Page 81 of Visions of You

April

“So you’regonna be all book nerdy this afternoon, huh?” Wyatt asked with a laugh as we disassembled scuba kits. We were returning after the second dive, and he was on his own for the afternoon trip. I glanced up at the building clouds in the sky. A low-pressure system was moving in. We’d had sunny skies when we left, but rain was forecast this afternoon and tonight.

“Yep,” I replied, coiling a regulator in my hands. “Sorry to leave you alone on such a lovely tropical day. We get together and chat about romance books and drink wine.”

I was glad to have book club to distract me. A tiny hint of uneasiness in my gut had blossomed into a slithering creature eating my insides. Yesterday afternoon, I’d texted Gabe. Just a little hello asking how his day was going, since he’d planned on working in the Big House all day.

He never answered.

One of the unspoken rules of our pact was not to be clingy. If I wasn’t looking for a long-term relationship, I had no right to expectGabe to jump to every message and request I made. But he was an extremely straightforward man who didn’t play games. He always answered texts in a reasonable amount of time.

I sent a second one last night before bed, just to say good night. When I checked this morning, that one was unanswered too. The most likely scenario was that he took off with Hailey on a spontaneous escape since summer would be ending soon.

I kept telling myself there had to be a good explanation for him not answering. We might have some clear boundaries in our relationship, but surely by now I meant enough to him that he wouldn’t just ignore me. No, he had to be with Hailey somewhere.

As we approached the canal, a few small patters of rain began falling. SinceShark Baitwould be going out again shortly, Miguel had us tie up the boat near the canal entrance. I grabbed my backpack and slapped Wyatt on the back. “Hope the weather holds off until after you guys are back. See you later.”

“You’re off tomorrow, right?”

I nodded. “Corbin’s taking my group.”

“Enjoy your ladies’ afternoon and don’t get too hammered.” Wyatt tossed me a cocky grin, which increased in size after I rolled my eyes.

As I stepped off the boat and walked down the brick pathway, Hailey’s laughter drifted to me. I’d spent enough time with her over the summer to recognize the sound anywhere. As I passed the gear room, two forms holding fishing poles over the canal were revealed, one tall and one small.

My eyes glanced over Hailey, immediately moving to the tall man next to her. Though the build was similar to Gabe’s, Warren’s salt-and-pepper hair caused my shoulders to drop.

If Hailey’s here, where the hell is Gabe? And why won’t he answer me?

She caught sight of me, and a grin nearly split her face. “April! We saw a manatee earlier. And I’ve caughtthreefish!”

Her excitement was irresistible, and an answering smilerose on my face as I joined the duo. “Wow, sounds like you’ve had quite the morning! I imagine your grandfather has probably forgotten more about fishing than most people have ever known.”

Warren shook his head, but a smile crept through. “I seriously doubt that.”

“I never catch this many fish with Dad,” Hailey said, grinning at him. “He says he doesn’t have the patience for it.”

“You must take after your grandfather then,” I said, trying to be polite and ignoring the disquiet rising inside me. “Since you’ve caught three already. And Manny paid a visit too?” Several manatees lived in the area, especially in the mangrove wetlands in the northwest of the island. One in particular liked to pay a visit to the canal if the boat motors weren’t running. None of us could resist turning on the hose and lowering it over the side so Manny could have a drink of fresh water.

Warren recast his line. “I haven’t seen him in quite a while. Nice to know he’s still healthy.”

“He does a good job of staying away from propellers,” I added. Then I took a deep breath to ask the question that had been eating away at me. “What’s Gabe up to? I haven’t seen him today.”

“Dad went to Miami,” Hailey said matter-of-factly. “I’m staying with Grandpa and Nona until he gets back tonight or tomorrow.”

“Oh,” I said, the word coming out small and quiet.

“Gabe had some business to attend to,” Warren added.

I pasted a smile on my face, acting like I hadn’t just been punched in the gut. A physical pain twisted my insides. “I’ll let you two get back to fishing. You might not have much longer.”

Warren nodded and glanced at the dark spots on his shirt. “Yeah, we’ve gotten splashed by a few raindrops. A couple more minutes, sunshine, then we’ll head up to lunch.”

I said my goodbyes to the pair and walked woodenly toward the main path. Gabe wasn’t on a last-minute trip with Hailey. He’d gone on abusinesstrip. Yet he couldn’t even be bothered to let me know. Or answer any of my texts.

Tears sprang to my eyes, and I dashed them away, angry. Not at Gabe—at myself. How had I let this happen? A quick business trip shouldn’t be an issue for a casual boyfriend I didn’t care deeply for.

And that was the problem.

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