Islands

1. The Island of Struhst

     The boat crashed along the coast of Washington State. Clear skies made the sun shine onto the deck of the boat. The sound of seagulls flying overhead made my head turn, following the passing birds.

    Turning my head back to the blond standing in front of me. The long curled and bold eyelashes were obviously fake. The nails were long and shaped like almonds, the color being bright blue, some had decorations on it. The blonde was wearing an expensive sun dress and sandals, clutching her Prada bag to her chest. 

We had been on the boat for 45 minutes. In less than 25 more, we'd be on the island.

The blonde turned to me, her voice shaky, with fear.

"I haven't been back here for a long time. I honestly thought I'd never want to come back..." Her tone is full of sadness, I could tell she was thinking about her deceased parents.

I put a hand on my future sister-in-laws shoulder.

"It's okay, I'll be with you every step of the way," I said attempting to sound soothing and sympathetic. Kristi nodded.

"I wish Will could've been here. But his job is important." Kristi smiled.

I could tell by looking at Kristi's face that there was love. Kristi was indeed in love with my brother. Turning my head off towards the water, I smiled, knowing my brother was happy. 

You have to like her, she is family now. The thought stirred in my head for a moment. The feeling of wanting nothing more than to put effort into building a friendship with Kristi went through my brain. Effort.

"So...whats the plan for today," I said with enthusiasm, or at least an attempt of it. Kristi looks at me with a smile.

"We are meeting my uncle at the dock, he will take us into town, you can meet some of the rest of my family. But we will mostly be hanging out by the inn, that's where I want to have the festivities." She explains.

"So...planning where and when to have the parties and things like that?" I question. Kristi nods.

"A week tops, then we can go back to the mainland. We'll come back in two weeks and come up with the odds and ends." She nearly hops at the excitement.

Effort.

"So your family...they own-," I began but was immediately cut off.

"No! No, the land is named after my, I don't know how many greats, grandfather. He settled here first. Most of the island's locals are family. A few people moved here but... most of its my family. You'll only meet a few though. A lot just come here during the spring and fall."
I nod trying to understand.

"So your family is in a monopoly, basically, they own the inn, the stores, the restaurants..."
She looked at me, slightly nodding.
I knew she was rich, that wasn't a question. What was the question was; how rich was she?

     As we approached the island, a sea of green took over my view. This wasn't an island, no way. It was huge. Mountains of vast green colors sparkled in my eyes. The shores of the water crashing up to a beach. The colorful array of mountains, hilltops, and forestry terrain had sunk into my eyes. It was beautiful.

     As we docked, I was pulled back to reality. Hearing the sound of Kristi running off the deck to the dock and rushing past a group of tourists. She nearly jumps on the man at the end of the dock. Hugging him tightly. I grabbed my duffel bag and backpack and attempted to reach for Kristi's two suitcases but was taken back by a man in uniform.

"Let me help you with those."
He grabbed the black Prada suitcases and followed me onto the dock. The man put the two suitcases beside me. I thanked him just before he turned and was back onto the ferry.

    I turned to see Kristi but instead met a pair of dark brown eyes. Dark beautiful brown eyes. The muscular, very tall man that Kristi was talking to was beyond comprehension. He was like a Greek god. Chiseled to perfection. His dark brown hair was shaggy but it suited him. The five o clock shadow on his face made him look mysterious. His muscular figure was intimidating. He was a real life Adonis.

I swallowed hard. His eyes starring me down. I was about to fall to my knees but I looked down and made my way to Kristi. Once in front of Kristi and the mysterious man, I looked up from my feet with a smile planted on my face.

"Kristi introduce me to your friend," the man says. I nearly collapsed when I heard his accented deep husky voice. It scared me but I enjoyed it. My cheeks could not possibly become more red than they already were. Was I shaking? Get a hold of yourself!

"Uncle Mads, this is Alli, Will's sister."
Mads's eyes shifted in an odd way, his mouth slowly descended to a frown. He craned his neck in annoyance. It was like Kristi had taken something from him. Like he was a child and Kristi had taken away his toy.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Doctor Struhst," he says as he extended his hand. I shook it firmly but carefully.

"Allison, it's nice to meet you as well." I smiled, taking back my hand. I can see him grinds his molars. Was he in pain? Maybe annoyed? I couldn't tell, my chances of figuring it out vanished as he forced a smile.

"Are these yours, Kristi?" He refers to the suitcases. I turn and retrieve mine that I had set down when I was awestruck by the large man before me.

   Dr. Struhst gets Kristi's suitcases beside me. I follow Kristi and her uncle to his car, hoping to god that I wouldn't have to see more of this man, only because he was; 

a) terrifyingly intimidating

 b) incredibly attractive in every sense, 

 c) he looked at me with worrisome disdain.

He looked like trouble wrapped into a tall, muscular, god like man. 

Why does my luck run out so fast?

A/N:

Thanks for reading! It gets better the more you read, lots of conflict and tension, mystery and of course romance.

Please Vote, Follow, Comment! The more love you show for this story the more motivated I get for writing the sequel, unless of course you love cliffhangers and open plot lines with no closure...

Thank you for reading!

-Annelie Leddy