Page 4 of The Dangers of Daydreaming (Love Connections #2)

Only Hope

Lucy

The curse was alive and well.

I had let Ellie handle all the bookings, but I had gone over the entire itinerary with her before leaving.

I knew I’d seen confirmation numbers, but now I couldn’t be sure if they’d been on the itinerary or just on her computer screen.

And then a toddler had tried to flatten me like a pancake.

That one was a particularly creative plot twist from the curse.

A dull throbbing was starting behind my eyes. Deep breaths. I wasn’t stranded—not exactly. I had my credit card and this country had several hotels. Everyone here spoke English. I could make this work.

So why did my heart seem to think a bear was chasing me in the woods?

My eyes caught sight of the man from before. Tall, dark… and familiar? But also not. Really, his most apparent trait was how he was staring at me. What the heck. Had he been watching me have an existential crisis for the last several minutes? Had he asked something?

“Kinda reminds you of the sixth-grade field trip, don’t you think?”

“I’m sorry—what?” I looked over my shoulder. Had I wandered between two people’s conversation? No one was there.

“You know—when you forgot your lunch, and I saved you by sharing mine.”

My mind was whirling to catch up. I felt like I’d just opened a book and started reading from page 93. Characters, situations, and inside jokes I didn’t understand. Except… his words sparked something in me. My eyes swept over him.

No.

Nope. It couldn’t be. The curse wouldn’t be that cruel.

His lips were stretching into a grin I couldn’t have forgotten if I’d tried.

I kept my expression neutral. “You did not share your lunch, you stole half of David Ackleberry’s and pretended it was yours.”

He didn’t look at all repentant. His smile had grown even wider. “It’s good to see you, Lucy.”

Strangely, it was a little good to see him too. Strange, because Finn Harrison was my junior high nemesis. But good because I was mentally drowning, and seeing a familiar face was like a little buoy thrown my way. Who would have thought I’d ever be happy to see Finn, though? Ever?

Finn folded his arms, and I realized I hadn’t responded. “Nice to see you too,” I said.

He laughed. “Once more, this time with feeling.”

I shook my head. It seemed his humor hadn’t changed one bit in the last decade.

“Listen,” he said, surprising me with a somewhat serious tone. “I overheard you talking to Simon. Your car fell through? And hotel?”

My face went hot. “Yeah, I guess so.”

“Well, I just so happen to have a place for you to stay.”

I was not staying at this man’s apartment. I didn’t care if it was the last lodging available on the island, I’d board a plane and try again next week. Honestly, what did it matter if Gary got the promotion, after all? He was, you know, a whole month my senior.

“So, as I said, I think this will be reminiscent of our sixth-grade field trip—I hope you don’t mind being in my debt a second time.”

I shook my head at his bad jokes. “I should be fine. I just need to make a few new bookings, and then I’ll be on my way. Thanks, though. ”

He pushed his hands into his pockets, looking like he was enjoying this all too much.

“My grandparents own a bed-and-breakfast and a tour company. I’m here picking up a group right now.

” He jerked his thumb over to the family whose toddler had launched a human missile attack on my luggage.

His thoughts seemed to go in a similar direction because he grimaced and said, “Don’t hold their three-year-old against me. ”

That actually almost made me laugh.

“I know they have a few vacancies, and I have room in the van to take you back to the inn.”

I hesitated. Sure, it was nice to have an option…

but did I really want to be reliant on Finn Freaking Harrison for my safety right now?

The guy had made my junior high years miserable between teasing me for my vocabulary and holding my books ransom.

Of course, I was well aware that was standard middle-school-boy behavior, but still.

Did I want to be running into this man the whole time I stayed there?

“I don’t stay at the inn, myself, if that helps,” he said nonchalantly, correctly interpreting my silence.

“Where is it? The inn.”

“Just outside of Victoria. A little over half an hour to Charlottetown.”

Hmm. Not exactly where I wanted to be stationed during this trip, but not too far off. My original hotel had been in Charlottetown, but I’d need to travel around the island anyway.

I checked my phone again. Nothing from Ellie.

I blew out a breath. Should I contact Shannon?

It was a Saturday, so the likelihood of someone being in the office was low.

Even Gary and Marissa (not Bryn, surprisingly) had flown out yesterday to their respective tours.

No one would be around to help me until Monday.

So, I needed a fix now. The itinerary Ellie had sent had the name of the hotel and rental car company, but not confirmation numbers. I’d checked all my texts and emails and couldn’t find anything there either .

My chest was tight. This was not helping convince me to travel more. Could I use it as an excuse not to go to Mom’s destination wedding? Sorry, Mom, I tried to give the curse another shot, and it attacked with a vengeance—I’m afraid your nuptials aren’t worth angering it further.

Finn was watching me with an amused expression, and I realized with a jolt of embarrassment that I’d forgotten to answer again. I couldn’t help it that my mind was a very entertaining place.

“Okay,” I said.

His brows raised. “Yeah?”

I just nodded. I was feeling a little queasy about the whole thing. Was this a terrible choice? I’d been a travel agent long enough to realize that hiccups and mistakes happened on trips. You just had to pivot.

Cue the Friends scene of Ross yelling, “Pivot! Pivot!” It was an appropriate comparison—I was feeling fairly panicked about it myself.

I grabbed my suitcase off the conveyor belt and stood. That family was starting to gather near the exit.

Finn glanced over at them, then settled his eyes on me. “Ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

Cheaper Than Therapy

Lucy : Made it to Prince Edward Island. None of my bookings went through, so I hitched a ride to a B&B.

Hope I see you all again someday. If not, Poppy can have my houseplants.

Dani, Sadie, and Avery can split my books.

I don’t know if I have anything Chloe wants, but feel free to raid my house pre-estate sale. ???

I glanced up at Finn from my window seat in one of the van’s middle rows.

My cousins all knew him. I had spent sixth, seventh, and part of eighth grade complaining about the guy almost nonstop.

About how everyone else liked him—even the teachers—and how he was nice to everyone but me.

It might take them a second to place his name, but if I said Finn Harrison had saved me, they would know exactly who that was.

But something held me back from mentioning him: a desire to figure out just what mid-twenties Finn was like before I had to justify the weird safety I felt around him.

Especially since there was currently a toddler impersonating a tap dancer on the back of my seat.

Finn glanced back in the rearview mirror, catching me watching him. I quickly pretended I was just looking out the windshield.

The van rocked as we pulled onto a dirt road.

A colorful wooden sign with scalloped edges read The Seaside Barn and Breakfast , and behind it rose a beautiful three-story farmhouse.

It sat, almost cradled in a semicircle of blossoming trees that extended back as far as the eye could see.

A handful of other buildings were scattered amidst the orchard—one that seemed to be a small house and another red, quintessential barn were the most prominent.

It looked like a postcard.

The van pulled to a stop, and I circled it to grab my bag from the back. Finn was already there, pulling out everyone’s luggage. He handed me my bag.

“ Thanks,” I said, a bit awkwardly. What was I supposed to do with this version of my junior high nemesis? Yeah, I knew people grew up and grew out of immaturity (some of them, at least), but I was having a hard time reconciling the Finn in my head with the one currently in my face.

Which reminded me that I was staring again. And I think he was silently laughing at me.

I backed away, extending the handle of my rolling suitcase and pulling it behind me, bumping over small rocks as I made my way to the front of the inn.

It was adorable. A porch ran the length of the first story, a gable jutted out with a singular window on the third floor, and flowers surrounded the front while trees hugged the back.

The first step creaked a little as I made my way up, but the door swung open on well-oiled hinges, revealing a wide, wood-paneled entry with cased openings on either side.

One passed what looked like a dining room, and another was furnished with bookshelves and comfy chairs.

Directly in front of me, next to a doorway further into the house, was a long desk with a young woman behind it, smiling.

“Welcome to the Seaside Barn and Breakfast. Can I help you get checked in?” The cute girl had braces ringed in pink rubber bands and was wearing a light green branded T-shirt that matched the sign outside.

“Yes, thank you. I need to book a room…” For how long? It made the most sense to settle in for the full two weeks, but that also meant seeing Finn for that long. Maybe. Maybe all he did was pick up tours. I might not see him again or hardly at all. “For two weeks,” I finished, deciding.

“Perfect, we have our gable room available for that time.” She went over the cost and details, and I filled out all the paperwork and was given a key.

“Oh, and do you have Wi-Fi I can connect to?” I needed to get started booking tours and planning my trip.