NautiCal (Forever Wilde 8)

Doc shot him a warning. “Watch it.”

“Augie’s right,” I said with a sigh. “I wasn’t expecting her to leave me anything, but I sure as hell wasn’t expecting her to leave me the cabin and a boat. Now I have a home base which is nice. Not sure if I’ll be able to stick around during the camp season though. Seeing all the kids and not being able to interact with them…”

Doc walked over and leaned down, pressing a kiss to the top of my head. “You’ll figure it out.”

Otto nudged me with his foot. “We’ll help you fix up the cabin. Seth’s pretty good with a hammer.”

“Why does that sound dirty?” Sassy muttered.

I took a breath and decided to go ahead and make my announcement. “There’s no rush on fixing up the cabin. I’m going to Singapore.”

All of the chatter stopped for a beat before everyone began chiming in with their opinions. I pulled the blanket over my head and tried ignoring them. My emotions were on a knife’s edge, and I was one kind gesture away from losing it.

Pippa’s little head appeared under the blanket. “Uncle Cow, why you hiding?”

I reached out to run my fingers through her silky hair. “Because everyone is being loud, and sometimes that’s hard when you’re feeling sad.”

She crawled up into my lap and laid her head against my chest. I knew it wouldn’t last long because she rarely stayed still, but I still enjoyed the cuddle.

After a few moments, someone pulled the blanket off us.

Doc said, “I’m proud of you for taking action. Just remember nothing has to last forever. If you change your mind, come home.”

Otto was less graceful. “Fuck that. Stay here and fight. Those f—freakers aren’t going to last ten seconds spending their summers outdoors with the bugs and critters.”

“I’m with Otto,” Saint said. “Freak ’em.”

Hearing my siblings watch their mouths in front of two little girls was almost enough to jolly me out of my funk.

West looked serious. “What’s your plan in Singapore?”

“Dad said the manager of one of the racing teams there wants to talk to me about joining.”

“What kind of boats?”

“470s, lasers, maybe 49ers. I’m not really sure.”

West frowned. “So, not the big stuff.”

I shook my head. “I’m not experienced enough for that. Those guys make hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. Plus, I’m too little to be a grinder.”

“Good,” he said with a grunt. “That shit’s dangerous.”

“Not really,” I said. “But it’s a moot point anyway.”

Hudson sat forward on the sofa opposite me. “I thought you didn’t want to do that kind of racing. With corporate sponsors and stuff.”

I shrugged. “I didn’t. But then I realized that if I ever want to pursue my dream of running my own sailing school, I need a plan. I can live with Mom and Dad and save up money while also making great contacts and padding my sailing resume. It’s a solid plan, and I’m young enough to suck it up for a few years.”

The rest of my siblings volleyed questions at me one after the other until Grandpa shouted that the pancakes were defluffing before our very eyes.

MJ sat next to me at the big table once we filled our plates. “Gay sex is illegal in Singapore,” she said quietly. “Lesbian sex is fine, but gay male sex is still on the books. Be careful.”

Neckie leaned over and kissed my sister on the cheek. “That’s MJ speak for I love you,” she said.

I laughed. “I know. And I know it’s super conservative there, but that’s okay. I’m going to focus on work anyway.”

Several of my brothers and sisters made a super-helpful mpfh sound to let me know just how much they thought of my idea. I ignored them. With eight older siblings, I’d learned long ago there was no such thing as pleasing everyone, especially when you were trying very hard to please yourself first and foremost.

After swallowing a few bites of breakfast, I turned back to MJ. “I’m hoping to write a business plan for a sailing school while I’m over there, and I’d love to get your help from a legal perspective.”

Her face widened into a grin. “I’d love to help. Thank you for asking. What did you have in mind? What’s your dream scenario?”

I started describing the dream I had for the school, feeling more confident now than when I’d originally come up with the concept. It wasn’t easy deviating away from the way Annie had run Campside Cove, but the more I talked, the more I realized I had my own strong opinions born of the experience I’d had both in college and in the past two years of working full-time on the water. Maybe this was why Annie had insisted on me doing those things. She probably knew her own experience and way of doing things would be best supplemented by learning new ways.