PRAISE FOR MELISSA FOSTER
“With her wonderful characters and resonating emotions, Melissa Foster is a must-read author!”
—New York Times bestseller Julie Kenner
“Melissa Foster is synonymous with sexy, swoony, heartfelt romance!”
—New York Times bestseller Lauren Blakely
“You can always rely on Melissa Foster to deliver a story that’s fresh, emotional, and entertaining.”
—New York Times bestseller Brenda Novak
“Melissa Foster writes worlds that draw you in, with strong heroes and brave heroines surrounded by a community that makes you want to crawl right on through the page and live there.”
—New York Times bestseller Julia Kent
“When it comes to contemporary romances with realistic characters, an emotional love story, and smokin’-hot sex, author Melissa Foster always delivers!”
—The Romance Reviews
“Foster writes characters that are complex and loyal, and each new story brings further depth and development to a redefined concept of family.”
—RT Book Reviews
“Melissa Foster definitely knows how to spin a tale and keep you flipping the pages.”
—Book Loving Fairy
“You can never go wrong with the heroes that Melissa Foster creates. She hasn’t made one yet that I haven’t fallen in love with.”
—Natalie the Biblioholic
“Melissa is a very talented author that tells fabulous stories that captivate you and keep your attention from the first page to the last page. Definitely an author that you will want to keep on your go-to list.”
—Between the Coverz
“Melissa Foster writes the best contemporary romance I have ever read. She does it in bundles, tops it with great plots, hot guys, strong heroines, and sprinkles it with family dynamics—you got yourself an amazing read.”
—Reviews of a Book Maniac
“[Melissa Foster] has a way with words that endears a family in our hearts, and watching each sibling and friend go on to meet their true love is such a joy!”
—Thoughts of a Blonde
MORE BOOKS BY MELISSA FOSTER
LOVE IN BLOOM ROMANCE SERIES
SNOW SISTERS
Sisters in Love
Sisters in Bloom
Sisters in White
THE BRADENS
Lovers at Heart, Reimagined
Destined for Love
Friendship on Fire
Sea of Love
Bursting with Love
Hearts at Play
Taken by Love
Fated for Love
Romancing My Love
Flirting with Love
Dreaming of Love
Crashing into Love
Healed by Love
Surrender My Love
River of Love
Crushing on Love
Whisper of Love
Thrill of Love
THE BRADENS & MONTGOMERYS
Embracing Her Heart
Anything for Love
Trails of Love
Wild, Crazy Hearts
Making You Mine
Searching for Love
Sweet, Sexy Heart
BRADEN NOVELLAS
Promise My Love
Our New Love
Daring Her Love
Story of Love
Love at Last
A Very Braden Christmas
THE REMINGTONS
Game of Love
Stroke of Love
Flames of Love
Slope of Love
Read, Write, Love
Touched by Love
SEASIDE SUMMERS
Seaside Dreams
Seaside Hearts
Seaside Sunsets
Seaside Secrets
Seaside Nights
Seaside Embrace
Seaside Lovers
Seaside Whispers
Seaside Serenade
BAYSIDE SUMMERS
Bayside Desires
Bayside Passions
Bayside Heat
Bayside Escape
Bayside Romance
Bayside Fantasies
THE STEELES AT SILVER ISLAND
Tempted by Love
My True Love
THE RYDERS
Seized by Love
Claimed by Love
Chased by Love
Rescued by Love
Swept into Love
SUGAR LAKE
The Real Thing
Only for You
Love Like Ours
Finding My Girl
HARMONY POINTE
Call Her Mine
This Is Love
She Loves Me
THE WHISKEYS: DARK KNIGHTS AT PEACEFUL HARBOR
Tru Blue
Truly, Madly, Whiskey
Driving Whiskey Wild
Wicked Whiskey Love
Mad About Moon
Taming My Whiskey
The Gritty Truth
THE WICKEDS: DARK KNIGHTS AT BAYSIDE
A Little Bit Wicked
The Wicked Aftermath
BILLIONAIRES AFTER DARK SERIES
Wild Boys After Dark
Logan
Heath
Jackson
Cooper
Bad Boys After Dark
Mick
Dylan
Carson
Brett
HARBORSIDE NIGHTS SERIES
Catching Cassidy
Discovering Delilah
Tempting Tristan
STAND-ALONE NOVELS
Chasing Amanda (mystery/suspense)
Come Back to Me (mystery/suspense)
Have No Shame (historical fiction/romance)
Love, Lies & Mystery (three-book bundle)
Megan’s Way (literary fiction)
Traces of Kara (psychological thriller)
Where Petals Fall (suspense)
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
Text copyright © 2021 by Melissa Foster
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.
Published by Montlake, Seattle
www.apub.com
Amazon, the Amazon logo, and Montlake are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc., or its affiliates.
ISBN-13: 9781542027182
ISBN-10: 1542027187
Cover design by Letitia Hasser
Cover photography © Jen Brown/Of Stardust and Earth Photography
For all the brothers, sisters, sons, and daughters who have gone above and beyond for their families
CONTENTS
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY–ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY–TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY–THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY–FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY–
FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY–SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY–SEVEN
A NOTE FROM MELISSA
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
CHAPTER ONE
THIS FREAKING HILL is going to kill me!
Abby winced against the sliver of guilt slicing through her for joking about death and pushed herself to run up the steep residential sidewalk toward the main drag on Silver Island. She was not a runner by any stretch of the imagination, but from time to time she needed to escape the monotony and stress of working as a cook in a busy New York restaurant. When that happened, she became one. Or maybe jogger was a better word for her sluggish pace. It was easier to run on her treadmill at home in New York, in the comfort of her apartment, where she could watch television or read. She’d forgotten how hilly her hometown was. But she’d spent half the night arguing with her older sister, Deirdra, and she needed to work out her frustrations.
Deirdra had kept Abby up, badgering her to accept an offer they’d received from an investor to purchase the Bistro, their family’s beachfront restaurant. But their mother’s unexpected death three months ago had caused Abby to take a long, hard look at her life, which was nothing to write home about. She’d felt stuck in her job and in the quasi relationship she’d let go on for far too long. So she’d stepped out of her comfort zone and had thrown caution to the wind, quitting her job and ending the relationship, and she’d come out the other side feeling better than she had in years, despite having no plan for her future in place. Abby was still trying to figure out how to tell Deirdra she’d quit her job, because she knew her sister would give her a hard time about being irresponsible. But Abby saw her decision as an act of self-care—and probably the most responsible decision she’d made in ages. It wasn’t like she was broke and had given up her apartment. She had a nest egg that would cover her rent for a while.
She wasn’t quite sure what her plans were, but she definitely wasn’t ready to sell the Bistro. In a few hours they were meeting with their mother’s closest friend, Shelley Steele, who was the executor of her will. Shelley had been like a second mother to Abby and Deirdra when they were young, and she’d graciously allowed them time to wrap their heads around their mother’s death before dealing with her final wishes.
When Abby reached Main Street, the flat terrain felt like heaven. She slowed to a walk, peering through the windows of the shops as she passed. It was the end of April, not yet tourist season, and the streets were quiet, the sidewalks empty. She had always loved the island’s quaint small towns, with their inviting wooden benches and flower boxes, which were starting to bloom. Her family’s Sunday-evening strolls down Main Street were some of her fondest memories. Her parents would hold hands as their father captivated them all with his thick French accent, telling stories about when he’d first come to the island and bought the Bistro and how much both had changed. Abby had been the epitome of a daddy’s girl. She’d adored his sense of humor and kindheartedness and had wanted to be just like him. Back then, her mother had been full of life, and her parents had been so in love, it had emanated from them and had felt indestructible. Unfortunately, after their father died from a heart attack, their mother had found solace in alcohol, forcing nine-year-old Abby and eleven-year-old Deirdra to grow up far too fast.
Sadness pressed in on Abby, and she picked up her pace, jogging the rest of the way through town and along the winding roads toward Silver Harbor. The expansive patios and the pool at the Silver House, which stood sentinel on a bluff overlooking the harbor, came into view. She looked past the mansion-turned-sought-after-resort to the sunlight glittering off the inky water, the waves kissing the shores of Sunset Beach, and her worries fell away. Boats were tethered to the marina, and more were anchored in the harbor like rebellious teenagers refusing to come home. While she’d eventually left the island to start her life, growing up here, she’d always felt like a marina boat, following the rules and making the best of it, sticking around the island long after Deirdra had gotten scholarships and left to make her mark on the world.
Feeling the pull of the Bistro, she pushed herself to run the few extra blocks to take a quick peek before heading back to her mother’s house. Unlike the Silver House, the Bistro, a renovated boathouse, was built on the flat terrain of the sandy beach. The back faced the parking lot, and the front overlooked the water.
Abby’s breath caught at the sight of THE BISTRO sign perched tall and proud on steel legs attached to the double-peaked roof. The sign had been there since her father had first opened the restaurant several years before she was born.
Surrounded by the scents of the sea and memories of her parents’ laughter, which had once seemed ever present, she made her way to the side patio, taking in the shuttered windows and the CLOSED FOR THE SEASON sign hanging on the weather-beaten siding. She could still recall images of her father with perfect clarity, his long white hair tied back in a ponytail, his matching beard unkempt, and his gray-blue eyes dancing with happiness as he wandered through the restaurant, joining guests at their tables for brief chats. Memories of her mother always took her back to her youth, when Ava de Messiéres’s sandy hair was shiny and beautiful and a gap-toothed smile was always at the ready.
Her eyes shifted to the beach in front of the restaurant, where she and Deirdra used to play. The rickety, weathered gray fence that had once held colorful lanterns had been consumed by bearberry bushes as untamed as her hair. Memories of better days floated around her as she stepped off the side of the patio and onto the sand. Even in her sneakers, she loved the feel of sinking into the sand. She rounded the front of the building and was surprised to see a man sitting at a table reading a newspaper in the shade of the covered patio. It reminded her of her father, who used to read every page while he drank his coffee in the morning. But who reads actual newspapers anymore? And where did you get that table and chair? A travel mug from the Sweet Barista, her friend Keira Silver’s coffeehouse around the corner, sat on the table beside a book and a delicious-looking croissant. He’d made himself right at home, in his crisp short-sleeve button-down shirt, which revealed enticingly defined but not overly muscled arms, khaki pants, and loafers. Loafers? On the beach? A gold watch clung to his wrist, another anomaly. His toffee-brown hair was brushed back, giving her an extraordinary view of his clean-shaven, handsome face as she stepped closer. His chiseled jawline and aquiline nose were a little too familiar, though she couldn’t place where she’d seen him. He looked a lot like a distinguished David Beckham—Yum—but he wasn’t tattooed. Was that why he looked familiar?
He lowered the newspaper, his serious dark eyes finding hers as he said, “Good morning.”
His rich voice gave her goose bumps. His lips quirked up in amusement, and she realized she was standing on the beach right in front of him, hands planted on her hips, blatantly staring. “Hi. I, um . . .” She chided herself for sounding flustered and a little embarrassed and threw her shoulders back as she said, “You know this is private property, right?”
“Yes, I’m aware,” he said, setting the newspaper on the table as if he had all the time in the world.
“Do you always make yourself at home on other people’s property?”
He arched a brow. “How do you know I don’t own this place?”
She was amused by his attempt to seem important. “I’m pretty sure you don’t.”
“Are you? Well, then, you’re probably right.” He leaned forward and crooked his finger, motioning for her to come closer.
It had been so long since a man had caught her attention, much less since she’d been beckoned by a hot guy, and her pulse quickened like a schoolgirl’s. Only she was a grown woman wearing a sweaty tank top with FLIPPIN’ AWESOME written across the chest and a picture of a spatula beneath it, which quite possibly made her look like a silly schoolgirl.
“I’m staying at the Silver House, but I’m not fond of crowds,” he said conspiratorially. “I bought this table and chair at a store
around the corner, and I’ve been camping out here in the mornings. If you promise not to tell, I’ll share my raspberry-and-Bavarian-cream croissant with you.”
“Ah, draw me into your web of deceit with the allure of one of Keira’s pastries,” she said in a low voice, mentally shuffling through magazines and commercials, trying to figure out where she’d seen him before. “Normally I’m a rule follower, but I like your style, Chair Guy. I’ll keep your secret.”
He cut the croissant in half and pushed to his feet, bringing to light his six-foot-plus stature. His identity hit her with the impact of jackpot-winning bells, and before she could reel in her excitement, “You’re the guy from the Nautica underwear ads!” came roaring out.
His brows slanted.
“Oh God. You’re not him, are you?” She covered her face. “This is so embarrassing,” she said as she lowered her hands.
“Not for me. I’m taking that as a compliment. In fact, if you feel the need to narc someone out for trespassing, please say it was that underwear model and not me.”
She was glad he had a sense of humor. “They’d probably drag you in anyway. You look just like him.”
“I’ll take your word for it.” He waved to the chair and said, “Join me?”
“I can’t. Thanks, though. I have to go meet my sister.”
He gathered half of the pastry in a napkin and descended the steps to the beach. His eyes remained trained on her, making her pulse quicken again. He handed her the napkin-encased croissant and said, “If you run this way tomorrow, I’ll have a whole pastry waiting for you.”
“Oh.” There was no hiding the surprise in her voice.
“Not all criminals are bad guys. I’m Aiden, by the way.” He offered his hand.
“I’m Abigail de Messiéres. Abby.” She shifted nervously on her feet, wondering what had possessed her to say her full name, as if she were someone special. “It’s nice to meet you.”
When she put her hand in his, he lifted it to his lips and kissed the back of it. “It’s been a pleasure, Abigail. I hope to see you tomorrow, and remember, if I get dragged into jail, you’re now an accomplice. I go down, you go down.”
Butterflies swarmed in her belly at the way he said her name and the low, seductive way he said that last part. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d gone down with anyone. “You play dirty, Chair Guy.”
“Only for very special people,” he said with a wink. “Thanks for brightening my morning, Runner Girl. I hope to see you tomorrow.”