#asher parker

Nixa POV

I tilted my head back, breathing in the smell of the ocean carried to me on the warm, late summer breeze. 

Despite nearly twenty years having gone by since the last time I’d visited this beach, it still looked the same. The same surf, the same sand, the same view.

The same people, too.

Well, I thought to myself, plus a couple more.

I opened my eyes and looked to my right, smiling when I saw Alma, curled in Michael’s lap, giggling contentedly. Asher and Elena were sitting beside them, murmuring quietly about Elena’s brand new nephew, while Ada and Audrey sprinted back and forth across the sands, running from Ava and Blake, Ada and Audrey tossing Blake’s stolen car keys between the two of them, and all four of them shrieking with laughter.

I chuckled softly to myself, watching them, every one of them turned to pure gold by the sun and shining brighter than my eyes could stand.

“You know,” Alma started, her voice sweet and soft with happiness, “You’re a lot calmer than I thought you’d be.”

“How do you mean?” I asked.

Alma shrugged and said, “Considering how...Aunt Tina behaved at the wedding...I’m sorry I shouldn’t have said anything-”

I smirked. “I’m not exactly thin skinned, Alma.”

She smiled, her shoulders easing a bit.

I tilted my head back and curled my toes in the warm sand. “I think I’m still a little in denial.”

“About?” 

“Being free,” I said, thinking of the shell-shocked look on my mother’s face when I’d stopped her from ruining Alma and Michael’s wedding.

Alma reached a hand out towards me, wiggling her fingers. In a move I hadn’t forgotten from our childhood I reached back over and tangled our fingers together.

Alma smiled at me, the late summer wind blowing her hair across her face but still not able to cover up the soft content in her eyes. Alma said softly, “We’re here, and we’re not going anywhere ever again.”

Michael looked over but didn’t remove his arms from around Alma’s waist as he smiled at me too. “I’m new to the family, but I know Alma and her siblings well enough to know by now that she means it. And wherever she goes, I go.”

I let myself snort at that. “For a hardcore businessman, you sure are a sap.”

He grinned broadly, tugging Alma closer and pressing a kiss to her cheek as Alma laughed and blushed. “Yeah, I am.”

Suddenly, Ava plopped down beside me, hooking an arm through mine, her face reddened from exertion and her eyes sparkling as she watched Blake pour a sandcastle bucket full of sea water over Ada and Audrey.

“Finally got the keys back, but those three are still going at it.” She said, a broad smile tugging at her mouth.

Ava looked over at me and nudged me. “So hey, where are you gonna go now that Aunt Tina’s leash is gone?”

Alma and Asher immediately objected to the language, but I just blinked at her, so calm and sure of herself after this summer, and laughed.

Long and so hard my stomach ached a bit, tears beading at the corners of my eyes.

Eventually, Ava nudged me again. “Ok, you’re starting to sound a little like the Joker, ease up buttercup.”

I reached out to tuck a stray lock of hair behind Ava’s ear. “Well, we’ve all got our inheritances, my mother is banished from my life, Chaz and I decided that we wanted different things in life and we’re not gonna try to actually date, and I had to quit my old job to go on the cruise, so my future is pretty much wide open.”

Ada, Audrey, and Blake sat down with the rest of us. 

Ada frowned at me. “I didn’t know you had to quit your job.”

I gave a wry grin. “Not many insurance companies allow their employees to take three months of vacation time.”

Alma squeezed my hand. “We’ll figure it out. We’ll help you.”

I smiled at her, feeling as light and free as the clouds above us. “I know. That’s what’s so great about it. I’ve got a clean slate, a completely fresh start, and most importantly, I’ve got all of you.”

Asher ducked his head down, grinning. “You’re a little bit of a sap too.”

I smiled at him. “I can afford to be. I don’t really know where I go from here. Maybe I’ll just move to New York and get a job as a waitress, figure the rest out later. But I have that opportunity now, and I’ve got a very sizable inheritance to fall back on. Not to mention all of you.”

I looked around at them, tanned skin, hair slightly sun bleached, and that ease of laughter in their faces that only came from a truly unforgettable summer.