Seven
He couldn’t believe his pitch had worked. She didn’t seem entirely sold on his idea, but it was better than nothing. She closed the tea shop and Joey offered to drive.
“What’d you say you went to school for?” he asked as they rode into town.
“I went to school with a mission to embarrass everyone.”
He burst out laughing. “What?”
She looked at him out of the corner of her eye, a smile on her face. “It’s true. I thought it would be fun to get a scholarship and then drop out. I wanted to teach those smug scholarship people a lesson.”
He shot her a look. “I bet you had a 4.0.”
“No.” She turned to look out the window. “3.9.”
Joey pulled his eyes away from her and back onto the road ahead of them. “Why did you drop out?”
“I already told you. I didn’t like all those people believing in me. I needed to take them down a notch.”
He smiled. She was joking, but not exactly. There was some truth to it. He’d get the whole truth out of her eventually. People loved confessing things to him. He had one of those faces – or maybe, being a pilot, they figured they’d never see him again and they could use him as a free therapist.
He preferred it that way. No need to stick around, waiting for awkward silences.
Not that there were any of those with Eliza yet. She deflected everything with jokes. Funny jokes, too, which made it hard for him to keep his footing.
“You’re going to go back, then? I mean once we get the reward money.”
“Yes. Once we get the reward money, I’ll go back.” A smile spread across her face. “So, never.”
He laughed again. “It’s my mission to get you back to school.”
“I thought your mission was to buy a plane so you could run your own shady cocoa bean business?”
“Maybe I want to open a scholarship for your education. You can apply by telling me what I was wearing when we met.”
She was quiet for a moment, then said, “A black LL Bean bomber jacket, Ray-Ban aviators with golden tint, a gray shirt, dark jeans, and white Nike sneakers with a red swoosh.”
He sputtered out a laugh. “Are you kidding me?”
Eliza turned to him, grinning. “Am I right?”
“I don’t know!” He pulled into a parking spot in front of Harbor Coffee and stopped the car. “But probably. You’re unbelievable.”
She bounced her shoulders in a peppy shrug. “Thanks!”
“What were you studying? Becoming a true detective?”
“Physics.”
“Physics,” he repeated slowly. “I don’t think I’m smart enough to be talking to you.”
“You don’t think you’re smart enough to be talking to a college dropout?”
He stared at her, taking in her smile and the glint in her eye. “You know, you don’t have to talk about yourself that way.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “What way?”
“Like you’re nothing more than your mistakes.”
She opened her mouth, but nothing came out.
He spoke again. “For example, you’re an expert in memorizing outfits.”
“Right.” She smiled. “So you’re saying I should lean into that?”
“Yeah.” He paused. “You know, you remind me of someone.”
“A famous designer you flew to a runway show in Milan?”
He laughed. “No. My best friend. Always making jokes at his own expense.”
“He sounds great,” she said, opening her car door. “Much more fun than a tea shop fashion designer.”
She walked ahead of him and opened the door to Harbor Coffee. It looked like they were closing up, but the barista’s eyes brightened when he saw her.
“Hey, Eliza!”
“Hey, how’s it going?” she asked.
“Not too bad. How are things up in tea city?”
“You know, starting to pick up a little.”
He threw a rag over his shoulder. “That’s good. Same here. We’re starting to get more visitors. More tourists.”
Joey walked in behind her. “Hey, do you have any idea where we could find a wheelchair?”
The barista looked up, thinking. “You might be able to borrow one from the senior center. Or I think Grace at Whale Gifts has one she loans out. Do you want me to call and ask her?”
Small towns. Everyone knowing everyone. Joey found it weird. Wasn’t it better to be anonymous, to take what you need and get out? Who had the energy to build these relationships?
“No, it’s okay,” Eliza said. “We’ll swing by.”
The guy leaned in. “I didn’t get to tell you. I stopped by the tea shop last weekend and I tried those new apple crumble miniature pies.” He closed his eyes. “They’re incredible . “
Eliza smiled a shy smile. “Thank you. That was one of my new creations. It’s simple, really. Just add more butter than any person should ever consume, then double it.”
He laughed. “Butter: the secret ingredient.”
“Always.”
Joey’s eyes darted between them. “Well, thanks for your help. Eliza?”
She nodded. “We’ll see you around.”
They stepped outside and Eliza pointed down the hill. “The gift shop is down there. You can’t just go around asking people about wheelchairs, you know.”
“Why not?” Joey shrugged. “I need to borrow one. For my broken-legged relative.”
She shot him a side-eye glance. “Is that the story you’re going with? I’ve never heard a bigger lie than when referring to a nondescript ‘relative.’”
“Fine. My mom? She broke her leg. How about that?”
“Fractured her femur skiing,” Eliza said. “If you make it specific and horrible, people are less likely to question it.”
The image of a broken femur popped into his mind and he winced. “Where did you learn that trick?”
“Freshman poetry class. The professor made us write two truths and a lie. She was the only one who got away with her lie because she made it so specific and bizarre. It’s stuck with me.”
“Such a good student,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s a shame you’re stuck here with me when you could be off at university, learning.”
She rolled her eyes. “Come on.”
The souvenir shop had a small wooden patio overlooking the harbor. An older woman was outside, squinting into the setting sun from behind dark sunglasses.
“Hello!” Eliza called out as they approached.
“Oh, hi there! I didn’t see you coming!” The woman laughed. “Is there anything I can help you find?”
Joey studied the woman, trying to memorize her outfit. White sneakers. Blue shirt. Purple pants. Her name tag said Grace.
Check.
He stared at her, trying to find at least one detail Eliza would be impressed with. Her shoelaces were striped. Was that something?
“I’m looking for new tea towels,” Eliza said.
“Oh.” She turned and pointed to the door. “Those would be inside. I have a few out here, too.”
An elbow flew into his side and he snapped out of his study. “And I’m looking to borrow a wheelchair. My mom is coming to visit, but she broke her femur skiing.”
“Oh, poor thing.”
“I’m working on the island for a bit for Russell Westwood. Do you know him? I’m flying planes out to his whale sanctuary out on Stuart Island.”
He could feel Eliza staring at him, but he couldn’t stop talking. “My mom loves sightseeing. I can take her up in the plane, but if she wanted to get around town for a few hours, I’d like to have a wheelchair.”
Grace raised a hand to her forehead, wiping away beads of sweat. “I’ve got one right there. It’s a little beat up, but it does the job. You’re welcome to it.”
She nodded to the corner of the porch where a folded-up wheelchair stood, its silver wheels shining in the sunlight.
Duh . How had he missed that? Surely Eliza hadn’t.
“That’s so nice of you,” Eliza said.
Joey was afraid to open his mouth again, so instead he walked toward the wheelchair and, after wrestling with the levers and pulls, got it to open.
He gave it a push and his eyes fell onto the left armrest, the cushion cracked and twisted. He looked up and saw Eliza staring at it.
“Do you have a reservation sheet or something?” Joey asked. “So I can make sure it’s available?”
Grace put her hands on her hips and chuckled. “It’s not usually in high demand.”
“How often do people borrow it?”
The woman shrugged. “Oh, you know, now and then. I usually leave it out here on the deck in case anyone needs to use it. It always turns back up.”
Joey gave it a push. “Thanks! Hopefully I can get it when my mom comes.”
“When is she coming, dear?”
“Uh. I don’t know.” He looked at Eliza.
She sucked in a breath. “Two weeks from Tuesday.”
“Right.” He nodded. “If she didn’t keep track, I think my head would fall off.”
That wasn’t the phrase, was it? Was it if his head wasn’t attached to his body? But how would that work?
Eliza picked up a tea towel with an orca floating in the middle. “This is lovely. I’d like to get another if you have one?”
“Oh yes, inside!” Grace led the way and Eliza followed.
Joey stayed outside, once again wrestling with the wheelchair, trying to fold it back up. The stickers were there, too, just as Eliza had described.
She was incredible. Really incredible. Like an encyclopedia of facts and sassy jokes.
He tucked the wheelchair back into the corner as she emerged from the shop.
“We need to talk,” she muttered as she passed.
He pushed the wheelchair aside with a clank and went after her. He couldn’t wait to hear what she had to say.