42. Caleb
FORTY-TWO
Caleb
I heard the shower water rushing through the pipes in the walls. The intimacy and lack of privacy in the cottage were also part of its unique charm. It was impossible to take a step without the floorboards creaking. I doubted it ever bothered Margot’s uncle. He lived the bachelor life in this place. Never heard about him dating. The pipes began to rattle as the water heated up. I laughed.
I worried more about the sounds in the mornings I would awaken Margot. While the shower water ran, I re-packaged the fillets and stored them in the fridge for tomorrow night. I hoped to talk to her about dinner with my parents, but the timing was off.
I wondered if Ethan had left the island yet. I wanted to drive over to the Island Oasis Motel, shove him in his rental car, and tell him the ferry captain was under strict orders to never let him back on Marshoak. I shook my head. He deserved far worse. I couldn’t believe that asshole. The more I thought about him and what he put Margot through, the madder I got.
The water continued to run. I jogged up the stairs and knocked on the door.
“Hey, I’m going to grab some food for us at the market. I’ll be back in a few. You okay while I’m out?”
Margot called from the shower. “Yes, fries? You’re definitely getting fries, right?”
“Yes, I’ll get plenty of fries,” I answered. I was glad she wanted to eat. “Enjoy the shower.”
I headed out to my truck. The tires spun gravel as I sped out of the marina and toward the main road.
The Island Oasis was less than five minutes away. I spotted the car with the rental tags parked in front of the pink and turquoise doors. Kanas. Huh. I didn’t waste any time. I strolled up and pounded on the door with a seahorse painted beneath the room number.
“Hold on!”
The door whipped open. I was face-to-face with Ethan. The TV blared in the background.
“What are you doing here?” He was surprised to see me. Maybe as surprised as I was that I couldn’t let it go. I wanted to make sure he didn’t bother Margot again.
“I came to see if you needed any help packing. Directions? Ferry times?”
He huffed. “Trying to scare me off?” He peeked around my shoulder. “Bring backup? Local police or something scary. Think you’re going to spook me?”
“The police? What the fuck are you talking about?”
“I’ve seen small-town movies. Your buddies beat the shit out of me and then the whole town covers it up. I guess you could just toss me in the ocean.”
“Wow. I think you’ve seen too many movies if you ask me. I didn’t come here to beat the shit out of you, as nice as that sounds.”
“Then what?” He didn’t back away from the door.
“You need to leave Margot alone.”
He chuckled. “I’m confused. Are you threatening me?”
I shook my head. “No. I’m not threatening you. I’m telling you she can’t take any more of this emotional bullshit you threw at her today. It’s fucked up what you did to her. You need to leave her alone.”
“What do you mean? Did she even tell you why I came here? There’s a reason I drove to this hick island.” The expression on his face had changed. He was less combative, even if his words were equally as harsh as they had been.
“I know why you’re here, man. I was sorry to hear about your dad.”
“Thanks.”
“But she’s not ready. She’s not over her dad. Or mom for that matter. You can’t show up and do this to her.”
“What did I do? I need her to help me. I didn’t do anything to her.”
This guy was clueless. Damn, I wanted to slug him. It wouldn’t do any good. He didn’t get it. He had no idea how hurt and devastated Margot was because of today.
“Leave the island.” I gritted my teeth together. My jaw was tight. I breathed hard through my nose. “Don’t contact Margot. That’s all you need to know, man.”
“Shouldn’t she decide that? I don’t know that she’d like you treating her like a helpless little filly.”
I shook my head. “There’s nothing helpless about her. She’s strong, but that doesn’t mean you can use her like this and bring up all this pain. There’s a ferry at six in the morning. I’d take that one. It runs before the water’s choppy.”
I turned to go. I’d said what I came for Ethan to hear. If I went any farther, I risked him freaking out and calling the sheriff’s office. He seemed like the type who wasn’t capable of fighting his own battles. Trying to ensnare Margot in his family tragedy was proof of that.
The keys jangled in my palm as I stepped toward the truck. “Safe drive.”
I slammed the door. The headlights pointed into Ethan’s room, but he didn’t move. He watched as I drove away.
I almost forgot the burgers and fries. I did a quick U-turn in the middle of the road. I ordered extra fries for Margot. While I waited at the counter for our order, I wondered if I had done the right thing for her. Ethan had her all wrong. She was strong and fierce. He didn’t know the half of it. Just because she was strong didn’t mean she deserved to be treated like she was disposable and that’s exactly what he had done with her. Disposed of her.
I wasn’t letting that happen to her ever again.
“ I want the last fry,” Margot declared.
“I wouldn’t dare.” I smiled. The color had returned to her cheeks. We sat on the screened porch. The cicadas and bullfrogs seemed even louder tonight. The ceiling fan whirled overhead. I handed her the last fry.
“How do they make them so good?” she asked.
“Secret recipe.”
Her legs stretched across my lap. The food wrappers were tucked in the greasy white paper bags. I loved the feel of her silk legs beneath my hands. I wondered if they were too rough on her skin, but she never complained. I traced along her shin, over her knee, and to the inner part of her thigh. She exhaled.
“I want to tell you what happened,” she whispered.
“At breakfast?” I thought we had exhausted the situation. I didn’t need more of a play-by-play.
“No. With my parents. I should have told you before. Or at least I could have told you.”
“I don’t think there are any kind of requirements on that. You’ve had a rough summer. You think I’m upset about it or something?” I was trying to understand where this was coming from.
She sat forward slightly, curling my knuckles into her palm. “I want you to know. I want you to know things Ethan never should have known.”
I almost blurted out what I had done tonight. How I had threatened her ex. How he nauseated me. How I wanted to know why she ever dated that prick.
“You don’t have to do that. It’s not a competition on what he knows and what I don’t. We have time. I’ll learn things. And hopefully, I know things about you he doesn’t.” I winked, trying to bring some playfulness to the porch. Today had been hell for her.
“He was there. That’s what I’ve come to understand. If we hadn’t been dating, I don’t think I would have ever leaned on him the way I did. But I did. I trusted him with all of it.”
I listened while Margot told me about the day her father got the diagnosis. How he was waiting for her at a corner diner they used to frequent. It was as if he didn’t have to speak the words, she could see it all over his face when she walked in the door. They huddled in a corner booth, crying, and reading the pamphlets from the oncologist. She said her dad never lost his faith or optimism. He was determined to stick around for her. He didn’t want to leave her behind. It had broken his heart to think she would be left without any family. Today, with Ethan in the pseudo-fishing diner was too similar for her, down to the vinyl booths. It brought it all back in painful flashes. She didn’t know what to do but run out of Reel Time.
I squeezed her hand. “I can’t believe everything you’ve been through.”
“Sometimes I can’t either. It’s like I’m watching someone else’s life on a screen. I’m an observer. It’s not real. It can’t be. How could I lose my mom and dad only years apart?”
I shook my head. “It’s not fair. It shouldn’t happen to anyone.”
“My mom’s death was so sudden. We were in such shock.” She glanced at me. “It was an aneurysm when she was at work. One minute she was here and the next she wasn’t. I thought that would be the darkest time in my life.” She shrugged. “I didn’t know dark yet.”
My chest hurt. My entire body hurt for her. I didn’t know the circumstances of her mother’s death either. It was a lot of grief and sadness to take in at once. No wonder the conversation with Ethan had almost taken her down.
“I knew it couldn’t have been good, but I didn’t know it was this bad. You don’t talk about them much.”
She swallowed. “I know. I should talk about them more. My mom loved it here. You know when Lucas showed me his shell collection, it was the first memory I had—I instantly went back to my beach walks with her. I feel connected to her here and I should talk about it. I sometimes wonder if that’s why Uncle Walt left me the place. He knew something I didn’t. Could be wishful thinking. Could be that Dean just drew my name out of a hat.” I thought she was almost on the verge of a small laugh, but she cut it off.
“God, you’re amazing Margot.”
“That’s the last thing I’m thinking right now.”
“You’re here. You keep getting up.” I looked out at the lights on the water, reaching from the pilings like outstretched arms. “And you’ve got this place. A new home.”
She sighed. “I still haven’t figured out how to afford the Blue Heron and pay the back taxes. But I don’t want to leave.”
I pulled her fully into my lap. “You’re not going anywhere. There’s a way to keep this place. We’ll brainstorm some more. And until then…”
“Yes?” The sadness in her eyes was beautiful. A bittersweet glimpse of the pain she carried.
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“Promise?”
I leaned toward her, touching my forehead to hers. Our breathing aligned. I cupped the sides of her face. I felt the warmth between us. The connection. This love was the most real thing I’d ever experienced.
“I promise. I won’t leave.”