Carlos tossed his dark hair out of his eyes. “I can’t, sorry,” he said, though he didn’t sound very sorry. “I’m going back with your dad right now—I have soccer practice this afternoon.”
“Oh, okay,” Abby said. Then she laughed as a bright-eyed two-year-old toddled toward them, clutching a seashell in one hand. “Bye-bye, Tandi,” Abby said, scooping up the girl to give her a hug. “We’ll miss you!”
The girl’s mother stepped forward, smiling. “Don’t worry, Abby,” she said. “I’m sure we’ll be back soon. We had such a lovely time here!”
“Yes.” The woman’s husband joined them, dragging a large suitcase. He squinted at the horizon, where a few ragged gray clouds marred the blue sky. “But don’t expect us next week—we’re from Chicago, you know. We don’t do hurricanes!”
Rachel heard them and chuckled. “Don’t worry, you’ll be back at the mainland well before the hurricane gets here, even if it does come this way,” she assured the couple. “And I do hope you’ll come back. We’ve enjoyed having you.”
Abby’s father let out a whistle. “Boat’s ready to go!” he called. “We’d better get moving so you’ll have plenty of time to make your flights.”
The next few minutes passed quickly in a bustle of boarding and loading. The Kismet was fairly small, but there was enough room for all twelve guests and their belongings, plus Daddy and Carlos. Soon the boat was chugging off across the lagoon.
Abby waved until she was pretty sure the people on board couldn’t see her anymore. Then she walked back toward the house with Rachel, Sofia, and the other employees.
“That was a nice group, wasn’t it?” Rachel commented. She glanced at Abby. “The next batch of guests should be here in a few hours. I hear there’s a girl around your age.”
“Cool!” Abby said. “Where’s she from?”
Rachel shrugged. “I’m not sure. I know we have some people from Orlando, Philadelphia, North Carolina, and even the West Coast in this group, but I don’t remember all the details.” She smiled. “There are fifteen people this time!”
Abby knew why her stepmother looked happy. The first couple of weeks they’d had only a small number of guests. But the more people heard about the island, with its beautiful beach, fun activities, and friendly pod of dolphins, the more people wanted to come!
“That’s great, darling,” Sofia spoke up, smiling at Rachel. She called everyone “darling.” “But it means we have lots of work to do to get ready for them. Let’s get to it!”
“All hands on deck!” Abby exclaimed. That was one of Daddy’s favorite sayings. It meant it was time for everyone to help out.
She didn’t mind pitching in and working hard. It was worth it to live in such a beautiful place!
Catherine Hapka has written many books for children and young adults. She lives in Pennsylvania and enjoys reading, horseback riding, music, gardening, and traveling. She also likes going to the beach and looking for dolphins, magical or otherwise.
Text copyright © 2019 by Catherine Hapka
Illustrations by Petur Antonsson, copyright © 2019 Scholastic Inc.
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
First printing 2019
Cover art by Petur Antonsson
Cover design by Lizzy Yoder
e-ISBN 978-1-338-63342-9
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