Free Tudor Redemption (Tudor Dynasty Book 4) by Jamie Salisbury

her parents had been when we were seeing each other. I wasn’t
on their “top picks for son-in-law” list. No musician would ever be good
enough. Like I said, life has a funny way of using karma.
    “Dame?
Do you have to leave? Why not stay the day? We could do a cook-out, talk. You
and Courtney could get to know Ethan. And me...”
    “No,
I can’t. It’s not that easy. I need some time. Alone, Beth.” I stopped and
looked down at her.
    “I
understand,” she replied quietly.
    Crap.
Women. They never make things easy. I pulled my phone out of my pocket. “Give
me your number. I promise I’ll be in touch when I get back. Perhaps we can all
get together then. Right now, though? I need some time to myself. That was my
plan before running into you and Ethan.”
    “I
understand. It’s a lot to take in.”
    “You
have no idea.”
    “Dame?
What about Courtney? What if she asks?”
    “Tell
her nothing. I want to be the one to have that talk with her, and make sure
Ethan understands that.”
    “I
will.”
    “Okay
then. I need to be going.”
    “Of
course. Enjoy your trip.”
    I
nodded and turned. I had to get away before my head exploded.
    Reaching
my vessel, I secured the inflatable before lifting the anchor. I motored out of
the harbor, into open water, the wind slapping me in the face. I pulled my cap
around so as not to lose it then hit the button to raise the main sail and jib.
    The
problem with towing an inflatable is one can’t get the full beauty of the sail.
It caused a drag. But if you want to go ashore, especially on remote islands,
you needed one. I was sailing, and that’s all that mattered.
    About
two hours into my sail, the weather began to change. Having planned for that
possibility, I decided to seek shelter in the harbor of one of the smaller,
uninhabited islands. Detours were always part of the adventure.
    By
the time I was secure in the harbor, the rain was intensifying. Soaking wet, I
sought the dryness of the cabin. I stripped out of my clothes and put on dry
ones. I grabbed a brew out of the cooler I kept secured inside. Sitting at the
small table, I took a swig as I scrolled through my phone. Being I was at such
a remote location, I was pretty sure I might have no signal. Luckily, Courtney
understood that and wouldn’t freak out if she didn’t hear from me.
    I
wondered if she’d put two and two together as far as Ethan went. If she hadn’t,
I was going to have to sit both her and Britt down and tell them the truth.
    I
sent her a text telling her of the weather and the change of plans. If she got
it now, great. If not, she’d get it whenever I got a signal.
    The
events of the day kept playing through my head. Finally, in order to make it
stop, I took out the guitar that I’d brought along. I had planned on trying to
work on some song ideas that had been running through my head. It proved to be
the perfect distraction.
    Hours
later, I was interrupted by the growling of my stomach. I glanced at my phone.
It was almost midnight. I’d been at it for hours. No wonder I was hungry. I put
the guitar down and decided on a sandwich. Except for the glitch of the morning
and the weather, it’d been a productive day.
    I
sat back and began to think on the events of some twenty-plus years ago. Had I
been that naive not to have realized what was happening with Beth?
    I
recalled going to Beth’s house, having not seen her around at school. The two
of us had been rather close. Beth had been my first and I hers. I had been just
a hormonal, horny teenager. It was one of the perks of being in a band. The
young women. That’s how I’d really met Julia. Though we were in the same class,
as was Beth, neither of them hung out together. Looking back now, I could see
why.
    Julia
and I had married the summer after we graduated. I knew no better. Beth’s
disappearing without so much as a word had made me do stupid things. Our
parents, not wanting the scandal of Julia being pregnant, agreed to a small,
quiet