THE PONY-TAILED PERVERT from the coffee hut sits at Ashley’s counter like he belongs there.
“You fucking asshole.” I lunge at the overly tan bastard with the bald spot on the top of his head. Erik manages to grab my arms and halt me.
The toasted toadstool has the nerve to smile at me and wiggle his fingers in a condescending wave. “If it isn’t Carter Kelso. Still a fuck up?”
Erik’s hold on me loosens slightly, probably in surprise over Ron’s hostility. Given what he said to a teenage girl, nothing that passes his lips would surprise me.
“And his baby brother. Fuck Up One and Fuck Up Two.” He rubs his stubby hands together. “Saw your ass all over the Internet last year. Your mother must be so proud.”
“What the fuck?” Erik releases me.
Jonah blocks us. “Don’t give him a reason to call the cops. This scum would probably press assault charges.”
Ashley’s breath catches in her throat next to me. Gone is the bravado she wears daily in defense, replaced by the sadness I haven’t seen since she was seventeen.
“I see you inherited Carl’s loser genes.” Ron gives us an oily smile. “I came here to see my kids. I’m disappointed in your choice of friends, Ashley. Spreading your legs for island trash. You know he’s never going to amount to anything. Just like his father. You and your pops hanging out at the bar at the Legion together? Cursing ol’ Ron Curtis for ruining your lives?”
“Fuck off,” Erik growls.
“You need to leave,” Jonah calmly tells the burned tater tot who provided half their DNA. Calling him a father is an insult to every other dad.
“Not yet. I have some business here. Unresolved impediments to my current life situation.” He uses big words like he’s going to impress us with his brilliance. “See, my life’s been pretty good, but I’ve come to an impasse which needs resolution involving my first wife and the progeny we created.”
“The fuck?” Ashley spits out. “Enough with your bullshit vocabulary and word spin. Tell us what you want, and then disappear again.”
“Such a mouth on you. I told your mother no matter how much praying she and your grandmother did, you’d always be a little cock loving tramp.”
Jonah shoves the old man off his stool so fast and hard, I don’t realize Ron’s on the floor until I hear him curse.
“You little shit. That’s assault.” Ron gets to his feet. “I have witnesses.”
Erik, Ashley, and I meet eyes and nod.
“I saw you slip and fall all on your own. You see the same thing?” Ashley asks us.
“Same,” I agree.
“Were you always this much of an asswipe? Or did you get worse after you stole all my dad’s money, almost two hundred grand, and left your wife and kids with nothing?” Erik rounds the corner of the island.
“Pretty sure he was always more scum than human.” Jonah crosses his arms and rests his back against the counter.
“Not until I got trapped by your mother with you two rats sucking me dry. I had big dreams and you all were holding me back.” Ron spits as he speaks.
“Right. What were we holding you back from?” Ashley stands opposite the kitchen island from him. She’s smart to keep the space between them. I flank her side and rest my hand on her lower back to reassure her.
“If you think I’ve been pining for you, sweetheart, you couldn’t be more wrong. My life’s been tip-top down in Baja. Invested my money in real estate. I have a sweet place south of Tijuana near the beach. Even have a little mamacita who cleans and cooks for me.”
“Then why didn’t you stay down there? No one here cares. We all hoped you were dead.” Ashley’s anger is palpable, she practically vibrates with it.
“I met a woman. Isn’t it fucked how it always comes back to tits and ass?” He curls his lips into a lecherous smile aimed at Ashley while straightening the collar on his ugly, cheap Hawaiian shirt.
Unfazed, Ashley laughs in his face. “Right. Is she blind, deaf, and mute?”
“She’s a lady. Something you’ll never be. I want to marry my lady and she said yes.”
Jonah snorts. “Hope she knows what a turd she’s getting.”
Ron grunts and glares like a bull getting ready to charge. “I knew you little shits would be difficult.”
“Then why even bother showing up here?” Ashley asks, her anger at a low boil. “Oh.”
All eyes turn to her.
“You’re married to Mom.” Her hand comes up to her mouth. I can’t tell if she’s going to laugh, scream, or cry. “You can’t remarry. At least not legally in this country without adding bigamist to your list of crimes.”
Tan and nasty grins at her. “Such a waste of a brain in a woman’s body. You can change your name and pretend you’re not mine, but you’ve got my smarts.”
Next to me, Ashley gags.
Ignoring her reaction, Ron continues, “But you’re wrong about crimes. I’ve never been charged with anything. Carl was too loyal to press criminal charges. And he had no proof the money wasn’t owed to me. Given it was in an account we both had access to.”
“You’re dead.” Malice fills my voice.
“I’m not lying. Ask your father how hard he fought to find me and get his money back. I’ve been hiding in plain sight. Hell, I’ve been coming and going off the island all summer and no one’s recognized me. Must be the Mexican sun agrees with me.” He has giant cohones to look smug.
Erik stares at me. “Is this true?”
Keeping my eyes on Ron, I shrug. “If it is, proves Dad’s a better person than this oil slick has ever been or will be. Loyalty and friendship are two things Dad values alongside family. Without those three, you have nothing.”
Dad’s familiar words ring true.
You move on and do your best, even if you don’t forget.
More truth dawns on me. “Dad knew you were fucking around on your wife. He knew you were bad news. Shit. He let you fuck him over to protect your family. Because he knew they’d be better off without you. And you know what, they are.” I pause and look at Erik. “Even as fucked up as we’ve all been picking up the pieces, we did it. We survived you. You didn’t ruin anyone’s life but your own.”
Silently, Ashley slips her arm around my waist and Erik comes to stand on my other side. Jonah remains between Ron and the door.
Even though I spoke the words, I’m in shock. All these years Dad took the hits, suffered financially, and became a walking punchline to get rid of Ron. Left on the hook, he floundered to pay back debts and refund clients, even going into bankruptcy. Over the years, he’s become more than a little bitter. Secrets will do that to a person. Doesn’t forgive his snide comments about Jonah and the accounts or insults slung at Ashley. I guess when you sacrifice yourself for the greater good, you hate to see the effort wasted on who he saw as a wild woman and her punk brother.
“Carl Kelso and his sons are real men. You’re a toddler who thinks the rules don’t apply to him, distracted by the next shiny object.” Jonah stands his ground.
“You’re an ungrateful brat,” Ron spits. “I sent these losers ten grand, with a promise of more.”
“We don’t want your money.” Erik speaks for the both of us.
“Don’t act like you can afford to refuse. I’ve seen where your parents are living now. Kind of a dump. Maybe buy some more goats.” Ron aims his insult at me.
“We’re all set. Thanks.” I don’t give him the satisfaction of a reaction.
“Tear it up. I’ve got more than I know what to do with.”
Ashley plasters a fake smile on her face and claps her hands together twice. “Okay then. Well, this has been lovely. I’ll tell Mom to expect the divorce papers. You should probably mention a hefty settlement or alimony in the letter. I’m sure she’ll happily take your money.”
Three sets of eyes stare at her.
“So, now you can go since you got what you came for. If you leave now, I won’t press charges for stalking or harassing a minor. And yes, I have witnesses for both.” Her voice is steely and emotionless, but her smile never falls.
In other words, she’s terrifying.
Jonah grips Ron’s upper arm. He towers over the tan troll. “You heard her. Time to go.”
“I’m not going to be thrown out like the trash.” Ron struggles to escape Jonah’s hold as his son drags him down the hall.
“Wrong again,” Jonah says through gritted teeth. “Pretend you’ve never heard of Whidbey Island. Forget you ever had kids. Because if you show your face around here again, you’ll regret it.”
Conversations about burying Ron Curtis’s body in an unmarked grave in the woods flash through my mind. Maybe Dad’s not the only one who knows the extent of his former partner’s sins. If Ron screwed over his own family and his friend, who else would like to see him rot?
For better or worse, islanders have long memories. Like elephants, we’ll remember the good and never forget the bad, who slighted us and who treated us right. Dad’s network of angels and good Samaritans might be an army of the wounded who are taking care of their bravest soldier.
After Jonah locks the door behind him, he strolls back into the kitchen. We stand around in deep silence, processing the lightning strike we experienced.
Ashley sags into me, letting me support her with my arm around her waist.
“Let’s sit.”
I lead her over to the couch and pull her on my lap. Our brothers follow and take seats on the chair and couch.
Erik sits with his elbows on his knees and his fingers lost in his messy hair. “Well, fuck.”
The simple expression breaks the tension in the room. I join Jonah in loud laughter while Ashley silently shakes on my lap. I check to make sure she’s not crying to see her smiling as she laughs.
“What the actual sweet fuck just happened?” she wheezes out the words.
“Daddy’s back.” Jonah tugs at his stretched earlobe. “We should warn Mom.”
“Jesus. She’s going to flip.” Ashley shakes her head. “At least Grandma isn’t alive to witness this.”
“I need a drink.” Erik rubs his hands on his knees.
“Or better yet, a smoke.” Rising, Jonah pulls a vape from his pocket.
“On the deck, please.” Ashley points at the slider.
“I’ll join you.” Erik follows him out the door.
I rub Ashley’s back in broad circles. “You okay?”
“I think so. Is it weird I’m relieved my asshole of a sperm donor is the creepy perv stalker? At least he’s the devil I know.” She sounds resigned, but not unhappy. “You?”
“I’m a little freaked out.” I’m honest with her. “It’s been a wild few hours. From finding Dad passed out in the boat in Freeland, to the letter, your messages, and coming face-to-face with Ron, my head’s spinning. I should’ve texted you back. I was wrong to make you deal with this on your own. I should’ve been here last night. Or made you come over to the island. I failed you.”
She moves so she can face me. “Wait, what? Your dad passed out in the boat?”
“It’s a long story.” I sigh.
Ashley gazes into my eyes with genuine concern. “You didn’t fail. You needed to be with your family. What happened?”
“He got the letter with your dad’s check and freaked out. Took the Donna Louise out of the marina and then fell asleep on the loading dock before he could get her in the water.”
“Is he okay?”
“He’s home, sober and chagrinned. Mom’s encouraging him to get in touch with his sponsor. All we can do is hope he gets back on the wagon.”
Tears brighten her eyes. “How can I help? I feel partly responsible.”
“Don’t. This is in no way your fault.”
“It is. If we weren’t together, you wouldn’t be here having to deal with the human shit storm created by my father.” She shifts to sit up. “You shouldn’t have to deal with any of my baggage.”
Pulling her close again, I lock my arms around her to prevent her escape before I can get the words out. My voice is low and serious as I tell her what I should have thirteen years ago.
“There’s no place I’d rather be and no one else worth fighting for than you. I love you with my whole heart and everything I am. I’m not leaving. Unless you can swear without a doubt it’s what you want. Tell me you don’t love me and I’ll be gone. Otherwise, you’re stuck with me. Forever.”
Her dark lashes slowly beat together as tears fill her eyes, turning them into deep green pools of water. We stare at each other, lost in my declaration and the emotions of this morning.
“You’re an idiot, Carter Kelso.” She swipes the tears from her cheeks and gives me a small smile. “You think after all this I’m going to let you walk away again? No way. You can’t make me fall in love with you again and think I’m letting you go. If you think for one second I don’t love you, you’re the biggest fool I’ve ever met. This is why I avoid relationships and—”
I silence her with my mouth on hers, pouring every ounce of love into kissing her doubts away. She wriggles around on my lap until she’s straddling me, her hands in my hair and my hands on her ass as we kiss away the memory of this morning. Lost in the only thing that matters in this moment: each other.
That’s why we don’t hear the slider open and our brothers come into the room until Jonah makes a comment.
“Dude, that’s my sister’s ass you’re groping.”
I break the kiss long enough to flip him the bird. “Dude, don’t watch your sister make out.”
“He has a point.” Erik joins the conversation. “Ferry?”
“Yes,” Ashley and I say simultaneously. “Go.”
They laugh, definitely more relaxed than before they went on the deck. “Guess you’re finding your own way home.”
Ashley meets my eyes and I see mischief in hers. “Or you could stay.”
“Nowhere else I’d rather be.”
I make sure the door is locked before we christen her couch and her bed. And the shower. And the kitchen counter. The last one mostly to drive away any bad energy leftover from earlier. Or so she tells me.