I guided my SUV down the bumpy gravel road and sighed in relief when I hit pavement. A smile stretched across my face as I drove through downtown. I couldn’t wait to really explore. I wanted to frequent as many shops and restaurants as possible so I could give guests catered suggestions of where to visit and eat.
I turned left and headed just a few blocks away from Main Street, pulling into the local hardware store’s parking lot. I needed heavy-duty cleaning supplies and not the stuff I would find at the grocery store. I also needed at least a hundred shop rags. Probably more. Buckets and a mop instead of the little disposable doodads I’d been using up to this point were also on the list. Heck, a hazmat suit probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
A wave of anxiety swept through me as I pictured just how much work needed to be done. Seeing the photos was one thing. Seeing it live and in person as the dust set off an allergic reaction, and my muscles were already weeping from cleaning a single room, was another. I pulled in a long and steadying breath. Just one step at a time.
As I backed into my parking spot, my phone buzzed in the cupholder. I glanced down at the screen.
Vic: You getting settled okay?
Before I could type out a reply, another message popped up in our group chat.
Nathan: Make sure you have your pepper spray and get emergency supplies as soon as possible. You shouldn’t drive in a storm on that island.
Me: Don’t worry. I’ve picked up a few hitchhikers to keep me company and took lots of candy from strangers on the ferry, so I should be good.
Nathan: Not funny.
I grinned down at my phone. I could practically hear Nathan’s growl.
Me: I’m fine. Just getting to the hardware store to pick up supplies. Pepper spray is in my purse, and I’ve got enough bottled water to get me through an apocalypse. Love you both. Stop worrying.
Vic: It’ll never happen. Worrying is our job.
I sent a few heart emojis in return and climbed out of my SUV, leaving the window cracked for Bruno. Heading into the store, I picked up one of the jumbo carts. I would need it. I winced, thinking about how much this shopping trip would cost. But it was unavoidable. Renters wanted clean cabins, and I didn’t think my allergies would survive a week living in a dust tunnel. I mentally added a mask to my list. That might help.
I took my time, slowly weaving my way up one aisle and down the other. Wandering in a store with no real hurry was one of the simple pleasures in life. But as I passed each section, my anxiety ratcheted up a level. Each display of tools and supplies reminded me of something that needed to be done at the Falls.
I stopped in front of a display of industrial cleaners and supplies. “One step at a time,” I whispered to myself. “And the first one is a clean surface so I can evaluate.”
“Are you okay?”
My head snapped up at the question. I’d been lost in my frantic struggle to escape the downward spiral of my thoughts and hadn’t noticed the blonde next to me. I couldn’t help the slightly hysterical laugh that escaped. “No. I’m really not. I bought a resort, and I’m in so over my head, it’s not even funny. Things are falling apart left and right. There’s enough dust in the buildings that I’m going to become a permanent asthmatic. And I’ll have to get extremely creative if I have a prayer of bringing the place back to life.”
The woman let out a full and uninhibited laugh and then held out a hand. “I’m Bell Kipton. And you must be Piper.”
Heat hit my cheeks. “I’m not sure I even want to know how you know my name after I just unloaded like that.”
Bell waved a hand in front of her face. “Please. We all have days like that. And it’s a small island. News travels when someone buys a place like the Falls.”
Small-town life would be an adjustment. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“You, too. I promise folks around here are welcoming, and I have a feeling you’ll get the place up and running in no time. If you need an extra hand with anything, just stop by Second Chances. That’s my shop. I’ll be happy to help.”
The kindness of her offer was almost painful. A reminder that I wasn’t supposed to be on this journey alone. “Thank you,” I croaked out. “I hope you’re right.”
2
Hunter
I winced as I flipped the chicken on the grill but kept right on moving through the pain. If I didn’t start using my arm again, I’d never truly heal. But the months of slow progress were about doing me in.
“Still bugging you, huh?”
My brother handed me a beer, and I took a slow sip, buying myself some time. “My physical therapist says it’ll be a few months before I’m back to one hundred percent. But I’ll get there.” I had to. I had no backup plans or emergency exits. My construction company was my life. And part of that career meant being physical.
Ford nodded slowly. “You’re going crazy, aren’t you?”
“I’m about ready to crawl out of my skin.” I’d gone by the project site to check on my crew no less than half a dozen times in the last few days alone.
“You really think you’re ready to start that big resort job?”
I opened my mouth to say something that would probably sound more like I was biting Ford’s head off, but then I saw the worry lining my brother’s face. I’d put him and my parents through hell after I’d been shot. None of them needed the stress—especially my dad, who’d had a bad stroke a couple of years back. “I’m going to take it slow. I promise.”
Ford took a pull from his beer. “I know you, Hunt. You’ll go slow for about an hour, and then you’ll be bursting at the seams to bring your vision to life.”
He wasn’t wrong. It was how I always operated. There was no high like seeing the thing in your mind come to life in the buildings around you. And I’d been itching to get my hands on the resort for almost a decade. The more years that passed, and the more significant disrepair it fell into, the more I’d considered buying it. The problem had always been what the hell I would do with it after I restored it. This was the best of both worlds. I’d get my hands on the old girl and not have to deal with the aftermath.
I brushed a touch more marinade on the chicken. “I know I’ll only set myself back if I push too hard. That should keep me in check. The last thing I want is to be laid up in your guest room again with Bell clucking over me like a mother hen.”
Ford grinned. “At least, you’ve made it to the Airstream now.”
I glanced out at the silver trailer that had been sitting a few hundred yards from Bell and Ford’s place since before I was shot. “You know a door means nothing to Bell. She’ll just come bursting in, asking if I’ve had breakfast, did my PT exercises… It’s never-ending.”
“I heard that,” Bell’s voice sounded as she appeared in the frame of the back door.
Ford let out a low whistle. “You’re in for it now.”
“You know it’s the truth. Mothering might as well be your second language,” I griped.
Bell crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Well, maybe if you weren’t so indecisive, you’d have a house of your own by now instead of living in our driveway.”