Page 55 of Acadia Falls

Iwoke up in the middle of the night to find Jack gone. “Jack?” I sat up, my voice echoing around the empty room. I threw on the T-shirt he’d left for me and crept down the hall. The kitchen light was on, but he wasn’t there.

“Jack?” I called again as I checked the living room, the primary bedroom, and the office. I flicked on the exterior light and peered outside. His truck was still parked in the driveway. The rain hadn’t stopped, so I grabbed an umbrella and a pair of rain boots from the hall closet and went to look for him.

The rain was coming down hard, but I saw him in the driver’s seat. I rapped on the door, and he jolted awake.

“Are you all right?”

He cracked the window. “Get back in the house. You’re going to catch pneumonia!”

I ran around the passenger side and hopped in. “What’re you doing out here?” He was wrapped up in his sweatshirt, the hood on, bleary-eyed. “Why’re you sleeping in the truck?”

“I wanted to see if it’d stopped raining,” he mumbled.

“That’s ridiculous.” A funny feeling swept over me, a tightness in my throat. “You came out here to sleep, didn’t you?”

Jack shrugged.

“Why’d you do that, huh?”

He shrugged again.

I could feel the prick of tears in my eyes, but I blinked them back, thinking, hell no. If Jack didn’t want to sleep next to me—if he just wanted sex from me—fine. That’s what we’d been doing this summer. That’s all we were, all we would ever be.

A few weeks from now—maybe sooner, if I could find a temporary place to stay in New York—I’d be back in the city. Jack would be hauling lobsters, probably hooking up with his local winter girl, whoever she was. Maybe it was Daisy. Perhaps he was destined to marry an island girl like her and have a bunch of kids, all running around on LSI, letting their daddy teach them to fish. I’d be back in New York, probably wearing a suit, either chained to my desk or sipping cocktails at some trendy bar, stepping over the occasional dead cat on the way to my next date.

I shuddered.

“Why didn’t you want to stay in the bed?” My voice was gravelly.

Jack looked as miserable as I felt. “I just didn’t think it was a good idea. I’m sorry, Maran.”

“Don’t be.” I shook my head. “Nobody has to say they’re sorry when it’s a summer fling. Right?”

“Right.” He smiled, but even in the dim lighting, I could tell it didn’t reach his eyes.

I opened the passenger door. “You can sleep on the couch, you know. I won’t bother you.”

“You’re not bothering me⁠—”

But I didn’t hear the rest of his sentence as I slammed the door and ran back inside. The tears threatened again, but I only had two words for them: Hell. No.

There was no crying in summer flings—and Jack had just proven to me, once and for all, that’s all we ever were.

The boat ride back to LSI was uncomfortable. And by uncomfortable, I mean dead silent. Jack steered steadily over the glassy blue-green water. I sat behind him, watching the sunrise as what was left of the storm blew out. The early morning sky was serene.

It was as if the weather mirrored my mood. Yesterday had been a mess, but today was clear. I knew where I stood with Jack. It hurt, but it felt better to deal with it directly. Guessing at someone’s emotions was a ticket to crazy-ville, and I didn’t have time for that. I needed to get back to work. I needed to forget about the fisherman and his bulging forearms, magic penis, and the fact that he liked to fight and eat beets. He didn’t want me? Fine. I didn’t want him, either!

When we got to Alex’s dock, he tied up and offered me his hand. But I climbed out by myself. “I got it.” I forced a smile. “Thanks for getting me out of the park.”

He nodded, but his expression was grim. “Anytime.”

I looked at him for a beat, then looked away. “See you around.”

“Yeah, see you.” He hesitated briefly before saying, “I still owe you that detox supplement.”

“I think I can detox myself, but thanks.” I was going cold turkey on Jack Brennan. That was the only purification I needed at the moment. I hurried up the dock and didn’t look back. And if I felt the pinprick of stupid tears in my eyes, I ignored it.

When I got to the house, it was empty. There was a brief note from Alex.