Chapter Four
At the captain’s announcement, Avery reached for her phone to update her brother.
There’s a problem with the ferry. Think it might be the engine, from what the captain said. The ferry stalled in the middle of Puget Sound. I’ll update you as soon as we learn how long the delay will take.
Reed’s response came only a few seconds later.
I hope everything’s okay. The ferries rarely have trouble, so I’m sure you’ll be along soon.
Avery returned her phone to her purse and checked the time.
While her brother sounded hopeful, she had serious doubts she’d make their lunch.
That was a minor disappointment. She appreciated her brother’s thoughtfulness, knowing their time together was his way of helping her through the loss of their grandmother.
“Will I still see Santa Claus?” Olivia, the girl with pigtails who sat next to Avery, asked her mother. Her sweet, young face tightened with concern.
“There’s still plenty of time to see Santa,” Beth assured her daughter. Her gaze connected with Avery’s, and she added in a nearly silent whisper, “I hope.”
“The thing with Santa,” Avery felt obliged to add, “is that he already knows you want an iPad for Christmas.”
“But how can he, unless I tell him?” Olivia objected.
“He just does. Remember, not every little girl or boy has a chance to meet with Santa personally. Some write letters and others tell their parents and then the moms clue in Santa.”
Olivia sighed with relief. “That’s good to know.”
Beth cast Avery an appreciative glance.
“Although,” Olivia added, “I’d feel better if I could tell him myself.”
“Of course you would,” Avery agreed.
She noticed a lengthy line had formed heading into the small cafeteria. Not knowing how long the delay might take, she decided it was a good idea to grab a snack. In her rush to get to the ferry, she had skipped breakfast, and her stomach protested with a rumbling growl.
“Since we don’t know how much time this is going to take, I’m going to buy a snack. Would you like me to grab something for you?” she asked Beth.
“No, thanks, we’re good.”
Leaving her overnight bag behind, Avery reached for her purse and stepped to the back of the queue. Immediately she was joined by the seaman she’d met on her way onto the ferry.
“Hey, we meet again,” he said.
Not wanting to encourage him, Avery didn’t respond and moved forward with the line.
“My shipmate noticed something wasn’t right early on, even before the boat stopped moving.” He continued making conversation. “Personally, I don’t mind the delay, except my sister is waiting for me at the terminal. I hate holding her up.”
“My brother is there, too,” Avery said without thinking.
And accidentally letting him know the man in her life was her brother.
Her attention had been on the display case in the cafeteria.
She noticed the prepared packaged sandwiches and clam chowder had sold out.
The hot dogs went next. At this rate, the cafeteria would be completely empty by the time she got to the front of the line.
She’d be lucky to find anything more than a bag of popcorn.
“So, this guy you’re meeting is your brother?”
Now the sailor sounded downright gleeful, and she had no one to blame but herself. If she hadn’t been thinking about her stomach, she wouldn’t have offered up the information. Sometimes she didn’t know where her head was.
“I’m Harrison,” he said next, as the line slowly advanced.
Harrison, not Harry. Interesting.
“I didn’t catch yours.”
She turned to face him. “I didn’t offer it,” she told him, “but since you asked, it’s Avery.”
“Pleased to meet you.”
Despite herself, she found him both charming and cute. “You, too. However, you should know I don’t date men in the military.”
“Is it a hard-and-fast rule based on personal experience?”
“Something like that,” she admitted. “You know what they say, burned once, twice shy.”
“In other words, some other guy broke your heart and you’re hesitant. I get it.”
“Not just some guy, some Navy guy.”
“Ah,” he said, as if it all made sense now. “So you’re holding all us Navy guys responsible for whatever this jerk did?” he asked, frowning. “I can’t say I blame you, but don’t you think it’s unfair to color every man in the military as a loser because of one bad experience?”
“Perhaps, but it is what it is,” she offered, which wasn’t much of an excuse.
“I’m sorry that happened to you.”
“No need to apologize. It wasn’t your fault.”
“Then give me a chance.”
Avery mulled over her options. He had a point. “You seem like a perfectly nice person—”
“I am. Ask my shipmates if you want. As for sailors having a girl in every port, that’s not me. It never has been, and it never will be. Unfortunately, it looks like you are unlikely to find out for yourself, which is a shame, because I think you’re lovely, and I’d like to know you better.”
Compliments weren’t going to persuade her. Rick had been verbose with his praise, claiming she was the most beautiful girl he’d ever met; he couldn’t take his eyes off her. “Thank you, but—”
He interrupted her again. “I have an idea. You can reject it if you want.”
“And I likely will, but feel free.” She gestured for him to continue.
“The ferry is dead in the water, right?”
“Right,” she agreed.
“It could start up again at any time. It could be ten minutes, or it could be an hour. I’d like to suggest we have a conversation for however long it takes for the ferry to reach Seattle. No commitment, no pressure—a simple conversation. You can ask me anything you’d like.
“When we reach Seattle, we’ll both go our separate ways, if that’s what you want. If you feel comfortable enough to trust me, then great, even better. The choice will be completely up to you. How does that sound?”
Avery studied him for a moment. Likely the delay would last only a short while. She hated to admit how tempted she was. He was right, it was unfair to blame him for what Rick did. She should have learned her lesson. Should know better, but still . . .
Her pause encouraged him. “Who knows, I could be the man of your dreams.”
“Ha.” She laughed. “I see you’ve got a sense of humor.”
“Come on, give me a chance.”
She hesitated, looking at his undeniably handsome face, his well-defined cheekbones and the twinkle in his deep brown eyes. It would be far too easy to be swayed by his strong masculine appeal.
“Come on, Avery, what do you say? It could only be a few minutes and then you’ll be free of me forever, if that’s what you decide.”
“And if I don’t agree?” she asked.
He was quick to answer. “Then you can spend the rest of your life wondering if you passed up the chance of a lifetime.”
Avery couldn’t help it, she laughed again. “Okay, okay, we can chat for as long as it takes the ferry to reach Seattle. When we dock, though, the decision is mine and mine alone.”
“You got it.” He held out his hand and the two shook on it. “You won’t regret this, I promise.”
“That remains to be seen,” Avery said, and hoped she wasn’t making a mistake. She had to admit, though, he put up a good argument and she was tempted. His interest felt good, even if this was never going to go anywhere.
Her head shouted that this could be foolishness on her part, and at the same time her heart was busy telling her a short conversation wouldn’t hurt. And once the ferry docked, they could each get on with their lives as if this interlude had never happened.
They reached far enough into the cafeteria to realize nearly all the food items had been purchased.
“It doesn’t look like there will be much of a choice left,” she commented. With every step Avery moved forward, the food options disappeared from the display cases.
“I noticed a vending machine with chips earlier. I’ll check to see what’s available there. Can I get you anything?”
The vending machine looked like it might be all there was, if that, too, hadn’t been depleted.
“Okay, only I want to pay for it.” She started to dig inside her purse when Harrison stopped her with a hand on her elbow.
“Wait. Let’s see if anything is left first.”
“Okay.” That made sense, although she wanted it understood she didn’t want to owe him.
“If there’s a choice, what would you like?” he asked.
“At this point, I’ll take whatever is left.” She didn’t hold out much hope, as the offerings at the cafeteria looked as bare as Old Mother Hubbard’s cupboard.
Harrison disappeared around the corner and Avery eased her way to the cashier. When she reached the front of the line, she discovered that the only item left for sale was a small bag of popcorn. “I’ll take it,” Avery said, grateful for that.
“I’d pop more, but this is the last batch. We were scheduled to load up on supplies in Seattle,” the cashier told her. “No one could predict something like this would happen.”
Avery agreed. She paid for the popcorn and nearly bumped into Harrison as she exited the area.
“We’re in luck,” he said, proudly holding up a bag of Skittles.
“The only thing left in the cafeteria besides coffee was popcorn,” she said, taking a handful from the top and sampling the salty goodness. Hungry as she was, it tasted like a slice of heaven.
“Shall we share our treats?” Harrison suggested.
“Ah . . .” Avery hesitated, not because she was unwilling to share, though.
“It makes sense, don’t you think?” he quickly added. “If we’re going to talk and get to know each other, we should at least be sitting together. Being close means we can pool our resources.”
His reasoning made sense. She glanced over to where Beth and Olivia were and saw the woman with the tin box on one side and Beth and Olivia on the other side of her empty seat.
Harrison’s gaze followed hers. “There’s plenty of room where I’m at,” he offered.
“I see,” she reluctantly agreed.
Her lack of enthusiasm didn’t appear to dampen his spirits, she noted.
“All right,” she said. “I’ll join you.”
“Great.” His smile was so big she feared his cheeks must ache.