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They didn’t deserve it. Any of it.

Maybe itwastime to leave the only place that had really felt like home.

He lay back on the bed and reached for his phone charging on his nightstand. He unplugged it and tapped on the name in his Favorites list. He stabbed the speaker button and listened to it ring.

“Asher, good to hear from you. It’s been a couple of weeks.” His counselor’s voice boomed through the phone.

“Hey, man. Yeah. I’ve been busy.” Asher shoved a hand in his back pocket and paced between the bed and the door.

“What’s going on?” Corbin’s voice mellowed into his usual counselor role.

Asher dropped on the edge of the bed once again and poured out what had just happened with Sadie.

“How will I be able to look at Hetty or Sadie again, knowing I’m the one who crushed their family? How could I not know her sister was on my own bus? And she thinks I was trying to pay off her family.” Just saying it out loud made Asher want to smash his fist through the wall. Instead, he cradled his head in his hands.

“Your manager handled the aftermath while you spent months healing from the accident, right? Didn’t you tell me he sent the money to the families as a way of saving face?”

“Yeah, but I didn’t care about saving face. I cared more about the people’s lives I wrecked. He could’ve given them all of my money—I wouldn’t have cared. But now I learned the families—or at least one of them—felt I was paying them off. Like I was trying to cover something up.”

“Come clean with Sadie. Her grandma too. Let them know who you are and that you had honorable intentions with the money.”

Asher scrubbed a hand over his face. “I’m still helping her with her grandmother’s bakery, and she agreed to help with the carriage tours during the festival. Maybe if I can prove she can trust me, then I can share about my past and she’ll be a little more understanding. Especially when she hears my side of the story.”

“As long as you’re aware the longer you let it go, the harder it will be to receive the news.”

“No matter when I do it, it’s going to crush her anyway.”

“Perhaps reading the police report will give you some insight into what to share with her, especially with the rumors. Put those to rest once and for all.”

Asher’s eyes shifted to the dresser. “Yeah, maybe.”

Their call ended, and Corbin’s advice echoed in Asher’s ears. Asher fell back on his bed and dragged his wet hair off his face. His stomach rolled again.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that no matter when he did it, though, it wasn’t going to be enough. His confession was going to destroy anything between them.

He knew what he had to do. If only he could hold off for just a little longer until his aunt and uncle returned to the island.

Then Asher would leave before he caused any more pain.

And that made him sadder than he’d like to admit, because against his better judgment, he was falling for Sadie.

Chapter Ten

Man, Asher hadn’t expected to hit so many roadblocks with trying to bring a few more horses back on island. But without his uncle’s permission, written or verbal, Sawyer Hastings, owner of Hastings Horses where the horses wintered in the off-season, wouldn’t release more horses to Asher, even though they belonged on the Quinn ranch.

While Asher appreciated the man’s integrity, the setback led to frustration.

If he could bring a handful of horses onto the island for a few weeks, then they could offer more carriage rides during the music festival weekend. The extra money would help speed up the opening of the business next season.

He hated not being able to accomplish his goals.

If he wanted horses, he’d have to get his uncle involved instead of surprising him with the progress he’d made.

Now that the carriage was ready and the drive around the ranch had been successful, Asher was eager to launch the family business once again.

The soft opening would show tourists one more perk of visiting the island.

Instead of going to his uncle, maybe Eliza would be able to help.