Page 24 of Enticing Her Love

“Anyway, back to Archer. We were on the beach with all our friends, and this group of kids walked by. They were probably fifteen or sixteen years old, definitely tourists, and I guess one of them called my mom fat. I didn’t hear him, but Archer, who was thirteen at the time, took off after them like a bat out of hell. He tackled the kid who’d said it and broke his nose. The other guys in the group went after Archer, and of course my father and his buddies and all the boys from our families ran over. I’ll never forget the look on Archer’s face as they dragged him away. If looks could kill, that kid never would have made it off the island. Archer was hollering at him, You ever talk about my family again and I’ll kill you.”

“The dude sounds loyal but mildly out of control. Not that I don’t appreciate that type of loyalty.”

“He used to be pretty bad, but his fiancée, Indi, has mellowed him out quite a bit. Now they have a safe word.”

“I don’t need to know about your brother’s sex life.”

She swatted him. “Not that kind of safe word. If he starts going off the rails, she says bananas, and it stops him in his tracks long enough to slow him down and make him think before pummeling someone.”

“I’d hate to see what he’d do to someone who said something bad about Indi.”

“I don’t even want to think about that. But as gruff as Archer is, he also has a softer side.”

“What does that look like? Only giving a guy a black eye?”

“No. I mean a real softer side. He’s done some really sweet things for us.”

“Like…?”

“Well, I’ve wanted to be a reporter for as long as I can remember. I was that weird little girl whose idols were Barbara Walters, Tom Brokaw, Anderson Cooper, and Connie Chung. I didn’t realize they were journalists until I was a little older, and of course, that became my goal.”

“That’s adorable.”

“I’m glad you think so. When we were kids, all the other little girls wanted to play games, but I wanted to play reporter, so Archer made me a cardboard television and wrote Silver Island News above the hole he’d cut out for the screen. He covered the dining room table with a sheet and put the box on top of it and a chair behind it, where I could sit, and it would look like I was on TV. Then he surprised me with it and watched me report the Silver Island News every afternoon.”

“Damn. That is sweet.”

“I told you. He did other things, too. When I went away to college, he came with me and stayed for two days. He made sure I got settled in and knew how to get to my classes. We walked all over the campus and through town. He wanted to make sure I knew how to get everywhere, and he pointed out places he thought I should avoid or be careful of at night.”

“Did you listen to him?”

“Yeah, I did. I wasn’t the kind of person who went looking for trouble. Growing up on a small island where everyone looks out for each other is very different from attending college in Port Hudson. I had a little culture shock.”

“Were you afraid to go away from home?”

“No. I wanted to. I had big dreams. But I appreciated the extra time Archer took to make sure I was comfortable. After he went back home, he texted me a few times every day to make sure I was okay.”

“He wanted you to feel safe. That’s the mark of a good big brother.” He had a newfound respect for this man he didn’t know.

“He did the same for Leni when she went to school.”

“What about Jules?”

“She never went away to school, but she has a special place in all our hearts. She was diagnosed with cancer, a Wilms tumor, when she was only three, and she had to have a kidney removed. They were able to get all the cancer out, and it hasn’t come back, thank God, but it was scarier than being in this rainforest.”

The heaviness in her voice made him want to put his arm around her and pull her close, but he held back, knowing it would make it even harder to resist doing more. “I can’t imagine how awful that was.”

“I hope you never have to. Jock wouldn’t leave her bedside until she was fully recovered, and Archer was a mess. He’d always been her savior, scaring away the boogeyman and all that, but he couldn’t save her from cancer, which made it really hard for him to be around her.”

“That’s rough, carrying that kind of responsibility. What about you?”

“I remember being terrified because what kid wouldn’t be if their baby sister was going through that? But I’ve always been kind of practical, too. Our parents told us the doctors were taking good care of her, and I believed them. I knew I couldn’t fight the disease for her, but I could help Jules be happy. I wrote her stories about a little girl who was stronger than she ever believed she could be and overcame all sorts of obstacles. I’d draw pictures of Jules conquering whatever the story was about, and I’d leave the stories tucked beneath her pillow while she was sleeping. I’d get up at the crack of dawn every morning and sit outside her bedroom, waiting for her to wake up. Then I’d just happen to walk in when she found them. I can still see her sweet little face surrounded by wisps of golden-brown hair. She’d go, Sut! The story fairy came! Wead it to me! Every time we got to the end of a story, she’d say, My happy end!” Sutton laughed, and a tear slid down her cheek.

His chest constricted, and he reached over, wiping the tear with the pad of his thumb. His hand lingered, caressing her cheek. “It appears Sutton Steele has a sweet side, too.”

“For Julesy I do.”

“Sounds like you’re a great big sister. Did you ever tell her you wrote the stories?”