Chapter 2
BONNIE
“That’s it. You’re such a good boy. I promise you’ll get better soon. I know this hurts, but it’s helping.” I spoke in a soothing voice as I applied ointment.
I was waist-deep in saltwater in the indoor pool. Oceanwell Rescue was one of the most renowned clinics for treating wildlife, even though this small town in Southern California was sleepy and not that easy to reach.
The dolphin we were rehabilitating got caught in a fishing net and had wounds that needed time to recover. Some would've healed on their own, but one in particular was very nasty and required sutures. I had to apply an antibiotic cream every four hours during the day.
I shuddered, as the water was perfect for my patient but a bit too cold for me.
I usually worked with cats, dogs, and hamsters—mostly fur babies, as I called them—back home in Chicago, though we did get the occasional turtle at the clinic.
Now I had the pleasure of working with my very first dolphin, and that required some sacrifices.
I discovered that dolphins, though fairly docile, were not as fond of cuddling as fur babies, but he still seemed to like it when I petted his fin.
I'd nicknamed him Steve. The only downside to working with Steve was the water, and right now I wished my neoprene suit was thicker. Steve was energetically shaking with happiness. I’d learned to recognize this behavior as expressing joy, similar to a dog wagging his tail.
I was applying the ointment whenever he remained still for more than a few seconds at a time.
The door to the pool area opened, and Dante came in. He was one of my coworkers and in charge of feeding the animals. He opened a trapdoor in the sidewall of the pool, and Steve swam out of my sight to enjoy his afternoon meal.
"It's lunchtime, huh?" I asked, pushing myself out of the water.
"Yes, it is. Some of us are going for a barbecue. Do you want to come with us, Bonnie?"
"No, it's so nice outside that I just want to grab something and eat it on the beach." It was January, so the weather wasn’t all that fabulous, not even here—but it was definitely way better than in Chicago, and it was sunny. “But thanks for including me, Dante.”
"Of course," he said.
I loved life here. It could get a bit too quiet in the evenings sometimes, as it was very laid-back.
Everyone thought it was normal to just take a whole hour for lunch, and we typically went to the restaurants close by.
Very different than back home, where we were usually so busy that most of us only took a few minutes to eat whatever we brought in our office before getting back to it.
On rare occasions we’d order a pizza for the staff, but most of the time it was cold before half of us got to eat it.
I usually went with the group here, but today I wanted to take a stroll on the beach. It was sunny, and I couldn’t wait to soak it all up after the freezing-cold weather in Chicago over my break for Christmas and New Year’s.
I showered quickly before putting on my clothes; the saltwater was drying to my skin, and since I wasn't going back in the pool in the afternoon, I wanted to get cleaned up. Fortunately, my colleague, Cheryl, would handle Steve’s ointment application later in the day.
Afterward, I grabbed my tote bag and left the clinic, chuckling to myself that I was the last one to leave. It was hilarious. Everyone disappeared as soon as lunchtime came.
It was my eighth month here, and one thing I missed from Chicago was the variety of food trucks and take-out places.
There were three restaurants in Oceanwell Bay, and all were dine-in only.
That was fine if you wanted to sit down and enjoy lunch, but today I just wanted something on the go, so the only option was the bakery truck opposite the clinic.
I went there, studying the offerings, even though I knew them by heart.
I grabbed donuts and muffins every other morning.
"Second stop today, Bonnie?" Alan, the owner of the truck, asked. He was about a hundred years old but very fit and insisted that opening his truck every morning kept him alive.
"Yes. I'm trying to decide which of your delicious treats can count as lunch."
"I would say take the muffin. It's got butter and egg. That's two proteins right there. Just make sure you balance it with a salad or something in the evening, if you care about stuff like that."
I smiled. "Make that two muffins.”
“Right away."
One had blueberries, and the other one, I suspected, contained chocolate. My stomach was already rumbling.
As I paid, Alan put them on a paper plate for me.
I balanced it carefully in my palm as I walked lazily on the beach, listening to the waves and smelling the salty air of the ocean.
The breeze was fairly strong, messing with my hair and my clothes.
I loved it here, and I knew I was going to miss it once I was back in Chicago.
We had Lake Michigan, of course, and plenty of beaches lined the shore, but it wasn't the same.
Even on cooler days, there was a lot going on at the beach— and it was always packed on sunny days.
Most people were just relaxing on towels or beach chairs, while others huddled under blankets or were wearing light jackets.
Most appeared to be reading a book or holding their phone, squinting at the screen if they didn’t wear sunglasses.
A mother held her toddler’s hand as the little one walked around the shore. My God, he looked so cuddly.
I loved kids. Unfortunately, none of my friends had children yet, and I didn’t have any siblings to give me nieces or nephews—nor did I have any cousins. It was just Mom, Dad, and me.
I’d always wanted kids, it just hadn’t happened yet, which was fine.
I felt it was important to wait for the right moment and the right person.
My career was in solid shape, but I’d yet to meet "the one" in my twenty-nine years.
My last boyfriend broke up with me soon after moving to California, and dating opportunities here were nonexistent.
Fortunately, I had my hands full at the clinic anyway, and that kept me more than busy.
Once I was back in Chicago, I hoped my love life would be more active.
I'd spent the week between Christmas and New Year's with my best friend, Ashley, who’d tried to get me back in the dating game, but I was too busy enjoying the holiday season and my friends to bother.
Just as I bit into my blueberry muffin, I noticed a familiar shape a few feet away.
Unruly hair, high cheekbones, mouthwatering biceps.
Travis Maxwell was standing in front of me, carrying a suit jacket on his arm.
I hadn't been able to properly drool over him last night, as it was too dark inside the car to really take him all in, but now in plain sight?
My, my, my. This was just what the doctor ordered: a bit of eye candy on top of my muffins for lunch.
He noticed me immediately and slowly walked over. A huge smile lit up his face. God, he was gorgeous.
"I figured I was going to run into you sooner rather than later," he said. "Just my luck that I already caught you at lunch. How's the clinic today?"
"It's good. I practically froze my butt off trying to put ointment on our dolphin." I shivered, remembering the cold water.
He raised an eyebrow. "You've got a dolphin?"
"Yes. He’s a lot of fun, although at first he took a bit of getting used to, but I’ve really grown to love him.”
He put his hand in his pocket. He'd rolled up his sleeves, and belatedly I realized he’d also rolled up the legs of his pants. His feet were wet.
"Were you in the water?" I asked, noticing he carried his socks and shoes in his other hand.
"Yeah, cold as fuck." That made me laugh. “It looks so inviting, but it might be as frigid as Lake Michigan right now.”
"Oh, I know. Trust me. I've got a neoprene suit for our indoor pool, but you can't get anywhere near the ocean water even with that. My feet would freeze off.”
“Mine did.” He chuckled, and the warmth of it soothed me in a way I couldn’t even begin to explain.
I wouldn't have expected he’d be the type to relax and wade his feet in the water.
He'd looked so serious in his white shirt and suit pants.
Then again, last evening he'd proved to have a delicious sense of humor.
But somehow I couldn't combine the image of the ruthless businessman and the playful guy who'd rolled up his pants to get in the water as one person. The contradiction was intriguing.
“How was your meeting? Managed to steal the employee yet?" I asked.
"No luck so far, but I'm persistent.” He winked.
“I bet you are.”
“My family would go so far as to call me obnoxious.”
“They don’t pull punches, huh?”
He grinned. “Never. Are you on your lunch break?"
"Yes."
He trained his gaze on me. "What a coincidence, so am I. How about we grab something together?"
I held up my muffins for him to see. "This is my lunch."
His gaze turned incredulous. "That's a snack, maximum."
I burst out laughing. "You’re trying to shame my lunch? I’m inclined to believe your family. Being handsome doesn't make up for being obnoxious, you know."
"So you agree I'm handsome?" Mischief sparked in his eyes.
"I'm allowed to say it. You aren't."
"If you say so."
I laughed again, but then, to my utter dismay, the muffins rolled right off my plate and into the sand. My laughter turned into a shriek. Travis was still laughing. That's what I get for ogling him. Karma decided I couldn't feast my eyes and delight my stomach at the same time.
"I’m going to come out and say it. This is a sign that you're meant to have lunch with me."
I started laughing once more until I was barely able to breathe. I couldn't find a reason to say no. The man was definitely something to look at, and I liked his humor a lot.
And my lunch was full of sand.