Page 3 of Hargrave Artistry (Brookwell Island)

And she had all the usual issues of her peers. Maybe a few extra considering the hard journey of her mother’s cancer and her own unpredictable career. At thirty-two, she was still figuring out some serious stuff and choosing what she wanted more of in her life.

What people thought she did paled in comparison to the reality. Being creative required energy—emotional and physical. Moments like this one, where she didn’t have expectations about the outcome and could simply enjoy herself, were priceless.

Balling up her napkin, she dropped it onto the plate she’d nearly licked clean.

The strudel was that good. “Thanks for breakfast,” she said.

Because of course Trent had paid. With cash.

Was he afraid she’d learn too much from his last name?

Maybe he was an axe murderer who knew how to not leave a trail.

“My pleasure,” he said. “I hate to run, but?—”

“No worries,” she assured him as they both stood. “I’ve got places to be.”

He held the door for her. “Back to the dock?”

Was that concern she heard in his voice? “No. The Hideaway. Our B&B,” she explained.

He held out a business card and, for a moment, she just stared at it. “Was this whole thing some kind of elaborate sales pitch?” she wondered.

“No, Natalie.”

An actual shiver of delight slid across her nape when he said her name. “Then what?” she prompted.

“It seemed too forward to just ask to put my number in your phone.”

“Forward or normal?” she teased.

“You tell me.” A smile flirted on his lips. “You aren’t handing me your phone.”

They scooted down the sidewalk toward the bike rack, making room for other bakery customers flowing in and out.

Finally, she took his card. She couldn’t just leave it hanging there between them.

And then, following her normal impulse, she gave him a hug.

“This was a great morning, Trent. Totally unexpected in the best way. Thanks again. Take care and enjoy your visit.”

Without looking at the card, she tucked it into her pocket. She would study it carefully as soon as he wasn’t watching.

“Hey, Natalie?”

Already asking her for a second date . She turned back quickly. “Yeah?”

“Make sure that card doesn’t wind up in a sculpture somewhere.”

She grinned, unrepentant. “I promise.”

And with that, she hopped on her bike and peddled away. Back to the house first. With any luck at all, Veronica would still be there and she could tell her sister everything about coffee with the handsome stranger before they both had to get to work.

At the front door, her phone started buzzing in her pocket.

She had a little flutter of hope that it might be Trent, until she realized he didn’t have her number.

She would need to rectify that. She was absolutely open to a short-term fling.

In fact, that was her preference after her ridiculous excuse for a marriage.

“Hello,” she answered without checking the Caller ID.

“Hey, Natalie. It’s Jess. You are my point of contact this week, right?”

Her stomach dropped and it was all she could do to suppress the instant flare of panic. “Yes, of course.” Although, Jess knew it was okay to call any of the sisters about issues at the B&B, Celeste was currently out of town.

“We just received an alert from the security team on site,” Jess explained. “There’s no real problem,” she said. “Just a weird interaction I’d like to review with you.”

Natalie surged through the front door and nearly shouted for Roni before she caught herself. She was an adult. She was the current point of contact. Time to step up and be a professional.

“Do you need me to come to the office?”

“Not if it’s a bother. If you’d take a look at the pictures I sent over, maybe you can shed some light on this. A man pulled up in a sports car and walked straight to the front door. He knocked and called out and seemed reluctant to leave.”

“Weird.” She was suddenly grateful for the distraction Trent had provided. “We don’t have anyone checking in until the day after tomorrow,” she said.

Behind her, a floorboard creaked. Startled, she jumped and spun around, relieved beyond measure to see Veronica. She set the bag of fresh croissants on the counter.

“Hey Jess, Veronica is here too,” Nat said. “You’re on speaker.”

“Great. You can both look at the images from the doorbell camera,” Jess said. “If you recognize him or have any insight, just give me a call back.”

“Okay. Will do.”

Veronica gave her a stern look. “Shouldn’t you be at the Hideaway by now?”

Right . Fresh flowers would be delivered this morning ahead of the new arrivals, and she should do the final walk-through. She was supposed to be getting better about the scheduling. As if Celeste’s perfect record of responsibility would ever rub off on her. “I went out and lost track of time.”

Natalie ignored the glare Veronica aimed at her tote.

“One more thing,” Nat said to Jess. “I’m headed over in just a few minutes. The security team will still be there, right?”

“Absolutely,” Jess assured them. “We’re not going anywhere.”

Ending the call, Natalie swiped the screen to check the images. Recognizing Jackson Griggs, her ex-husband, a litany of curses lodged in her throat.

Veronica didn’t have the same problem and let them all fly, rapid-fire.

“Yikes.” Natalie gaped at her. “Well, I guess you’ve been hanging with some rough sailors lately.”

“My language isn’t the issue.” Veronica’s hand curled into a fist. “That bastard. What’s he doing here, Nat?”

“I don’t have any idea.” Insult and hurt went to battle inside her. How could her sister possibly believe she’d invited her ex to the island? He wasn’t welcome here. Not after everything he’d put her through. “Whatever he’s up to, I don’t know anything about it,” she insisted.

“How does he even know about the summer house?”

“I’m guessing the internet,” Natalie snapped. “I would extend an invitation for him to come snooping anywhere around our homes or the business.”

Why wasn’t it enough that she’d dumped him as soon as she’d seen his true colors?

Yes, she had needed to borrow the money from their parents, but having a good attorney had been essential. Not only that, but she repaid that debt long ago.

Her sisters probably didn’t know the whole story. Too bad. It wasn’t a time of her life she enjoyed rehashing. “Whatever is going on, he left,” she said. “I’ll go take care of things.”

“Nat, wait!”

She kept right on walking.

“I didn’t mean?—”

She took pity on her sister at the door. “Don’t worry about it. Jackson brings out the worst in everyone,” she said. At least everyone with a decent measure of integrity.

“Hang on. Let me make a call and I’ll go with you,” Veronica offered.

Natalie shook her head. “No. It’s fine. I’ll call Jess and let her handle it.” If she had Jackson’s number she would call him too. Thankfully she didn’t have any kind of contact info for her ex-husband. “I’m safe enough with the security team in place. That’s why we have them, right?”

Veronica shrugged. “I suppose. I’m sorry for implying…anything.”

Natalie waved that away. “You don’t need to apologize.” Crossing the room, she wrapped her sister in a big hug, squeezing tightly. “Go have a wonderful day. Make people feel better. I’ll take care of dinner. Just give me a heads up when you’re about an hour out.”

“If you’re sure.”

“Definitely.” With unshed tears prickling the back of her throat, Natalie dashed away before Veronica could see how upset she really was.

She had never wanted to worry her sisters by telling them everything Jackson had put her through. Bad enough that she’d never live down the crappy stunts he had pulled in public around her friends at college.

The whole fiasco with her father was worse. Jackson had bilked him out of ten thousand dollars on a “sure-fire investment” that didn’t have a chance. It was likely that mess had incentivized her parents to loan her the money for an excellent divorce attorney.

She biked over to the Hideaway, wanting the air on her face to blow away the urge to cry. And if Jackson was still hovering nearby, the bicycle gave her a few more escape options than staying on main roads like he would need to in his car.

She stopped in the parking lot of the Pelican Pub, just a few blocks from the Hideaway, to call Jess. The front parking lot was empty so she went around back to where she knew the kitchen door would be open as they set up prep for the day. She did not want to get caught anywhere alone with Jackson.

Within a minute, she’d given Jess all the details she had on her ex. “He is not welcome here at all,” she finished.

“Got it,” Jess confirmed. “And from the tone of your voice, you weren’t expecting him.”

“No. He will never be welcome here,” Natalie said. It wasn’t her nature to be so hard and unforgiving, but Jackson had earned more than a cold shoulder or subtle rebuff. He’d earned a complete and total lockout from the Hargrave family.

Whatever excuses he’d brought here with him, she was not going to be fooled again. She refused to allow him to turn her life inside out for his own amusement or worse—his own profit.

“I’m almost at The Hideaway,” Natalie said. “And I’ll be working there for a couple hours getting things set up for our next arrival.” Basically, she’d be making long work of a short list, dawdling until the last possible moment. Anything to prevent a run-in with her ex.

“I’ll let the team know and make sure they’re prepared,” Jess said. “Remember, if he returns, you’re not alone.”

“Thanks,” Natalie replied. “That helps more than you know.”

She wasn’t sure she would’ve had the courage to stay out here if she’d been alone. She had no idea how the Guardian Agency managed it, but she appreciated their near-invisibility and complete discretion. More today than ever before.