Gansett After Dark (Excerpt Only; The McCarthys of Gansett Island Book 11)

Chapter 1

The creak of the rocking chair on the new wooden deck, the warm afternoon breeze off the ocean, the heat of the baby asleep on his chest and the bustle of the town he now called home soothed and calmed Owen Lawry. Along the newly painted white porch rail were flower boxes containing the pink, lavender and white impatiens Laura had nurtured all summer.

Every square inch of the Sand & Surf hotel had been renovated in the last year, leaving the scents of sawdust and fresh paint behind. They’d been operating at full capacity since Memorial Day, and it was indeed thrilling to see the hotel open and once again full of happy visitors.

Almost a year ago, Owen had stood on this same deck and watched the last ferry depart on Columbus Day. It had felt symbolic then. With that ferry went his old life as a footloose and fancy-free troubadour, traveling from gig to gig, following the seasons and the work.

He’d stayed that day. He’d stayed because of Laura. He’d stayed because he could no longer imagine a day—hell, an hour—without her. And he’d never regretted it. Not for one second. Her son, Holden, the child they were raising together even though another man had fathered him, was now as much Owen’s as he was Laura’s. Earlier in the summer, they’d been surprised to learn they were expecting twins together. He who had never wanted the constraints of commitment or marriage or family was now as committed as any man could be, and he’d never been happier as their wedding date got closer with every passing day.

Just one thing stood between him and the future he wanted so desperately with Laura, Holden and the twins—his father’s trial. The thought of seeing his father again for the first time in more than a decade made Owen feel sick and anxious and fearful, as if he were still a five-year-old who couldn’t figure out what he’d done to stir his father’s wrath.

In a few days, he and Laura, his mother and Laura’s father, along with several friends who would be testifying, would depart Gansett on the ferry and travel to Virginia for the trial. Frank was coming to help out with Holden while they were in court. Owen didn’t want Laura to come, but she was insisting on being there for him. He hated the thought of her sitting in the courtroom listening to the nightmare that had been his life in vivid detail that would shock and horrify her.

But he would’ve done the same for her. He would’ve insisted on being there, even if she didn’t want him to come.

The screen door opened, and Owen glanced over his shoulder as his mother came toward him.

“I was wondering where you guys had gotten off to,” Sarah Lawry said as she sat in the rocker next to them. She tucked her chin-length blonde hair behind her ear. “Is he asleep?”

“Out cold.”

“You could put him in his crib, you know,” she said in a teasing tone.

“I much prefer this.” Holden’s wispy dark hair brushed against Owen’s chin, so soft it felt like angel’s wings.

“I always did, too.”

Owen looked over at her. “Are you going to talk to Charlie before we leave?”

“I’m having dinner with him tonight.”

“Will you tell him where we’re going and why?”

“I want to. I need to. I know I do. It’s just… It’s hard to talk about.”

“He deserves to know, Mom. He’s been an amazing friend to you for months now.” Owen directed his gaze toward the ferry coming toward the breakwater, bringing another group of tourists to the island. This time of year, the ferries came and went all day and well into the night. “Think of it this way. You’ll be talking about it a lot in the next week or so. May as well get it all over with at once so you never have to talk about it again.”