on him and knock him in the water. “He’s been around water his entire life,” Fletcher points out, sensing my nervousness. “Learned to swim before he could walk.”
I look over at him, our steps slowing. “I never knew you had a grandson, or that Lincoln was your son.”
Fletcher’s dry and cracked lips pull up into a half-smile, the corners of his weathered eyes creasing. “I haven’t got to spend much time around him until now.”
“Is he staying here?” You can’t miss the anticipation in my words. I knew Lincoln said he wasn’t staying around, but he enrolled Atlas in school. That means… well, I don’t know what the hell it means, but I’m hopeful.
Fletcher sighs, shrugging. “I don’t know. I want them to, but I know they have a life in Ilwaco. I just want them in my life. Somehow.”
It’s sad to think that they wouldn’t be. I don’t know what drove them south or anything about his relationship with Lincoln now.
I spot Bear first, crouched down and tying up the boat. Atlas jumps on his back, and the dog does the same, nearly knocking both of them into the side of the Amphitrite. Bear laughs, holding on to Atlas. “Whose dog is this?”
“Mine now,” Atlas tells him. The dog wiggles with excitement.
My heart thuds uncontrollably in my chest when I spot him. Stepping casually off the boat with a cigarette tucked behind his ear, he’s dressed in a flannel, beanie hat, and his black cargo jeans hanging low. He’s deliciously rugged, and I can’t wait to get lost in his smoky words that send shivers through me. It’s ten more steps before he looks up, his eyes on Atlas. “Hey, buddy. How was school?”
Atlas says something, but I can’t hear him over the sounding of a boat’s horn as they dock. They talk, he points to the dog and then grins. “Can I keep him? Me and Journey found him. He doesn’t have a dad.”
Fletcher nods to Bear. “Any good?”
Bear runs a hand through his hair, leaning into a piling. “Slow day.”
Two more guys step off the boat. I recognize them from the first night the Hardy brothers showed up in town. They shuffle past me with smiles, but I hang back.
Lincoln smiles at his son, and then the haughty tilt of his chin and that beautiful cold stare lands on mine. My body erupts into pins and needles. I take a breath, then another through my nose, trying to calm myself. He moves from the boat and stops in front of me. He stares down at me, and I’m not sure if I should apologize for basically befriending his son today, or the dog, or whatever. I’ll just stand here and stare at this beautiful, broken man in front of me because he’s just so damn pretty. He blinks slowly, and it’s as if he steals my breath with every flicker of his dark lashes.
Lincoln reaches out, his hand circling around my waist, his lips curling into a smile. “Did you strap me with a dog?” he asks after a long pause.
I give him a faint smile, leaning into his embrace. “Yes?”
He turns his head toward Atlas, squinting into the sunlight peeking through the clouds. His eyes soften when they drift back to mine. “He certainly likes him,” he says quietly, and then nods to the boat. “Atlas, you wanna clean off the boat for me and load the fish?”
“Yep.” Atlas jumps onto the boat, and the dog does the same.
Lincoln shakes his head, laughter on his lips. “He really doesn’t have an owner?”
“Not that I can tell. There was nobody on the beach earlier.”
“Let me know if someone comes looking for him.”
Coho sits peacefully on the boat, watching Atlas as he hoses off the bloody deck. “I hope for his sake, no one does.”
Lincoln’s eyes drift back to mine. “Hopefully he doesn’t get attached.”
Do you see it? The way his usual indifference shifts?
His stare, it cuts like a knife and damn it, I don’t want any more scars.
Girdie - The large reel used to pull in stainless steel trolling lines.
“I should get back,” Journey says, her black leather jacket hanging loosely off her shoulder as she points behind her. “Avie made me take the day off, but Friday nights are crazy busy for us.”
I nod, unsure what I should say to her. Thank her for hanging out with my kid while I was off fishing or thank her for coming into our lives? But in reality, she