Trouble,” I said, tickling her thigh. How seriously she was taking the prep for meeting my family was adorable.
“Because Coulter couldn’t say his name when he was born. I remember.”
“Don’t worry, babe. There won’t be a test. It’s going to be fine. Everyone is going to love you.”
“Thank you. That’s sweet.”
“How could they not?”
I watched the 300 pass us as we turned into the marina, but the lone driver—who didn’t resemble either of the guys who’d tied us up—stared straight ahead. I was just being paranoid. Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched as I pulled into our lot.
Trevor was walking toward us before we were out of the Jeep. “Jasmine, this is my baby brother, Trevor, aka Trouble.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Trevor Slash Trouble.”
Corinne’s face lit in a smile as she strolled over behind Trevor.
Jasmine grinned at her baby bump. “And you must be Corinne. Congratulations.”
“You can’t miss me coming,” she said with a giggle, cupping one hand under her round belly and reaching for Jasmine with the other. “And you must be Jasmine. I’ve heard all about you.”
Jasmine smiled, shaking her hand. “Only the good parts are true.”
“We’ve only heard the good parts so far,” Corinne said, returning the smile. “I love that you’re an artist.”
I knew I’d just earned extra points for telling them about her when Jasmine glanced at me with a grin before she answered. “When I’m not bartending to pay bills…” she laughed. “But that beats full-time starving artist, I suppose.”
Trouble chimed in. “That painting that Kai bought—the one of the lighthouse—it’s really good.”
“We got married at that lighthouse a few months ago,” Corinne said, slipping her arm around his waist.
“Yes, I heard.” Jasmine lifted her hand to her chest, clearly touched by the romantic notion. Then, like an idea lightbulb, her face lit up and she turned to me with a grin. “Maybe you should give the painting to them.”
I hadn’t told her that I’d actually bought it with them in mind. “I kinda already did.”
“Oh good,” she said, looking amused.
I was relieved she wasn’t offended. Corinne and Trevor gushing over how much they loved it helped.
Dad was stoking the flames billowing from his makeshift grill. He’d had that old repurposed barrel for as long as I could remember. “Let me introduce you to our dad,” I said, nudging Jasmine around her waist.
He wiped his hands on his apron as we approached, and had a big smile for Jasmine. “You must be the girl Kai can’t stop talking about.”
I smiled at Jasmine, pulling her into my side. “Jasmine, meet my father, Spencer. He has a disorder called No Filter. Just ignore it.”
“Ignore him, Jasmine,” my father said with a wide smile. “I hope you like fish.” He nodded toward the two massive fillets on the grate.
“I love it. Kai has raved about your skills on the grill. I can’t wait to try.”
“Well you won’t have to wait long. It’ll be ready in five minutes,” Dad said, finishing with a wink.
Ava waved as she and Ted walked across the parking lot.
“There’s my girl, just in time,” Dad beamed.
“Pilot punctuality,” Ava flashed a smile before kissing his cheek. Ted set the big bowl of salad he was holding on the table.
Hugging Jasmine into my side, I said, “Ted, Ava, this is my…” I caught myself and fell silent, realizing I’d fucked up.
If I called her my friend, I might never see her naked again.
But if I called her my girlfriend, I might scare her off.
It hadn’t even been two weeks. Only a second passed, but it was excruciating.
I decided to go with my gut. “My girlfriend, Jasmine.”
Ava’s lips pulled to one side, amused. I could tell that she was trying to curb her enthusiasm at the label she’d rarely heard me assign. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Jasmine.”
“I’m Ted, the gay boyfriend.” Ted left a basket of bread beside the salad before reaching for Jasmine’s hand.
I winced. “That sounds so wrong these days.”
“Whatever, she’s been calling me that since high school. Before cancel culture. It’s okay, I still call her a fag hag.”
Jasmine laughed and I let out a breath, releasing a little of my nervousness. Her shoulders loosened against me, settling in. “Nice to meet you, Ted. And Ava. I hope to hear some of your pilot stories. I imagine it’s an exciting career.”
“It has its ups and downs,” Ava said with a smirk.
“Oh my god, politically incorrect and corny as fuck,” I grimaced. “Please excuse my sister.”
“Language,” Dad scolded. “Call Reef and tell them to get down here. The food is ready.”
Jasmine was bound to be bombarded with questions over dinner, so I prepared myself mentally to field them so that my family wouldn’t scare her off.
Coulter started in first. “Where’d you move from?”
She finished chewing the bite of food in her mouth before she answered. “Minnesota.”
“Wow, that’s quite the change in weather,” Coulter’s girlfriend, Faith, said. “If you can handle the heat, you’ll be alright.”
Jasmine smiled. “I’ll take heat over snow any day.”
“It’s only May. We’ll see how you feel come August,” my dad chuckled.
“You’ve been here during the summer before though, haven’t you?” Reef asked. “At your parents’ place in Angler’s Reef?”
Jasmine looked at him, eyes wide in a look of surprise. She seemed as shocked as I was that Reef remembered that detail. Her fork clinked too hard against her plate before she caught herself. Her face relaxed as she replied. “That’s right. I’ve been coming down here since I was kid.”
“Ah, that’s great you have a place to stay,” Corinne said. “Rent is ridiculous here now. And Angler’s Reef is nice.”
“Actually, my parents rent their place out weekly for big bucks, so, I rented a little cottage down the road,” she explained.
“They weren’t exactly happy I decided to quit my corporate job in Minneapolis to move down here, so I didn’t even ask.
” I admired that she wanted to make it on her own as an artist.
“Yeah, my folks are in California,” Corinne told her. “So I’ve caught a lot of flak for living across the country, especially now that their first grandchild is on the way. But you have to live where you’re happy.”
“My mother moved from Miami to Phoenix, and I still hear complaints that I’m too far away,” Faith added.
“Surely she’s happy you’re a cop in the Keys instead of Miami though. It has to be a lot less dangerous,” Corinne said.
“And a lot more boring,” Ted laughed.
“It’s getting more like Miami every day,” my father scoffed, shaking his head.
“Relax, Pops. There’ve been square groupers washing up in Smugglers Cove for what, forty, fifty years?” Ava said.
“I was referring to bodies found floating, not drugs,” Dad snapped.
“Wasn’t Kylie’s murderer a hitman for a drug lord?” Ava asked Faith.
The hairs on the back of my neck prickled, and heat rose to my face. I shot Ava a look she didn’t catch.
“We don’t know the details, but that was what the Feds implied,” Faith answered hesitantly.
Jasmine’s head swiveled to shoot me a questioning stare. A lump formed in my throat. I hadn’t told her about Kylie’s death. After our own altercation with smuggler thugs, I didn’t want to freak her out further.
“Who’s Kylie?” she asked with a frightened look in her eyes.
“She was a close friend of the family who was killed last Christmas Eve. Don’t worry. They caught the guy.”
“Did you catch him?” she asked Faith, her voice shaky.
“Yes and no. We collected the DNA evidence that identified the killer. But he was already in Federal custody as part of an ongoing narcotics investigation, so they kept his identity secret.”
A hint of anxiety crept into Jasmine’s tone. “Do you think it’s related to the bale that Kai found?”
We’d agreed to no talking about the incident, but now that she was on the subject of the bale, I wasn’t sure she’d stick to it.
She was spiraling before my eyes. Her fingers twisted her napkin until it tore in two.
I couldn’t let her spill the beans. “Not likely,” I blurted.
“Like Ava said, we’ve had bales washing up here for decades. ”
Faith backed me up. “Unfortunately there are many drug operations in South Florida. It’s possible it’s related, but not likely.” She paused to give Jasmine a sympathetic smile, “Don’t worry. Square groupers really are a common occurrence, unfortunately.”
“Well I don’t like it this close to home,” my dad growled. “Especially after Kylie. I hope they throw that bastard that killed her under the slammer.” He shook his head hard. “You guys need to be careful. I don’t like this one bit.”
He was distraught, even without knowing how close to home the threat of more violence still was.
“He’s away for good, Dad,” Coulter said, soothing.
While unaware of my predicament, Coulter was fully attuned to the need to change the subject to divert our dad’s worrying mind.
He’d come a long way since losing our mom, but he was still fragile.
“Didn’t you say the Ellie II is having a timing problem? Let’s go take a look.”
“In the dark?” Dad asked, skeptical. “I don’t think it’s anything to worry about. We just need to adjust it the next time we service those diesels.”
“Well I’m running her tomorrow,” Coulter said, “so I’d rather go listen to it now just to be sure. Come on. A walk down the dock will do you some good.”
“Pfff,” Dad huffed, “I can still run circles around you.” He took a comically long time to get his legs out from under the picnic table and to his feet after his proud assertion. “But I’m serious. You boys need to watch your backs. They’re in our backyard.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Coulter said as he patted him on the back and they headed down the dock.
Reef and Spence exchanged glances, and I felt Jasmine’s unease when I met her eyes. It was so much worse than anyone else knew.