Chapter 46
Ben was having a blast. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had this much fun at a party, if that’s what anybody would
call the fish fry. The band was playing, people were eating and drinking, and all around him the laughter and merriment made
him feel light and free. If he could only find Mylie. Aside from the incident with the mud, the day had been perfect.
He was helping take down the Hook, Line, & Sinker tent and listening to Jessica and Jodi give him instructions about the tournament
in the morning when Mylie arrived, looking flushed and irritated.
“Everything okay?” he whispered to her when she wordlessly got to work breaking down the canopy and packing up the leftover
lures and tackle.
“It’s fine,” Mylie said, refusing to look at him.
Ben touched her shoulder. “Seriously, what’s wrong?”
Finally, Mylie turned to face him. “I don’t want to talk about it here. It’s been a long night.”
“Is it about Cassie?” Ben asked. “Jodi mentioned you had to take her home.”
“Let’s just talk about it later.”
“Okay,” Ben replied. They worked in silence for a while before he continued, “I just hate that you aren’t having a good time.
Tonight has been so much fun.”
“Well, I’m glad you’re having a good time,” Mylie said, stuffing a few bags of tackle into a duffle. “Ow, shit. Goddamnit.”
“What? What is it?”
Mylie held out her hand. There was part of a hook sticking out of her thumb. “I forgot some of these bags are open. Shit.”
“Mylie!” Granny called, seeing the hook sticking out of her thumb. “What did you do?”
“Nothing,” Mylie muttered.
“You know better than to grab a bunch of bags with hooks in them,” she said. “Let me see.” Granny inspected the wound. “I
don’t think I can get it out. It looks like it’s really in there.”
“It’s fine,” Mylie said, attempting and failing to pull the hook out.
“Now it’s bleeding,” Ben said, taking her hand.
Mylie stiffened. “Go see if Morris has a pair of plyers.”
“Absolutely not,” Granny said. “You’re going to have to go to the urgent care in Rockbridge.”
“No,” Mylie replied. “It’s fine. I... ouch!”
“If you don’t go get it taken care of tonight, you won’t be able to fish tomorrow,” Granny said.
“I’ll take her,” Ben offered.
“I can drive myself,” Mylie offered, and Granny and Ben turned to stare at her. “What? I can.”
“I’ll drive,” Ben repeated.
“I promised Cassie I’d get home,” Mylie protested. “She’s not feeling great.”
“Well, nobody feels great after drinking cheap beer,” Granny replied.
“You know about that?” Mylie asked.
“Of course,” Granny said. “Don’t worry. I’ll leave here in a couple of minutes. I won’t say a word to her until tomorrow morning.”
“She threw up on the way home,” Mylie said. “I told her I think that’s punishment enough.”
“I’ll offer her a beer in the morning,” Granny replied. “ That will be punishment enough.”
Ben grinned. That was just exactly something Granny would do. In fact, he remembered her doing that to him and Mylie when
they got caught drinking down at the dock their sophomore year in high school. To her credit, she hadn’t told his mother,
who would have given him a lecture and cried for a week, wondering where she’d go wrong to turn her child into such a delinquent.
“Come on,” he said to Mylie. “Let’s get that hook out of your thumb.”
Mylie followed him silently to his car and didn’t say anything as they drove, her hand resting on the console, the hook jiggling
with every bump.
“Does it hurt?” he asked her.
Mylie shrugged. “It’s going to hurt more coming out.”
“Do you remember when Granny threw a hook at that guy at the lake?” Ben asked. “It stuck right in his forehead.”
Mylie gave him a half smile but didn’t say anything.
“Okay,” Ben finally said. “What’s wrong, aside from the hook in your thumb?”
“Were you going to tell me you sold the house?” Mylie stared straight ahead at the road in front of them.
Ben gripped the steering wheel. “Who told you?”
“Nobody,” Mylie said. “I saw the under contract sign in your front yard.”
“Courtney,” Ben mumbled.
“You could have told me,” Mylie said.
“I tried,” Ben said. “I swear, I did.”
“When?” Mylie asked. “When did you try to tell me?”
“Monday night! And then you were all over me, and I...”
“Oh, so it’s my fault now?” Mylie asked.
“No,” Ben said. “I’m not saying that.”
“It sure seems like you’re saying that.”
“I’m just saying, I wanted to tell you.”
“And you didn’t.”
Ben sighed. “There’s something else I need to say.”
Mylie didn’t respond.
“I’m going to Boston next week,” he continued. “There’s a job at a university there...”
“Great,” Mylie said, cutting him off.
“I’m sorry,” Ben said. “Mylie, I’m sorry.”
“Take a left up here,” Mylie said in response, pointing to the little strip mall. “You can just sit in the car. I’m sure this
won’t take long.”
“I’ll go in with you,” Ben said, parking the car.
“Do what you want,” Mylie replied. She didn’t wait for him.