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“Pepperoni, mushroom, banana peppers, and pineapple.”
Palmer brought her hands up to her chest and flashed me a silly smile. “It warms my heart that you still eat your pizza that way.”
“Sutton and Brax still snubbing their noses at it?” I asked as I closed my suitcase and slid it under the bed.
With a look of feigned sadness, Palmer replied, “Yes! Can you believe it? I don’t know what’s wrong with those two.”
“Poor taste in food.”
She nodded. “Okay, gotta run. What are your plans for the rest of the day?”
I shrugged. “I guess I need to think some more about getting a job.”
Palmer smiled at me. “You’ll find something, Addie.”
Letting out a long sigh, I nodded. “I know. Okay, go on. I love you.”
“Love you too! See you later.”
Once the house was quiet, I headed to the living room, grabbed a book, and settled onto the sofa. It didn’t take long for Whiskey to follow and curl up beside me.
I ran my hand down his soft back and let the repetitive motion slowly ease me into a relaxed state of mind. There was something to be said for having an animal snuggled up next to you. “It’s just us, buddy. Should I sit here and read a book or go look for a job?”
He looked up at me, yawned, then let out a little meow before he started to make biscuits on the blanket beneath me.
“Reading it is.”
Gannon
“The ship’s all yours, Captain,” I said as I made my way off the bridge and back down to disembark off the vessel. It had been a struggle to board with 40-knot winds, but I had managed it safely thanks to the captain giving me a good lee. Now the boat was docked and ready to unload her cargo.
I headed to the port authority and saw that Chip had returned and was already drinking a cup of coffee. I couldn’t do my job right if it wasn’t for Chip and his mad skills at operating the pilot boat.
“Good job out there, Chip.”
He lifted his cup and smiled. “Same goes to you. That’s some serious wind kicking up.”
I turned and glanced back out the massive glass window that looked out over the port and the bay. “Yeah. I have a feeling this summer is going to be windy. We’ve already had two major storms come in.”
Chip let out a huff. “Let’s hope no hurricanes decide to pay us a visit.”
“I’ll drink to that.” I clinked my coffee cup to his.
After a few moments of silence, Chip asked, “How are things going with you and Adelaide?”
I smiled. “They’re going well. She’s moved into her sister Palmer’s house for the time being.”
Chip grinned. “Palmer still doing all those crazy jobs?”
Laughing, I nodded. “I believe so. I saw her a few days back walking about ten dogs. I don’t know how she keeps them all under control like that.”
“She obviously likes animals. And having a handful of different jobs.”
I turned to study him. “Dude…do you like Palmer?”
His eyes went wide. “Me? Hell no. I mean, I think she’s a nice girl…um…woman…lady… Whatever. No, I don’t like her in that way. She’s just interesting, and not your normal, typical person. Rich dated her for a bit.”
“Rich Marshall? When?”
Rich had been on the football team with me and Chip in high school. I never did care for the guy and was surprised Palmer had dated his type. Unless he was no longer a player, which I found hard to believe.
“It was right before you got out of the Navy and came back to Seaside. They dated for a good number of months. He was going to ask her to marry him.”
“No shit,” I said, now fully invested in the story. “What happened?”
Chip looked into the distance as if deep in thought. “You know, I don’t remember exactly. I know he left Seaside not long after they broke up. It was Palmer who called it off.”
“Huh, that’s interesting.”
Nodding, Chip replied, “She’s better off without him, if you ask me. The guy seemed to have changed, but there was still something about him that rubbed me the wrong way.”
“How did Palmer handle the breakup?”
Shrugging once again, Chip shook his head. “I have no idea. We don’t run in the same circles. We say hi and all of that when we see each another, but that’s about as far as it goes. I like her, she’s a sweet girl. But she has shitty taste in men.”
Trish poked her head in. “Boss wants a meeting with all the pilots tonight at six.”
“Tonight?” I repeated.
“Yep. Looks like there’s a hurricane brewing, and early predictions say that it’s coming up the coast.”
Chip and I both looked at each another.
Letting out a groan, he said, “Fuck. We jinxed it.”
If there was one thing I knew about boat pilots, it was that they believed in all that superstitious shit. Say the wrong word or do something differently and you were putting a hex on yourself and your boat. Chip was no different. His daddy owned the ferries that took people from the mainland to Lighthouse Island, where his family still took care of the lighthouse and the island itself. His whole family came from a long line of sailors and sea captains.
