Season for Love

by Marie Force

  “You know how the International Yacht Restoration School people came over from Newport to look at some of my work this summer?”

  “Sure do,” Big Mac said, tugging the last of the nails from between his teeth.

  Mac kept waiting for him to swallow one of them, but he’d learned to keep his thoughts about such things to himself.

  “They want me to teach a class in January. I’d have to spend the whole month over there, but I could come back on weekends to help out on the hotel project. If I do it, that is. Nothing’s been decided.”

  Mac tried to hide his surprise from his friend and business partner. Their construction business had a lot on its plate for the off-season, including the renovations to the Sand & Surf, a couple of kitchen upgrades and the possibility of the houses Maddie had suggested for the parcel of land left to the town by one of its most affluent residents. Losing Luke for a month would make it nearly impossible to get it all done before the spring.

  “I know we’ve got a lot lined up for the winter,” Luke said, seeming to read Mac’s mind. “So I can take a pass, if need be.”

  “Don’t be crazy,” Mac said. “It’s an amazing opportunity. You have to do it. We’ll get by without you.” Somehow.

  “I could help out,” Big Mac said.

  “If you feel up to it, Dad.”

  Big Mac’s scowl answered for him. “I’m back to normal after the accident, so you can quit your mollycoddling.”

  “Who’s mollycoddling?” Mac asked, glancing at Luke, who shrugged. “Looks to me like you’re pulling your weight just fine.”

  “Luke, for what it’s worth,” Big Mac said, “I think you should take this offer from IYRS. It’s great to see you recognized for your amazing talent. I, for one, am very proud of you.”

  “Thank you,” Luke said, seeming embarrassed by Big Mac’s effusiveness.

  Mac knew how he felt, having been on the receiving end of his father’s effusiveness often enough. Still, it pleased him to know that his father had not only raised five children of his own but had been a huge influence in the lives of Luke and Joe, both of whom had grown up without their fathers.

  “What does Syd have to say about it?” Mac asked.

  “I haven’t told her yet. I heard from them this morning, and I wanted to talk to you guys first. I’ll tell her tonight.”

  “Do you think she’d go with you?”

  “I suppose it’ll depend on whether she’ll be able to continue to work on the hotel project with Laura. She’s really enjoying that.”

  “Whatever you decide,” Big Mac said, “we’re proud of you.”

  “Absolutely,” Mac agreed.

  “Thanks,” Luke said. “That means a lot to me.”

  “Excuse me,” a female voice behind them said.

  Mac turned to find a young woman with light brown hair pulled into a ponytail. The hairstyle made her look younger than she was. He guessed mid- to late-twenties. She wore faded jeans and a rag wool sweater. “Hi there. How can we help you?”

  “I’m looking for Mac McCarthy?”

  “That’d be me,” he and his father said in stereo.

  “Junior,” Mac said, extending a hand.

  “Senior,” Big Mac said, following suit. “This is our partner, Luke Harris.”

  “Nice to meet you all. I’m Kara Ballard, from Bar Harbor, Maine.”

  “Any relation to Ballard’s Boat Builders?” Big Mac asked.

  She grimaced slightly, but Mac saw it. “My family.”

  “Ah,” Big Mac said. “I love your picnic boats. Gorgeous.”

  “Seriously,” Luke said. “Beautiful lines.”

  Kara seemed embarrassed by their praise. “Thank you. They’ve done well for us.” She cleared her throat. “The reason I’m here is I’d like to discuss a business opportunity with you.”

  “Sure,” Big Mac said. “Let’s get in out of this wind.” He gestured for her to lead the way to the main building that housed the offices as well as the restaurant, which was now closed for the season.

  Mac and Luke followed, and the four of them settled at one of the tables in the dining area.

  She withdrew a brochure from her bag and opened it on the table. “You may be aware that Ballard’s runs launch services in some of the bigger harbors in New England. We’re in Bar Harbor, of course, Newport, Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, and Hyannis. We use a smaller version of the picnic boats to transport passengers from the anchorages into shore.”

  “We sure could use something like that around here,” Luke said.

  “I was hoping you’d say that,” Kara said, smiling at him. “My brothers oversee the other harbors. I’ve been tasked with setting up a launch service here on Gansett.”

  Big Mac was counting on his fingers. “You have five brothers?”

  Mac laughed at his father’s question. It was just like him to hone in on a detail like that.

  Kara smiled indulgently. “Eight, actually, and two sisters.”

  “Wow,” Luke said. “Eleven kids?”

  “Those Maine winters are long and cold,” Kara said with a spark of humor in her hazel eyes.

  The comment drew a laugh from all three men.

  “Are you oldest?” Big Mac asked. “Youngest?”

  “Right in the middle. Number six. Anyway, we’re in need of a landing place on Gansett. McCarthy’s was our first choice.” She handed them each another piece of paper that included projections of how many people would come through the marina as a result of the launch service. “You have the restaurant, laundry facilities, a well-stocked gift shop, showers and easy access to cab service into town.”

  “With the exception of the restaurant and gift shop, our facilities are for customers of our marina,” Mac said as he studied the detailed projections. “We’d need bigger restrooms and more laundry facilities if we’d be serving the full anchorage.”

  His father nodded in agreement.

  “We’ve been talking about making better use of the second-floor space above the restaurant,” Luke said. “Maybe we can build some additional bathrooms and put in some more washers and dryers up there.”

  “Before next season?” Mac asked his friend and partner.

  “We could do it,” Luke said.

  “What about IYRS?”

  “It’ll still be there next year.”

  “Luke—” Once again, Mac and his dad spoke in stereo.

  Luke held up a hand. “We can talk about it later.” To Kara, he said, “Proceed. Please.”

  “We’d like to rent a forty-foot slip, preferably on the outside row, where we would keep two launches for the season, which would run from May 1 to October 31.”

  Mac did some fast math in his head. “A forty-foot slip, at three bucks a foot is one-twenty a day times a hundred and eighty days is—”

  “Twenty-one thousand, six hundred,” Kara finished for him.

  “You’ve done your research,” Big Mac said, impressed.

  “Like I said, your marina is our first choice. It has everything we’re looking for—and then some. We also like that it’s a family-owned-and-run business like ours.”

  “It’d cost us time and money to adapt our facilities to the increased traffic,” Mac reminded her.

  “Which is why we’re willing to pay more than the dockage fees the first year. We’d revisit the fee structure after the initial season.”

  “How much more?” Mac asked.

  “Forty thousand total?”

  Mac exchanged glances with his father and Luke. “Forty-five,” he said.

  “Forty-two-five.”

  His father and Luke nodded.

  “Done,” Mac said, reaching out to shake on it.

  Kara stared at him as she shook his hand. “That’s it?”

  Laughing, Mac sat back in his chair. “Were we too easy?”

  “No, no. I figured it would take a few days to hammer out the details.”

  “One thing you’ll learn pretty quick about my boys and me
,” Big Mac said, “is we don’t dither over details. We know a good deal when we see one.”

  “He definitely doesn’t dither over details,” Mac said dryly. “That’s my job.”

  “No shit,” Luke muttered.

  “I heard that,” Big Mac said, playfully scowling at Mac and Luke.

  Mac’s phone chimed with a text from Maddie that said, “Green light.” He got up so fast his chair fell over backwards. “I gotta go.”

  “Where?” his father asked.

  “Home.”

  “Now? Why? Is everything okay?”

  “Oh yeah. Everything is just fine. Kara, great to meet you. If you want to come back tomorrow, we can hammer out any additional details.”

  “Sure. I’m here for a week to get a feel for the island.”

  “Later,” Mac said, bolting for the door. No doubt he’d catch flak from his dad and Luke for the way he’d run out of there when his wife summoned him, but so what? He’d been waiting months for this moment, and nothing would stop him from going to her. Right now.

  Laura had known this phone call wouldn’t be easy, but it had to be done. Never before had the idea of calling her dad filled her with such anxiety. Even telling him what had happened with Justin had been easier than asking for his help in getting rid of her scumbag husband.

  It had always been important that she maintain her independence and not let her prominent father’s connections make life easier for her. But this was no time for foolish pride. She needed to be free of Justin, and her dad could help.

  Swallowing the knot of emotion that formed in her throat, Laura pressed send on the first number on her list of favorites.

  “Hi, honey,” he said. “I was just thinking about you.”

  Laura smiled, and her nerves melted away. Here was the one man who’d never let her down. She had no reason to be nervous about asking him for anything. He’d give her the sun and moon if he could. She heard the worry in his voice and hated being the cause of it. “Is that right?”

  “I think about you all the time. After what Justin did…”

  “I know, Daddy. I’m sorry you’re worried about me.”

  “My brother tells me you’re working hard and enjoying the hotel project.”

  “I love what I’m doing here. It’s the most fun I’ve ever had.” Of course Owen was a big part of why it was so fun, not that she was ready to tell her dad that part.

  “Mac says you’ve made a new friend, too. The grandson of the hotel owners?”

  Laura laughed. Leave it to her Uncle Mac to zero in on her burgeoning relationship with Owen. “Yes, his name is Owen Lawry.”

  “Do you need me to run a check on him? I can get one of my state police friends to—”

  “No, Dad!” she said, laughing again. “Uncle Mac and Aunt Linda have known him since he was a kid. He’s Evan’s best friend.”

  “Well, I suppose that’s as good an endorsement as we could hope to get.” He paused, cleared his throat. “So, you like this boy, huh?” The question was poised in the same awkward fashion he’d used to extract information about her first teenage boyfriend.

  “Yes,” Laura said, amused by him as always. “I like him. He’s been a very good friend to me through all of this.”

  “I’m glad to hear you’re making new friends and putting the pieces back together.”

  “I’m trying.”

  “I wish I could say the same for your brother. He seems to have totally given up.”

  Laura hated to think of Shane’s terrible heartache over his wife’s addiction to prescription pain medication. “What’s the latest?”

  “Courtney asked for a divorce.”

  Laura winced. “That might be for the best, no?”

  “Try telling him that. He’s waited all this time for her to get through rehab, and now she wants out.”

  “Did she say why?”

  “He says she’s so ashamed of what she put him through that she can barely bring herself to look at him.”

  Laura’s heart ached for her poor, sweet brother. He’d fallen so hard and so fast for Courtney, who’d hidden a raging addiction from him for more than a year before it blew up in her face—and his. “What will he do?”

  “Once he finishes the job he’s working on now, he’s going out there to be with you for the winter. I think it’ll be good for him to get some space from everything here and clear his head.”

  “We’ll take good care of him. Don’t worry.”

  “All I do these days is worry about both of you.”

  “I’m okay, Dad. I promise. But I do need a favor.”

  “Name it, honey.”

  “I have to tell Justin about the baby.” It hurt to say the words. She was so utterly unprepared to see her philandering ex-husband again, but Owen was right. Justin deserved to know about the baby. “I expect he’s going to give me a hard time. The more I think about everything that happened, it’s clear to me that he was far more interested in forming a connection to you than he was in me.”

  Frank gasped. “That’s not true! He was crazy about you. I saw that with my own eyes, which is why this is so hard to believe.”

  “You saw what he wanted you to see. He played us both.”

  “Why would he do such a thing?”

  “Why else? To further his career, which is his first love. Being Judge Frank McCarthy’s son-in-law furthers his career, which is the only reason he’s fighting the divorce.”

  “That makes me sick. You don’t think he’ll want the baby?”

  “I don’t know what to expect there.” The uncertainty terrified her, not that she would admit that to her dad and give him one more thing to fret about. Since her mother died when Laura was nine and Shane was seven, her dad had been both mother and father to them.

  “What can I do, honey?”

  “I’m coming over this week to speak to Justin. Would you mind terribly if I threw your name around a bit if it comes to that?”

  “Of course not. Do whatever it takes to get that pond scum out of your life for good.”

  “He’s going to be in my life for as long as we share a child.” The thought of that was a hundred-pound weight on Laura’s chest.

  “I don’t want you to see him alone.”

  “Owen will be with me.” Laura knew without even asking that Owen would go with her.

  “Are you sure that’s a good idea? Won’t it throw gas on Justin’s fire if he sees you with someone else?”

  “Owen will keep his distance unless I need him.”

  “If that son of a bitch has the nerve to get physical with you, I’ll kill him myself.”

  “It won’t come to that. I’ll meet him in public. He’s far too concerned about what people think of him to risk a scene.”

  “Will you come see me while you’re here?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “I want to meet your Owen, too.”

  Laura’s face heated with embarrassment. “He’s hardly my Owen.”

  “I’ll be the judge of that.”

  Laura laughed at his pun. “You’d better behave, do you hear me?”

  “So I can’t ask his intentions?”

  “Dad!”

  Frank’s guffaw brought a smile to Laura’s face. “I’ll be on my best behavior,” he said.

  “Love you, Dad,” Laura said, her throat squeezing with emotion.

  “Love you, too, sweetheart. Everything will be okay. I promise.”

  Since her dad had never once let her down, Laura chose to believe him.

  Chapter 5

  Maddie got home before Mac and made good use of the time. She changed into the white silk nightgown he’d bought her when they were first dating and covered it with the matching robe he’d given her for her birthday the following year. He’d given her everything, most importantly his love and devotion. Certainly, no woman had ever been so adored by her husband. He’d never been more attentive or solicitous as he’d been since she delivered their baby daughter in the midst of
a tropical storm.

  She brushed her hair until it hung in soft, shiny waves on her shoulders and smoothed on some of the strawberry-flavored lip balm that had been known to make her dear husband a little crazy. Who was she kidding? Everything about her seemed to make him a little crazy, and she loved every crazy, over-the-top thing about him.

  The bang of the sliding door opening caught her attention. “Madeline! Where are you?”

  “Showtime,” she whispered in the mirror with a small, satisfied smile. At the top of the stairs, she looked down to find him on the sofa tearing at his work boots with hasty, fumbling movements.

  “Maddie!”

  She bit her lip to keep from laughing at him and went down the stairs to sit next to him on the sofa. “You beckoned?”

  He turned to her, and when he saw what she was wearing, his eyes got big. His mouth opened and then closed. “You’re stunning.”

  “You’re dirty.”

  “I know. I’m sorry. I’ll take a shower so fast I’ll be back before I’m gone.” He stole a quick kiss and headed for the stairs, stopping halfway up. “Where’re my children?”

  “With my mother and Ned until dinnertime.”

  “God, I love you so much.”

  Maddie laughed as he bolted up the remaining stairs and disappeared. She thought about going upstairs to meet him after his shower but decided it would be far more fun to make him come after her. Sure enough, he came flying down the stairs less than five minutes later, with a towel wrapped around his waist, his dripping-wet hair standing on end and a small spot of blood on his chin from where he’d nicked himself shaving.

  “You’re a mess,” she said, laughing as she held out her arms to him.

  Smelling of soap and sexy man, he came down on top of her. “I can’t help it. Waiting for this day has made me nuts.”

  She combed her fingers through his hair, attempting to bring some order. “Good thing I love you even when you’re a messy nut case.”

  That drew a smile from him. “So what did David have to say?”

  “Everything looks good.”

  As she’d expected, he scowled darkly. “You’re damned right it looks good. I hate the idea of that guy having his face…there.”

  Once again, she held back a laugh at his ridiculousness. “He’s a doctor. Seen one, seen them all.”