Page 205 of At First Catch

“What?”

“Hadley.”

Silence. He rests one hand on the toolbox.

“She still laughs.”

Another beat.

“Just not as much.”

His voice stays calm. Matter-of-fact. Almost gentle.

“You notice things like that when you’ve shared a birthday with somebody for thirty-one years.”

He sets the toolbox beside the door.

“Anyway.”

He nods once toward Walter. “See you later.” Then he leaves.

Walter waits until the door closes. “You gonna tell me what’s going on now?”

I look toward the marina windows.

Bright morning sunlight spills across the docks outside while charter crews prep boats for the day. Tourists wander the boardwalk carrying coffees and beach bags while gulls drift lazily above Back Bay.

The marina feels alive this morning. Yet I’m sitting here, surrounded by corporate expansion plans, and guilt crawls up my spine.

“I’m running out of options,” I admit.

Walter’s demeanor transforms. Concern replaces suspicion.

“How bad?”

I laugh once under my breath.

Humorless.

“Bad enough that I’m finally starting to understand why people make deals they hate.”

The truth tastes just as nasty on my tongue as it sounds in my ears.

Walter folds his arms. “You told the Wright girl about this?”

Guilt punches straight through me. She knows enough, but not everything.

“I told her the finances were complicated.”

Walter closes his eyes briefly. “Jesus Christ.”

I look away toward the marina again because the shame sits too heavily beneath my ribs to survive eye contact.

“I didn’t want to scare her.”

“There it is.”

I glance back sharply.