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What the fuck am I gonna do with myself? I kept Saturday and Sunday wide open. Even booked a pair of masseuses for a couples’ massage on Dolly tomorrow morning. Maybe Tuck and Maren would be interested? He hasn’t mentioned her all week, which leads me to believe they’re definitely still fucking, even though he swore he’d keep his hands to himself.
I glance at Abel. He’s a big guy, six two, with the kind of build girls like. Several of the women we’ve passed on our run today have openly stared, especially after he yanked off his shirt and tucked it into his back pocket.
He’s unfazed by the attention. Makes me wish I had that kind of ice in my veins. Maybe that’d make life hurt a little less.
We cruise into Harbour Village a little before noon. Well, Abel cruises. I’m practically limping to our invisible finish line in the parking lot at Stede’s.
I bend over and put my hands on my knees in an attempt not to barf everywhere. Sweat pours into my eyes and drips onto the pavement. I take off my baseball hat and wipe my forehead. Tom yawns.
Abel just shakes his head at me, grinning. “You headin’ back to the office?”
“I guess so, yeah. You? Any interest in fishing later?”
“I would, but I got plans tonight.”
I put my hat back on. “You’re really gonna leave me alone in this state?”
“I’m going to Wilmington to grab a beer with an architect. I guess I could skip it, but—”
“I’m kidding.” Kind of.
To be fair, my friends and family have done a good job of keeping me busy this week. Mom and Marsha had me over for dinner on Monday, and Tuck took me out in South Port for Taco Tuesday with Katie. Wednesday I was at the restaurant with Chef Penelope working on this weekend’s specials. Last night, Woody and I went crabbing in the marsh behind Keeper’s Landing.
I love them all. Dearly. But they all went back to their lives, their homes, and I went back to mine on Dolly. The boat I worked my ass off to be able to afford.
The boat that’s still empty, years after I bought it with the intention of filling it with friends, family, laughter. Babies.
Doesn’t matter how much money you have. Going home alone to a silent house sucks, period.
“You sure you’re okay?” Abel asks.
I wave him away. “I’m fine, really.”
“How ’bout we surf tomorrow? I got to meet my cabinet guy over at Row Boat Row in the morning, but I could meet you after?”
I head for the dock. “You’re doing it again.
“Doing what?”
“Being nice. What’s up with you lately?”
“Nothing,” he says a little too quickly.
I keep walking. “Whatever.”
“She came back once, she’ll come back again!” he calls after me.
I wouldn’t be so sure.
I really should shower and go back to the office. But I don’t want to go back to Dolly’s silence. I don’t want to sit at a desk all afternoon, a computer my only company.
I’m also burning up.
Swimming isn’t allowed in the marina, so I drop Tom off at my boat. Grab a small tender and head out into the open ocean for a swim. I pass an approaching ferry on my way. Weather’s supposed to be great this weekend, so it’s no surprise the decks are packed.
My chest twists. I know Lu needs time. But I can’t shake the feeling that she’s supposed to be on that ferry.
She’s supposed to be here. She’s supposed to be going for a swim with me.
The air outside is crisp with fall, but the water is still warm with summer. Feels good to dive in and float on the waves, the sound of the ocean filling my head.
Drowns out everything else. For a little while, at least.
Once I cool down, I head back to the marina.
I carefully guide the tender through the marina’s narrow entrance. The homes of Harbour Village come into view first. Then Stede’s. Woody’s too, the shingled shack busy with newly disembarked visitors. After that, I glimpse the boats in their slips on the dock.
Then, her. A head of short, dark hair dancing in the wind. She’s waiting at the entrance to the dock.
My heart hits a wall. The impact is loud, brutal. It knocks the wind out of me as I squint, not trusting my eyeballs. Did I finally lose it? Did my brain, deprived of essential nutrients and oxygen, conjure a mirage?
She sees me and her face lights up with a huge smile. She waves, going up on her tiptoes to make sure I see her.
“Riley! Hey! Hi!”
Are my ears malfunctioning too? The tender’s outboard engine is loud. Maybe it’s making me hear things?
She’s wearing a short dress and flip-flops. Dark hair wild in the breeze. I notice there’s a soft-sided cooler slung over her shoulder.
