Chapter 13
13
“ G lad you made it,” Babe said as Maileah walked in the front door of Cuppa Jo’s. “Everyone is here. Join us in the front; I saved a chair for you.”
“Thanks,” Maileah said, appreciating that. The diner was crowded.
A large screen filled one wall. On the screen, a surfer glided through a barrel wave, a dramatic breaking wave that created a hollow barrel inside.
“Did you bring your boyfriend?” Babe asked.
“He’s not really?—”
Just then, Todd’s voice rang out. “Maileah, good to see you. I didn’t know you were going to be here.”
She turned. “Todd, what a surprise.”
“Everyone turns out when a local is on the championship tour, or any surfing tour or competition,” Babe said. “I’m sure we can find another chair for you.”
Todd looked slightly embarrassed. “No, that’s fine. Actually, I’m here with another friend,” he added quickly.
“No worries,” Maileah said, gazing past him to see an attractive dark-haired woman watching him. “It’s a small town. Have a good time this evening.”
“How about next week?” Todd asked.
Maileah shrugged. “We can talk later. I don’t want to take you away from anything or anyone.”
“It’s not like that,” he said. “And I would like to see you again.”
“It’s okay, Todd. It’s not like we’re exclusive to each other right now.”
“Thanks for understanding,” he said, looking relieved. He turned and made his way back to his date.
“That’s Jennifer,” Babe said, watching him join the other woman. “She was a sorority sister and works in real estate here. This is a little awkward for me, being friends with both of you. I hope you’re not jealous.”
Maileah thought about that. Surprisingly, she didn’t feel a speck of envy. Todd was interesting enough, but she still had no real passion for him.
Glancing over her shoulder, she saw how Jennifer looked at him, her eyes alight with adoration. It was as if he were the only man in the room for her.
At that moment, Maileah knew she would never feel that way about him.
She turned back to Babe. “As I said, he’s not my boyfriend. But Jennifer looks like she’s crazy about him.”
Maileah assumed this comment would go back to Jennifer, and she was okay with that. She’d been trying to make Todd fit into an idealized version of her life—the life she thought she should have.
She had wanted to give him a fair chance, especially for Junie’s sake. Her sister had gone to so much trouble to put them together.
Still, as much as Maileah longed for that loving version of the family she envisioned, she couldn’t force it. And she wouldn’t fake it.
Babe whispered, “I hope you’re not upset.”
“Not at all. Todd is nice, but I don’t think we have a future beyond friendship. ”
She knew she’d been holding back when they were together, seldom talking about her goals and what she loved to do. Even though she asked a lot of questions, he hadn’t seemed that interested in her beyond the superficial niceties. She’d mentioned marathons, skiing, and snowboarding, but he didn’t ask any questions. That wasn’t a dig against him; he simply didn’t have much of an interest in her. They were equal in that regard.
“Let’s sit down,” Babe said. “We can order from our table.”
Maileah followed her. Skeeter sat at the table next to them. Her eyes were trained on every movement on the screen.
“Go, Caroline, go,” Skeeter chanted, urging on the young woman surfing through another barrel wave. When she came out of the wave still on her board, Skeeter stood and shook her fist. “Yes, she did it! Whoop, whoop! You go, girl!”
“Skeeter used to compete,” Babe said. “She loves it. Wait until Sailor is up.”
Maileah assumed that was how Skeeter and Sailor met. He might not be interested in the spectators, but the competitors were a different story.
Still animated, Skeeter turned to them. “Did you see that? Absolutely superb.” She paused, recognizing Maileah. “Hey, good to see you again.”
Skeeter’s wide smile and enthusiasm were infectious, and Maileah found it impossible not to like her.
Others gathered around, and soon everyone was talking about the competition and the upcoming charity event on Crown Island.
“We’re going to raise a lot of money to rehabilitate injured surfers,” Skeeter said. “And to help other athletes who’ve had injuries.”
“I’ve been passing out information and chatting up all my customers,” Babe said.
“Are there many surfing injuries?” Maileah asked.
Babe and Skeeter exchanged an uncomfortable look .
Babe said quietly, “We lost an experienced surfer last year. He had a serious injury that dragged him down when he couldn’t get help to rally back from it. He tried again, but his heart wasn’t in it. He went under on a big wave and never surfaced.”
Immediately, Maileah thought of Sailor.
“That’s a real need on the island,” Babe continued. “If we can raise enough funds, the medical center can hire another physical therapist and invest in some much-needed equipment.”
“I hear Sailor has been generous,” Babe said.
Skeeter grinned. “You know how he is. Such a softie.”
Maileah made a point to talk to her grandmother about this since she used to be a nurse. She might have ideas as well.
Skeeter whipped her head around. “Look, they’re interviewing Sailor.”
A hush swept across the room, and Jo turned up the volume.
Maileah leaned forward to listen.
“…good conditions out here,” Sailor was saying.
Maileah noticed that Skeeter let out an audible sigh of relief as he spoke. Concern and excitement were etched on her face. It was evident that she loved Sailor.
Who wouldn’t? Maileah thought and then promptly wondered where that came from.
He was the hometown hero.
But more than that, Sailor had always treated her respectfully even while joking around with her. He was so chill in a big brother sort of way, although he was probably a few years younger than she was. Protective but not overbearing. She sighed. He was her emotional support friend.
No wonder Skeeter was so in love with him.
Jo interrupted her thoughts, her pen poised above her order pad. “What’ll it be? Get your orders in before the kitchen gets swamped.”
“Cheeseburger and fries for me,” Babe said .
“Same for me,” Maileah added. “And a chocolate malt.” She felt like splurging tonight to celebrate the appointments she had set. She’d go out for another run in the morning.
Jo raised her brow and nodded in Todd’s direction. “Did you see who’s here?”
“I did,” Maileah replied. “And that’s entirely okay by me. We’re only friends.”
“Just looking out for you,” Jo whispered. “Between us, I think Jennifer is moving pretty fast.”
“She always goes after what she wants,” Babe added. “She’s been dating a lot since her divorce. Looks like she’s falling for Todd.”
Maileah shrugged it off. “Honestly, I’m happy for them.”
That made her decision a lot easier. She didn’t know who was out there for her, but she needed to focus on her new business anyway.
Their food arrived soon. Maileah enjoyed it, but she couldn’t finish it all. She was sipping her malt when Skeeter yelled, “Sailor is up.”
Maileah watched, on edge with everyone else. She saw Adrian standing to one side, nervously flicking his fingers and chewing his lip. She hadn’t realized surfing could be a dangerous sport.
She also saw an undercurrent of worry in Skeeter, even though she was excited and pulling for Sailor.
“Wait for it, wait for it,” Skeeter chanted.
The waves swelled and broke, but Sailor was patient, watching for the perfect wave, Maileah presumed.
“There it is,” Skeeter whispered.
As if on her cue, Sailor took off, heading toward a wave that rose with incredible power. He whipped onto the wave, keeping a lower line from the top and making it look effortless. The wave hollowed out, and he surfed into it.
He crouched in a low, tight stance. Another camera angle captured him in the barrel, gliding through the wave as it crashed split seconds behind him like falling dominoes .
How does he do that? Maileah wondered, holding her breath. It seemed he was at one with the ocean.
Excitement seized her chest, and she caught her breath. She knew that feeling of being in sync. Not just knowing what to do, but feeling the conditions, sensing them even before they changed.
She and Sailor had talked about snowboarding down a mountain and being so in tune with the experience they instantly sensed shifts before that knowledge hit their consciousness.
Watching him, she could feel his movements in her muscles. She saw Skeeter’s body moving slightly along with him.
“You’ve got it,” Skeeter said, pulling for him as he glided out of the barrel, grinning and lifting his arm.
“Yes!” Adrian said, punching the air. He bent to hug Skeeter.
Sailor had done it. Maileah let out her breath as everyone cheered.
Yet, even as they were celebrating, a wave suddenly caught up with Sailor and crashed over him. In an instant, he disappeared.
“Hang on,” Skeeter screamed, clasping Adrian’s hand.
Shocked at how quickly the sea could turn, Maileah trained her gaze on the screen, afraid to look yet terrified to look away.
Another hush descended on the crowd.
“Please, please, let him go,” Skeeter said, hugging Adrian, who also had a prayer on his lips.
A few seconds later, the wall of foamy water dissolved, and at once, Sailor’s head appeared. He was still standing.
A huge cheer erupted, and Skeeter jumped up and down.
Adrian pressed a hand to his heart and murmured, “Thank you, thank you.”
Adrenaline surged through her, and then Maileah felt limp. She wondered how many times they’d witnessed that and how close he’d come before.
She heard someone say something about another surfer whose board had struck his femoral artery. In seconds , she heard them say, then, it was awful .
Remembering the pointed edge, she instantly knew what they were talking about. If that main blood vessel to the lower part of the body was severed, a surfer could bleed out in seconds.
The thought of that made her skin crawl. Yet Sailor was a highly trained athlete aware of the risks. Maileah wondered how long he planned to compete.
Another surfer took Sailor’s place, and many people in Cuppa Jo’s went back to eating and talking, although Skeeter’s attention was still on the screen. Soon, the final scores were posted, and another cheer exploded.
Sailor had won.
Skeeter and Adrian hugged again. Both were ecstatic and visibly relieved. They treated each other like family. Maileah assumed Skeeter and Sailor had been together a long time.
So much for her attraction to Sailor. That was just as well, she decided. He was her old type, not her new type.
A little while later, Skeeter joined them at the table, still hyped up over his win.
“Wow, that was amazing,” Maileah said.
Skeeter laughed. “Somehow, Sailor survives and notches a win, even at his age. I tease him and tell him he’s an old man in the sport now.”
Maileah was aware that most competitive surfers were young. Only a few competed past thirty-five, except for a handful of exceptional surfers. “How long does he plan on competing?”
Skeeter lowered her gaze. “Sometimes I think he’ll keep on until the ocean wins.”
Her words struck Maileah, and she realized the competition was not only against other surfers but also against nature .
More than that, she was concerned about Sailor. Even if he weren’t injured, what would it be like for a professional to age out of a sport? What else would he, or could he, do?
Not that it was any of her business, but she cared about Sailor.