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“It was for your own good.”
My own good, my ass.
“You should take the job,” she said.
I groaned. “Avs, please.”
“You’re good at this, Gem. Declan wouldn’t pressure you to take the job if he didn’t think you were capable. I know you love being a bartender, but the marketing director job would look great on your resume.”
“But I love working at the brewery.”
She sighed. “You might change your mind one day and want to move on. Being the marketing director would open doors for you.”
“Did you forget how you had to pull me out of bed after my mental breakdown?”
I could almost see her pursing her lips in thought. “This will be different. Declan believes in you. It’s time you believe in yourself, too.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” I grumbled, and changed the subject to asking her about the baby. That at least got her distracted enough to stop pestering about my career crisis.
We talked for a while longer until I hung up because my breakfast was getting cold. I finished my coffee and food and grabbed a to-go sandwich and snacks for my lunch on the boat.
“It was good to see you, Gem,” Harper said as she rang me up.
“You too.”
“Hey, how long are you in town for?”
“Probably a week. Why?”
“Let’s grab a drink sometime.”
“Sure! But don’t get mad if I’m a beer snob.”
She laughed. “That’s right, your dad said you work for a brewery.”
“Yup. I’ll see you later. The fish aren’t gonna catch themselves.”
I walked over to the bait and tackle shop to pick up minnows, then drove to the marina where we docked the boat. Fortunately, we docked our boat on the other side of the lake, so there was no chance of running into Felix. For once, I was glad about the inconvenience. I dropped my supplies inside the boat and started her up. Our boat wasn’t enormous, it fit a few people comfortably, but it was perfect for a solo fishing session.
I drove the boat out onto the lake, where I knew I could catch trout or striped bass. I was wearing my bikini under my clothes, so I took my shirt off. I put my hat on my head and slathered up my pale body with sunblock. Working so much at the brewery, I didn’t get outdoors like I wanted. On my days off, I slept in and did errands instead of going out and exploring the local parks in our area. There was a lake in Bucks County I hadn’t explored since I moved back to the ‘burbs. I’d have to remedy that when I got home.
It was a perfect summer day for fishing. If I caught something good today, I could make a fish fry for dinner. The sun shone down on my skin, and I felt good vibes radiating from the earth. So what if I had to share the cabin with Felix? That was okay. I could deal. He’d do whatever he wanted, and I’d enjoy my time solo fishing or hiking. This would be totally fine.
I put my bait on my hook and cast out my line. Fishing might bore some, but for me, it reminded me of time spent with my dad. We had the most intimate conversations out on the boat together. I wouldn’t have come out to him if we hadn’t been out fishing. Dad wouldn’t have told me he didn’t want to date because nobody compared to my mom if we hadn’t been on the boat. Avery didn’t know that because Dad asked me not to tell her. She worried about him too much already.
I rubbed my rose quartz necklace as I thought about my mom. I lived more of my life without her than with her. I wracked my brain for memories of her, but they were fuzzy. Most of my best childhood memories came from my single dad raising me and teaching me all the outdoorsy shit I loved. I liked fishing, hiking, and building the first fire of summer vacation, all because of my dad. My best memories were up here in the Poconos.
I frowned as the sad thoughts of my mother enveloped me. I didn’t want to send morose thoughts out into the universe today. I took my crystals out of my pocket and let them charge underneath the summer sunlight while I closed my eyes and let the heat of the sun warm my skin.
As I sat in the boat waiting for the first bite on my line, my thoughts shifted to work. I thought about scheduling more posts for our social media channels and seeing what other community events we could get involved with. We missed out on the farmer’s market this year, but we could apply next year. We already had the Arts Fest lined up for the fall again.
Shit, maybe I should be the marketing director for the brewery.
Something tugged at my line and pulled me out of my thoughts. I grabbed my fishing pole and lifted it up at a forty-five-degree angle. I waited for the drag to stop and lifted my pole up. I reeled in when I brought the pole back down in the fish’s direction. I repeated the action until I had the fish in the boat.
“Yes!” I squealed in delight.
“What ya get?” another fisher called over to me.
