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  Duncan got to his feet, watching the man he had once loved as a brother, then hated as an enemy, walk into the room. K.C. looked good, too good. There was a glint in his eye, a spring in his step. He wanted the challenge as much as Duncan did. Two old gunfighters looking for a last shootout.

  "Duncan," K.C. said.

  The room grew quiet, as if everyone knew something was coming, but they weren't sure what.

  "It's been too long," K.C. said.

  "Has it? I haven't noticed."

  "You haven't missed me?"

  "Not at all," Duncan replied.

  "I hope it's not difficult for you to see your boat being sailed by your old friend."

  "I hope it won't be difficult for you to lose to your old friend yet again." Duncan felt his temper rise despite his best attempts to stay calm. God, he hated K.C.'s smug, smirking face and that slimy voice of his, pretending to be sophisticated and rich, when they both knew he'd come from nothing, same as Duncan. He didn't understand how Nora could have ever been taken in by this man.

  "That's right. I just heard you were racing," K.C. continued. "I'm glad. It's only fitting. After all, the last time we raced in the Castleton, it was against each other. I remember Nora—"

  "Leave her out of this." He couldn't stand the sound of Nora's name on this man's lips.

  "That would be impossible. Nora was always between us. Just like the Moon Dancer was always between us. She feels good under my hands, Duncan, almost as good as—"

  "You son of a bitch." Duncan lunged for K.C. but missed, landing on his knees. He heard K.C.'s mocking laughter and felt a terrible rage. He would make this man pay, if it was the last thing he did.

  Kate ran to her father. He pushed her away, his pride stinging more than his body. "I'm fine."

  "You were always so predictable," K.C. said, "so easy. I thought things might have changed, but they haven't. I'll see you on the water, old friend." And with a wave he was gone.

  "Are you all right?" Kate asked as he got to his feet.

  "I just tripped, that's all. What are you looking at?" he asked the other customers, who finally turned away.

  "What was he talking about, Dad?" Ashley asked when he returned to the table.

  "Nothing. He just likes to shoot off his mouth. Forget about it."

  "That won't be easy to do," Kate said slowly. "Is there something you need to tell us about Mom and K.C.?"

  "There's something I need to tell you about the boat," Duncan replied. He paused for a moment, sure they wouldn't like what he had to say, but he would say it anyway. "I'm going to win it back.”

  Kate looked at him in surprise. "What are you talking about?"

  "K.C. is going to make a bet, and he'll lose.”

  "What's the wager?" Tyler asked.

  "If I win the Castleton, he gives me back the Moon Dancer."

  "Oh, my God," Kate said. "You can't be serious, Dad. What if K.C. doesn't agree?"

  "Are you kidding? A chance to beat me? He'll agree."

  "What happens if you lose? What does he get?" she asked.

  "I won't lose."

  "You can't guarantee that."

  "I can. Rick Beardsley gave me carte blanche to pick my own racing crew." He looked his daughter straight in the eye. "I want you, Katie girl. You and Ashley and Caroline. I want us to take back what was ours. Say yes."

  Chapter Eleven

  "You're out of your mind," Kate said, shocked to the core. "I'm not going to race. And neither is Ashley." She glanced at her sister, who looked sick at the thought of it.

  "Not even to get back our boat?" Duncan challenged. "It's mine, Katie. I won't have K.C. living my life, sailing my boat. I'm getting it back. I want you girls to help me. We're a family. We stand together."

  Kate saw her father turn to Ashley, whose eyes had filled with unimaginable terror. Even Duncan could see it. He opened his mouth to speak, then closed it. He put out a tentative hand to Ashley, but she pushed back her chair.

  "I—I can't," Ashley stuttered. She ran out of the bar as if the fires of hell were chasing after her.

  Kate could understand the feeling. She wanted to flee, too, but she didn't have the luxury. She couldn't walk out on Duncan—not with Tyler so close, waiting, watching, listening.

  Duncan motioned for the waitress to bring him another drink. "You think about it," he said to Kate. "You were always my best sailor. I know I could do this with you at my side. And talk to Caroline. She'll come along. She'll want to help. She always does."

  "Because she wants your approval."

  "She'll definitely have it, if she comes onboard."

  "You knew he was coming back, didn't you?" It suddenly became clear to Kate that Duncan had not been surprised to see K.C.

  "Yes." Duncan paused as the waitress set down his drink. "I knew that as soon as he saw the Moon Dancer was for sale, he'd find a way to buy it."

  "Because?" Kate was almost afraid to ask, but she couldn't stop the question from breaking through her lips.

  "He always wanted it. He couldn't stand that Nora and I built it together."

  "So this does have something to do with Mom," she said slowly. "Just like he said. Something happened between the three of you. I remember when he was your best friend. He spent all the holidays with us, then he was gone. Instead of being our favorite uncle, he was someone you didn't even speak to. What happened?" Kate couldn't bring herself to ask if there had been an affair. It sounded so disloyal. Her mother wouldn't have had an affair. She had too much character and integrity, and she had loved Duncan. Kate would have bet her life on it.

  "That's between K.C. and me. What you need to be concerned about is someone else sailing our boat."

  "Someone else has been sailing our boat for eight years."

  "Not this someone."

  "You'll have to give me a better reason." She turned to Tyler. "Would you mind giving us some privacy?"

  Tyler simply smiled in return. "I don't think so."

  "K.C. bought the Moon Dancer to show me up," Duncan said, obviously not caring that a reporter was listening in. "He wants me to think he's the winner and I'm the loser, but he's wrong. And I'm going to prove it."

  "Hasn't the time for proving things passed? Haven't you both lost enough?"

  "I want my boat back. Our boat. Our home. Think about it. It's the last place we were together, and I mean your beautiful mother, too. We designed and built that boat, decorated it in our own way, spilled sweat, blood, and tears on that deck. I won't have K.C. in it. I won't have him living my life. Help me, Katie."

  Kate didn't like the idea of K.C. sailing the Moon Dancer, either. But to race again? To compete for a boat that held so many memories, both bad and good? She couldn't do it. It would be too painful. "I can't."

  "Katie, please."

  "You'll have to do this one on your own. I really wish you'd forget it. Let K.C. take the Moon Dancer and sail to Hawaii. He'll be gone in a few days, and we can get back to normal."

  "Normal? You call this normal—this life we're leading? Hell, Katie, I haven't felt normal in eight years."

  Kate watched as he drained his drink. "Maybe it's all the booze. Maybe that's why you don't feel normal."

  "Fine. Whatever. Go on, get out of here. You know, Katie, your mother was never so judgmental. So hard. Everything with you is black and white. People are good or they're bad; there's no in-between." His eyes bored into hers with anger and frustration. "You can't stand to be wrong, and you can't stand it when people don't measure up to your lofty standards. Some of us are human. Some of us have weaknesses."

  Kate felt incredibly hurt by his harsh words. She wasn't judgmental or hard. And she was human. She cared. She cared too much, if he only knew the truth. "This isn't about right or wrong—"

  "I thought you were leaving," Duncan said, cutting her off. "I've got business to discuss with my new friend here." He tipped his head in Tyler's direction.

  Kate saw concern in Tyler's eyes, or was it guilt? No, he
didn't feel guilty. He'd already told her he didn't waste time on that emotion. This was the opportunity Tyler had been looking for, a chance to get the inside scoop from Duncan. And there was not a damn thing she could do about it. If she protested, it would only make Tyler more suspicious, and Duncan was hell-bent on living out his glory days one more time. Sometimes she wondered why she bothered to protect him. But it wasn't just him, she told herself firmly. That's what she had to remember.

  "I'll call you later," Tyler said quietly.

  She got to her feet. "Don't bother. I've said all I need to say—to both of you."

  * * *

  Ashley dragged an old duffel bag off the top shelf of her closet. It came down with a layer of dust and a couple shoe boxes. She coughed, sneezed, then nearly burst into tears when an old and terribly familiar smell wafted through the room. It was the smell of the sea, the smell of the boat, the smell of fear. She stared at the duffel bag in dismay. It had been eight years since she'd used it. Too long for the smells to still be there. Was it just her imagination?

  Oh, what did it matter? Her life was falling apart.

  She couldn't believe her father wanted them to race again. She couldn't believe that K.C. had somehow been involved with her mother. What was that all about? Was it a lie? Or something more? And did she really want to know?

  She had to get away. The walls were closing in. Just like before, during that terrible storm, when she'd seen the water slipping in under the door. She'd had the terrible feeling they were already underwater. She wouldn't be able to get out. She wouldn't be able to breathe. She'd die slowly, suffocating, the way she was suffocating now.

  "Ashley—open up." She heard a male voice and a pounding on the door. The voice brought her back to reality, and she ran out of her bedroom before the memories could come back.

  Sean was at the door. Her jaw dropped in shock. "What are you doing here?”

  "I want to know what happened," he said, his eyes determined.

  "About what? Are you talking about K.C.? He just showed up with the Moon Dancer. My father wants to race him, and he wants me onboard. It's crazy. I don't know what's happening. Everything is changing."

  "What the hell are you talking about?"

  Ashley stared at him. "K.C."

  "I didn't come here to talk about K.C., but about Jeremy. I'm talking about my brother, and that little bombshell you dropped last night."

  It seemed like a million years ago since she had spoken to Sean. Had it only been last night?

  "You said you kissed him." Sean planted his hands on his hips. "I want to know why and when and all the rest. So start talking."

  "I don't have time," she said, making a quick decision.

  "Make time."

  "I can't. I'm leaving." She walked into the bedroom and began emptying her drawers into the duffel bag.

  "Where are you going?" Sean asked from the doorway.

  "Away."

  "Why?"

  "You always have so many questions for me," she said, pushing her hair out of her face.

  "And you never have any answers."

  Sean crossed the room as she yanked open another dresser. "Stop it, would you?" He grabbed her by the arm. "Stop packing and talk to me. I want to know what happened between you and my brother. And why you decided to tell me now."

  "Let go of me." She tried to free her arm, but he held on tight, so tight she felt trapped. Acute panic set in. "Let go!" she yelled. "I have to get out of here." She finally yanked her arm free.

  "Ashley, wait! Where are you going?"

  "I don't know." She tossed more clothes into the bag, some falling on the floor, some on the bed, but she didn't care. "I have to get out before I lose what little is left of my mind. If you care at all for me, you'll help me."

  "Ash, I don't know what you want me to do.”

  What did she want him to do? She drew in a deep breath, forcing herself to think. She knew the last ferry had already left the island. If she wanted to leave Castleton, she needed a boat. "I want you to take me to the mainland."

  His jaw dropped. "You're willing to get on my boat?"

  "I just said that, didn't I?" But could she get on his boat? It was dark now. The water would be black. She wouldn't be able to see the horizon or where she was going.

  Sean gave her an uncertain look. "Maybe you should talk to someone, call Kate or Caroline. You're obviously upset about something."

  "Upset? You think I'm upset?" Was that her voice screeching like a maniac? It must be, because Sean was staring at her like she'd gone over the edge. "I'm sorry. I can't do this anymore. It's too much for me." She felt overwhelmed, exhausted, terrified, and almost wished she could cry to release some of the tension, but her eyes were dry. Her tear ducts as empty as everything else.

  "Look, I don't understand half of what you said before, but just take it easy, okay? Don't do anything rash. There's always tomorrow, if you still want to go."

  "If I don't go now, I'm not sure I will ever go.”

  "Then that's a good reason to wait."

  Ashley sank down on the edge of the bed, feeling defeated.

  After a moment Sean sat down next to her. "Do you want to talk about any of it?"

  "No." There were too many thoughts crowding her head to make sense of any of them.

  "All right, then."

  Sean put his arm around her shoulders. Ashley tensed, but when he didn't make another move, she gradually began to relax, taking precious comfort in his embrace. He wasn't asking anything of her. He wasn't demanding that she do something or say something. For the first time in a long time, she felt safe. This was Sean, her first love, her only love, if the truth be told. No one else had ever come close. She'd tried to put her love away, because she didn't deserve him. But he was here, and she was weak. She needed to lean on someone.

  "Don't go," she whispered, resting her head on his chest. The beat of his heart was strong and steady. "I know I shouldn't ask."

  "It's about time you did," he muttered.

  "You must hate me."

  He let out a heavy sigh. "I wish I did. It would make it a whole lot easier."

  * * *

  Kate just wanted a closer look. It wasn't a crime, she told herself, as she walked down to the docks. She was human after all, despite her father's earlier criticism, which still stung. She'd tried to work, but sorting inventory at the bookstore hadn't proved a big enough distraction, and there was no way she was going back to the Oyster Bar. She'd had enough of her father, and Tyler, too.

  She just wanted a few minutes alone with something that had once been a very important part of her life, the Moon Dancer. They'd come together as a family when they'd first set sail, the close confines of the boat forcing them to talk to one another, to share the workload, to rely on one another for everything from food to survival. They'd learned a lot on the water with only themselves to depend on. When the racing had begun, the experience had taken on a new dimension.

  The competition had created an excitement, a rush as they barreled into the wind, trying to go as fast as they could. The ports of call had been filled with parties, celebrations, and tall tales of what had happened during each leg of the race. In the beginning, she had soaked it all up as if she were a hungry sponge. She'd loved being part of it, seeing her father in his element, and Jeremy, too, sharing the same excitement and joy. She should have realized that two such strong men would come into conflict.

  Looking back, she could see where the first thread had begun to unravel. Unfortunately, she hadn't noticed that loose thread until everything fell apart.

  Shaking her head, Kate moved closer to the siren that called her name. The Moon Dancer sat proudly on the water, bobbing gently with the swells. Her breath caught in her throat. It was a magnificent boat, a lightweight, forty-seven-foot speedster guaranteed to give a spirited yet comfortable ride. Her parents had designed the boat and had it custom-built at a yard in Seattle. Their idea was to use race technology to build a cruiser tha
t could win races. And the Moon Dancer had more than lived up to the challenges they'd put it through. She'd not only won for them, she'd sheltered and protected them.

  Kate drew in a breath and slowly let it out, allowing the emotions to sweep through her soul. There was no point in trying to hold them back; they were overflowing. She felt joy at seeing the boat; she also felt incredible sadness for a time in their lives that had been both the worst and the best. Maybe life would always be like that, offering something good, only to counter it with something bad.

  "Boo!"

  Kate jumped at the sound behind her. She whirled around in surprise to see K.C.'s son, David, laughing at her. "David. You scared me."

  He pulled the cigarette out of his mouth and flicked the ashes into the water. "That's what you get for trying to sneak onto my boat. Or do you still think it's yours?"

  "I wasn't trying to sneak onto the boat. And I know who owns it."

  "I hope so. If not, I can always show you my daddy's pink slip. That's right, my daddy. Not yours, Kate, even though you used to think of him as a second daddy, didn't you? Uncle K.C., isn't that what you called him? Didn't you give him a big fat kiss every time he brought you candy or toys or whatever else you wanted, little princess?"

  There was an animosity in David's voice she hadn't expected. "You sound like..."

  "What? What do I sound like?"

  "Like you hate me." She laughed as if the thought were absurd, but he didn't laugh back, and a chill washed over her body.

  "Of course I don't hate you," he said smoothly. "I don't even know you. Isn't that right? We only spoke a few times over the years when I came to visit my father. You were all too busy to hang out with me."

  "I didn't think you were interested in hanging out with us."

  "Oh, I don't know. I was always curious about the girls who spent more time with my father than I did.”