Page 23 of Hidden Harbor (Evergreen Rescue #1)

I hung around the corner until I spotted Merita Rodriguez opening the door to Anya’s studio. Once Anya was safe, I walked back to the Anchor, unlocking my apartment and grabbing a quick shower before I picked my phone off the charger and drove to the farm.

Scraping out one of the salt houses took my entire morning. A quick protein bar fueled me through my afternoon. I kept one eye on the clock, unwilling to miss my window to go pick up Anya.

Gran ambled into my office ten minutes before I was due to leave. She was dressed for distress in an eye-searing shade of magenta. Today she’d styled her short pink hair in a mohawk. The gravity-defying style suited her.

“Hey, Gran. How’s it going?” I asked absently, trying not to lose my place.

“I hear you’re finally taking my advice.” Her tone was smug, and no doubt her expression matched.

“What advice is that?” I was unwilling to pull my gaze off the invoice matching I needed to finish before I could leave.

“Make bad choices,” she said with relish.

“I think my choices are excellent , thank you very much. And I’m not sure your advice is my wisest course of action. I still remember the sheriff showing up last month after one too many complaints from Mr. Reyes.”

Gran cackled. “But he couldn’t find my shotgun, could he?”

“Just because he didn’t search the house doesn’t mean everyone doesn’t know it was you, shooting out Mr. Reyes’s yard lights.”

“Those crude boobie lights were butt-ugly. Who puts well-endowed statues with LEDs for breasts on their front lawn? I was doing community service, putting his lawn porn out of its misery.”

Sure, she said that now . The day he’d placed them out front of his farm, Zach and I had made bets on whether Gran would buy her own.

Maybe not half-lit ladies, but it probably didn’t take much of a web search to find a well-hung male statue with a light saber to ward off the dark side of good taste.

I was half-convinced Mr. Reyes had put the yard decorations up just to provoke my grandmother. The old man was a cantankerous son of a bitch who was too stubborn to die, even after two heart attacks. Just her type.

Zach’s money had been on waking up to vulgar displays on the front lawn for months.

It’d be just like Gran to steal the ladies she disdained and use them in her own pornographic version of a nativity scene.

Honestly, so long as it wasn’t a lewd display of Mr. Reyes humping Gran in the front lawn, I didn’t care.

“Have you warned your new lady-friend that I’m an excellent shot?”

I narrowed my eyes. Gran smiled angelically. Too bad her personality and decades of personal experience ruined the effect. “I thought Dad took your shotgun away after the incident with the sheriff?”

She leaned across my desk, patting my cheek gently with one papery palm, her serene expression at odds with her bright pink hair.

“Don’t you worry, child. Call me if you need backup. Gran’s always got your back.”

Rolling my eyes would be disrespectful. But mouthing off felt just right.

“Is it having my back when you eject me from the house I’ve lived in for more than thirty years?” I groused, unable to keep the sarcastic edge from my tone.

“That was for your own good,” she snapped back.

“You’ve been stuck, Andrew Fenwick. Too comfortable living out here on the edge of the goings-on, never joining in.

All the sweet young things are in town. You need to be where the action is if you’re ever going to get any. Not living out here with us old farts.”

Arguing with her would get me nowhere. Gran was stubborn AF. And not totally wrong. But damned if I’d admit it. I had places to be.

“Gotta go, Gran. Lock up for me?” I grabbed my wallet and dropped a kiss on her wrinkled cheek.

She smirked, eyes dancing. “Where are you running off to, lover boy?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I parried, striding toward my truck.

“Child, give me five minutes, and I’ll know everything about her, down to her shoe size.”

“She’s a ten,” I called back over my shoulder, grinning to myself as I drove into town.

Gran might be a pain in the ass, but I wouldn’t trade her for anything. She either hadn’t made it to the upstairs bathroom since I implemented step one in my revenge, or she’d been smart enough not to admit it.

I slipped into my apartment at the Anchor and snipped a few daffodils from the grounds before walking down to Anya’s studio before four.

Maybe it was silly, but the bright flowers made me think of her, always sunny and cheerful.

I wanted to make her happy. Or at least help her forget what had made her sad last night for a moment.

Watching her cry and being unable to do more than hold her had nearly gutted me.

She still hadn’t trusted me with the whole story, but she was close.

Dinner might give her the time and space she needed to come out with all of it.

Unless she wanted a one-man security detail shadowing her every day, I needed answers.

Anya looked up from the front desk. Her blonde hair was swept up away from her face. Her white teeth clenched around a pencil, as if worrying the fine wood comforted her as she stared down at her tablet. The glimpse of her studious side made me instantly hard. Inconvenient but unavoidable.

Her serious expression morphed into a welcome that made the small ball of anxiety I carried with me when we were apart ease. She was fine. Nothing to worry about. I smiled, extending my bouquet.

“For you.”

She clutched them close. “You’re so sweet. Thank you, Drew.” She slid one bloom from the bouquet, extending it to me. “You’re always keeping me warm and bringing me gifts. But you deserve some sunshine in your life too.”

My fingers grazed hers as I accepted the flower. “Sunny Girl, you already bring the light to my life. Flowers are just me trying to keep up. Ready to pack up for the day?”

“Sure.” She wrinkled her nose. “Quarterly tax filings will wait to plague me another day.”

“You do your own?” I shook my head. “That was one of the first things I outsourced. Numbers and I are not friends. I’m grateful Mom took it on when she retired.”

A shadow flickered in her eyes. “It’s important to have an accountant you trust.”

“Mmhm,” I agreed, entwining her fingers.

She locked up, and we walked up the hill, one arm full of flowers, and the other hand held tightly in mine, swinging between us.

She unlocked her back door, and I trailed her into the kitchen.

Anya pulled a vase from beneath the sink and arranged our flowers, placing them on the kitchen table.

I filled two glasses with water and joined her on the couch, getting as close as I could without sitting in her lap.

She snuggled into my shoulder with a tiny smile, like she knew I was craving her.

“Can you come to dinner tomorrow night?” Anya asked.

“Sure. I plan to be your shadow until you tell me you’re tired of me.”

She laughed like I was joking.

“What do you feel like for dinner tonight?” I asked.

“Not cooking.”

“Done. Is it a sexy grilled cheese kinda night, or would you prefer to go out?”

She arched a delicate brow. “ Sexy grilled cheese? Do you use fancy cheddar or something? What makes it a ‘sexy’ grilled cheese?”

“It’s sexy ‘cause I made it.”

She giggled. “What, like cooking is the sexiest thing a man can do for a woman?”

“No,” I said officiously. “I have many sexy qualities.”

“Of that I have no doubt.” Her eyes danced. “But just so I’m clear what’s on offer here, why don’t you tell me more?”

“Ack. Stop .” Vi walked into the living room, rubbing her eyes. “I do not want to hear this listing of virtues. There are some things a sister doesn’t need to know.”

“Sorry, Vi. We didn’t know you were here.”

“ Obviously .”

“What are you doing home so soon?” I asked.

Violet winced. “Migraine. I got Marni to cover for me at the shop so I could come home and try to nap.”

“Ouch. Sorry,” Anya said, exchanging a glance with me. “How do you feel about grilled cheese for dinner?”

“I’m too nauseated to eat. You guys go ahead, and I’ll grab something later.”

She spoke softly, like even the volume in her head was too painful to manage. Anya and I exchanged another silent communication.

“Do you want us to bring you takeout from the brewery?” I asked. When she lived at home, she used to crave spicy foods after a migraine.

“Pizza?” She perked up, smiling at me. “Extra pepperoni, please.”

“Sure thing, Vi. We’ll get out of your hair. I hope you feel better.” I wrapped one arm around my sister in a gentle hug. “Text me if you need anything else.” She nestled against my shoulder for a moment.

“Thanks.” She winked at Anya. “He’s very caring. It’s one of his many sexy qualities.” She patted my cheek. What was it with the Fenwick women treating me like I was ten? “Go on, have a good dinner. I’m going to grab an ice pack and chill.”

Anya changed into jeans and a sweater, and we walked down the hill, lucky enough to snag a table at the brewery without a wait.

Dinner was hot and filling, and the glass of wine Anya chose seemed to help her relax. Faint shadows shaded the delicate skin beneath her eyes. Her graceful features were too beautiful to look haggard, but the worry was taking its toll.

Her phone buzzed as we finished our meal, and she reached for it. Color leached from her expression. A fine tremble started in her hand.

I wanted to reach through the phone and deck whoever made her flinch like that. My fists clenched in my lap. Just one well-aimed punch was all it would take.

“What is it?” I was careful to keep my tone calm.

She set her phone down with a sigh, bringing her gaze to meet mine. “I’d rather talk in private.”

Concerned, I nodded. “Let me put in Vi’s order and pay our tab.”