20. Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty
B eep, beep, beep.
Ugh, I swore I’d just fallen asleep.
Dragging my body to a sitting position, my feet dangling just above the floor, I wiped the sleep from my eyes and threw my messy blonde hair into a low ponytail.
I went straight for the closet, knowing damn well if I didn’t, I’d get distracted and find too many excuses not to go. Because if we were being honest, all I wanted to do was curl up in bed with a cup of coffee.
It was still early when I got out of the door and the humidity was already trying to start a fight. So much for thinking a body shower would suffice after this run. I’d be needing a head-to-toe refresh.
I made my way down the stairs and onto Reef Road.
Town was quiet, but that wasn’t a shock. I heard people still partying in the wee hours of the morning when I got up to pee. You could say people were definitely more of night owls versus early birds, especially during the summer season.
The water splashed onto my ankles as I listened to the pounding of my tennis shoes against the compacted sand. The runner’s high was hitting today. My feet glided gracefully with the waves, and before I knew it, I’d already run two miles.
Running early in the morning meant the beach was basically a ghost town, minus a few other runners and some of the local surfers who hit the waves at the ass crack of dawn. The two miles back home seemed to last a little longer than the previous two, and my mind wandered its way back to the past.
The last summer that Liv and I spent together was the one right before senior year. We spent our days tanning at the beach and our nights hopping from one party to the next. We were the new seniors; we could do what we wanted.
There was one night in particular when we were out at a party and we both felt on top of the world. We had our whole lives in front of us. We walked home that night, hand in hand and a little drunk, gushing about all the things we couldn’t wait to do that summer. And looking back, we did almost every single one of them.
We wanted to skinny dip in the ocean? We did. Twice.
We wanted to fall asleep under the stars in the woods behind The Wharf? We did. Well, we did until four in the morning when there were some suspicious noises and we decided to take our sleepover back inside.
But most importantly, we didn’t want to have any regrets. We both wanted to make the summer before our senior year unforgettable.
And it was.
Just not in the way we’d ever imagined.
“Earth to MJ!” Chief Williams’s voice barreled through my inner dialogue.
“Hey, Chief.”
“Good morning, darlin’,” he chirped. “And what did I tell you about that? Call me Michael.”
“You know I can’t do that.” I smiled, stopping in front of him as he rested on the bench outside of our local coffee shop.
He shook his head. “I’ve long since retired from the fire station, young lady, which means I’m no longer ‘chief.’ You know that.”
“You’ll always be a chief in my eyes.”
“You’re sweet as sugar, aren’t you,” he said. “Sorry I missed our last meet-up. My grandson came into town and asked me to get lunch.”
“No worries. Actually, I ended up writing a few words.”
“Is that so? I take it the story is slowly coming to you then?” he asked, his eyebrows raised.
“A big emphasis on slowly. But like you told me, any words are better than none.”
“Exactly.”
I placed my hands on my hips, still trying to regulate my breaths. “And while I don’t really have any idea where the story is going, I know eventually it will come to me, or at least that’s what I’m hoping happens.”
The bell on the coffee shop door chimed and a voice followed. “Here you go, grandfather.”
Lifting my head to the left, my heart sank. Or rather, it dropped out of my body.
Grandfather? No fucking way.
“MJ?” Grey looked as confused as I felt.
“ Grey ?” I returned. “Did you just say grandfather?”
“Yes,” he answered, handing Chief Williams his coffee. “Black with two sugars, just how you like it.”
“Thanks, Grey,” he said, grabbing the coffee from his hands. “I see you two have already met. Although, that doesn’t surprise me in a town this size. MJ, this is my grandson. The one who lives in New York City that I’m always talking about,” he commented. “Grey, this is MJ. MJ and I have known each other for quite some time now. Life brought us together in a less than desirable way, but we decided to make the best of it.”
Grey’s gaze remained on me, appearing to scope out my entire body before landing on my eyes. “I see.”
“Your grandfather is a great man,” I responded. “I’m lucky to get to spend my Thursdays with him.”
“That you are. I’m jealous.”
My eyes wavered, moving from Chief Williams to Grey. Looking at them now, the resemblance was definitely there.
“MJ, you should join us. Grey and I were just going to grab some breakfast.”
“I would, but I was hoping to get in a few words before I—” I broke off, not wanting to reveal my plans with his grandson , not when my brain was still swimming with the revelation. “Before I… go out later.”
“Out? With who? Where?” Chief Williams questioned, ever the snoop. “Anything you want to share?”
I chuckled. “Just going out with someone who stumbled in from the city. The guy thinks he knows our town better than me, but don’t worry, Chief, I’ll be sure to set him straight.”
“That’s my girl.” He stood from the bench and embraced me in a hug. “Next Thursday?”
“Sorry, I’m so gross from my run,” I offered, wrapping my arms around him. “But yes, we’re on for Thursday.” I stepped away from our embrace and looked toward his grandson. “Nice to see you again, Grey.”
“You too, MJ.” A smile creeped up the side of his mouth before he let a quick wink slip. “Maybe I’ll see you around.”
A million little chills rolled down my spine. “Bye, you two. Have a good breakfast,” I said.
The fact that Grey was Chief Williams’s grandson definitely counted for something, right?
Liv always believed in signs. She constantly talked about how everything in the universe happened for a reason. She was a firm believer in that. I, on the other hand, struggled with the concept, especially after the accident. Nothing about what happened to us could’ve had a reason, but sometimes I would try to find one, simply because I was desperate for anything to cling to.
I would look for a sign. A reason. Anything.
This. This was a sign.
All morning, I’d been second-guessing my decision to hang out with Grey this afternoon, but after that encounter, I knew Liv was sending me a sign.
And for the first time, I was going to listen.