“I wish I could stay here year-round,” Bella said wistfully. “It must feel like you’re on vacation all the time.”

Nick laughed. “It does. When I’m not working, that is.”

The conversation slowed to a comfortable silence and Nick appreciated that Bella didn’t feel she had to rush in to fill the silence with idle chatter. One of the things he always appreciated about fishing was the solitude, just being one with the beach, watching the tide come in and go out and feeling the breeze across his face and the warm sunlight. It was a good time for reflection, or for not thinking at all and letting go.

They sipped their coffee and watched people walking along the beach. Dogs racing into the surf. Other people getting ready to fish, as well.

Bella suddenly jumped up and Nick saw a tug on her line.

“I might have something!” She slowly reeled the line in and they both laughed when they saw what she’d caught—a seaweed-covered sneaker. She pulled the lure out of it and cast her line into the water again before settling back into her seat.

“False alarm! I was so excited there for a minute. I thought I had our dinner.”

Nick chuckled. “It’s early still. Plenty of time.”

“Tell me about your family. You have two sisters, right? Paula and Lucy?”

He nodded. “Yes, I’m the oldest. Paula is in the middle. She’s probably the most serious one. She’s super organized and great with numbers. The GM role is new for her. I think she’ll be great at it, but it’s definitely out of her comfort zone. She’s on the shy side and has to be around people more in this job.”

“Sounds like it might be good for her,” Bella commented.

“I think it will. Lucy’s the baby. She’s the most creative of all of us. She works the front desk but it’s not really her passion.”

“What is?”

“She likes to paint things.”

“You mean like pictures? Artwork?”

“Sort of. She likes to repurpose things. So, she’ll go to a yard sale, find an old desk or chair, or maybe an end table. Bring it home, sand it, paint it and decorate with a custom design. She paints flowers, or ocean scenes right onto the wood.”

“That sounds kind of cool.”

“She does nice work. Sometimes she shows her stuff at art festivals. People walk around, see her work and she almost always sells out. She told me she just set up a way to sell some of it online, too, through an Etsy store, whatever that is.”

“Etsy is awesome. It’s like an online arts and craft festival. I’ve bought some gorgeous things there. I’ll have to look up Lucy’s shop. Do you know what it’s called?”