Lighthouse Way (Huckleberry Bay 1)

“Another raincheck,” he says and tips up my chin so he can kiss me softly. “Call me later and let me know that everything’s okay?”

“Bet on it. Thanks for tonight.”

“You’re welcome.”

He kisses me once more, and then he’s gone. I turn back to Sarah.

“Honey, what’s wrong?”

“I’m so sorry,” she says and wipes at her tears. “You shouldn’t have told him to go.”

“I’m not going to ignore you like this and drag him off to the bedroom so I can have sex,” I say dryly and reach for a box of tissues. “Talk to me. What happened? Did Anthony call?”

“No. I won’t hear from him.” She blows her nose. “I tried to talk to Scott tonight. I went to his house and caught him just as he was getting home from work.”

Oh, boy. I know what’s coming.

“I take it he wasn’t excited to see you.”

“Not only that, he threw me out. Said he’s not interested in seeing me ever again and told me to mind my own fucking business. His words.”

That starts a whole new flood of tears.

“I knew he’d be mad,” she says and reaches for another tissue. “But I wasn’t prepared for just how mad. He has a right to be. But, man, it hurts.”

“I know.” I rub big circles on her back. “The rest of us accepted you right away despite the hurt we carry because we’re your friends, and that’s what friends do. But he’s your little brother. There are bound to be some abandonment issues there.”

“God, maybe I shouldn’t have come back.”

“I think coming back was the right thing. There’s just a mess that you need to clean up. But it’ll be worth it when you’re done.”

She blows out a breath and dabs at her eyes. “Yeah. Yeah, it will. But he might not ever want to talk to me.”

“He’ll come around. Just keep trying.”

September 2, 2010

* * *

Dear Diary,

Sometimes, living with a roommate sucks. Even when that roommate is June. I love her to death, but I might murder her in her sleep if she doesn’t stop using all the creamer and leaving the empty bottle in the fridge, only for me to not have any for my coffee.

What kind of monster does that?

You think you know someone until you live with them. It’s a whole new experience.

I’m going to start hiding creamer somewhere.

Love,

Luna

Chapter Seven

Wolfe

“Will it hold all three of us?” Tanner asks as he, Apollo, and I stand below the platform in Luna’s barn and stare up at it.

“I hope so,” Apollo says grimly, his hands on his hips. “I’ll go up first and test it out. It’s my ancestral home. If it kills one of us, it should be me.”

“Not gonna disagree,” I say as Apollo starts up. “I don’t have much faith in that ladder.”

“How did we get talked into this?” Tanner asks me as we watch Apollo climb.

“Luna asked. I said yes. That pretty much covers it.”

He smirks as Apollo reaches the top and walks around a bit.

“It’s stable up here,” he calls down. “Surprisingly. There are some round cylinders, some odds and ends, and a trunk. The trunk is going to be a bitch. It’s old and looks heavy.”

“How did they get it up there?” I ask, looking around. “I don’t see a pulley system.”

“How should I know?” Apollo calls down. “It’s up here now. I think we’ll start with the small stuff. We’ll do a chain. Tanner, come stand at the top of the ladder, I’ll pass to you, you hand to Wolfe.”

“Can do.” Tanner climbs up, and it only takes us about ten minutes to get a good pile of stuff down. Some of it is light enough for Tanner to toss down to me. Other things are heavier, but we manage without any problems.

“Now, the damn trunk,” Apollo says, looking down at us. “It’s not too heavy, but it’s fucking awkward. And it’s wood, so I’m worried that the bottom might be rotted out.”

“Drag it over to the edge and we’ll figure it out. We might have to cut the lock and take stuff out of it, then lower the empty trunk.”

“Good idea,” Tanner says with a nod, and we wait for Apollo to drag the trunk to the edge of the platform. “Let me test it.”

Apollo reaches out and lifts the end of the trunk, peering under it to see what the bottom looks like.

“I think it’ll hold. Tanner, if you take that end, I’ll start down with it.”

Between the three of us, we muscle it to the ground without dropping it and destroying the trunk or killing ourselves.

“Nothing else up there?” I ask Apollo as I catch my breath.

“Nothing but mouse shit and dust. Probably a spider or two.”

“Well, those can stay up there,” I reply. “Let’s haul this to the house. Luna’s excited to dig in.”