A Treasure Worth Keeping

Evie couldn’t argue with that. The boat tied to the dock was as plain and drab as a cardboard box. And looked about as seaworthy.

“I admire anyone with artistic ability.” Evie held out her hand. “Evangeline McBride. Science geek.”

The girl’s eyes met hers shyly and then she smiled. “My name’s Faith. I’m a jock.”

“What sport?”

Faith shrugged. “You name it.”

“But Lake Superior inspired you, huh?”

“No, I’m being forced. It’s art class.” Faith peeked at the sketch pad and made a face. “It’s terrible.”

Evie knew better than to push. If Faith wanted her to take a look at her drawing, it had to be her idea.

“Okay. Tell me the truth.” Faith suddenly flipped it over for Evie to see.

“It’s…” Evie’s voice trailed off when she saw the gleam of humor in Faith’s eyes. She’d colored the entire page blue. “You captured it perfectly, I’d say. A closeup of the water.”

“Very close up!”

Faith giggled and Evie joined in.

“Faith!”

The voice behind them startled Evie. Her foot slipped on the rocks, sending an avalanche of stones skipping down the bank.

“Hi, Sam.” Faith’s giggle changed to a bored monotone.

Evie looked up and sucked in her breath. The man looming above them blotted out the sun. Evie could tell immediately that he and the girl were related. Both of them had silver-gray eyes and thick, shadow-dark hair. Faith’s eyes were still warm with laughter, but the other pair trained on Evie were as chilly as the water.

“I’m Evie McBride.” She scrambled to her feet to regain her dignity, but it didn’t matter. She barely reached the man’s broad shoulders. “Your daughter and I sort of…bumped…into each other.”

Sam looked from the slender redhead to his niece in disbelief. He’d been looking for Faith for the past hour—so he could ground her for the rest of her life. He was pretty sure he had the authority. Although Faith might not agree. The truth was, they hadn’t been agreeing about much the past few days, and Sam was at the end of his rope. Moodiness he could cope with, but Faith had started to disappear whenever the opportunity presented itself. Like an hour ago.

They’d been staying with Jacob, who’d left early that morning on a fishing trip, and Sam had brought Faith into town with him while he got the Natalie ready to launch. This would be the first time they’d had an opportunity to take the boat out. While he’d checked the engine, his wily niece had pulled another disappearing act.

He hadn’t expected to find her in the company of Patrick McBride’s daughter. The uptight schoolteacher his dad had warned him about. But somehow Jacob had forgotten to mention that Evie McBride was a beautiful uptight schoolteacher.

And he hadn’t expected to hear Faith giggling the way twelve-year-old girls were supposed to giggle. The sound had thrown him off balance. He realized he hadn’t seen Faith smile or heard her laugh for a long time. Too long. Dan’s accident had been like a scalpel—going in deep and removing the laughter from all of them.

“I’m Sam Cutter—”

“He’s my uncle, not my dad,” Faith interrupted.

Sam exhaled silently. No one knew better than he did that he couldn’t fill Dan’s shoes. His twin brother had been a great dad, and all Sam could be was what he’d always been—a doting uncle. But lately he found himself wondering if that was enough to keep Faith from drowning in grief. When Dan had been injured, she’d taken a leave of absence from school. Now she was so far behind, the principal had said the only way she could pass to the next grade level was by completing her homework over the summer. What bothered Sam the most was that Faith didn’t seem to care.

“Cutter? Are you related to Jacob Cutter?”

“I’m his son.” Sam noticed the instant change in Evie’s expression.

“It’s nice to meet you.”

Sure it was. Jacob hadn’t been kidding. Evie McBride didn’t approve of him. He wondered why. “Dad mentioned you’re minding the store while he and Patrick are fishing.”

“I don’t know a lot about antiques, but I do know how to dust them.” She glanced down at Faith and winked.

Faith grinned back.

Maybe Ms. McBride came across as a little stuffy, but she definitely had a way with kids.

“Faith, are you ready? We should be long gone by now.” Sam stared his niece down, not ready to let her off the hook for disappearing on him.

Faith shifted uncomfortably and he saw a flash of good old-fashioned guilt in her eyes. Good.

“Are you house-sitting for your dad?” Evie directed the question at him, her voice polite but strained.

Sam suppressed a smile. With that tone, she sounded just like a prim schoolteacher. All she needed was a pair of horn-rimmed glasses and a bun. They’d go really well with the heavy cardigan she had buttoned up to her chin and the ankle-length denim skirt.

“We’re staying on the Natalie.” Faith pointed to the boat nodding drowsily in the waves.

“You’re living on that?”

Sam bristled at what sounded like an accusation. It scraped against the doubts he was already having about bringing Faith along. So the Natalie wasn’t the best-looking boat in the harbor. And maybe she didn’t have all the latest bells and whistles. But he’d checked her over, and she was sturdy. The engine had purred like a kitten before settling into a reliable, even hum.

“A few days on the water and a few days at the cabin.” Sam lifted one eyebrow, daring her to comment.

Evie McBride’s chin lifted, accepting his challenge. “I don’t think—”

“You should come with us sometime,” Faith broke in, leaving both adults momentarily speechless.

“That’s sweet of you, Faith, but…” Evie turned and stared, almost mesmerized, at the water. “Beach Glass is going to keep me pretty busy over the next few weeks.”

She was afraid of the water, Sam realized in surprise. His gaze dropped to the hem of her skirt, where the toes of a sensible pair of shoes peeked out. Not exactly the type of footwear designed for splashing in the surf. He hid another smile.

“I should get going, too. The shop opens at ten.” Evie’s expression softened when she looked at Faith. “Be careful when you’re out on the lake.”

Sam expected Faith to give Evie her signature don’t-fuss-over-me-I’m-not-a-little-kid-anymore look, but his niece nodded solemnly.

“Sam knows what he’s doing.”

Sam’s mouth dropped open at the confidence he heard in her voice. Before he had a chance to bask in the glow, she skipped down the rocks toward the dock. “I can’t keep up with her.”

He realized he’d said the words out loud when he felt Evie touch his arm. The warmth of her fingers soaked into his skin. When he glanced down at her, he saw a knowing look in her eyes.

“Don’t try to keep up with her.” Evie smiled. A genuine smile that sparkled like sunlight dancing on the water and had a curious effect on his pulse. For the first time, he noticed a dusting of cinnamon freckles on her nose. “The secret is to stay one step ahead of her.”

On the way back to the cottage, Evie couldn’t stop thinking about Faith Cutter. And Sam. Although she didn’t want to think about him. Anyone who would take a child out in a boat on a lake as unpredictable as Superior for any length of time had to be a live-on-the-edge type of person. And in the end, that kind of person always hurt the ones closest to them, whether they meant to or not.