Chapter 36 - After Party
After party
The celebration continued in the hall.
“I don’t understand,” Abby said. “Do you know why she withdrew her petition? Not that I’m complaining, but I’m surprised.”
Magda shook her head. “I don’t. But that’s not my job to worry about.”
Dani raised her hand. “That would be me and Angie.”
Everyone looked at her.
“What did you do?” Tinker asked.
“I told my bestie about the threatening letter Abby received in the mail,” Dani said.
“What threatening letter?” Magda asked.
“The one telling Abby about Tinker’s arrest and threatening to out him if Abby didn’t turn over custody of Olivia.”
There was a chorus of what from almost everyone, including Olivia.
“You know what? I don’t want to know,” Magda said. “My part of this is done. We were successful. I don’t need to know more. Abby, Olivia, congratulations. Please call if you need me.” She hugged each of them and waved her goodbyes as she left their group.
“I do need to know more,” Paige said. “What did you do?”
Tinker wrapped an arm low around Abby’s hips and pulled her close as he explained the letter and coming clean with Abby.
“I wasn’t going to let that stand,” Angie said. “So I did some digging. Nothing fully illegal. Just some research into Olivia’s aunt and her husband.”
Paige shook her head. “I’m going to ignore the part of whether it was legal. What did you find?”
“Some not great stuff about the aunt and some really not great stuff about the husband. I shared that info with Stuart.” She shrugged. “That’s all.”
For some reason, Abby did not think that was all.
“I shared the information with Mr. Fritz, who I’m assuming shared the information with his client, who felt it was better to drop her petition than have said information brought to light,” Stuart said.
“You did that for me?” Abby leaned against Tinker.
“Technically, I did it for Tinker.” Angie pointed at him, then shifted her hand to Abby. “But you’re part of Tinker, which makes you family. Like I said. So, yeah. I did it for you.”
Paige shook her head. “I’m glad you work for us.”
Angie scrunched up her shoulders and grinned. “Me too.”
Me three. At that point, Abby felt it went without saying, but she said it anyway. “Thank you, all, for everything. For supporting us and helping us. I don’t know what we would have done without you.”
Tinker kissed the side of her head, and she closed her eyes, finally letting go of the tension she’d been holding all day.
“This is getting really sappy,” Lindsey said. “How about we all meet up at Abby’s and celebrate?”
“That sounds like a great plan,” her mom said.
Naomi and Lindsey stopped on the way to grab food and drinks. They even took the time to buy a sheet cake with Happy Family Day written on it.
Abby’s mom picked Will up early from daycare, and several of Olivia’s friends came once school let out. The rest of Leonidas showed and before long the house was bursting with people.
Abby went to her room to change from her skirt to jeans and a T-shirt. As she was hanging her blouse, it all hit her and she grabbed the bar, resting her head on her hand.
“Do you always come to your closet when you need to cry?”
She smiled and turned her head without lifting it. “I’m not crying—I just need a minute to process.”
Tinker stepped into the closet and pulled the door closed behind him. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her gently, softly rocking from side to side.
“I talked to your mom,” he said.
“Yeah?”
“I asked her if she would mind if I took you on a bike ride.”
Abby leaned her head back. “You did?”
He met her gaze and nodded.
“What did she say?”
“She said sure.”
“She did, huh?”
“Yup. Graham Senior came with Graham. Apparently, they shut the whole office down.”
Abby froze. “They better not have sex on my couch.”
Tinker threw his head back and laughed. “I think they can control themselves for a few hours.”
“Humph.”
“Grab a jacket, the ride can get a bit chilly.” Tinker kissed her and patted her ass before leaving the closet.
She shook her head but grabbed her jacket off the hanger and followed him out to the living room.
“You’re good with us ducking out for a while?” she asked her mom.
“Of course. Go have fun,” she said.
Abby kissed her mom’s cheek. “We’ll be back soon.”
Her mom shooed her off. Abby took Tinker’s hand and followed him outside. He settled a helmet on her head and showed her where to put her feet. They pulled out of her subdivision and were soon on their way.
Abby rested her chin on Tinker’s shoulder and stared at the road ahead of them. Tinker rested his left hand on her outer thigh and patted her leg. She smiled and tucked her head against his back, wrapping her arms tighter around his waist.
His bike hummed under her ass and the wind tugged at her ponytail under the helmet.
He hadn’t said where he was taking her, but they’d headed south toward Folly Beach.
They passed the salt marshes, then crossed the bridge to Folly Island.
Tinker turned left a block short of the beach access road and continued east, passing houses ranging from large summer rentals to ordinary family homes.
The bike rumbled down the rough paved road until the houses grew farther apart, and then there was nothing but sand and the sound of the surf.
He pulled off to the left and stopped the bike close to a small SUV. Tinker cut the engine and steadied the bike while she swung a leg over the back of it to dismount. Hopefully, it looked more graceful than it felt.
Abby unbuckled the helmet strap as Tinker pushed out the kickstand and settled the bike.
Tinker pulled a blanket and a bottle of water from one of the saddlebags. “Come on.” He took her hand in his and led them toward the beach.
“Where’re we going?”
“To hopefully catch the sunset.”
The pavement ended and they hit sand. He took them to the right, around the rocks, toward the small breaker. She couldn’t see other people on the beach, not even the owner of the other car.
He spread the blanket down at the edge of the high tide line where the sand was flat and compact and sat in the middle of it, patting the space next to him.
Abby sat, trying not to get her sandy boots on the blanket. The sky was clear, and pink and blue streaks outlining the lighthouse hinted at sunset. “You know, I’ve never been down this far.”
“Never?
“Nope. We’ve been to Folly a couple of times, but not down here. We usually go to Isle of Palms. We go early, before the crowds and the worst of the heat, get lunch at Coconut Joe’s, and then head home.”
“Hmm.” Tinker hooked his arms over his upraised knees and stared out at the ocean. “I usually ride down to Edisto, but this is my favorite spot close to town.”
The setting sun lit up his profile. “Why Edisto?”
“The ride, mostly. I take the rural routes instead of Highway 17. Slower route, fewer people. Most people go there to get away from the crowds. I.O.P.? Sullivan? They’re too…”
“Developed? Touristy?” Abby finished.
“Yeah. Actually.” He cocked his head and looked at her. “I was heading out to ride to Edisto the night I met you.”
“Really?”
“Really. But you were looking at Ned like he’d insulted your family tree, so I stopped to ask if you were okay,” he said.
“I still maintain Ned is a silly name, even if it is alliterative. Kind of.”
Tinker chuckled. “What would you have named him?”
“I don’t know. Charles? Richard?”
“Charles the Knight?” Tinker shook his head. “Nah. Ned fits.”
Abby smiled and shook her head, looking out at the last rays settling on the horizon.
Tinker reclined, one head behind his head, and tugged on the back of her hoodie. Abby lay back, resting her head in the pocket of his shoulder.
“Thank you for bringing me out here.” She sighed and relaxed against his warmth, listening to the crash of waves. It was so easy to imagine they were in a bubble, where nothing could touch them.
“I have something serious I want to discuss with you,” he said.
Abby froze.
“It’s not bad.” Tinker shifted and rose on one elbow. “At least, I hope it’s not bad.”
“What is it?” Abby whispered.
“It’s too soon right now, but at some point in the future, I’m going to ask you to marry me.”
Something she hadn’t felt in a long time started unfurling in her belly and spread through her. A smile spread across her face. “Really?”
“I meant it, when I said I love you. I didn’t say it because I was under duress.”
“Duress?” Her eyebrows went up.
“Emotional duress,” he said.
“I didn’t say I love you because you were under duress either,” she said.
He smiled. “Good. I meant it when I said I was in it for the long haul. This is the long haul.”
“Okay,” she said.
“Okay.” He lowered his head and their mouths met.
It began sweet and quickly turned scorching. Abby pulled back at the same time she had the urge to pull him closer and wrap her legs around his waist. Public be damned. “We’re going to miss the sunset.”
“Yeah.” His sigh was heavy with disappointment as he lay back on the blanket, one arm bent under his head, the other holding her close. “There is something else I want to talk about.”
Abby craned her neck to look at him. “What’s that?”
“That book you gave me.”