Chapter 6
SIX
Remy
"Dude, what’s gotten into you?" Tate says to me, then turns to our other brother, Max. "Check this out. Our normally upbeat little bro here is Mr. Crankypants."
Trying to ignore them, I stuff the rest of my chicken salad sandwich in my mouth.
It's Wednesday afternoon, which means the three of us are sitting at our favorite table at the Haunted Hearth, Cypress Grove’s best lunch spot.
Usually, our sister Natalia joins us, but she's in Orlando for some big jewelry show and is buying beads or stones or whatever for her business.
I can't keep track of her because she's like a tornado.
Max smirks. "Yeah, Remy's been uncharacteristically silent today. And I noticed he didn't flirt with the new waitress. Are you feeling okay?"
He reaches to feel my forehead and I lean away from him, grimacing.
"Is it Damien? You worried about him?" Tate asks, a line of concern creasing his forehead. Like the rest of my family, they know about my tight bond with my twin. Even though we're nothing alike, we're inexplicably, even psychically, linked.
Tate shows his concern for me because he's always been the kindest of us five Hastings kids. Max and Natalia are both snarky. Damien's brooding. I'm the joker.
Tate's a straight-up Cinnabon roll. Gooey and sweet. Even sweeter now that he's with Isabella.
"Nah, I talked to him this morning. He's doing great. The fires are wrapping up out there. He should be home soon. He can't wait to see Kate."
"Yeah, we're all due for a Damien reunion," Max muses. “We should plan a big party. Mom would love that.”
"I don't think he wants us all crowding him," I add, scooping up some chips and shoveling them in my mouth. "And frankly, I don't think I could handle being around all of you, so happily coupled up. Lord help me. It's me and Nat left standing."
"Oh, so that's what you're grumpy about," Tate says in a cheerful voice.
"Whatever." I sip my iced tea.
My brothers stare at me. They're not used to me being miserable.
"Hate to admit it," I say. "But I had a weird encounter with a woman."
"Dude," Tate cuts in. "I was just with you twenty-four hours ago at the springs. Did you meet up with that mermaid?"
Max blinks. "Wait, what mermaid?"
"Long story," Tate jumps in. "Bella and Remy and I were at Paradise Springs yesterday and this woman with a mermaid tail swims up to us. Real-life mermaid, the whole thing. Of course Remy was instantly in love, and then he fell off the platform. Literally and metaphorically."
Max chuckles. “Not sure what you mean by real life mermaid, but I wish I’d seen that.”
"I meant to fall off the platform," I grin.
"Suuuure," Tate retorts. "And then she swam away from him. But apparently that wasn't the end of the story."
Max signals the waitress for the check, and I reach for my wallet because it's my week to pay.
"We ran into each other in the parking lot."
"And?" Tate asks.
"And I took her to Lime and Salt. Kate was there. Made us a couple of mocktails."
"You took your mermaid to Kate's?" Max's eyebrow shoots up.
"Yes, I took my mermaid to Kate's."
"And?" Tate prods.
"And we kissed on the deck. Then she drove home."
Tate snickers. "And?"
"And we exchanged numbers. I texted her right after she drove off."
"And?" Max joins in. They love to tease me.
"And she started to reply. The three dots came up. Then they disappeared."
"...And?"
"And she hasn't texted since."
Both my brothers stare at me.
"Dang, dude, that's cold," Max says, a smile spreading. "Maybe you met your match."
"It's not — I'm not — okay, look," I say. "I’ve been waiting all day to text her again because I don't want to be the desperate guy."
"You ARE the desperate guy," Max says.
"Yeah. I figured that out about three texts ago. The ones I haven't sent."
Tate’s grinning like Christmas morning. "Remy. My brother. The Playboy of Paradise Springs. Stymied by three little dots."
"Yes."
"I love this. I am loving this,” Max laughs.
The waitress comes over, and he points to me. "He's paying."
She takes my cash and walks away. Max is right. Normally I'd be checking her out, flirting, trying to get her number. Today, I feel zero attraction.
"I've gotta get to the Chamber meeting," Max says. "You two clowns going? The business part of the meeting starts soon."
Max reminds me of Dad when he talks like that.
"Yeah, I guess so," I mumble, throwing some cash on the table. "We can walk over."
"In this heat?" Max scoffs.
Tate and I both ignore his question and start down the street. Max's blood has thinned or something since he returned from New York, because unlike me and Tate, he can no longer handle being in the sun much.
My two brothers talk about resort business as we walk the four blocks on Main Street from the Haunted Hearth to the Chamber office, but I lag behind, still thinking about my texting standoff with Leilani.
It's not like I was looking to marry her or anything. But our connection was something I haven't felt in years. And I'd hoped to keep talking. To see her again. To find out what kind of person opens a mermaid-themed bar.
Since yesterday morning, she's all I've thought about. The way she laughed when I slipped. The way her skin smelled like coconut.
Every time I think I have her out of my head, something brings her back. The color of the sky. A truck the same make and model as hers. A song on the radio about a girl who keeps walking away.
I'm not normally this kind of guy. Maybe my brothers are, but I'm not. I'm a lone wolf, a confirmed bachelor.
Okay, so I did look her up online last night. There were a surprising number of videos of her as a mermaid at Weeki Wachee. I watched all of them. She’s super talented.
This has gotta stop, because I have charters booked and things to do. She's probably been at Mermosa all day, drowning in contractor estimates and lists, just like she described. She'll text me when she's ready. Or she won't.
My brothers and I make our way into the chamber office to the check-in table. I'm not the kind of guy who would join an organization, but Max and Tate convinced me that it was something I needed to do for my business. And it does help me network, so that's why I come.
Dr. Andrew Green, the Chamber president, is at the table. He owns a walk-in medical clinic here in Cypress Grove and is also president of the regional NAACP. And he's an excellent fisherman with a hella expensive boat. Dude practically beat me at the last Cypress Grove fishing rodeo.
"The Hastings brothers!" Andrew calls out, shaking Max's hand. They went to high school together and have been friends since they were kids. He extends his hand to Tate, then to me.
"Y'all going to sign up for the mentor contest?" he asks. "Ten grand on the line for our new business owners. We're pairing mentors and mentees today. Perfect timing for your arrival."
I groan silently. The annual mentor program pairs new business owners with existing businesspeople, and the teams compete for the cash prize. For a new, small business owner, ten grand is a welcome chunk of cash.
But I'm not a team kinda guy, and have always successfully avoided this particular event. Had I known this was on the agenda, I'd have skipped this meeting. Mid-week mornings are good for prepping the boat or sneaking in a couple of hours on the river before tomorrow's tour.
"Naw, I just don't have time," Max says, clapping Andrew on the shoulder. "Running the resort is taking more time than I have. Sorry."
Of course he doesn't have time. Resort my butt. He's too busy with Lauren, getting pedicures or massages or whatever. Taking photos at sunset for her Instagram. I grab my membership badge, wondering if I can duck out early.
"I'll do it," Tate pipes up, and Andrew hands him a red ticket. "That's why I came. I believe in giving back, unlike my brothers here."
I roll my eyes. Tate is such a do-gooder. Civic pride and all that jazz.
"Remy, you in?" Andrew asks.
"Nah, sitting this year out. Thanks, though."
The three of us wander toward the crowded meeting room. "Holy crap, when did it get so crowded at these meetings? There must be a couple hundred people here."
"You haven't been in a while, have you?" Tate quips.
"Guess not. Hey, I'm going to grab a cup of coffee."
I break away from my brothers and fill a paper cup with brown liquid.
Andrew's now at the front of the room, welcoming everyone and talking about routine Chamber stuff.
I stand near the doorway, eyeing the table where my brothers are sitting.
They've left an empty chair for me, right next to Kate, Damien's wife.
Andrew starts talking about the mentor program — I have to hand it to him, he doesn't screw around with jokes or filler — and I'm thinking about slipping out when I spot a familiar-looking head of golden hair.
No. That can't be Leilani. Can it?
The woman's wavy hair looks exactly like hers, but since her back is to me, I'm not a hundred percent certain it is her. If I go sit with my brothers, I might get a better look from that angle.
I weave my way through the tables and plop down. First, I grin at Kate, and then twist in my seat so I can pretend to listen to Andrew.
Kate clocks my expression and looks at where my eyes are pointed. She arches an eyebrow. "Oh, this is going to be good," she murmurs.
"Don't," I mutter.
"I'm not doing anything."
I scowl at her.
"And our first mentee is the owner of a brand new bar here in Cypress Grove.
It's called Mermosa, and it's a mermaid-themed bar.
Isn't that a great name? Mermosa? It's like mermaid and mimosa — two of my favorite things.
Let's give a big hand to Leilani Kostas, and she can talk about her new establishment!
" Andrew extends his arm in her direction, and she stands.
Yep. It is her. My stomach clenches.
She's wearing a black-and-white polka-dot blouse and a tight, black skirt that hits just below her knees. She walks to the podium and I inhale sharply. Her hair is down, in soft, dusky gold waves. It's pinned to one side with a red flower, and she's wearing matching red lipstick.
She catches my eye across the room.
The color drains from her face. Then floods back in.
Beside me, Kate makes a small sound that could be interpreted as either coughing or laughter. I'm pretty sure it's laughter.
"Thank you," Leilani says into the microphone, her voice slightly thrown.
"My business is a bar called Mermosa. Sorry, Andrew already said that.
I'm a bit nervous. The bar will be a casual establishment with food, and people can book mermaid-themed parties.
There will be a large tank in the bar where mermaids in costume will swim as entertainment. "
A ripple of laughter and applause erupts.
Andrew says something about how she was a Weeki Wachee mermaid, and the room applauds again. Obviously, people love this idea; in Cypress Grove, the more unique and quirky the business, the better.
I feel a jab to my ribs.
"Dude," Tate hisses. "That's your mermaid."
I shoot him a dirty look.
"As you all know, now we pick a mentor from the people who signed up.
Leilani's mentor will help her hone her business plan and oversee her launch.
All the new businesses in the program are opening within three months.
The team that has the most successful launch, judged by the criteria in the contest rules, will win the ten-thousand-dollar cash prize.
" Andrew shakes a green plastic bucket, the kind that kids use on the beach.
He dips a hand inside. "And the number is zero-eight-eight-six. "
He brandishes the ticket, and the room buzzes with the voices of people who are looking at their own tickets to see if they match. Some of the men in the room are sitting straighter, hoping their number's been called. This adds to my discomfort.
"Who's got the winning ticket?" Andrew calls out. "Zero-eight-eight-six."
"Zero-eight-eight..." Tate says, holding his ticket at arm's length. "Whoa. Would you look at that?"
My gaze snaps to the red ticket between my brother's thumb and forefinger. I scan the final number and a surge of adrenaline shoots through me. It's a match.
Without thinking, I snatch the ticket out of my brother's hand and stand, holding the red slip of paper in the air with both hands like I've caught a prizewinning tarpon.
"Me! Right here. I'm the match." I let out a good old boy whoop and Andrew glances at me, confusion in his eyes.
"I decided to participate after all," I holler.
Andrew chuckles.
"Okay, then. We have a match! It looks like we're pairing Leilani Kostas with Remy Hastings. A mermaid and a fishing guide. Sounds perfect, doesn't it, folks?"
The room applauds, and I take a bow, a huge grin on my face.
I'm not a hundred percent certain of what I just signed up for, but the stunned look on Leilani's pretty face is totally worth claiming her as my prize.