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“I appreciate you bringing us out here,” I tell him. “It’s sad. Not an ideal date setup.”
“It is sad.” His gaze returns to me. “You okay?”
“I think I am okay.”
“If not, I’m here.”
That should be his motto. Instead of a snarky comeback I take another sip from my champagne flute. The breeze blows off the water and cools the sweat glistening on my skin. I need another layer of sunscreen, but right now I’m enjoying the heat. “Do you think Walt and Dee are good together?”
“For now they seem to be.”
I appreciate his honesty.
“Do you?” he asks.
“I worry.”
“You wouldn’t be you unless you worried.” He takes a pull from his beer bottle. “Walt seems stable. I don’t know him well, though. What’s he like when he’s out of rehab?”
“Twitchy,” I answer immediately. “He’s had one cigarette today which is crazy. Normally he’s a chain smoker. I’m not familiar with Dee’s patterns. She could do this all the time. Leave rehab, shack up with a guy, claim she’s in love with him.” I didn’t know this tirade was in me until I started talking. I guess being nice to her and looking for her ulterior motives can exist at the same time. “She could be using Walt for money or a place to stay. She could have stayed longer not because she’s in love with him but because it’s convenient.”
“Is that so wrong?”
I frown. Is that what Nate’s doing? Is that what I’m doing? I’m not brave enough to have that conversation. Today’s been hard enough.
“You can’t know for sure, Viv. Wait’ll the cards play out. They always do. In the meantime…” He gestures to either his golden-brown chest, which is a lickable sight, or the sun-and-water backdrop.
“You’re irritatingly well-rounded. Where did you learn healthy boundaries, anyway? Wait”—I hold up a hand—“Let me guess. The Owens.”
“A combination of the Owens and my actual parents. They had no boundaries or scruples. That was just as valuable a way to learn how to have them as what the Owens taught me.”
I huff a frustrated breath at his pragmatism. He’s hard to argue with when he’s sensible. “Do you worry about Asher and Benji?”
His face pinches. “Why?”
I can’t help laughing. He’s such a man. “They seem…stunted. Benji and his girlfriend du jour. Archer has adopted scowling as his life partner.”
I earn a half smile for my observations.
“Benji is charismatic. You’ll learn that as you’re around him more.”
“And Cris? Does he not notice her watching him like a lovestruck hawk?”
“Don’t go there,” he warns. “Benji’s denial isn’t just a river in Egypt. Archer and Dad are butting heads at the moment, so he’s more frustrated than usual.”
“Really?”
“Arch has a lot to learn.”
“And you know this from your many additional years of life experience?” I tease.
“Year. I’m only a year older than him. And I can tell because Will isn’t my blood father. Archer and his dad have the same volatile personality traits: perfectionism with a splash of control.”
“I thought Will was a saint.”
Nate shakes his head. “Not a saint, but he was very level with me, which was what I needed when I was adopted. With Archer, Will is the heavy—he demands excellence and rarely settles for less. Archer doesn’t appreciate anyone demanding anything of him.”
“What about Lainey? Is she as saintly as she appears?”
