He wanted to be here. He wanted to run in the yard, throwing sticks to the dogs. To crawl out of bed when it was still dark and eat breakfast with Ethan and go out on the water crabbing. To work in the boatyard or go down to Danny’s and Will’s.

To eat real food whenever he was hungry and sleep in a bed that didn’t smell like somebody else’s sweat.

Ray had promised him all of that, and though Seth had never trusted anyone, he’d trusted Ray. Maybe Ray had been his father, maybe he hadn’t. But Seth knew he’d paid Gloria a lot of money. He thought of her as Gloria now and not as his mother. It helped to add more distance.

Now Ray was dead, but he’d made each of his sons promise to keep Seth in the house by the water. Seth figured they probably hadn’t liked the idea, but they’d promised anyway. He’d discovered that the Quinns kept their word. It was a new and wonderful concept to him, a promise kept.

If they broke it now, he knew it would hurt more than anything had hurt him before.

So he waited, and when he heard the car—the not-quite-tamed roar of the Corvette—his stomach jittered with excitement and nerves.

Simon woofed twice in greeting, but Foolish set up a din of wild, half-terrified barking. When the sleek white car pulled into the drive, both dogs raced toward it, tails waving like flags. Seth stuck hands that had gone sweaty into his pockets and strolled over casually.

‘‘Hi!’’ Anna shot him a brilliant smile.

Seth could see why Cam had gone for her, all right. He himself had sketched her face a number of times in secret. He liked to draw above all else. His fledgling artist’s eye appreciated the sheer beauty of that face—the dark, almond-shaped eyes, the clear, pale-gold skin, the full mouth, and the exotic hint of cheekbones. Her hair was windblown, a dark, curling mass. Her wedding ring set glinted, diamonds and gold, as she stepped out of the car.

And caught him unprepared in a laughing, bone-crushing hug. ‘‘What a terrific welcome party!’’

Though the embrace had surprised him into wanting to linger there, he wiggled free. ‘‘I was just out fooling with the dogs.’’ He looked over at Cam, shrugged. ‘‘Hey.’’

‘‘Hey, kid.’’ Lean and dark, and just a little dangerous to the eye, Cam unfolded his length from the low-riding car. His grin was quicker than Ethan’s, sharper than Phillip’s. ‘‘Just in time to help me unload.’’

‘‘Yeah, sure.’’ Seth glanced up, noted the small mountain of luggage strapped to the roof of the car. ‘‘You didn’t take all that crap with you.’’

‘‘We picked up some Italian crap while we were there.’’

‘‘I couldn’t stop myself,’’ Anna said with a laugh. ‘‘We had to buy another suitcase.’’