Free Summer at the Shore (Seashell Bay Book 2) by V. K. Sykes Page A

snorted. “Yeah, and we finally got that old geezer out of our place, thank the good Lord.”
    Aiden’s father, Sean Flynn, had been staying with Miss Annie and Roy while he worked on staying off the booze and getting his life back on track. It had been a hard slog, according to Aiden, but the entire island had come together to help Sean deal with the fallout of a lifetime of alcohol abuse and depression. They’d been there for Bram, Aiden’s recovering alcoholic brother, too.
    Miss Annie poked Roy in the ribs. “Stop your nonsense, Roy. You and Sean got along together like biscuits and gravy. Lily called it a bromance, didn’t she, Morgan?”
    Morgan laughed, but then her expression turned serious. “Aiden, that’s really sweet of you, but you’re so busy. And you’re still working on your family home.”
    “I’ve got some free time now. I have to wait for Brendan to do some finishing work before we can install the rest of the flooring.” He glanced at Ryan. “Look, you and I could strip and reshingle that roof pretty fast. And if we need another hand, I’m sure we could recruit Brett or Josh or Micah.”
    “Hell, what about me?” Roy protested. “I can help too. It wouldn’t be my first time on the dance floor when it comes to swapping out a roof, let me tell you.”
    Miss Annie looked horrified. “You old coot, have you completely lost your marbles? You’re ninety-one years old, for goodness’ sake, and you are
not
going to be fooling around on that steep roof. Not if you want to still be puttin’ your boots under my bed. You can kiss that good-bye, Charlie Brown.”
    Ryan mentally winced. No way he wanted to envision Roy and Miss Annie doing the nasty, and the slightly appalled look on Aiden’s face suggested the same reaction. Morgan, however, was obviously trying not to laugh.
    Roy shot Miss Annie a lethal glare. “Shee-it, woman. Didn’t I do some work on the roof at Sean’s new place with this guy?” He jerked a gnarly thumb at Aiden. “Did I break my neck then? Well, did I?”
    “No, praise be to God,” Miss Annie said. “But that was a one-story cottage, not this . . . this skyscraper. You’re too old for such foolishness, Roy Mayo. I’ve been widowedonce, and I don’t mean to go through it a second time. And certainly not for the likes of you.”
    Roy’s weathered face wrinkled up even more. “Widowed a second time? Was I in a coma or something when we got hitched? I seem to have missed it.”
    Morgan jumped in before Miss Annie could sock him. “That’s incredibly kind of you to offer, Aiden, and you too, Roy. I’m touched, but I’m not sure I could afford the materials right now even if you guys did all the work yourselves.” Her expression told Ryan how much it cost her pride to admit that.
    Aiden crossed his arms, looking stubborn. “Morgan, Ryan’s absolutely right. As for the money, I’ll loan you what you need. You really do have to deal with that roof before your business floats away in a flood.”
    Morgan’s shoulders started to hike back up around her ears. Though Ryan didn’t like that they’d put her in an obviously uncomfortable spot, he agreed it was too important to back off. Aiden had come up with a workable solution to the problem, and Ryan had no intention of letting it slip away.
    “Same goes for me, Morgan,” he said. “Aiden and I will cover the cost of the materials, and we’ll do the work ourselves. And if Roy wants to help, I’m sure we can find plenty of work for him to do down here at sea level.”
    “Oh, sure. Treat me like I’m some crapped-out old invalid,” Roy groused.
    Ryan ignored him, zeroing in on Morgan because she seemed to be wavering, her eyes flicking between him and Aiden. “Let us help you, okay?” he said gently. “Isn’t that what neighbors always do for each other around here?”
    That little nugget might sound presumptuous comingfrom a guy who hardly ever set foot on the island, but that truly was how