The day was bright and warm. The sun shone down on the water surrounding Harding Junction, causing a disorienting glare. Wil slipped her sunglasses on as she emerged onto the pier to wait for her ride. Checking her wrist watch, she saw she was early. She was always early. Old habits are hard to break.

A light breeze blew in off the water and Wil tilted her head up and drew in a deep breath of cleanliness and life. This was the first day of the rest of her life.

Knowing that second chances don't come cheap or easy, Wil smiled to herself, again thinking how lucky she was to land an opportunity like this one. Money wasn't a problem. She'd made her million in her daddy's law firm as the third partner on the bill. Langston, Shuster & Langston. Her father's best friend came before she did, but that was the way it went her entire life. Up until now at least.

She had surprised everyone back in her younger days. Getting her law degree in record time with most of the money coming from scholarships she'd earned through academic excellence. Daddy would never have put her through school. She was left mostly to fend for herself from the time she was old enough to do so. Thinking of her father brought a case of the chills, despite the heat of the day. He was a cold calculated man with an eye for one thing, and that was... money.

Wil guessed that was why he hadn't put up a fight when she told him she was leaving. Most of the firm's clients requested Wil to represent them and even though the winnings were split among the firm, she always got the bonus. It irritated her father to no end. She was a woman after all. A woman that made more money last year than her old man.

She'd given it all up to come to this place. Harding Junction was just a stop on her way to her new home and her new life on Raven's Harbor.

Wil didn't want to spend the rest of her life defending people who were more often than not guilty of the crime they'd been charged with. It seemed like a dirty way to make a living. Everyday after work, she felt like she needed to go home and take a shower... with bleach. She'd made up her mind a long time ago to leave NY City for something better, but she'd waited until she had the funds to do so and the will to leave the one place she knew.

Seeing the job opening listed on the internet one night, Wil had been determined to land the job. So after several phone interviews, and even more questions from the owners of the island, Wil did get the job. Not wanting to wait another second to get out, she went to the office the night the confirmation had come through and packed her things. Then she went to dear old daddy's place and told him she was leaving...for good. He'd looked at her with disappointment, which was nothing new. He'd been disappointed since the day she'd been born, wanting a son instead of some blasted split tail.

His disappointment faded quickly when Wil had mentioned all of her clients would be turned over to him. After that, he'd told her to go. Wished her luck and slammed the door in her face. So now, here she was on the dock, waiting for her ride to the island.

The final time she'd spoken with one of her new bosses, Erin, she'd been told that she would either be transported by ferry to the island or by a seaplane, depending on which pilot or captain was available. Looking around now, Wil silently prayed it would be the ferry. She actually could have made it here last week if she hadn't been so afraid to fly.

Wil made her way to the railing and looked down and the crystal clear water below. This was her true love. The water had always held a special place for her. For as long as she could remember it had been her dream to live near a body of water such as this. So clear it looked like you could literally touch the bottom without even getting your arm wet.

Hearing a noise above her, Wil raised her hand to her look up. She saw the seaplane and knew that was her ride to the island.

"Shit," she said aloud, not caring one bit who heard her.

She watched the plane circle over head a few times before it finally landed on the water, gliding into a slot near the pier she was standing on, like a very large but still very graceful swan. Finally, picking up her carry all and reaching for the handle on the behemoth suitcase beside her, Wil began to walk down the pier toward the plane.

Seth had been told to look for a very short woman, with shoulder length auburn hair. No one had seen this woman yet, so the brief description Erin had given him would have to be enough to go on. If all else failed, he'd go up to every redhead he saw and ask her if her name was Wil. Odd name for a woman, but that was her cross to bear, not his.

Opening the door and stepping out onto the dock, Seth peered around the crowded pier to see if he could spot her. He was surprised he didn't have to look very hard. She was walking toward him.

Putting out her hand as she reached him, Wil gave the man a smile. "You must be Seth. Erin said if I had to go on this thing, you'd be the pilot."

"This thing?" Seth asked as he took her hand, giving it a quick shake before bending down to lift her case into the plane. "This thing, is a seaplane."

"Yeah, that's my whole problem with it." Wil began. "Not so much the sea part, but it's the whole plane thing that makes me quiver."

"Afraid to fly?" He asked, taking her carry all from her as well and putting it in the back with the case.

"Scared shitless I think would be the correct phrase." Wil replied. "I really don't like to be off the ground if you know what I mean. They go so fast, and are so far from the ground, which really doesn't bother me all that much. It's the whole plunging thousands of feet to certain death thing that I find highly over rated."

Seth chuckled. "At least you have a good sense of humor."

"I wasn't kidding." Wil said, taking off her sunglasses and giving the plane a once over. "How long is this gonna take?"

"It takes about a half hour to get there with the plane. An hour by ferry," Seth replied. He had finished packing her things into the plane and stood with his hand out waiting to help her inside.

Looking from Seth's outstretched hand back to the plane, Wil shuddered slightly. "When's the next ferry?"

"Tomorrow afternoon I think," he said, still waiting.

"Tell you what. Why don't you take my things back with you, and I'll wait till tomorrow to catch the ferry."

Realizing she wasn't going to get into the air craft without a little help, Seth picked her up around the waist and put her inside the plane. "Get in your seat and buckle up," he told her. "You'll be fine."

Wil did as he asked, then gripped the arm rests and squeezed her eyes shut. Seth looked over at her after climbing into his own seat. "I haven't even started the thing yet and you're all hyper. Relax and enjoy the view. It is amazing from up there. He pointed at the roof of the small cockpit."

"Thanks, I'll just keep em shut if it's all the same." Wil responded.

Seth chuckled again and started the plane. "Suit yourself."

"I did it!!! I actually did it!" Wil screamed after she jumped out of the plane and onto the dock. "I went in a plane and made it back to earth safe and sound. WOOHOO!" She grabbed Seth's arm as he slid out behind her. "I really did it. I can't believe it."

Shaking his head, he went to the back to unload her things. "I think I'm gonna have to replace the arm rests though. You clawed the upholstery. You're going to need to go meet Erin and Jenn in the lodge. See it over there?"

Wil calmed down long enough to follow his finger to a beautiful, large log cabin surrounded by gardens and flowers. "Wow," she breathed. "Welcome to Fantasy Island! That's wonderful." Tearing her eyes away from the place, she returned her attention to Seth. Again she stuck her hand out to him. "Thanks for the ride, and it was nice meeting you Seth."

"It was nice meeting you too Wil. Hey I wanted to ask you. What kind of name is Wil for a woman?"

Wil's smile fell for a fraction of a second, before she remembered why she'd come to this place. "It's a nick name," she explained. "Given to me by a man who desperately wanted a son. My father." Turing away from him, she began walking along the dock toward the beautiful cabin. This was her own personal heaven.

"I still can't understand why you want this job," Erin said flipping through the file on her desk. "I mean you are highly qualified in other areas."

Wil shifted in her seat, a little uncomfortable with the subject, although she knew eventually she would have to explain. "I have a lot of experience in bar tending too. It's how I put myself through school, making up what the scholarships didn't cover. I still do it now, mostly for fun though. I like the crowds."

"I see that, but you left one of New York's most highly sought after law firms to come here and be a bar tender?" The question in Erin's eyes was predictable.

"It's not the money," Wil told her. "I have plenty of that. I hated the city and I hated being a lawyer. I made enough money to set me up, and then I quit to follow my dream."

"You had a dream of being a bartender?" Erin asked, skeptical.

"No, I dreamed of living in a place like this, meeting new people who weren't convicted of killing someone, or stealing something. It's very hard to find a nice date when that's what you have to choose from." Wil giggled.

Erin nodded in agreement, letting a smile show through. " Well, I guess we'd better get you set up then." Getting to her feet, Erin shook Wil's hand. "Welcome to Raven's Harbor."

"You'll be able to meet Jenn and Kenna later," Erin explained as they walked toward the cabin that Wil would now call home. "They are the other two ladies that run this place. Jenn is usually around here, but she had to deal with an irate guest that will be staying with us. Kenna is over on the South Ranch. That's where she spends most of her time."

Wil shook her head trying to absorb everything Erin was telling her. But her mind was elsewhere. The cabin in front of her was more than she'd ever dreamed of. By far the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen and they hadn't even gotten to the door.

Erin noticed Wil's amazement with the place and smiled. "This is one of our most beautiful water front cabins. Is it what you expected from the pictures I sent you?"

"Not even close," Wil let out a sigh as she ascended the steps and took a walk around her porch. "Those pictures didn't even come close to doing this place justice."

"Well you go on inside and make yourself at home. Next week when we go the main land we'll pick up the rest of your things." Erin told her handing her a set of keys to the place. "Seth has already brought the cases you had with you here and put them inside the door."

Taking the shiny silver keys from Erin, Wil looked at her a little confused. "The things I brought with me were all I have, there is nothing else."

"Are you serious?" Erin asked. "There's no furniture your going to be moving in here or anything?"

Wil shook her head. "You said the place was furnished, so I sold everything I had, not that it was worth much. Truth be told I gave most of it to Good Will."

"The place is furnished," Erin confirmed. "I just figured that you, like so many of our regulars and dwellers, would want to put some personal touches on your place. Maybe a few pieces of furniture a painting or two."

"Nope," Wil ginned at the memory of her defiant triumph. Everything she'd had in her small apartment in New York was either some cheapo thing she bought just to get by or something she'd inherited from one of her fathers homes. The day after she'd declared her departure from the firm to her father he'd called her to have the items returned to his house in the mountains. By then it was too late, she'd either sold it or given it away. She was fairly certain there was a homeless man somewhere in the city with a very expensive brand name leather recliner that was now his bed. She told her father as much and then hung up on him as he began to sling a tirade of descriptive through the line, but not before saying I love you too daddy.

"Well as long as you think you'll like everything, you're all set. I'll catch up with you a little later and give you a tour of the bar." Erin said as she approached the steps once more to make her way back to the main cabin.

"Can we wait and do that tomorrow?" Wil called after her. "I just got here and would really like to take some time to relax."

"Sure," Erin agreed. "You don't actually begin working down there until Monday night, so you'll have the whole weekend to get set up. Your fridge is full and you should have everything you need. If there's something that you want that's not in there, just give me a call at the main cabin and I'll either have it sent down to you, or tell you how to get it."

Will gave her a small solute. "All I wanna do right now is take a nice long bath. But if I need anything, I'm sure I'll manage."

Erin stepped off the steps and disappeared around the side of the house, leaving Wil staring around at her beautiful cabin. Walking to one side of the deck, she stared through the trees to the water. It was a long drop from her place to the coast line, a good 20 feet, but it was what she'd always wanted. To live by the water.

Finally tearing her gaze away, she went to her front door and using the key Erin had given her, unlocked the door. The inside took her breath away more than the outside. It was completely beautiful and at the same time, had a very homey feel .

All of the walls were the same as the wood on the outside, but in here they were treated with a glossy finish. The high ceilings boasted a white ceiling fan with gold trim in each room. The front door led into the living room where Wil stopped short, seeing the massive, glass front fire place. Fireplaces had always been a favorite thing to Wil. She had very vague memories of her mother, when she'd still been alive, sitting on a great big furry carpet in front of the fire place in her fathers mountain home, reading to her when she was very young. The only light in the room came from the huge wood stove, but it seemed to illuminate everything in their little world. Just her and her mom, spending time together.

Looking at the fireplace now, Wil made a mental note of something to buy when she was at the mainland the next time. She would need a large' cream colored, furry rug.

Going around the big wall that separated the dining room and living room, Wil was pleasantly surprised to see the fireplace on that side as well. It had the same glass paneling as the living room side, each panel had tiny roses etched deep in the glass. On this side however instead of there being and open space in front of the fire place, there was a long cushioned seat stretching the entire length of it, both ends snuggly situated between the stone frames on either side of the glass.

This really is heaven Wil sighed as she settled herself down onto the large cushions. On the table there had been several pamphlets and information about the island. One included a detailed map and Wil had taken that one to the seat with her. Now, laying back against the large pillows, she opened the map and began to make herself aquatinted with her new home... Raven's Harbor.