Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
Simon picked up the phone on the second ring.
“Hi, Sarah.”
“Hi. May I leave Dash with you for a few more hours?”
“Sure. Everything okay?”
“Riley and I are in Vancouver. Her dad’s partner is in hospital, so we’re going to have dinner before heading back on the next ferry.”
“Is everything okay?” he repeated. Memories of the hours he’d spent in hospitals with his ex, and the stress it had added to Sally’s life, flashed through his mind. His muscles tightened. Would Riley be okay?
“I got a call from Graham, and he says she’s being checked in on bed rest.”
“That sounds serious.” Though manageable, and not a crisis. “Is Riley okay?”
“Riley? Oh, yes. Unfortunately, we were already on the ferry before he told us, so I thought we could eat here near the terminal and take the next ferry.”
Simon focused on relaxing the muscles in the back of his neck and repeated in his head that it was okay. Everything was okay.
“So you’re in Vancouver?” he asked, trying to pick up the thread of what she had said while simultaneously examining why he was so afraid for a child who wasn’t even his.
He decided it was because Riley was Sally’s best friend and he was concerned about how anything troubling Riley would impact Sally. Yes, that was it. He strained to hear Sarah’s reply.
“Sorry, the connection went fuzzy. What did you say?” He didn’t like to lie, but a bad connection was a better excuse than ‘I’m not listening because I’m going through my own crap.’
“Graham can’t take Riley for the weekend as planned, so we’re coming back. We’re going to grab dinner first.”
“There’s a great Italian place near the ferry,” he said.
“Yes, there is,” she said. “In fact, our Margherita pizza is heading our way as we speak.”
“I’m a little jealous.” He smiled. “Their Margherita pizza is excellent.”
“Maybe next time you can come with us,” she said.
A silence hung between them. Next time. She would have him come too. Did this mean she, too, was starting to see their relationship as more than just shared cat custody? He searched for something to say, something to break the silence. Something to keep her on the line a little longer.
“There’s a great bookstore near there. With a good selection, given the size. If you go in, say hi to Chip for me. He’s the owner.”
“Are you reading my mind?” she said. “That’s where we’re headed next.”
“Will you be returning on the nine o’clock boat?”
“Yes. So we won’t be at yours until about ten thirty. I hope that’s not too late.”
“Well… um. Why don’t I bring Dash by when I head out to go crabbing tomorrow morning? You were going to watch the kittens then, remember?”
“That’s right. It’ll be a good distraction for Riley. She’ll enjoy having the pair to play with.”
“Or I can take her crabbing too. If you want time on your own.”
“You would do that?”
“Of course. I think the kids enjoy themselves together.”
“Just a minute.” He heard a muffled conversation followed by an excited “yes!” before Sarah came back onto the phone. “She would like to come. What does she need?”
“Have her pack an extra set of clothes. We won’t need them, but sometimes when I don’t bring them…”
“Best to be ready for emergencies.” She was smiling. He could tell by the way she sounded. Warm, happy. Did that mean talking to him made her happy? He hoped so.
“She should bring a towel and a bathing suit. In fact, if you’d like to come too, the kittens could be left alone for a couple of hours. What do you think?”
“Umm…”
“Sorry, didn’t mean to put you on the spot. Think about it. It could be fun.”
“And you know how to cook these crabs if we catch them?” she asked.
“Of course,” he said. “Not my first rodeo.”
“Let me think about it. There are things I should be doing around the house, but it’s been years since I went crabbing. My father used to take me.”
“We’ll be putting the traps in off the pier. Then grabbing an ice cream and heading home. Three hours, tops.”
“I think I can spare three hours,” said Sarah. “Let’s do it.”
“I’ll leave the kittens at mine, then. And if we leave around nine, we can be back in time for a late lunch.”
“Sounds great,” she said. “I should go now. Our pizza is getting cold.”
“Wouldn’t want you to miss out on warm pizza. Still a little jealous, by the way.”
“Thanks for keeping Dash. We’ll see you in the morning. About nine. With towels, bathing suits, and extra clothes.”
“Yes.” He swallowed hard, wondering what she would look like in a bathing suit. “See you then.”
Sarah clicked off the phone and took a few minutes to serve pizza to Riley and herself. “We’re going to both go tomorrow, unless you don’t want me to come,” she said to Riley.
“What about the kittens?”
“Simon figures they’ll be okay on their own for a couple of hours.”
“I’m glad you’re coming,” said Riley. “You can talk to Simon while Sally and I crab.”
“Yes.” She took a bite of her pizza and chewed slowly, not trusting herself to speak more and giving herself time to examine her feelings about this.
There were no cats involved in this outing, so it felt like crossing a line. And if Graham heard about it from one of his friends, or Riley told him about their day together (which she likely would), Sarah could already imagine the tone of his next text. Just checking I’ve got the right picture.
Though she was sure Simon had invited Riley to help reduce her disappointment about not spending time with Graham, she wondered why he cared.
She also wondered why she was so looking forward to crabbing. And why crossing the line from cat parents to play date felt more like a real date.
Too late to worry about it. He had asked her to come, and she’d accepted.
So where did they go from here?