Hold Me Now: Hope Harbor

by Harrison, Ann B

  Arlo and Bryce waved their hands and shouted for him to stop but he didn’t seem to hear them. “Hey, hey! Stop that engine. You’re going to crash into my oyster beds.”

  Hilary jumped up and started waving her hands too, screaming to get the driver’s attention. He either couldn’t hear the shouts for him to stop or he didn’t care. A horrible crunching sound rent the air as a buoy line became tangled around the propeller and the engine stalled. The guy on the boat tried to start the engine again, but it merely coughed. His mate leaned over the back of the boat and pointed down at the rope stopping the outboard.

  Bryce shouted. “Don’t do anything. I’m coming over there.” He turned to Arlo who stood frozen on the jetty. Hilary wanted to reassure him that what appeared to be the culmination of years of work being torn apart might not be as bad as it looked. Even she could see how quickly things could turn from bad to worse, but wisely kept that thought to herself.

  “I’ll go with Sam. Call the Coast Guard. Now, Arlo.” Bryce grabbed a pair of wading pants from hook in the cupboard at the end of the jetty and pulled them on.

  “The Coast Guard?” Hilary grabbed Arlo’s arm, but he shook her off as he pulled on his own waders. After the initial shock wore off, anger rose on his face. She’d never seen this side of him before, and it scared her.

  He almost growled at her. “Don’t let them get away without proof they were here. Take a shot of the boat, and make sure you get clear pictures of the identification on the boat and their faces too.” He hooked the strap of his waders over his shoulder, keeping an eye on the boat as well as Hilary.

  She took out her phone and did as he asked. She was taking a close up when she gasped.

  “What is it?” He reached for her.

  She recognized the boat’s captain. “Archie?”

  He heard her voice and grinned. “Hilary? Hey, it is you.” He leaned over the side of the boat, ignoring Sam and Bryce who had waded in and were checking out the damage. “We found it. Just like you said, in a pretty hard-to-track-down place, but I followed the directions and here we are. Pretty bay, isn’t it? Now, while these guys get us untangled, do you think you could rustle us up some fresh oysters?”

  One of his mates handed him a cold beer from the cooler on board and he tore off the top and took a long swig.

  * * *

  Arlo stared up at her with his mouth open. “You know them?”

  “Yes. I do, but I didn’t give them directions. I promised I wouldn’t tell anyone and I didn’t.”

  Arlo held onto a pole on the jetty, desperate to go and help the boys, but he needed to hear what she had to say. She couldn’t have let him down, surely?

  Still, something twinged in the back of his mind, a hint of doubt he couldn’t push back. “So how did they find us then? Nobody’s ever come in here with a boat since I’ve worked here. It’s a private cove, one that you can only get to if you go through a marine sanctuary. If they know anything about boating, they would’ve respected the ocean and wouldn’t have come here.”

  “You seriously don’t think I’m lying to you, do you? Archie is the son of my ex-business partner. I’d never tell him anything. You have to believe me.”

  He couldn’t even look her in the eye; he was that hurt and furious. Hilary not answering the question only made that doubt more tangible. Arlo had trusted her, and she’d let him down. That hurt him right to the core. “I don’t know what to think right now. These idiots are destroying my oyster beds.” He shook with rage, struggling to keep his cool.

  Bryce shouted at the boat owner. “Step away from the ignition now.”

  Archie frowned and half stumbled to the side of the boat. “Why, what are you going to do?”

  Bryce held onto the corner of the boat. “I’m going to try and free the oyster bags from your propeller but not with you anywhere near it, I won’t. Now, step away.”

  Hilary called out, “Archie, do what he says, and if you so much as look at those keys, I’ll wade out there and toss them in the ocean myself. Do you understand me?”

  He gave a dramatic sigh. “No need to get yourself worked up over it, Hil. Geesh.” He dropped his chin and sat down near the end of the boat with his mates who were busy chugging beers and grinning like fools. They’d obviously started drinking early and were well on their way to being drunk.

  “Are you going to call the Coast Guard, Arlo?”

  He saw the hurt in her eyes, but he was too angry to play nice right now. This could be a huge blow to his almost ready to harvest crop. Who knew how many they would lose because of this incident, to say nothing of the contamination from the boat. Arlo turned away, pulled out his cell phone and called the local police. He told Ben what had happened and advised him that the boat’s captain was drinking. The way he’d ignored them and the warnings about the oyster beds, it wouldn’t surprise him if they were drunker than he suspected.

  “I didn’t tell them, Arlo.”

  “I don’t know if I believe you. It seems too much like a coincidence to me. Didn’t you hear him? He said the place was exactly where you said it would be.”

  “Hey, Hilary.” Archie caught her attention. “You won’t tell my dad will you? He’ll only snap if he thinks I’ve damaged the boat. You know what an ass he can be when he gets in a mood.”

  “Don’t bring me into your arguments. I’m not interested.” She reached out and grabbed Arlo’s arm. “Please listen, Arlo. I didn’t tell him anything.”

  “I trusted you. I opened up to you like I’ve never done before and you do this to me?”

  She turned and faced the guy in the boat. “Archie, tell Arlo that I never told you about this place.”

  The captain shook his head and laughed. “What, and I suppose you want me to tell him that you and good old dad haven’t hatched this up between you? You don’t want me to lie, do you? That’s not nice.” He cracked up laughing at his own joke, but all Arlo felt was gutted.

  “I think you should leave.” He turned his back on her and waded out to help Bryce with the damaged oyster bags. Luckily there were only a few that were torn and the losses would be minimal. They could replace the bags, restring the floats, and mend the broken frames without losing too many shellfish.

  Contamination was another matter. That would be hard to measure until he started to harvest. That wasn’t what made him so angry. It was the thought that the woman he loved had let him down when he’d been brave enough to let her into his world. Such a stupid move on his part. He wouldn’t be caught again. The pain was too much.

  She stood on the pier watching them work.

  “Just go. Please.”

  He couldn’t look as she walked away in case he stopped her. His heart was broken, his nerves raw.

  Chapter 19

  “Leaving so soon?”

  Hilary looked up from the ticket counter and into the eyes of the old man she’d met on the beach when she’d come to meet the Hope family. Bradley, wasn’t it? Arlo’s godfather. Not someone she needed to face right now.

  She dropped her gaze to hide her puffy eyes. As she’d packed her bag and loaded all of her belongings into the car, taking her time in the hope that Arlo would come to the house and apologize, her tears had flowed. But nothing was going to change the bitterness in his voice when he thought she’d let him down.

  “I have to get back to Seattle.”

  “Funny, I thought you were here for the weekends until you made the move permanently. Could have sworn that Atticus said you came in on a Friday and left on a Sunday, and today being Saturday, this seems out of character. Perhaps I heard it wrong.” He adjusted his sunglasses and looked over the top of them. “If you need to talk, don’t feel you need to hold back because I have a connection to Arlo.”

  She glanced at him warily.

  He passed her the ticket the ferry master pushed under the window, and his little dog sniffed at her feet. “I’m a retired psychologist. Although now that I’m on the island full time, I seem to work more tha
n I don’t. Funny how life turns out.”

  She knew that more than anyone. Two major failures in as many years. First her restaurant, and now this budding relationship that seemed doomed before it got off the ground. She wondered what he’d make of that. Not that she had any intention of opening up to him.

  “Walk with me for a moment, Hilary. I find at my age if I stand still for too long, my old joints seize up. You have ages before the ferry leaves. Why not join me for a coffee?”

  “I thought you said you have to keep moving.” Picky, Hilary, picky.

  He smiled. “I do, but for you, my dear, I’ll sit down for ten minutes. You don’t look like you want to go far. I sense you’re ready to make a run for it.” He tipped his head at the café across the road. “They make a pretty good coffee over there but you probably already know that. You can see the ferry and you’ll be the first to notice when they get ready to load up.”

  She had no reason not to go with him. “Thanks.” He led her to an outside table and offered her a chair. “Latte?”

  Hilary nodded.

  “I’ll go and place our order. Be right back.” He handed her the lead for his little dog and Hilary sat down.

  She stroked the dogs wiry coat, but he was too focused on the door his master had disappeared through. “Lucky you, to be stuck with me. But don’t worry; he’ll be back shortly. You won’t have to put up with my sour mood for very long.”

  Moments later, Bradley came back out with two take-out cups of coffee. “Here we are.” He fumbled for his chair and sat down heavily. “The joys of getting older. The old body doesn’t like to fold and bend as it used to either.” He held his cup up and tipped it toward her. “Here’s to a bright and happy future, Hilary.”

  She snorted before she could help it. “Sorry.”

  “You’ll feel better if you get it all out.”

  “I doubt it. I should’ve known when things seem too good to be true, they usually are.”

  “I’d like to have the person who made that quote up within my reach for just five minutes. It’s wrong on so many levels. Don’t you think you deserve good things, Hilary?”

  Once, she had—perhaps before life got harder and tore her down when she least expected it. Despite the affirmations she tried to adhere to, in the back of her mind, Hilary didn’t for one minute believe she was worthy of good luck. The joy of being in Arlo’s arms had made that possibility come alive if only for a short time. Now it sat like a lead weight in her gut.

  “I don’t think I deserve good things.” She pondered that statement for a moment. “I used to when I was a kid. Growing up made me see things differently. Life sucks some days no matter how much you try to do the best you can.” She turned the cup around in her hands, her nervous energy getting the better of her. “I don’t think the good life is meant for someone like me.”

  “That’s rubbish. It’s your doom and gloom angel, as I like to call it, talking to you.”

  Hilary gave a snort of disbelief. Doom and gloom angel. Right. Like she needed one of those. Things were bad enough as it was. One of those would only up the ante.

  “You’ve heard people talk of the good angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other? Well, I have another one that I think makes much more sense in this world of entitlement and self-deprecation. The doom and gloom angel sits somewhere in the middle of good and bad. It’s the one that makes you feel as though you deserve to fail. Because life sometimes goes along so well, you start to think, how on earth is this happening to me? Why am I getting everything right? What have I done to deserve this good fortune? When is the axe going to fall.”

  The words hit home even while she argued with him in silence.

  “When that axe drops, we accept it as our due because we’ve been thinking that way, right? Just waiting for it so you can tell yourself you were right. And you know the worst thing about that, Hilary? We don’t fight back. We let doubt win.”

  “Why would you? I mean, if it’s for the best and you know that, why would you bother fighting?”

  “Didn’t you love your restaurant, the glamour and the excitement of being in charge of your own destiny? Didn’t you go to bed at night thinking your life couldn’t get any better? All your wildest dreams had come true, you were the part owner of your very own restaurant and it was kicking ass in the reviews. What wasn’t to love about it?”

  He knew about that? Was everyone on the island aware of how far she’d fallen? Not surprising that they’d all go and Google her, considering she was involved with one of the island’s founding families. She’d do the same if she were in their shoes. “Yes.”

  “But you didn’t fight for it?” He shook his silver head. “No. You let your business partner walk all over you and you gave up your dream without a fuss. You cowered away with your tail between your legs and let your partner win, even if he may not’ve been right. How many nights have you lain awake regretting that, not giving him a piece of your mind when you had the chance?”

  She fought back a wave of remorse, telling herself it was for the best and she was over it. Her new business was less stressful and she was doing well now that the initial shock had faded. Hilary was happy with the way life had turned out. At least she had been until now. Wasn’t she? Bradley was wrong.

  “And now here we are again with you leaving the island upset. What went wrong, Hilary? Why do you look as though your world has crashed again?”

  “Arlo thinks I betrayed his privacy.” Saying the words burned her throat. It was something she’d never do to him.

  “Did you?” Bradley sipped his coffee and watched her over the rim of his cup.

  She shook her head, the urge to shout it out almost taking over. She wasn’t going to make a fuss. She’d leave the island and go quietly home to lick her wounds in private.

  “So why didn’t you tell him that, then? Why didn’t you fight for what you want?”

  Hilary didn’t know how to put it into words. Not without feeling like she was the silly fool who didn’t care what happened to her. Saying the words out loud would only cement her inability to be strong and defend what was hers. And she wasn’t ready to tell anyone how weak she was. Especially this man who had it so right. But the words wanted to come out.

  “He doesn’t trust me. If he did, I wouldn’t be here now. I can’t live with someone and not have their full support.”

  “I understand that. But—and I’m certainly not defending Arlo here—but if we remain silent, how much do you think that adds to the illusion that we’re guilty? People who don’t use thier voice can’t expect much more than that.”

  “I can’t do it. I’m done with this island.” Hilary stood, grabbed her bag and turned to go.

  “Hilary.” Bradley reached out a hand. In it he held a business card. “Call me if you ever need to talk. I’m here for you whether you believe me or not.”

  She took it, slipped it into her pocket and headed for her car just as the ferry blew its horn for boarding. Hilary wanted to get home and cry away from everyone. But first she had someone she needed to see. Her full-of-crap ex-partner whom she blamed for sending his son, Archie, out to Hope Island to mess up her reputation. It was just the kind of thing he’d do to pay her back. What a lowdown trick.

  Facing off with him would take some planning on her part because she doubted he’d agree to meet with her after she’d refused to add him to the list of restaurants that would get a share of Arlo’s produce. And if his boat had been confiscated by the Coast Guard, he’d probably be even nastier.

  Hilary dumped her bag inside her apartment door and pulled out her cell phone. She scrolled the contacts list and before she could chicken out, she hit call.

  “Hello,” a woman answered.

  “It’s Hilary French. I want to talk to Lester Freeman please.”

  There was a muffled conversation, then the woman came back. “Sorry. He’s not available unless you have something to offer him.”

  The cheeky bastard! “Excuse
me?”

  “His words, not mine. Sorry, hun.” The phone went dead.

  Hilary walked over to the window and stared out at the city. Fabulous. Nobody wanted to talk to her. Her life sucked right now. She dropped down onto the couch and grabbed a cushion to her chest, letting the tears stream down her face.

  The light had faded, and the city started to sparkle under the streetlights when her cell rang again. It might be Arlo. She grabbed it, but disappointment hit when she saw who it was.

  “Lester. Thought you didn’t want to talk to me.” She couldn’t work up the energy to give him the talking to she’d planned on the way home. Her heart was too sore to even bother.

  “You sneaky little bitch! Do you know what you’ve done?”

  Really? He was going to blame her? Tendrils of rage wound their way out of her despair. “Excuse me, you’re the one who sent your son over to Hope Island because you couldn’t get what you wanted out of me. Did you honestly think that’s the way to make an impression and get on my list of favored restaurants?”

  “You owed me when I kicked your ass out of my restaurant, but you sure as hell owe me more now. They’ve confiscated my boat and locked Archie up in that hick island jail.” He barely paused for breath. “Talk to your fuck buddy and sort it out, or it’ll be over for you in this city. That I promise you, Hilary.”

  Idiot. “You can’t do anything more to me, Lester. You’ve already ruined everything I ever wanted.”

  “Watch me.” He cut her off, and Hilary threw the phone on the couch. That was a pleasant conversation. Thank goodness he hadn’t gotten off scot free for such an underhanded trick. Still, it did little to appease her sadness.

  * * *

  “You were a bit rough on her, Arlo.” Bryce stood watching as the Coast Guard towed the boat away from his jetty. The captain had been detained for boating under the influence and sat in the back of Ben’s police car, his friend waiting for a lift back to town.