Lighthouse Way (Huckleberry Bay 1)

We manage the transfer it all in two trips, with Luna excitedly doing a happy dance and shaking her sexy ass as she points to where she wants us to set everything down.

“I want the trunk in the living room. I hope there aren’t any spiders.”

“Nothing fell off and bit us,” I reply as Apollo and I place it where she points. “Keep your shoes on so you can step on any that crawl out.”

“Great, thanks.” She scrunches her nose and then looks excited again. “This is so fun. I wish I’d known that all of this was up there way before today.”

“I’m glad you thought to look before any demo started.” Tanner looks at his watch. “I have to go open the gallery,” he says, stepping back. “And I can’t wear dirty jeans and a stained shirt to do it, so I’d better run home. Good luck.”

“Thanks for coming to help,” Luna says with a smile.

After Tanner leaves, it’s just the three of us in Luna’s small living room.

“I’m nervous,” she admits and swallows hard. “But I need to know what’s in this trunk.”

“I brought the bolt cutters,” Apollo says and makes quick work of the old, rusted padlock. “There you go.”

Luna dives at the trunk, opens the lid, and sits back on her heels, staring.

“What is it?”

“So much,” she says and looks up at me in surprise. “There are clothes in here, dried flowers, jewelry. And…look.”

She lovingly pulls out an old, leather-bound book. “Another diary. I knew it!”

“I love that you’re interested in all of this stuff,” Apollo says and kisses his sister on the head. “I have to go to work myself. Have fun. I can’t wait to hear about what all you find.”

“I’ll make a list of everything so I don’t forget anything. You know how I love a good spreadsheet.”

Apollo nods at me, and then he’s gone.

“There are some newspapers in here from the turn of the twentieth century,” she says in awe. “And none of this is ruined. There’s no mold. It’s crazy.”

“I thought the same about the car,” I reply. “How it all stayed safe in that damp barn, I’ll never know.”

She looks over at me and then grins. “This is awesome.”

“I know you want to read that diary, so I’ll get out of your hair. I have to get to the house so the crew can start on the foundation of the new garage.”

“Oh, that’s right. Good luck. And thanks for doing this.”

“Anytime. If you need anything else, just call me.” I kiss her lips, then wink at her and set off for my place.

The crew is already there. When I approach, the foreman, John, walks over to greet me.

“We’ll have the foundation poured tomorrow,” he says. “We’re digging and getting things started now. Thankfully, the ground is quite level already.”

“Here’s hoping it goes smoothly,” I reply.

“Am I hallucinating?” Zeke says two weeks later as he places the last tool on the wall. “Are we finally done?”

I glance around the garage that I purchased less than a month ago and let out a long breath. “I think that’s it. My friend, we are ready for business.”

“Holy shit,” he says with a big grin and eyes the old Ford waiting in bay two. “We get to start on that honey.”

“Finally,” I agree.

Zeke’s been here for just over a week. It’s been the busiest few weeks of my life, and that’s saying quite a bit.

But the apartment is ready for Sarah, thanks to all her hard work and some help from June, and Zeke and I are ready to get started fixing cars.

“You know,” Zeke says as he plays with a socket wrench, “I still haven’t met this Luna. You’ve talked about her, but I haven’t met her.”

“I haven’t seen her since before you got here,” I reply and drag my hand down my face.

“What? Why not?”

I just stare at him. “Been a little busy, man.”

“You’re an idiot. You have to make time. This is done, and we won’t be able to get started on anything until tomorrow. Go see her.”

I’m already walking out the door. “See you tomorrow!”

I can’t just show up on her doorstep out of the blue, so I swing by the grocery store and then the floral shop. I also stop by my place to take a quick shower and check in with John, who clearly has everything under control.

I drive to Luna’s, a picnic basket in the car, and park close to the gazebo, where I unpack and make it look nice before knocking on her door.

When Luna answers, she looks surprised to see me.

“Uh, hi,” she says and tucks her hair behind her ear. “Are you okay?”

“Of course. I have a surprise. I hope you’re hungry.”

I hold my hand out for hers. After a brief hesitation that I don’t like—at all—she takes it, and I lead her out to the gazebo.