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Chapter Five

MURPH

“And my third favourite kind of Greek column—oh! We’re back where we started.” Eden beams up at me. “Was that the whole tour?”

Damn it.

We’ve walked all the way around Sunrise Island, but I’m not ready for this date to be over. Eden’s been chattering away, telling me how he feels about damn near everything in the world. Even when he’s obviously trying to provoke me, I like how he fills the silence. It makes a real nice change in my quiet life.

“Not yet.” I have an idea. I offer Eden my arm like I’m taking him to prom. “There’s one more place left to see.”

Eden giggles as he wraps both hands around my arm, falling into step beside me. “Oh? Do tell. Is it inside your home, or outside?” The innuendo is hard to miss.

“Outside.” Eden pretends to be shocked, and I poke him gently in the ribs. “Stop it. It’s just a pretty view.”

It’s much more than that. Brothers’ Cove is where my best friends and I bring anything that matters, from people to problems to celebrations. But hopefully Eden will find that out for himself, in time.

“I’ll accept that consolation prize.” Eden winks up at me. “Pretty views are the way to an artist’s heart.”

“And mine,” I tell Eden, my voice laden with meaning as I let my gaze linger on him, studying his long eyelashes and sculpted cheekbones.

“Oh,” he breathes out softly. Then he beams at me, his eyes fixed on mine. It feels almost like I could just lean down and...

“Oof!”

Shit. Eden’s stumbled in a pothole, and he’s lurching face-forward.

“Whoa.” My reflexes are automatic—by the time I realize what’s happened, I’ve caught his other arm as he squeaks and clutches me. “Careful there,” I add, steadying him. “The potholes can get real bad by this time of year. Especially if you’re clumsy.”

Eden’s surprise fades, and he snorts. “That was your fault.”

“Was it?” As we set off again, I wrap my arm around his shoulders… just to make sure.

“Mmhmm.” Eden sassily grins up at me. “You’ve been staring into my eyes all afternoon. It’s very distracting.”

He’s not wrong. Eden has been doing most of the talking, and I’ve been doing most of the staring. But putting it that way makes me sound like a real weirdo.

“They’re still your feet,” I point out. “And your eyes. You can move them where you want.”

Eden bats his lashes, walking even closer to me—so close he’s almost pressed right up against my side, his steps falling into sync with mine. “No, I can’t. Anyway, I was bound to swoon sooner or later.”

I raise my eyebrow. “You call that swooning?”

“Yes. Therefore, it’s all your fault.”

I give up. However ridiculous his arguments, I can’t help but react to him. Especially when he sidles up close like this, and makes the words disappear right off my tongue.

Not that I’m a words guy, really. I’m a physical guy. And Eden’s body is warm and firm. He’s tucked perfectly against me, his breath tickling my neck.

I can almost feel it now. I want to slide my arm down a few inches, hold him tightly around his shoulder blades. My other arm can go around his waist. That way, I can crush him against my chest and hold him in place as I lean down?—

Fuuuck.

I gulp, searching for a distraction. “That’s my mailbox!” I point it out, my voice suddenly booming. “And everyone on this side of the island. It’s a big, shared… you know, community… mailbox…” I cut myself off as Eden gives me a wicked grin, and my cheeks heat up like fire.

Fuck me, I’m trying to explain Canada Post. Who’s chattering now?

“Mmm,” Eden innocently hums. “So that’s where you walk to pick up all your love letters.”

I shake my head. Obviously, there’s only one way to win with him. “Yes,” I tell him, deadpan. “I got these biceps from the crushing weight. Just stacks and stacks of love letters, every day. You should see the mailman.”

For once, instead of a sultry giggle, Eden’s laughing in this boisterous, crashing wave of noise… and I’m spellbound.

It’s easy to feel drawn to Eden’s coy flirtation, or even his hapless enthusiasm. But this is what I’ve been waiting for: the currents hidden in the depths. In this moment of unrestrained laughter, something raw and real glitters like a droplet of water when the clouds break.

Eden wipes his eyes and catches his breath. There it is: a sudden shift in his expression, like he’s hurrying to rearrange himself into a pretty, alluring version of himself. But then Eden starts giving me the weirdest look, which probably means I’ve been staring for too long… again.

“Hm?” I grunt.

Eden clears his throat, gently wrapping his hand around my arm. “Nothing. It’s just… you’re looking at me like I’m—” he suddenly cuts himself off, but not in time to stop the flash of something painful in his eyes.

I saw it earlier today. I might not know what Eden’s been through, exactly, but I’ve seen it before, too. A lot of people find their way to Sunrise Island when they need to heal.

“Mmm?” I hum, reaching for Eden’s hand.

He gives it to me with a startled glance, a flash of a tentative smile. A nervous quiver runs through him, and sparks race up my arm as I lace my fingers between his. I squeeze his hand as tightly as I dare… and I wait for whatever he’s ready to tell me.

Eden’s still staring down, with a troubled frown, like he’s trying to find words. When he finally looks up at me, I offer him a smile for strength. He smiles back at me, nervous but open. “It’s just… nice,” he says at last. “Being here.”

Thank god.

Mainlanders tend to have one of two reactions when they come here. Most of them think Sunrise Island is either a pretty day trip or a cult. But sometimes, newcomers set foot here and feel the same pull as the rest of us islanders.

If you’re supposed to be here, Sunrise Island calls you home.

“Glad you like the place,” I tell him, but before my chest can swell with pride, I catch Eden’s little smile. “Uh—you did mean being on Sunrise, right?”

Eden’s smile grows as he gently swings our intertwined hands back and forth. “I meant being here… on this date, with you. All of it’s nice.”

A blush creeps up the back of my neck as he beams up at me, and my chest floods with nervous excitement.

I hope Eden gives me the chance to learn everything about him. I want to get to know every version of him—grumpy, stubborn, polished, raw, demure, boisterous. I want to learn how they fit together. I want to be able to read the forecast on his face like water. I want to anticipate the currents underneath. And I think he’s one of the few people who could keep on surprising me along the way.

How the fuck do I say any of this to him?

Thanks ? Yeah, that’s bad. I think you’re nice, too ? Even worse. Thanks, glad you think I’m nice ? Fuck, no.

“Good,” I finally manage, my voice hoarse. “I’m glad you’re here, too.”

Eden finally looks away, just glowing away as he studies the mailbox. “Mmm. So, was this the pretty view? Do you have a Canada Post fetish?”

I snort, shaking my head. “We’re close. It’s just down this path, if you’re still up for it.”

“Oh, yes! Take me, Captain,” Eden moans breathily, swaying his weight into me. Then he bats his lashes. “To the pretty view, that is.”

Hooooly fuck . I know Eden’s just trying to get under my skin… but it doesn’t stop it from working. All I can do is gulp and shake my head, tugging him along toward the path.

“Thanks for the clarification. It’s very difficult to read you,” I tell him, straight-faced.

Eden dissolves into giggles, finally letting go of me to pick his way along the single-file path down to the ocean cove. “Stay close, so I don’t get lost.”

“Mmhmm. I’ll be right behind you,” I promise.

Every step of the way.