Chapter Twenty-Four
Fuck, she looked stunning.
“Wow,” Odette walked out of her house the moment I pulled into her driveway to pick her up for our date.
“You like?” She did a spin in front of me as I opened the side door to my car.
She was in overalls with a long-sleeve top underneath, platform shoes, and a heavy cardigan.
She looked amazing, and I was speechless.
I’d donned a pair of jeans and a sweater.
It had grown colder over the last week, and today we were going to be feeling it.
“I do.” I knew my smile was large, and with Odette looking at me, it grew even bigger. My cheeks were starting to ache.
“I thought it was just simple.” She shrugged, placed a hand on my cheek, and then kissed me. She moved past me to open the car door, but I swooped in first, opening the door for her.
“You look amazing in everything,” I leaned down to place a kiss on her lips. “But don’t ever try to open the door on your own again.”
I let her know as she slid into the seat.
I closed the door and drove us to our date location.
I was taking Odette down to Lake Erie. I’d come here a few times in the past and had seen it was a huge place to look for sea glass, but had never participated in the scavenger hunt myself.
I’d packed the car with snacks, drinks, and little bags for us to collect glass with.
When I pulled up to the small parking area, Odette looked over at me, confused.
“Why are we here?”
For us being so close to her house, it shocked me that she hadn’t been there before herself.
“You’ll see.” I got out of the car, running to her side to open the door before she decided to open it herself. She took the hand I offered her and followed me to the truck.
I handed her a small bag with the sandwiches and chips before grabbing a second bag with the drinks and bags. I grabbed the blanket I’d packed, but didn’t say a word as I closed up the car and took her hand, leading her down to the sand.
It might have been cold out, but it was a clear day. The wind was whipping by, though. I took the blanket draped over my arm and wrapped it around Odette’s shoulders, giving her extra warmth, and we trekked through the dense sand down closer to the water.
We weren’t the only ones here today. Other families were walking around, couples, and even a few people were here on their own.
“You still haven’t told me why we are here.” Odette reached out to grab my hand.
I’d been leading her to the water, distracted by looking at the ground, so I didn’t answer her right away.
No, I was busy looking, searching, until I found it.
“This!” I leaned down and picked up the light blue piece of sea glass that was no bigger than a bead. I pulled Odette’s hand closer to me, opened it, and placed the glass in the middle of her palm. “For you."
She brought it up closer to her face, inspecting it.
“Is this sea glass?” She looked up at me. Her eyes were big with wonder. She looked so innocent, childlike in this moment.
“Yeah,” I stood straighter, proud of myself for thinking of this adventure for us to do together.
“This is so cool!” She went to put the glass in her pocket, but I grabbed one of the small canvas bags I brought and handed it to her.
I pulled out one for myself, too. “I’d heard about this being a thing here, but hadn’t ever come to do it.
We never really grew up going to the beach, so I hadn’t made it a mission to get out here. ”
“I was trying to find something unique for us to do. It seemed like something that we might both like. Fits your interests and mine.”
“Oh, yeah.” She nudged me. “And what interest would this be for you? I don’t see you collecting little trinkets and hoarding them throughout your house in little glass vials.”
Odette raised an eyebrow at me, and I rolled my eyes. She was right. This was more of something for herself, but in all, it was something for me too. For us to spend time together doing something new and fun.
“Besides getting to see you happy?” I leaned down and placed a kiss on the tip of her nose. “I like taking walks in new areas. Lets me think.”
“Oh,” A blush crept over her face again. “What is it you like to think about?”
I shrugged and placed my hands in my pockets as we made our way down to the waterfront.
“Sometimes it’s just to clear my head after a long gaming session, and other times it’s because I need ideas for a new gaming session.”
“Seems like you do a lot of thinking about games.” Odette laughed at me as she leaned down and grabbed a small piece of glass.
I laughed and turned to the water that was wading to and from the shore.
“You’re not wrong, but sometimes I like to call my mom and talk to her, catch up. Other times I like to listen to an audiobook. I spend so much time in front of a screen that seeing nature has always felt freeing to me.”
“You’ve only told me a little bit about your family. Are you close with them?”
Odette moved to stand behind me, her arms wrapping around my waist as we both faced the water now. I placed my hands on hers.
“They are back in Tennessee, so I don’t get to see them that often. But I do try to call and talk to my mom when I can.”
“Do you ever get a chance to travel down there, or them up here?”
I took a deep breath because I hadn’t been down to see my parents since the holidays last year.
Timing was never right for them, and when it was, I had other obligations, which my father then turned around to make it seem like I was ungrateful.
I winced at the thought, and Odette held onto me tighter.
“Not really, but I don’t know now with the café being sold.”
“Do you want to see them more?” She asked, and I didn’t know how to answer.
I did, but I also felt the weight of my father’s disapproval daily.
My mom called multiple times a week, but I only spoke to my father when I came to see them.
It felt like, as the years went on, no one was barging into my life to change anything up, but now that they would have more free time on their hands, it was all new territory.
One I wasn’t sure if I was ready to enter yet.
“I’m not quite sure.”
Odette let go and moved herself to stand in front of me. She placed her hands on my chest and stared into my eyes.
“I’m here for whatever you choose.”
My shoulders sagged forward, and I placed my lips on her forehead, wrapping my arms around her. I held her close as we listened to the waves crash in front of us. I pushed Odette away and took her face in my hand, searching her eyes.
“I hope you know how lucky I am.” I planted a kiss on her lips and pulled away before either of us could push this conversation further. I wanted today to be happy, carefree, and just for us to enjoy our time together. “Let’s see if we can find some sea glass.”
I pulled her along, and we walked the shoreline. There were tree roots along the walk, one of which we took camp on for a bit, laying down the blanket I’d brought and eating our lunch, before continuing our walk.
We’d spent almost two hours walking around before we were in sight line of the parking lot again.
My bag was not nearly as full as Odette’s, mostly because anything I saw that was shiny and cute, I gave to her, and she immediately pocketed it.
There wasn’t just sea glass in our bags, though.
We found cute rocks, mini pieces of wood that Odette said were petrified, and I had no idea what that meant.
But I knew she’d be taking them home and placing them on her many altars throughout her house, as well as on different ledges that I knew she had other crystals laid out on.
She’d found some feathers too, pocketing them instead of putting them in the bag I gave her. She seemed completely in her element, and I knew if I wasn’t bringing her back, she’d come out here on her own.
“Can I ask you something?” I’d stopped up at a large tree stump that was lying on the beach. I picked Odette up, set her on the wood, and sat next to her, both of our feet dangling. Her head rested on my shoulder.
“Go for it,” she encouraged me.
“What are the feathers for? I kind of figured sea glass and rocks would be like your crystals, but I’m confused about the feathers.”
“Ah, yes,” Odette sat up, taking one out of her pocket.
She held it up in front of her. “I like to place them on my main altar for the season I find them in. For me, they are like a guide. When one comes across my path and is blocking it, it’s like a message from the universe that I’m on the right path. ”
“Which is why you weren’t picking all of them up today.” It made sense now when I saw Odette pick up the first feather, but then she didn’t pick up another for at least an hour. The ones she had were significant to her.
“Exactly.” She beamed at me for understanding. “I don’t need all the feathers in the world, just the ones I know will be a part of my own magic.”
“As much as I know from your game when it comes to witchcraft, I’m realizing I knew very little.”
“I—” Odette’s eyes went wide and were now looking past me. The smile she had on before was gone, replaced with pursed lips. “Fuck.”
I turned around to see none other than Parker himself walking down the parking lot toward the beach. He was alone as far as I could tell. He didn’t see me first; his gaze locked on Odette, surprise registering on his face.
His pace quickened towards us.
Odette jumped off the tree, and I followed suit, moving to stand slightly in front of her as Parker came up to us.
“Odette,” Her name coming from his mouth didn’t sit well with me. “How are you?”
Parker wasn’t looking at me; his eyes were trained on Odette still.
“She’s fine,” I answer for her. I knew that she could stand up for herself, but I’d seen the way Parker was with her, and I hated it. He bulldozed over her and didn’t listen or pay attention to her social cues.
“I was asking, Odette.” Parker snapped at me, his eyes finally honing in on me. They looked me over, up and down, noticing where I was standing. They ran over where Odette was placing her hand in mine, and then his eyes were back on me.
I knew my whole demeanor screamed fuck off, but all he did was smile.
“She can speak for herself. She’s a big girl, in more ways than one.”
Fuck this dude.
I went to lunge at Parker, but Odette placed a hand on my upper arm, trying to hold me back.
“Ryker, don’t.” She pleaded, but all I wanted to do was rip this man’s head off for speaking to her like that. For taking that type of dig at her. I’d fuck him up if Odette weren’t standing here; I wouldn’t risk the possibility of her getting hurt.
“When it comes to you, Parker, I’ll be answering for my girlfriend.” I shoved my finger at him, trying to reach any part of him to get a jab, but he stepped back with his hands up. A smug grin crossed his face.
“Girlfriend?” Parker questioned, one eyebrow lifted as if to question what I was saying. He looked me and Odette over one more time and then backed away, shaking his head. “Fine.”
The word was clipped as he walked away from us and toward the water. It had felt too easy, Parker walking away, so I didn’t move us until he was a ways away down the water’s edge.
“Girlfriend?” I looked down at Odette, who was latched onto my whole arm now.
I’d managed to slow my breathing after Parker’s earlier comments.
I hadn’t ever wanted to hit someone so badly in my life, and I grew up around musicians getting drunk in bars and cafes.
But it wasn’t just for what he’d said today, but for what I knew he had to have put Odette through to make her so guarded every time he showed up.
“Girlfriend,” I repeated, this time a smile crossing my face as I looked at Odette. She mimicked the smile back to me. She reached up and grabbed my face, planting a kiss on my lips. I pulled Odette against me and deepened the kiss.
Claiming her as mine, for anyone who walked by us. Anyone who could see us standing on this beach. She pulled away, gasping her air, but I continued the kisses along her cheek, down her neck.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“For you,” I pulled back and took her face in my hands. “Anything, my love.”
And I meant that.
Anything.