Colby was going to scream if he forgot one more damn thing to finish this bathroom. Caulk. How does one forget caulk?

Still, he’d been tiling since just after dropping Regan and Kylee off. And now, all he needed was a little caulk for around the fixtures.

“Stupid bathroom!”

Being alone on his island was probably going to lend itself to him being mentally unstable, which would be a problem when his sister left. He had to go hire some people to work. He had his lists organized. His priorities settled. He just wanted Regan with him.

“Geography is stupid.” He kicked the bucket of grout on his way out of the small space. Back to the hardware store he’d go.

Colby rinsed off his hands and considered changing, but no one at the hardware store would care that his shorts and shirt were covered in grey sandy goo. He jumped in his boat, untied the lines, and headed out.

Following the markers to mark the deeper channel, the horizon faded around him.

A sharp honk pulled his attention upward.

Was that…Junior?

Colby hadn’t invited anyone out. He hadn’t started accepting guests…What on earth was he doing out here?

The megaphone chirped on. “I have something of yours.”

Of his?

Colby pulled the boat into neutral just as Regan’s face appeared behind Junior.

Her cheeks were flushed with wind and sun, her eyes were shaded by sunglasses, and her perfect lips were tugged into a wide smile.

His heart flipped over.

Junior maneuvered his boat next to Colby’s. Regan tossed her bag into the bottom of his boat just before jumping into his arms.

He grabbed her, holding their bodies together.

“I accept,” she said.

He pulled back, just far enough to study her face. “Accept?”

“Your job offer.”

To stay. To stay on his island with him and help him finish and set up and house guests and…He crushed his mouth to hers, not caring that Junior was still present. She was here. With him. Ready to stay.

With a laugh and another honk, Junior’s boat pulled away.

“So.” Regan’s fingers played with the short hairs on the back of his head. “What were you off to do?”

He still couldn’t believe she was here. “To…To…”

“By the state of you, I’m guessing you were headed to the hardware store?”

“I was.” He pressed his lips to hers.

“Well, we should get on it then,” she said between kisses. “Before they close.”

“I have a better idea.” He tucked her against his front, placing her at the steering wheel. “Why don’t we go back and enjoy the island. We can get caulk tomorrow.”

She placed her hands on the stainless wheel. “I don’t know how to drive a boat.”

“Well, that’s part of the job description,” he said seriously. Although, his heart soared far too high to be serious.

“Is it?”

“No.” He kissed her neck, her hair tickling his face. Regan’s hair. Because she was here. Wanted to be here. Was going to help him turn his project into what he’d envisioned. And what she envisioned. “But I think you’d love it.”

“In that case.” She clicked the throttle, putting the boat in idle speed, and Colby helped her steer back through the deep channel.

Once the boat was in the empty harbor, Colby turned off the engine, letting them float.

She easily fell back into his arms.

“What made you change your mind?” he asked.

Regan licked her lips and blinked a few times as she studied his face the same way she had when he’d dropped her off—only with less sadness in her eyes.

“I realized that maybe home was somewhere else.” She kissed a corner of his mouth. “With a guy I didn’t expect to fall for.” She kissed the other corner of his mouth. “In a place where shoes are more cumbersome than they’re worth.”

He kissed her back, deep and long and lingering—the newness and the familiarity of her breathing a new energy into him. Or maybe, like she said, them together, was a new sense of home.

“I love you Regan Daniels,” he whispered against her lips.

“I love you too, Colby Parker.”