The resemblance was unmistakable—same stubbornjaw, same broody energy, but with a little less permanent scowl.
His attitude melted, and a scared little boy stood in his shoes. “Please don’t tell my dad.”
My chest pinched. “What are you doing out here?”
The boy shrugged, but I wasn’t letting him off the hook that easily. Instead, I waited him out. Finally, he kicked the dirt with the toe of his sneaker. “I was bored.”
“You were bored.” My jaw flexed. “You were bored so you thought you’d creep around people’s houses?” That logic hadteenagerwritten all over it.
The boy sputtered. “I wasn’t! I went for a walk down the dunes.” His arm lifted. “There’s a path that runs behind the cottage where the cliffs aren’t as steep. It’s easier to get to the beach that way.”
I looked over my shoulder at the small path worn in the grass. Some spots were so bare the sandy earth beneath it peeked through. “Huh.” I shrugged, dropping the tree limb at my feet and dusting off my hands. “Good to know.”
I shook my head at the well-worn path he was referring to. Something about the way he knew exactly where to go told me this wasn’t his first time sneaking out. “Do you come out here a lot?” I asked, tilting my head.
The boy hesitated, then shrugged like it didn’t matter. “Sometimes. There’s not much to do at the inn.”
I let that settle. Not much to do. It reminded me of being a restless teenager in Star Harbor, looking for something—anything—to make the small-town nights feel bigger.
I crossed my arms. “So I take it your dad doesn’t know you’re out here?”
The boy pulled in his lower lip and shook his head.
My lips twisted. “I should probably tell him.”
The boy’s eyes jumped to mine. “But?—”
I raised my hand to stop him. “Ishould, but since you really weren’t doing anything wrong, I guess I don’t have to. Just be careful and head straight home.”
He nodded enthusiastically, seemingly relieved I wasn’t going to rat him out. I had no intention of getting the kid in trouble. Hell, I’d sneaked out to hang with friends at the dunes more times than I could count.
I watched the boy as he started making his way back toward the inn. It was clear he was Cal’s son and over time would likely take on his father’s impressive frame. If he was already sneaking out, Cal was going to have his hands full with him.
I should’ve let him go. After all, he was just a kid sneaking around where he wasn’t supposed to, and I’d been there, done that. But as he turned, something about the sad, heavy set of his shoulders hit me square in the chest. That stubborn posture, the way his voice had softened at the mention of his dad.
I understood that feeling—the weight of expectation. The need to carve out your own space, even if it meant breaking a few rules.
“Hey, kid,” I called out. “Do you need a job? It might suck, but I will pay well.Reallywell,” I added to sweeten the offer.
It was an impulse decision, but I’d always trusted my gut. And right now my gut was telling me this kid needed something to keep him occupied that didn’t involve sneaking around in the dark like a little haunted Victorian child.
The boy’s shoulders perked up. “Yeah, sure.”
“Don’t you want to know what the job is?” I asked.
His shoulders bounced. “Not really.”
Yep. DefinitelyCallum’s kid.
A chuckle rumbled through me. “Fair enough. Come see me in the morning and I’ll put you to work. I’m Ellie, by the way.”
He lifted his hand. “Levi. And thanks ... for not telling my dad.”
I smirked. “Yet.” I pointed at the inn. “Straight home.”
Levi nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
I rounded the cottage, watching Levi all the way home to make sure he made it safely. I had a good feeling about the kid, even if his dad was a growly stick-in-the-mud. Levi might be a handful, but at least he was willing to roll with the punches. His dad, on the other hand? He was an entirely different kind of challenge.
