Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 72059 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72059 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
When they reached the courtyard, Jack paused. “The one thing you should know about living and working in Seaport is we don’t take shit from tourists. If they’re rude, we are rude back. If they threaten to leave, let them because there are ten more willing to take their spot.”
Galvin let those words sink and then wondered what in the heck she’d gotten herself into.
sail
. . .
Sail lost track of the time as he paced in front of the diner his family owned. He knew the moment he opened the door and stepped inside, his life would be over. His father wasn’t just going to kill him. He was going to strangle him, bring him back to life, beat him within an inch of his life, let him heal, and then start all over again.
Except Jack Carter had never laid a finger on Sail or any of his boys.
Knowing this didn’t assuage Sail’s fear. His father had high expectations of his boys, and they weren’t unreasonable. Except Jack wanted Sail to return to Seaport—with a degree in hand—and help run the family businesses, which was something he didn’t want to do.
Sail took a step forward and reached for the door, then thought better of it. He could get back into his car and drive away, off into the sunset. The idea of driving south, maybe to the Keys, appealed to him—way more than walking into the diner to tell his father he’d been suspended.
He’d had weeks to think of something to say, but words failed him on every level. He’d exhausted his appeals. Even though Dean Holmes told him not to even try, Sail still had to give it a go. His main point of contention was that he wasn’t the only one responsible for the partying. The entire fraternity was, and the party in question hadn’t been organized or sanctioned by Sail, even though he was president at the time.
His appeal fell on deaf ears. Every professor and teacher’s aide or assistant he approached denied his request for support. He could’ve asked his brothers—the guys he’d lived with since his first year at the University of Miami—but he didn’t want them to end up in trouble.
Sail had made his bed when he failed to show up to any of his classes. That’s what the suspension was truly about, and the only way to fix it was to leave campus for the semester. There would be no going back to the frat house in the winter, which weighed heavily on him. His need to party and be the guy everyone wanted to hang out with or be known as the one who throws the best parties had cost him everything.
A group of people came out of the restaurant. Sail turned his back to avoid them. No one knew he was back in town yet and he wanted to keep it that way until he spoke to his dad. Once he could no longer hear them, he turned back around and faced his foe.
Carter’s Diner had been in his family his entire life. His parents bought the establishment right after his older brother Dune had been born. They quickly turned what had been a run-down diner into a thriving hot spot for not only locals, but tourists as well.
Then his parents started Pearl’s Clam Shack.
And then Blue Lobster Adventures was formed.
Which meant Sail, along with his brothers, were expected to be a part of the family business.
The thought made Sail’s stomach twist into a knot. He thought again how no one ever asked him what he wanted. His parents never sat him down and asked what he wanted to do in his life. His path had been laid out in front of him and that was that.
Sail inhaled deeply. The longer he stood outside, the easier it would be for his father to find out he was there. It was better for Sail to face the music, take the verbal beating, and then figure out how he was going to earn money to finish his education. There was no way in hell Jack would continue to foot the bill for his schooling, and he was too close to finishing his degree not to finish. He couldn’t let the time spent go to waste. Maybe he’d wait tables like the rest of them. That seemed to work for everyone who came to town.
He squared his shoulders and made his way to the door. If luck was on his side, his cousin would be behind the counter and his father would be out running errands. The more time Sail had to sit and think about what he needed to say would be better.
Inside, the stools at the counter sat empty and there were only a few people in the booths. He’d caught the diner between the morning and afternoon rushes, for which he was happy.