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“Join the club,” I say.
“Uh oh, is she not falling for your boyish charms this time?”
I shrug. “It’s been weird. One minute it feels like we are old friends, and the next it’s awkward city.”
“Who’s making it awkward?”
“Me, mostly. I overheard her talking on the phone about how I was the one who disappeared all those years ago. When I called and wrote several times and never got an answer from her.”
“I can see how that would be frustrating. Did you ask her about it?”
“I did and she shut me down.” I rub my beard trying to figure out why she shut me out. “She is dealing with some stuff, which is why she’s down here, but I thought we could have a conversation about it but instead she basically kicked me out of her house.”
“Well, you are both adults and have lived through some difficult times it seems,” he says, knowing what I’ve been through. “Maybe you can find your way to forgive her and at least be friendly neighbors.”
I sigh, he’s right. We can move past our teen angst and be friends. Before she showed up, I didn’t realize how lonely I’d been. I’m good to be alone and do my own thing, but I enjoy spending time with friends. Unfortunately, I left a few back at the law firm and I’m not sure if I still want them as friends. It’s hypocritical, I know, but I’m no longer a jaded lawyer looking to get my client off no matter what.
What I do miss is sex and companionship with a woman. When I’m dating someone, that’s it for me, I didn’t have a lot of close friends, anyway so when I have a girlfriend, she becomes my best buddy. I didn’t have time for anything else, I barely had time for them.
“Want to go see if she’s around?” I ask and he smiles, raising his eyebrows. “I’m sure she’d be happy to see you.”
“Yes,” he says doing a fist pump. “Here I thought this day was going to be boring.”
We head out the back door and hop over the tiny fence, and go up the stairs to her kitchen door. It’s a sneaky move, as she can’t hide from us because it’s a sliding glass door and the curtain is open. She’s sitting on the couch, reading, so I knock lightly and step back a little. I watch her as she sets the book down, flips the throw blanket off and trips as she walks to the door. She’s still clumsy and those legs are still the bane of my existence.
Dirk lets out a low whistle. “Dude, you failed to mention she is still a smoke show.”
“That she is.”
The door slides open and Mollie smirks at me. “Miss me already?”
“Nah, but an old friend wanted to say hello,” I say, pointing my thumb to where Dirk is lurking behind me.
“Is that Dirk the jerk?” she asks, hands on her hips. We used to call him that as a joke because he was the nicest person on the island.
He smiles and shakes his head at the old nickname. “I just go by Dirk these days, or Mr. Allen, I could tell you what my wife calls me but then I’d have to kill you, so…” he says widening his arms for a hug.
Mollie laughs and moves past me to hug him and I feel a pang of jealousy. What I wouldn’t do for a hug from her.
“Come in,” she waves us both inside. “I need to hear all about this wife, and everything that’s happened since we last saw each other.”
“Oof, we would need to draft up an NDA if you want all the details.”
She barks out a laugh and I turn away. Mollie is luminous when she smiles but mid-laugh is something else entirely. We sit around the dining table and she offers us drinks but we decline.
“It’s good to see you, Dirk, I had no idea I’d see so many familiar faces when I decided to come down here to get away from it all.”
“It’s a small pool of faces in the offseason here on the island, and we are by far the youngest you’ll see,” Dirk says. “Having you here is a godsend. You’ll have to come to the compound for dinner soon.”
“Compound? Sounds like somewhere a politician would live.”
Dirk shrugs. “I’m more of a real estate mogul, but I’ve dabbled in politics—not enough money in it for me though. The compound is the same place from when we were teens, just vastly improved.”
She laughs again and I do too, even though I don’t believe that Dirk is joking about the politician thing.
“What has the beautiful Mollie James been doing since you broke our young hero’s heart many years ago?” Dirk asks and I’m sure I’m blushing.
Mollie gives him a smirk. “Well, I went to college, got married, wrote a few books, and got divorced.”
