reciprocated at all. “I’m gonna be around for the next four months. We’re building your boss a studio.”
Her head snapped in my direction. “You’re building something?”
I felt as if I’d just been caught with my hand in the cookie jar. But this was my damn island. “Did I need your permission?”
Her face flamed, and I instantly felt like an asshole. “No. Of course not,” Shay hurried. “I’m just surprised, is all.”
“I need a place to work.”
I could see the thoughts flying through her head at a million miles an hour. Her gaze drifted to Hunter and then back to me. “So, I guess it’ll be pretty busy around here for a while.”
“My crew’s fairly small, and we’ll do our best to stay out of your way,” Hunter offered.
It made sense that Shay was annoyed. I was disrupting the thing she’d said she loved most about the island: peace and quiet. I took a step closer to her. “They won’t be working on the weekends, so you’ll get your dose of quiet then.”
She startled slightly as if shocked I’d remember something she’d told me. “Don’t worry about me. It’s your island. Just let me know if I need to prepare anything for the start of construction.”
“All we need is for you to show me the pulley system,” Hunter said. “My team can cover the rest.”
Shay pointed to one of the outbuildings barely visible from where we stood. “It’s in the storage shed. I can set it up if you’ll let me know when you’re starting.”
Hunter shook his head. “We’ve got it. Thanks, Shay.”
“Well, I’m about to head to Anchor to pick up the mail. Do you need anything, Brody?”
“No. I think I’m good. Thanks, though.”
“I’ve got my phone if you change your mind. You should be able to send a text if you’re connected to the Wi-Fi.” She waved and headed down the path before I could utter another word.
Hunter tried to hide his chuckle with a cough. “She’s something.”
“I still haven’t quite figured her out.”
“Buddy, no one has. Shay’s not unfriendly, but she doesn’t exactly welcome conversation either.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“She just shuts it down or evades. As far as I can tell, she doesn’t have any friends. No boyfriend or husband, either. It’s gotta be lonely. She’s lived out here all by herself for years. But it seems that’s just how she wants it to be.”
Something about that knowledge burned in my chest. How isolated Shay was. The way she looked at me when she found out that people would be invading her island. It was almost as if I’d betrayed her. And why did I care so much that she’d looked at me with those wounded eyes?
I hoped it was merely because I was intrigued. People were always intricate, interesting puzzles to me. The kind of projects I created required that I study humans and all the things they hid beneath their carefully crafted exteriors. Shay was simply more compelling than most. But if I dug deep, I knew that was a lie.
5
Shay
I focused on my breathing as I headed down the path and onto the dock. I matched my breaths to the gentle ebb and flow of the water as I readied the boat. I kept the count as I started the engine and headed for Anchor. I let the spray of the water around me soothe my frayed edges.
Everything was changing. My quiet haven had been invaded. And the handsome man now in my space had thrown me off-kilter. I eased back on the throttle, guiding the boat into one of the spots along the dock. Everything would be fine. So a construction crew would be around all winter. I could handle that. I simply had to continue being forgettable. That was easy enough.
But I couldn’t deny the longing I felt pulling at my chest. For friendship. Community. I missed it. The simple ease of grabbing dinner or coffee with someone who knew you. Not even necessarily on a deep level. Just someone you could chat about your day with. The book you were reading, the movie you watched the night before. Someone who made you feel not quite so alone.
I considered taking a detour into The General Store to see if Caelyn was there. Talking with her always eased a bit of that ache for me. I forced myself to head for the main street through town instead.
The buildings that dotted the thoroughfare were a mix of Craftsmen, Victorian, and aged brick. They