Until Then (Cape Harbor #2) - Heidi McLaughlin Page 0,16

the handle to turn on the water. It spurted a few times before gushing a slow but full stream out of the faucet. He filled the reservoir of his single-serve coffee dispenser. Another gift for his birthday; however, this one was from Brystol. She had asked him to take her shopping so she could buy something for her parents, and when she saw him fiddling with the coffee maker, Brystol told her dad she wanted to give it to Graham. In the time since Brooklyn returned to town with her teenage daughter, Graham had adopted the role of doting uncle and appreciated the gift. The only downfall—he had to fill the canister each time he needed a refill. Still, it was better than using instant coffee or the old percolator pot his father kept stored in the garage with all their camping gear.

With his reusable pod filled with coffee grounds and the button pressed to start brewing, Graham went back upstairs to grab his phone. Notifications of emails, sports reports, and text messages from his mother filled his screen. He cleared them away and put on a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt before heading back downstairs. The one hard lesson Graham learned early on about living on a houseboat was to always use the handrails. Often, a gust of wind would blow against the house, or a powerful wave would crash into the bay, rocking his house back and forth. One knock to the head was one too many for his liking.

Downstairs, his coffee maker spurted out the last drops of freshly brewed coffee, which he carried out onto his deck. It was cold—the wind blew slightly—but it was the quietness that grabbed his attention. The ocean was calm, barely any movement, and the seagulls that usually hung around the pier didn’t seem to be anywhere in sight. Graham reached into the small aluminum garbage can he kept on the deck and scooped a handful of salmon pellets into his hand. He let them go slowly, watching each bunch hit the water. The plunk, plunk, plunk echoed, yet no fish rose to the top. He finally opened his hand and released the rest, expecting to see hungry fish clamoring to swallow every piece, but nothing. Migration had happened. The salmon had gone back to the rivers for the winter.

He drank his coffee as he looked out over the horizon. He shivered from the cold and opened his phone to look at the weather app. It was going to be in the midforties and had dropped to the low thirties overnight. It seemed colder, for some reason, and Graham deduced it was because his subconscious was looking for an excuse to stay home.

After another cup of coffee, he finally texted his mother back, confirmed he would be there for dinner and that no, he wasn’t bringing a date. There wasn’t anyone in town who caught his eye, and the person he would like to be with was in a committed relationship. He still struggled with his feelings toward Rennie. There were times when he wished he had pursued her back when they were in California and times when he was glad he hadn’t. Graham had a lot of baggage in the form of his brother and wouldn’t wish the burden of caring for an alcoholic on anyone. As much as he wanted to put off the holidays, they were upon him.

Graham finished his coffee, washed his mug, and changed the light bulb in the bathroom. He showered quickly, dressed nicely in a cobalt-blue button-down and a pair of relaxed-fit jeans—a far cry from the look he had when tending the bar—and made his way over to his parents’, which took him about ten minutes. When he walked in, the smell of roasting turkey made his stomach growl.

Johanna Chamberlain stood over a boiling pot with a wooden spoon in her hand. She wore an apron that read “Kiss the Cook.” Graham did as it asked and placed a kiss on his mother’s cheek.

“Smells good in here.” Graham rested his hand over his rumbling stomach. He hadn’t eaten earlier because he knew he would need the space for dinner.

“Thank you. Your father is in the den. There’s sausage, cheese, crackers, and chips and dip in there. Drinks are in the cooler on the sunporch.” She paused and looked at her son. “Have you heard from your brother?”

The question gave him pause. Grady lived with his parents, and Graham had expected to find