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That was kind of a shock. Other than their iiber-competitive golf date, she'd only run into Ryan in passing. It made her kind
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of sad, actually. This summer was so different from years past.
"Um, sure. I have to throw something into the dryer first, but then I'll come meet you."
"Glad to see you've got your priorities straight, Mar."
"Shut up. See you soon." She grinned as she hung up the phone. At least he'd stopped calling her "Waters" or "dude," but really--what was this all about?
She walked the short distance to the Perry house and found Ryan waiting for her, sitting on a fallen log, not far from where he'd surprised her when she was skinny-dipping earlier that summer. Come to think of it, it was the very spot where they'd first slept side by side in sleeping bags. She wondered if all those old memories flooded him when he came here too but shook off the thought.
"So, how's it going?" Mara asked, feeling shy all of a sudden. They hadn't been alone together since the start of the summer, and she still wasn't quite sure how to act around him. She sat down on the log beside him, the bark scraping her ankles.
"Good." Ryan nodded. "You?"
"Things are okay," Mara said tentatively. She was about to launch into the positives in her life--how much the kids had been improving, how glad she was to have David back--when she realized she could tell him what had really been on her mind. "I had a big fight with the girls last week, actually," she admitted quietly. "I haven't spoken to either Jacqui or Eliza since. Which is pretty impressive considering we all live in the same house." It
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felt so good to get it off her chest. She hadn't even told David about it--she was afraid he'd never like her friends again if she told him everything they'd said.
"Oh, man. You all right?" Ryan asked.
"I will be." Mara sighed. She reached down and grabbed a handful of sand, opening her hand again and letting the grains fall softly down onto the ground. "The fight was sort of a long time coming, I guess."
"Some things are like that," Ryan said with a small smile. He looked out to the water, and his eyes were distant. Mara glanced at him curiously, wondering what he was thinking about.
"I broke up with Tinker the other day," he said quietly.
"What? Why?" Mara blurted. She was shocked. They'd seemed so happy together. What could two people who were so much alike possibly find to disagree about?
He shrugged. "I guess I was just starting to feel like I was with her because I felt like I should be, not because I wanted to be." He looked out to the water again. The waves were crashing angrily against the shore. "I'm sure you know what that feels like," he added softly.
"Um, no . . . ," Mara said slowly. Was he implying what she thought he was?
Ryan turned to face her on the log, his green-blue eyes filled with concern. "Oh come on, Mar. I know David's a writer too, but really . . . He's totally not right for you."
Mara felt herself stiffening. She knew Ryan was upset about his
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breakup with Tinker, but why did he have to bring David into this?
"You deserve better," he added, almost as an afterthought, but she was too incensed to notice.
"You don't even know David," Mara said hotly, the colo
r coming to her face. Was this why Ryan had called her? To pick a fight? He was clearly upset about his own breakup, but that wasn't her problem. Well, she wasn't going to let him drag her into it.
"I know enough," Ryan mumbled, looking down at the ground and kicking up a little sand with his foot.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"Mara, he's just... he seems like the kind of guy who's always looking out for himself." He paused. "And not after you," he finally finished, looking down and kicking the log with his heel.
She sat there, for a moment too shocked to speak. "You're one to talk," she said angrily, her eyes flashing. "You were so considerate of my feelings all summer--hardly acknowledging my existence, making out with your stupid happy-go-lucky Buddhist girlfriend all over the place, and being so freaking smug about it," she spat. She felt bad about dragging Tinker into this, since she really had been sweet to Mara. So much for inner peace. But all was fair in love and war, right?
