Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
ELI
My footsteps were wooden as I walked the familiar route from my bungalow to Mom’s house, my mind full of conflicting emotions. The taste of Jules’s lips lingered, a ghost of sweetness and passion that refused to fade. Hours later, I replayed every moment of that unexpected kiss.
I sighed heavily and muttered, “It was just a kiss. A really hot, mind-blowing kiss that I absolutely can’t stop thinking about. No big deal.”
But it was a big deal. I couldn’t shake the feeling of Jules in my arms, and it scared the hell out of me. I had a feeling Jules had been pretty shaken up too, even though she quickly backpedaled. At the time, I’d agreed that we needed to forget that kiss ever happened, but now?
Now I couldn’t stop thinking about it.
I’d spent so long avoiding real connection, convincing myself I was happy with my unattached lifestyle. But now? After a single kiss, I wasn’t sure of anything anymore. I felt more like a tortured teenager than a thirty-five-year-old man.
As I approached the house I’d grown up in, that all of us had, I spotted Harper on the porch, hunched over her laptop and her frown lit up by the screen.
“Hey, sis,” I called out, plastering on my best easygoing grin. “You look about as relaxed as a lobster at a seafood festival. What’s got your claws in a twist?”
Harper’s attempt at a smile quickly faded. “Hi there, Eli. I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed.”
I plopped down in the swing next to her, concern replacing my forced cheer. “Talk to me. What’s going on?”
She sighed and closed her laptop. “It’s this whole modernization thing. We need to do it, but I can’t see how.”
Seeing Harper so stressed hit me hard. “You know you don’t have to do this alone, right?”
“I know,” she said softly. “But sometimes it feels like the weight of Sunset Siesta’s entire future is on my shoulders. I’m the manager of the resort. What if I mess it up?”
I wanted to reassure her, to say something profound yet witty that would chase away her doubts.
But my own insecurities about the future, not to mention my conflicted feelings about Jules, left me fumbling for words.
“Sometimes you’ve gotta take risks,” I finally offered, thinking of the way one kiss had shattered my carefully constructed facade.
“Even if it’s scary. You never know what might happen. ”
Harper gave me a curious look. “That’s surprisingly insightful and serious coming from you. Are you feeling okay?”
I couldn’t help laughing. “Just channeling my inner fortune cookie, sis. Don’t get used to it.”
As Harper launched into the details of the budget forecast Jules had given her, and which certainly didn’t include the new scuba kit, the porch steps creaked with footfalls.
Our oldest brother, Ben, marched up, his muscular frame silhouetted against the fading light.
His green eyes, usually sharp and alert, were tired, but there was a satisfied set to his jaw.
“Look what the kitty cat dragged in,” I quipped. “How’s the big, bad world of corporate security?”
Ben grunted, dropping into a nearby chair. “Successful. Stressful. Long.”
I studied my brother, noting the tension in his shoulders despite his claimed satisfaction. “You thinking of another line of work?” I asked.
He lifted one shoulder in an uncomfortable shrug. “I don’t know. I’m grateful to Hunter for hiring me, and the work is rewarding. I like helping people. But it’s not what I want to do long term. I like being outdoors, but I don’t exactly want to do landscaping for the rest of my life, either.”
“You used to talk about becoming a paramedic,” I said as I sprawled in the swing. “Whatever happened with that?”
The change was instantaneous. Ben’s posture stiffened, his eyes darting away. “Nothing to tell. A dead end.”
Harper leaned forward, her voice gentle. “Ben, you were so passionate about that. You’d be amazing at it.”
“It was a stupid idea,” Ben replied, his words clipped. “The resort needs me here. KeyMark pays well. It’s fine.”
Ben’s walls went up, brick by brick. This was a topic I brought up from time to time, just to let him know I hadn’t forgotten about it.
About his desire to make a new start as something other than Dove Key’s resident troublemaker.
His insecurity was palpable, and suddenly, I saw a reflection of my own fears in his stubborn refusal to dream.
“No one’s saying you have to change everything all at once,” I said, treading carefully. “But don’t sell yourself short.”
Ben’s laugh was bitter. “Right. Because book smarts are my strong suit. I barely graduated from high school. I know my place, Eli.”
“That was a long time ago,” Harper added quietly.
“Doesn’t matter.” You could have bounced a quarter off Ben’s shoulders. “Half of Dove Key only sees me as the guy who used to love to get drunk and fight, while the other half refuses to acknowledge that I’m not twenty-five anymore.”
The Coleridges had always had a reputation for trouble, though our reconciliation with the Markhams had tempered that a little. But Ben had always been the poster boy for troubled local.
Harper closed her laptop and faced Ben squarely.
“They might see the past, but we see the man sitting here now. The one who shows up, works hard for Hunter and the resort, and helps Mom without being asked. People notice change, even if it takes time for perceptions to catch up. The EMT idea sounds like you taking control of your story.”
“If only it were that simple, huh?” Ben pushed to his feet and headed to the door. “I’m going to see if Mom needs help.”
“Well, that’s probably our cue also,” Harper said, standing up. “I don’t think Ben is a battle we’re going to win in one night.”
The clink of silverware against plates filled the silence at our family dinner table. I stabbed at a piece of grilled dorado, my mind drifting back to the feel of Jules’s body as I ground my hips into her.
“Eli? You’ve been awfully quiet tonight.” Mom’s voice snapped me back to reality.
“Sorry, just daydreaming about my secret plan to turn the resort into a nude beach.” I flashed her my most charming grin. “Think of the money we’d save on towels.”
Harper huffed but gave up and grinned. Ben let out a snort, nearly choking on his water. Even Mom cracked a reluctant smile.
“Always the comedian,” she said, her tone the usual mix of exasperation and fondness I brought out in it.
I glanced over at Finn, who was quietly pushing his vegetables around his plate, lost in his own world. Poor kid was probably bored out of his mind with all this adult talk.
“Speaking of plans,” Harper chimed in, her eyes meeting mine across the table, “how’s Chase’s consultation coming along? Any progress?”
“He’s still working on it,” I said. “Done a lot of the preliminary stuff, though. You know Chase—thorough to a fault. We probably won’t get his report for another two months.”
Mom dabbed at her mouth with a napkin, her movements deliberate. “About that,” she began, her voice careful. “I’ve been thinking…”
The air in the room seemed to thicken, and I found myself holding my breath.
Mom slowly scanned our faces. “This resort is our legacy, and I want to leave it to you kids someday. I just want to be clear that we need to manage the extent of this. You all witnessed and experienced the fallout from our last financial crisis. We almost went under, your father’s and my marriage shattered irrevocably.
It nearly broke us. Not just the resort, as a family. ”
Mom’s words hung in the air. She toyed with her napkin, her fingers betraying a nervousness I rarely saw.
Harper leaned forward. “Mom, we understand why this scares you. But most of us kids are involved with the resort now, and we can bear most of the burden. I believe we’ve reached the point where we can’t afford not to do this.”
I nodded, surprising myself. “Harper’s right.
Chase has a unique perspective on this whole thing.
He knows all the history but can still approach this with new vision.
And change isn’t always bad, Mom.” The words tumbled out before I could stop them, my runaway mouth betraying me once more. “Sometimes it’s exactly what we need.”
Harper shot me a grateful look, and I felt a surge of solidarity with my sister.
“Eli.” Mom’s voice wavered slightly. “I understand the need for repairs. I’m not blind to how things have slipped around here.
But renovating a resort is a big task. A very big financial risk…
it brings back memories I'd rather forget. And you’ve always been against wholesale change around here too. ”
I swallowed hard. “I know. But maybe it’s time I learned to embrace a little change. And it can’t hurt to see what Chase has to say. If we don’t like it, we don’t act on it.”
Mom stared at each of us, her eyes filled with lingering doubt.
Then at last a smile raised her lips, like the sun peeking through the clouds.
“All right. And I know you’re right, Harper.
All of you are doing a wonderful job here.
There’s no reason for history to repeat, is there? Let’s hear Chase out.”
I let out a breath. “That’s all we’re asking, Mom.”
Harper reached across the table to touch Mom’s hand. “Thank you. We know how much this place means to you. And it means the same to us.”
Mom nodded. “Just… promise me you’ll all be involved every step of the way.”
“Of course,” Harper and I said in unison, exchanging a quick glance.
Mom continued, “Harper, I’m sure you’d like to be the point person on any remodel that might happen.”
Harper gave her an eager nod. “I’d consider it my personal responsibility to be the resort’s representative on all remodel plans. You’re not doing it all yourself this time.”
Mom let out a deep breath that was a little shaky. “And I can’t tell you what a relief that is. Thank you. All of you.”
Ben had been quiet during dinner, but now he wore a small smile. “I’m just glad to hear we’re not bulldozing the place and turning it into a water park,” he said, his voice lightening the mood.
“Hey!” I pointed my fork at him. “Leave the jokes to me, buddy.”
Ben just smirked and took a bite of roast, clearly pleased with himself for stealing my thunder. We settled back into the meal, the immediate hurdle cleared. Bigger questions remained, but maybe they felt less daunting now.
After dinner, Harper and I cleared the dishes. The knots in my shoulders eased, only for a new kind of restlessness to replace them. I kept replaying Mom’s words in my head, “You’ve always been against wholesale renovations.”
Had I? Or had I just coasted along, too lazy to imagine it any other way?
“Thanks for backing me up like that.” Harper handed me a plate to load in the dishwasher. “I know you’ve had mixed feelings about modernizing.”
I shrugged. “Yeah, well, even a broken clock is right twice a day.”
She shook her head and gave me a side-eye. “Is that all it is?”
I rinsed a bowl excessively, buying time. “I don’t know. What if Mom’s right? What if we make all these changes and it blows up in our faces?” Jules’s face flashed in my mind as much as I tried to prevent it.
Harper was quiet for a moment. “That’s a risk we have to take, Eli. Nothing worth having comes without some kind of fight.”
I nodded. “Yeah, but what if you’re not cut out for the fight? What if you’re better off not even trying?”
Harper’s hand on my arm made me turn. “Eli,” she said softly, “are we still talking about the resort?”
I forced a laugh. “Of course we are. What else would I be talking about?”
She didn’t push, but her eyes broadcast her concern. As I resumed rinsing, I wondered how long I could keep pretending that a single kiss hadn’t turned my entire world upside down.
As I walked home, the warm night air clung to my skin.
The cement sidewalk was solid under my feet, but each step felt heavier than the last. Because our family was discussing the most important decision we’d had in decades, and my mind kept drifting back to Jules.
The softness of her lips, that passion she’d shown that damn near undid me.
I groaned, scrubbing a hand over my face. “This is insane. You don’t do relationships, remember? Especially not with someone you’re not supposed to be involved with.”
Yet something kept pulling me toward her, like a tide I couldn’t resist. As I reached my bungalow, I paused at the door. I was playing with fire here, no doubt about it. But I had to wonder if getting burned might be worth it this time.