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Nodding my head as Ava headed our way, I agreed, “Okay. I have no fucking idea what a wingman does, but I’ll help you.”
“Yes!” Rory thrust his fist in the air as I made my way back to my table, where my girl was waiting for me.
“Hi, sweet boy,” she said, petting Barley’s head. “Daddy’s so mean, isn’t he? Tying you up like this.”
She looked at me and stuck her tongue out before I grabbed her by the waist and pulled her against me, kissing her for everyone to see.
“Stop calling me mean.”
“Sorry, I meant, grumpy.”
“I’m not grumpy anymore,” I complained at the description, and she laughed.
“No, you’re really not.” She grinned before giving me a sweet kiss. “What did Rory want?”
“A wingman, apparently.”
She shook her head slowly and turned in Rory’s direction before shouting, “A wingman? Really? Since when do you need any help with girls?”
“Since you shut me down for that guy,” Rory fired back, and Ava only rolled her eyes.
“Let me look at your goods, boyfriend.” Ava started inspecting my catch.
It was honestly getting harder and harder to leave her in bed each morning, and lately, I’d been wondering how long I’d keep doing it. I enjoyed fishing, but selling to the restaurants and stores was supposed to have been temporary. Maybe I could start helping Ava at the restaurant instead. I made a mental note to bring the topic up later and feel her out.
“Let me look at your goods,” I repeated, reaching for the button on her shorts, and she skirted away from my grasp.
This was how it was between us—comfortable and easy.
“Get a room,” someone shouted, and I flipped them the bird without breaking eye contact.
“I’ve got to go. I’ll see you later.”
She stood on her tiptoes and planted a kiss on my cheek before I claimed her mouth possessively, giving the guys on the dock something to really shout about. I got to do things to that woman that they could only dream about.
But they’d better not be.
“Hey, babe. I think it’s time,” Ava suggested the next evening as she changed out of her clothes and into some clean ones.
She’d actually left the restaurant early, which was a rarity for my girl, but since Elise had just had her baby, she couldn’t seem to stay away from visiting. Something about brand-new baby smells.
Anyway, I knew what she was referring to. We’d been having the conversation more and more frequently lately, multiple times a day even. It had been weighing so heavily on me that I’d even started talking about it in my sleep. Ava insisted that I take this step, claiming that it was one of the last ones I needed to take in order to truly heal. She was right, but I still dreaded it.
“I’m going to go visit the baby. I’ll take Barley with me,” she said before grabbing Barley’s leash, and he sprinted to her side. “You can do this.”
“I can do this,” I breathed out, and she leaned down, pressing those fantastic lips to mine before walking out my front door.
I dialed the number, knowing that he would know it was me calling as soon as it started to ring. Unless he’d deleted my contact information or blocked me completely. I hadn’t considered that scenario whenever I played this moment out in my head. It never ended well.
“Hello, sir,” I said as soon as Lydia’s dad answered.
There was a long pause, and I checked my cell phone twice to make sure the call hadn’t ended or dropped. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d hung up on me, but he hadn’t. He was just… waiting quietly on the other end of the line.
“I know it’s been a long time, but I wanted to call you and tell you how sorry I am.” I said the words, but I broke down as they came out. “I should have said it sooner.”
I didn’t know if I’d ever told him that I was sorry before this moment. I thought I had, but I couldn’t be certain. At least, not a hundred percent. I’d been so caught up in my own grief that I couldn’t remember what I’d done or said to anyone for months after the accident. My mind was a blank slate, where only fragments of information revealed themselves to me. None of them making any sense really. Half the time, I wasn’t sure if something had really happened or if I’d made it up in my head.
My body tensed as I braced myself for the hatred, which I was convinced he still harbored toward me, to spill out across the line, but to my utter surprise, it wasn’t there. I guessed we’d both moved into the acceptance phase of grief during our time apart.
