Lucky in Love on Hound Island (Island County Series Book 8)

by Karice Bolton

  “Not going to happen,” I answered. “It’s part work and part leisure. He’s a busy man.”

  I looked up from my phone just as we were entering the town of Silver Ridge. If I thought Hound Island was quaint and cozy, this little mountain town almost had it beat.

  The streets were lined with matching ornate street lamps, overflowing flower pots, and fall flags hanging from each of the light posts. There were a ton of little restaurants and boutiques dotting the street.

  “The resort is up the hill on the mountain,” I told my sister.

  “I wonder what the roads will be like when we come back for their party?” she asked.

  “Should be okay since it’s connected to a ski resort. I’m sure they plow them or something. They wouldn’t want their guests unable to get there.”

  “True.” She nodded, and I gave her the last of the directions, which led us up a winding road to Silver Ridge Resort.

  “This isn’t just a resort. This is an entire town,” I said in awe as we drove along the road filled with even more stores and restaurants than below. A large lodge sat on the edge of the town, and condos and townhomes peppered the hillside.

  “This is perfect. Our parents may never want to leave.”

  “I wouldn’t blame them,” I said, smiling. “Look, they even have a wedding dress shop.”

  “Oh, my gosh. Wouldn’t it be so cute to get mom a wedding dress?”

  “We should stop in. Those veils are gorgeous.”

  “Maybe you’ll find something you like too,” she teased.

  “That’s exactly why I didn’t want to tell you about Billy. You make it weird.”

  “Sorry. I think you’re letting a good thing slip through your fingers.” She followed the signs to the parking garage under the lodge while I sat and stewed.

  “Did you ever think that the reason I’ve had such unhealthy relationships is because I refused to see what was right in front of me? Well, this time I’m fully onboard with what’s going on. I’m not imagining something that’s impossible. I know that neither of us are in it for the long haul, which means there will be no wedding dress.”

  My sister slid her rental into a parking stall and shut off the car. It felt like I’d finally gotten my message across to her.

  “Never say never,” she hummed as she got out of the car.

  A week with my sister was plenty, and we’d hit that mark a couple days ago. I opened the door, and my sister handed me the crutches, which I thought about using to club her.

  “Seriously, let’s not keep bringing it up,” I warned her. “We’ve had a great trip, and I don’t want you to wind up in the emergency room next.”

  She laughed. “I wish you’d admit to yourself that you like him. Like really like him. It’s written all over you. I heard it in your voice the first time you spoke about him on the phone that day after Lucky made your introduction.”

  “Of course I like him.” We’d already made it to the lobby. “But that doesn’t change the facts.”

  “The only fact to worry about should be that you like him.” My sister introduced us to the front desk staff, and we took a seat while we waited for the event coordinator.

  “This hotel is gorgeous,” I said, hoping to throw enough sparkle in front of my sister she’d get distracted again.

  The main lobby was woodsy and grand with exposed beams and a large stone fireplace centering the seating area. Several guests were seated by the windows, sipping wine and other drinks.

  “Tiffany and Stacy? I’m Sylvia.” The voice came from behind me, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to spin around quick enough for a proper greeting.

  My sister stood up and shook the woman’s hand as I attempted to get off the oversized couch. It still wasn’t a lot of fun using crutches with a sprained wrist.

  “So nice to meet you,” I stuck out my good hand and the woman smiled.

  “And you too.” Her dark hair was swept into an updo, and she wore a pair of jeans and a Pendleton jacket.

  “I’m usually not the walking wounded, but I had a mishap with a bicycle and a patch of wet leaves,” I explained.

  “One more reason to stay away from exercise for me.” Sylvia laughed. “I’m the only person who works at the resort and doesn’t take advantage of the free ski passes. No, thank you. I prefer to stay in the lodge and drink the hot chocolate.”

  “Me too.” My sister nearly jumped from excitement from finding a kindred spirit. She was one of the few in Utah who didn’t enjoy sliding down their mountains either.

  “So, are we still on target for about twenty-two people?” Sylvia asked, and we both nodded.

  “My parents have never been into over-the-top celebrations, and we knew getting together some of their closest friends and relatives would make them the most comfortable,” I explained.

  “Sounds absolutely perfect.” Sylvia nodded. “We have two rooms that would work well for that size party. One of the rooms overlooks the ski resort, and the other looks over the town. Both are lovely and since it will be at night, the lights from either will absolutely glow against the snow.”

  Excitement pulsed through me as I thought about pulling this off. My parents had absolutely no idea what we were up to.

  Sylvia showed us both rooms, and we surprisingly chose the room that overlooked the town. I could just imagine the twinkling lights bouncing off the snow the night of the party. Sylvia led us to the restaurant where a little tasting had been set up for us.

  “This is so much fun,” my sister gushed, taking a bite of filet mignon steak strips.

  “It really is.” I ate a little puff pastry and immediately fell in love.

  After we’d polished everything off on the table, a server brought over several samples of cake.

  “We should throw parties for our parents more often,” I told my sister as I took a bite of buttercream frosting.

  “Agreed,” she said, poking her fork into a chocolate-layer cake.

  When Sylvia made her way back to the table to check on us, we were both stuffed and had agreed on a menu for their event. She’d brought with her a few different floral arrangements, and my sister and I picked out one that looked more woodsy and traditional.

  We signed the last few documents and put down a large deposit before heading back to the car.

  “What do you say we stop in at the wedding shop?” my sister asked.

  “For mom only, right?”

  “Of course.” I halfway expected an evil laugh to echo through the car, but she quietly drove us to the wedding dress shop. She found a parking spot around the side of the building, and my pulse immediately sped up, and I had no idea why. It wasn’t like I was looking at dresses for me.

  It was kind of odd. Between tasting wedding cakes and going into a wedding dress shop, I suddenly wondered if I’d ever have a need for either. Judging by how life had been going so far, I’d say my odds were slim to none.

  When we stepped inside the little shop, it was like a magical wonderland, and I wasn’t even into things like this. Or at least I didn’t think I was into stuff like this.

  A beautiful silk and chiffon princess gown hung on a mannequin and several veils were displayed in the window.

  “May I help you?” A woman dressed in a beautiful pink cashmere sweater and a pair of grey slacks stepped out from the backroom.

  “We were driving up to the resort and fell in love with your window display,” my sister explained.

  “We’re planning our parents’ fortieth wedding anniversary and thought it might be kind of fun to see if there’s anything that would work for my mom.”

  The woman’s kind smile put me immediately at ease, and it wasn’t even my wedding I was discussing.

  “And I’m trying to warm my sister up to the idea of marriage,” my sister blurted out.

  My gaze flew to my sister’s, and I threw her a dirty look and she just giggled.

  “Are you engaged?” the woman asked.

  “Nope and I don’
t plan to be,” I said, laughing.

  “Totally understand that. I’ve been engaged more times than I’d like to admit and I still haven’t walked down the aisle.” She laughed. “Kind of ironic considering I design wedding dresses for a living.”

  “Life has a funny sense of humor.”

  “Yes, it does.” She nodded. “My name is Dina. I own the shop. If there’s anything you need at all, just let me know.”

  She walked over to one of the shelves where several styles of satin gloves were on display and she took a pair with her to the back room.

  An ivory in the far corner dress caught my attention. It was stunning.

  I tapped my sister and pointed at the beautiful sheath dress. The beadwork was simple and it wasn’t too revealing. A faux fur shawl hung over the shoulders and I knew it would be perfect.

  For my mom.

  “Some women in life are lucky enough to wear two wedding dresses for the same man and some of us can’t even find one.” My sister smiled and let out a sigh.

  “Are you talking about men or dresses?” I asked, chuckling.

  “Both, I suppose.”

  And I realized the reason my sister was pressing me so hard about Billy was that maybe she wanted some of those things more than she wanted to admit.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Saying goodbye to my sister would have been a lot harder had she not felt it necessary to keep ribbing me about Billy. The last twenty-four hours felt like we were back in high school, and while I loved having her here and felt really guilty about having her take care of Lucky and me, I was relieved to be alone with my thoughts about Billy.

  The truth was I’d turned into the total cliché. I slept with him and now I couldn’t get him out of my head. The idea of dismissing him was only going to work when he left town, and there was a big part of me that wished that wasn’t going to happen.

  Lucky was curled up next to me, and I was waiting for the man of the hour to show up. My wrist had been throbbing recently, probably from using it so much at the resort yesterday, and I’d told him the door was unlocked so I didn’t have to get up again.

  I was so conflicted about Billy. I wanted to know more about him, but I wasn’t sure if it wasn’t purely for selfish reasons. Was it just because I could hope I could change his mind about relationships? I’d like to think that wasn’t why.

  But I also thought back to when we first met, and he didn’t seem completely against dating until we’d had a couple more interactions. Then it seemed like it turned to fun-only and nothing long-term. Or I was imagining it completely?

  “Lucky, how did you know Lady was the one?” I whispered, and he let out an exasperated huff.

  A car pulled up outside, and I immediately got excited at the thought of seeing Billy again.

  Yeah, I had it bad.

  Within a minute the front door opened and the energy of the house immediately changed. It felt warmer and more secure.

  “Guess who just had her baby?” Billy asked, coming in with his favorite Pomeranian.

  “Please tell me it’s not Lady,” I teased.

  “If Lucky worked that fast…” Billy whistled. “So do you want to go visit?”

  “Is she home?” I asked.

  “No, over at the hospital.”

  “I’d love to, but are you sure she wouldn’t mind? I’m not sure every woman would be thrilled when a stranger shows up right after she’s given birth.”

  Billy’s expression fell. “Tiff, no one thinks of you as a stranger. That’s not how this place works.”

  “I’ve only been here a little over a couple weeks, but that’s really sweet of you.”

  He placed Lady next to Lucky on the couch and sat in the recliner.

  “Everyone who meets you loves you and you’re going to be here for another couple months. Believe me, you won’t ever be able to shake these people off. They’re impossible to get rid of.”

  “Present company included?” I asked, wondering if I’d ever hear from Billy once he took off. There’d be no reason to, and I fully expected not to, but I couldn’t help throwing it out there.

  He propped his elbows on his knees and steadied his gaze on me. “You won’t be able to get rid of me very easily either.”

  “Well...” I let out a quiet sigh, yet another conflicting message shared between the two of us.

  “If I showed up at the hospital without you, I’m sure Maddie would be upset.” He straightened up.

  I glanced at Lucky who didn’t look like he had any major plans for the day.

  “I would love to see them and her new baby girl.”

  “Good. Then it’s a date. We’ll drop Lady off at my house on our way, and we’ll get there before lunch.”

  “Perfect.” A pulse of excitement pounded through me at the thought of getting to see Maddie and Chance’s new addition, and I wasn’t even completely sure why. There was something about these people—this island—that had some sort of magical pull over me.

  And maybe it was about Billy. Maybe I loved the community of Hound Island so much I was trying to read things that weren’t there with Billy.

  Billy scooped Lady away from Lucky and helped me up from the couch.

  Feeling his hand wrapped around mine sent a spark of desire through me, which I quickly pushed away. I had to get a grip. He was leaving town a day from now, and I didn’t need to have a crush on a guy who I couldn’t locate. So, maybe it wasn’t just the island.

  I gave Lucky a quick kiss and followed Billy out the door.

  I’d been expecting things to be awkward since the other night, but they weren’t. They were strangely normal. I didn’t know if it was because he was used to sleeping with women he didn’t plan on pursuing a relationship with or if we happened to click. Either way, I was relieved because the thought of spending today and tomorrow with a man who didn’t want to see me sounded horrible.

  “What’s got you quiet all of a sudden?” he asked, helping me into his car.

  “I was thinking about the other night,” I confessed.

  His gaze ignited with the same heat I’d come to love, and I blushed.

  “It’s pretty hard not to think about that night.” He shut the door and walked over with Lady still in his hand. He buckled her in the backseat, and I held in a chuckle as he tugged the straps to double-check the tightness.

  We drove in the opposite direction of the ferry as we made our way to his house. I didn’t really know what to expect, but what we pulled up to wasn’t like anything I’d imagined for him.

  A sprawling one-story home sat behind a wrought-iron gate where a separate oversized garage or workshop was also located. The piece of property was large but still manageable with a riding lawnmower.

  Billy drove up to the gate and punched in a code.

  “Fancy,” I joked and Billy laughed.

  “It came with the house. I’m not sure who the previous owners thought might come for them here, but I haven’t had the time to get it removed.”

  “Well, I’m sure Lady doesn’t mind feeling that extra protection, and it’s probably a good idea since you’re going to be gone for so long.”

  “True.” He nodded as he pulled down the long driveway toward his home, and I took in everything about it.

  The house had a wraparound porch, and I spotted several fruit trees dotting the driving. There were even a few apples still clutching on for dear life.

  “The fruit trees are what sold me on the place. The backyard is filled with them.”

  “What do you do with them?”

  He parked in front of his house. “All kinds of things. I made peach filling for pie, peach jam, apple butter, apple filling, pear marmalade.”

  My heart warmed hearing him list all the things he’d made with the fruit, and I let out a little chuckle. I didn’t know why, but I loved that this big, burly man with tattoos was spending time in his kitchen making jam.

  “What? I don’t look like the pie-making kind of guy to you?” He smil
ed and opened his door.

  “I plead the fifth.”

  “Did you want to come in?” he asked, climbing out of the car.

  I did want to see what his house looked like, but I wasn’t sure if I went in if we’d ever get to see Maddie, and my wrist was still throbbing quite a bit.

  “Nah. I’d only hold us up.”

  He was already in the backseat taking Lady out of her harness.

  “Okay. I’ll be right back.”

  I nodded and watched him take Lady up to his house.

  His home was gorgeous. No doubt about it. And very large. I wondered what all was inside it and how it was decorated. Was he more rustic or edgy? Modern?

  By the time he made it back to the car, I’d come up with an entire home that probably looked nothing like it really did. And worse yet, it was something I shouldn’t even care about.

  “You know, I was thinking…” he began.

  “Uh-oh. That sounds dangerous.”

  “I’d love to have you and your parents over for dinner tomorrow when they get into town.”

  Of all the things I’d expected him to say, this wasn’t one of them. I swallowed back my surprise and glanced back at his house.

  “Or not,” he quickly added. “If it’s too much.”

  “No,” I nearly choked out. “Not too much at all, but I’d feel bad since you’re heading out of town and all the next day.”

  He turned around in his driveway and made our way back onto the main road.

  “I’m all packed. There’s nothing left for me to do but load up Lady and hit the road.” He glanced over at me and smiled. “Besides, I can’t have you thinking Chance is the best cook on the island. After all, we went to the same school.”

  I laughed and felt my heart warm even more toward Billy, but I also recognized we were both a walking set of contradictions. Neither of us thought we wanted more, yet we were determined to share who we were with one another, at least little by little.

  It sounded like the start of a relationship to me.

  “My parents would love it, but after all you’ve done for me, I feel like I should be the one making you dinner.”

  “Maybe another time.” He slid his hand over mine, and my chest tightened as his words rattled around in my head.