Page 7 of The Edge of Summer
“Can we get ice cream, Sissy?” Sophia asks.
I grin as I swing her up on my hip and start to migrate toward our car. Sophia has always been small for her age, but I swear all these changes have made her shrink. Still, I know it won’t be long until I can’t hold her in my arms anymore.
“Ice cream? We haven’t even had breakfast yet!”
Sophia offers me a cheeky grin. “Ice cream for breakfast, please!”
I laugh. “I’ll think about it. We have to go see our new house first.”
I buckle Sophia into her booster, and then I round to the driver’s side of the car. Parker is already in the passenger seat, head turned out the window. I don’t even try to make conversation.
Before long, the ferry docks, and then I follow the line of vehicles making their exit. When the tires hit solid ground, I breathe a sigh of relief.
To the left of the dock, the lighthouse, situated on the point, is even more impressive up close. At the base, a lakeside restaurant is just waking up, staff bustling about to get ready for opening. I recognize the restaurant as the one owned by our new landlord. To the right of the dock, Main Street runs along the edge of the lake. Storefronts, acoffee shop, a couple banks, the post office and the library—the extent of Kip Island’s downtown.
I hang a right, settling into the flow of early morning traffic. I’ve never been to Kip Island before, but I can’t help that it feels distinctly like coming home.
“We’re lost.”
“We arenotlost,” I insist. “This island is tiny. We can’t be lost!”
Parker slumps further in the passenger seat. “We were supposed to be there twenty minutes ago,” he grumbles. “We’re lost.”
I steer my car into the roundabout in front of the little public library for the third time, andokay, maybe we’re a bit lost. To be fair, the directions given to me by the property manager of our new rental don’t make much sense, and even the GPS is confused.
I jab at the built-in navigation screen, eyes darting between it and the road. “Just give me a minute. I’ll get us unlost.”
Parker snorts. “Good luck with that.”
But I don’t need luck. Just sheer determination and the will of a woman who is sick of letting her family down.
I ease my foot off the accelerator, slowing the vehicle to a crawl. I know I’m breaking at least a couple laws right now, but I refuse to get this wrong and give Parker another reason to hate me. I keep fiddling with the screen, glancing upevery now and then.
“Delilah!”
My head shoots toward the windshield and I realize that we’re way too close to the truck in front of us. I slam on the brakes and wince when I hear the sound of metal scraping against metal.Oh my God. What did I just do?
“Shit,” I curse.
“Sissy!” Sophia gasps. “You’re not ‘upposed to say that.”
“Yeah,Sissy, that’s a bad word,” Parker mocks.
I shoot my brother a sharp look. Now, when my panic is beginning to rise, is not the time for snarky remarks. I bite back another expletive. My hands begin to get clammy as the full scope of my actions starts to set in.
Out the windshield, I watch the truck door open, and then boot-clad feet hit the asphalt. A man steps out and comes to stand by the hood of my car. His brown hair is neatly cut, a little longer on the top and shorter on the sides. A fitted black t-shirt stretches across a broad chest and toned shoulders. Never before have I noticed a guy’sshoulders. But I notice his.
I also notice the way his brown eyes seem to be assessing me through the glass, the same way that I am him. He’s looking right at me, and I’m afraid he sees everything I’m desperately trying to hide.
At this point, I realize I should probably stop staring and actually do something. I scramble to unhook my seatbelt as I ready myself to face the music. When I get out of the car and take a look at the damage, the guy just continues to study me.
Wincing, I turn toward him. “Uh, hi,” I say stupidly.
And then I wave.
Please, someone kill me now.
CHAPTER
