Page 124 of Delivery After Dark
But with every minute they spent together, this thing with him became a bigger deal for her. There was no denying the sizzling chemistry between them or the wild attraction that simmered on low boil the whole time they sat across from each other at the Wayfarer, surrounded by the entire island population—or so it seemed.
Evan McCarthy and Owen Lawry returned to the stage and began to strum their guitars in perfect harmony. They were always so fun to watch.
“Not sure if you heard that I have four new nephews,” Evan said to cheers from the crowd. “I want to send a big shout-out to my brother Adam and his superstar wife, Abby, and to their four new sons—Murphy, Rory, Kane and Beckett McCarthy. Look out, world, four more McCarthy boys are about to come home to Gansett! I’d like to ask my friend, and Owen’s sister, Julia Lawry to join us for this one. Julia, you got a song in you tonight?”
Julia got up to come to the stage. “For you, always!”
When she was in place at the microphone, Evan and Owen played the opening notes to “In My Life.”
“This is for my nephews,” Evan said. “Welcome home to Gansett Island.”
“Wow, they sound amazing together,” Morgan said.
“They really do. They’re all so incredibly talented. I wish I had something like they do.”
“From what your clients say, you’ve got your own very special talent.”
She shrugged. “I’d rather be able to sing like Julia, but I’d be too nervous to stand up there and do it in front of people.”
“She seems incredibly comfortable performing in public.”
“From what I’ve heard, that wasn’t always the case. The Lawrys had a very difficult upbringing with an abusive, overbearing, critical father who would say things like, ‘No daughter of mine is going to perform in public like a common whore.’”
“Jeez. That’s harsh.”
“That’s the least of it. He’s in prison now for assaulting his ex-wife, Sarah.”
“Sarah, who’s married to Charlie now?”
“Yes.”
“Good Lord, she’s the sweetest person ever.”
“She really is, and she’s so happy with Charlie. They both traveled a long and difficult road before they found each other here on Gansett.”
“This place has magical powers.”
“Did you think that when you were a kid?”
“Oh hell no. I hated it here. I wanted off this island in the worst possible way.”
“What did you hate about it?”
“I wanted to be able to jump in my truck and go to the mall or the movies or to restaurants I’d only ever heard about on TV but had never been to. I wanted to see the world.”
“Couldn’t you go to the mainland once in a while?”
“Sure but having to schedule your vehicle on the ferry weeks in advance sort of takes the spontaneity out of things.”
“Speaking of vehicles on the ferry, I’ve got mine scheduled for next Wednesday to go home to Providence for Christmas.”
“Oh, okay. You must be looking forward to seeing your family.”
“I was.”
“What do you mean?”
“Not sure if you’ve noticed, but it’s been a rather monumental twenty-four hours around here. The thought of leaving right when things are getting interesting doesn’t seem so appealing anymore.”
