Whispers of a Broken Halo by Abbi Glines

“Did you pack a bathing suit? I grabbed Cullen’s already,” he told me.

I walked over and picked up the tote bag where I had put two towels and my newest bikini. I’d bought it to be prepared in case he invited us to swim. Cullen had talked about the pool at his house several times since Henley and Saul had taken him swimming.

He took the tote bag from me and opened the bedroom door, then stepped back so I could exit first. Cullen was sitting in the living room, dressed in a pair of tan shorts and a navy-blue polo. His hair was even brushed and still slightly damp from his shower. His eyes were glued to the screen, and he didn’t notice us walk in.

“Ready, bud?” Rio asked him.

He jumped up immediately and nodded his head. “Yep!”

He hadn’t mentioned Tory since the funeral. I’d asked him if he wanted the picture of her that was framed in her room put by his bed. He’d nodded, and that was the last we had talked about her. I hoped in time, he would bring her up. I didn’t like the idea of him keeping his emotions locked away.

The drive to Rio’s house was short, but Cullen managed to ask at least twenty questions before we got there. Rio patiently answered every one of them. He was so good with Cullen. Most men wouldn’t be. Most wouldn’t want to include him. I knew it was one of the things that made me love him.

The massive white house sat directly on the beach. Saul owned it, Rio had explained, and he and Drake just paid rent to live here. Although Rio had said, one day soon, he expected things to change. He was expecting Saul and Henley to eventually get married.

Five other cars were parked outside.

“I’ll go ahead and warn you. Saul texted. His dad is here. He wasn’t expecting him, but then he never is. He just shows up when he wants to. Anyway, Saul doesn’t like his dad much. However, they’ve recently been trying to get along. So, if it seems tense when we walk in there, know that’s what it is. I doubt he’ll stay long.”

I nodded and wondered if us showing up with Cullen was a good idea, but I didn’t say anything. I knew nothing about Saul’s dad but that he was very wealthy and owned a lot of buildings in The Shores. We never really talked much about Saul.

Cullen ran ahead of us up the stairs. A short time ago, he would have been locked to my side. With Rio’s reentrance into my life, Cullen had begun to change. He’d gotten braver, more adventurous. Another thing I owed to Rio.

He started to open the door.

“Cullen, wait!” I called out.

“It’s my house. He can go on in,” Rio said beside me.

Cullen looked back at me with his hand on the doorknob.

“Go on. Rio said it was fine,” I told him.

Cullen spun back around and jerked open the door, then went in without a backward glance.

“What about Saul’s dad?” I asked.

“It’s fine,” Rio repeated.

We followed Cullen inside, and I heard Henley greet him.

I had only been here twice, but it was still hard not to look at everything. I had never been in a house this nice. The staircase curved and was huge. It was set to the left of the entrance area. Rio placed his hand on my back and led me down the hallway toward an entrance where I knew there was a big two-level room that looked out over the ocean.

When we stepped inside, my gaze scanned the room for Cullen, and I found him seated beside Drake, who was playing a video game. Drake was saying something to Cullen, who nodded. I didn’t know Drake well, but it appeared Cullen had gotten to know him already.

Henley walked into the room from the kitchen. “Hey,” she said, smiling. “I’m glad you’re here. There is too much testosterone in this house.”

“You want a drink?” Rio asked me.

I nodded. “Water, please.”

He walked over to the bar and began fixing our drinks.

“I was headed outside. The sun is about to set. Come on,” Henley said, waving me toward her.

I made my way down the stairs to the second level of the large room, then followed her out the doors onto the first level of the balcony or deck. I wasn’t sure what this was exactly. I’d never seen anything like this until Rio brought me here the first time. Just like the room inside, there were two levels. The first part was for seating, and then you went down a couple of steps to the next level, where a big, fancy pool overlooked the beach below.

I started to say something about the view when my eyes locked on a familiar face. Mr. Hendrix sat in a lounge chair with a glass of whiskey in one hand and a cigar in the other. In his glass was two shots, neat, of The Macallan twenty-one-year-old scotch. He drank nothing else. Saint kept a bottle of it just for when he came to the club. When he turned his head in our direction, his gaze scanned me from head to toe.

I wasn’t in my work makeup, and I was clothed, but I knew when his eyes met mine and he smiled, he recognized me. That was going to happen to me eventually, but why did it have to happen here? I’d wanted to fit in with Rio’s friends. This was not going to help.

“Archer, this is Bryn, Rio’s girlfriend,” Henley said, then turned to me. “Henley, this is Saul’s father.”

Of course. Saul’s father was rich. He owned many buildings in The Shores. I hadn’t realized he owned many buildings all over the world. No one had told me Saul’s last name. Archer Hendrix was more than rich. He was on Forbes list of top 100 richest people in America.