And Jacob, not exactly an innocent party to the fight, had let those words fester deep inside. It’d taken him a shamefully long time to realize that what Hud had said had been in anger.

But what Jacob had done, walking away, he’d done with a purposeful calm. He’d walked away.

He’d been the bigger ass.

He knew that.

What he didn’t know was how to fix it.

When the pizza was gone, Hud dropped Jacob off at the lake, not saying another word.

Jacob got out of his brother’s truck and turned back. “I’m still going to work at the resort.”

“Fine,” Hud said tightly. “We need you.”

The knot in Jacob’s chest unloosened a little. “Fine.”

“Fine,” Hud said again. “As long as it doesn’t involve you writing a goddamn check.” He drove off, leaving Jacob in his dust. Fair enough, since Jacob had once done the same.

He sat on the porch as the sun set, waiting for Sophie.

But she didn’t come back. Not that night.

Or the next.

Or the next.

Chapter 16

Sophie stood on the deck of The Little Lucas, her hands on her hips, trying to control her temper as she glared at the guy standing on North Beach’s public launch dock a few feet away.

His mouth was moving as he went on and on about how she’d illegally moored last night, blah, blah, blah…

What he didn’t know couldn’t hurt him, but the truth was, she’d been illegally moored several nights in a row now. The first night she’d stayed in a quiet cove, but she’d been awakened at four in the morning by fishermen. And five. And six…The second night she’d found what seemed like a deserted private dock. She’d learned her mistake when the moon rose and a bunch of teenagers had shown up to smoke weed.

She still had a contact high.

Last night she’d started out near the campgrounds but had left when she’d seen a bear going through the trash cans right outside the women’s restrooms. She’d ended up having to move several times throughout the night, and what she needed more than anything was eight straight hours of sleep.

“I’ll be moving any second now,” she promised. “I’m just waiting for the rest of the fam to get here.” She smiled in a way that invited him to join her.

He declined.

“It takes my sister forever to get out of the house,” she said, hoping she was coming off as charming and not as batshit crazy as she felt. “And my mom…well, let’s just say my dad’s probably going nuts right about now. You know how dads are. Everything’s on a timetable and no one listens, and then it’s one big yell-fest instead of a good time. But no worries. They’ll be here soon and we’ll get going in no time.”

He didn’t look impressed. “It’s almost dark. You can’t still be here after dark.”

“I promise,” she said, “because that would be totally and completely illegal.” She flashed another smile.

Nope, still nothing. Instead, he crossed his arms over his chest.

“Okay,” she said. “Here’s the truth. My family’s not coming.”

He gave her a duh look.

“But I have a really good reason to be here. I swear,” she said, waiting for her brain to come up with that great reason.

“It’s for the resort,” an unbearably familiar male voice said from above the dock.

She turned her head and watched as Jacob lithely leapt over the railing and landed with easy agility on the dock. She hadn’t seen him for three days, something she told herself she’d been relieved about. She’d been working her ass off during those three days, at a myriad of temp jobs, and knew he’d been doing the same because she’d had lunch with Kenna yesterday.

She and Jacob would be working together on a bunch of upcoming lake events as the resort kicked their summer season into high gear.

Jacob’s military-short hair was growing out. He’d gotten some sun too. He stood there in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt advertising the resort, his eyes hidden behind dark lenses. She pasted on a casual smile and tried not to whimper as she watched him come closer, the soft twilight casting subtle shadows and highlights that shifted across his muscles as he moved.

“Hey, Rob,” he said to the lake patrol guy. “Been a long time.”

To Sophie’s utter shock, Rob-of-the-absolutely-zero-personality smiled widely and enthusiastically pumped Jacob’s hand.

“Heard you were back, Kincaid. Causing a big old stir in town, man. People can’t wait to see you.”