Page 25 of Summer Affair

“He punched Dean,” their mother said. “In the waiting room.” She took Sophia’s other hand. “The police came and took him away.”

Sophia’s worried eyes filled with tears. “Are you okay?” she asked, and he nodded quickly. “I’m so sorry about Luke. I never wanted any of this. I thought…I divorced him.” She shook her head. “I remember, sometimes.”

“It’s not your fault,” Dean assured her. “He’s gone now, and he won’t bother you again.”

Sophia rested her head back. “I’m so tired,” she said as a tear slipped down her cheek. “Tired of fighting him. Tired of fighting this body that seems hell-bent on destroying itself.” She sighed and then fell asleep.

He and his mother sat in silence as the weight of everything hovered silently between them. Despite the pain and the chaos, being there for his sister was what mattered most. He would do whatever it took to protect her and support her through this. That’s what family did. That’s what the three of them always did for one another.

Later that night, as he sat by her bedside, watching her sleep, Dean’s thoughts drifted to Andrea. He hadn’t had a chance to call her or explain what had happened, but he knew she would understand. She always did. For now, his focus was on Sophia, but he promised himself he would make time to be with Andrea soon. She was becoming an important part of his life, and he didn’t want to lose that connection.

The weekend was coming up, along with their first official date. His mind played over the possibilities as he listened to the sounds of the hospital and his sister’s shallow breathing.

The following day, after a few hours of sleep, he walked down the pathway to the main campus building to go to work and stopped when he came up against a wall of Wildflowers. Zoey, Scarlett, Elle, Hannah, and Aubrey to be exact.

Zoey and Scarlett were sisters. Zoey, Elle, and Hannah had married three brothers and were now all Costas. Zoey had married Dylan, Elle had married Liam, and Hannah had married the oldest Costa, Owen.

They were all as different as the flowers they named themselves after, other than Zoey and Scarlett.

Out of all the friends, Zoey was the most sport-oriented friend. The fact that she’d gone to the Olympics for softball before opening the camp was a big draw to a lot of sports fans. She and Dylan had a daughter Paige and a son named Benjamin, who was born late last year. Dylan worked at the camp overseeing employees and the grounds.

Zoey’s sister, Scarlett, who looked a lot like her sister, was slightly taller than Zoey. She’d had a son, Samuel, shortly before Benjamin had been born. Scarlett’s hair was a lot wilder and, even though she was just as good at sports as her sister, Scarlett spent more time working with the horses.

Aubrey had a mass of red hair she was always trying to tame and porcelain skin that kept her wearing sun shirts when outside. She was currently carrying her and Aiden’s first child and was due at the end of the summer.

Elle was the tallest and the tannest out of the group. Her grandfather had owned the camp before the friends had inherited it when he’d passed away almost ten years before. Elle had cut her long blonde hair a little shorter after having her twins almost two years back. Elle was married Liam Costa, who also worked at the camp and ran the wood shop.

The last of the friends, Hannah, was a petite blonde who had obviously come from wealth. She had more connections than anyone he’d ever met. She was the reason celebrity chef Issac Andrews was the head chef at the camp. She had a boy named James Oliver, who was a spitting image of his dad Owen Costa.

At the moment, each of the five friends, his bosses, stood blocking his way with their arms locked as if they were playing a game of Red Rover. They were obviously prepared to keep him from getting inside the building.

“What are you doing here?” Zoey asked.

“Your mother called us,” Elle said softly. “Go home. Get some sleep.”

“Or go back and be with Sophia,” Aubrey suggested.

“You look too tired to work,” Hannah added.

The five of them were all talking at the same time and he groaned.

“Did you five seriously stand here waiting for me?” he asked.

They all smiled as an answer.

“Don’t make us get Lea out here,” Scarlett warned.

Dr. Lea Val had worked at both the camp and the hospital for a few years. Last year she’d finally opened her very own health clinic in Pelican Point. She still occasionally made house calls out to the campgrounds and was an unofficial Wildflower along with a few other women who worked at River Camps.

He liked Lea and had spent a lot of time over at her and her husband Brett Jewel’s house since they got married. They’d all gone to the same school. Actually, Brett, Lea, Elle, Damion, Aiden, Carter, Andrea, and he had all grown up together. Even though they hadn’t run in the same circles when they were younger, they were close now.

“Fine.” He sighed and rolled his shoulders. He was stiff from sleeping in the hospital chair.

“But first…” Zoey stepped forward. “Why don’t you head over and have Andrea work those kinks out?” Zoey motioned to his shoulder, which he was unconsciously rubbing.

“That’s not a bad idea,” Hannah said, pulling out her walkie-talkie. “Andrea, you there?”

A moment later Andrea replied, “Yup, what’s up?”