Page 11 of Diving In

That was the best part about having a best friend who had known you most of your life—some things went without saying.

“I’m okay. I…” I trailed off, trying to decide if I wanted to tell her about my breakup with Ian or not. I had a feeling she’d make it into a thing, but I also knew she’d fully support my decision, so I continued. “I broke up with Ian.”

“Oh, G. I’m so sorry. I mean, I’m not sorry it happened, but I’m sorry you’re hurting.”

“Yeah, thanks, but I don’t want to talk about it right now. I promise I’ll fill you in later, okay? I’m headed to the aquarium now to meet the guy who called my mom. He said something would be waiting for me, and if it’s from Jack, God only knows what it could be.”

Ivy laughed at that, likely remembering how Jack always had something random up his sleeve.

“Ain’t that the truth. Okay, keep me posted on the aquarium mystery, and call me later to fill me in on Ian. I love you,” Ivy said, a gentle smile in her voice.

“Love you too, Ives,” I responded, then tucked my phone into my purse and peered out the window.

As the streets passed me by, it all came crashing back to me before I could process what was happening—every street name, every one of my favorite restaurants, everything that had happened here. Every tiny detail of every memory from this island came hurdling at me full-speed. I closed my eyes and tried to get away from it all, implementing the 54321 grounding technique that I’d been practicing with my therapist.

Five things you can see, four things you can touch, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste.

I froze as soon as I realized that meant that I had to identify five things that I could see in front of me, because I couldn’t even open my eyes, let alone identify things. I didn’t want to have to register these places and memories that had caused me both great joy and great pain. Instead, I sat incredibly still, keeping my eyes closed, and focused on my breathing. Taking slow, deep breaths, I counted down from five as I let each one out.

After a few releases, I slowly reopened my eyes while my driver simultaneously said, “Sullivan’s Island Aquarium, the finest aquarium in all of the South.”

I looked out the window and realized he was already parked in the roundabout outside of my destination. I stepped out of the car, grabbed my bag from the trunk, and yelled a quick, “Thank you!” before shutting the door.

“My pleasure, little lady!” he shouted through his open window and then drove off.

Little lady…Yeah, I definitely wasn’t in New York anymore.

That was one thing I hadn’t realized I missed until just now:kindness.The southern charm, the warm faces, and the downright goodness of the humans that inhabited this place. That sort of kindness came so easily in the south, something I’d never felt in New York.

As I made my way to the front door, I had no idea where to go or what to say to whoever I may find waiting for me. Announcing my name and the situation felt strange, but I needed suggestions on what I was supposed to be doing here, so it kind of felt like my only option.

It was precisely 1:32 p.m. when I grabbed the handle of the door, meaning the second feeding of the day was set to start in six minutes. That recollection made me stop dead in my tracks. How in the absolute hell did I remember that?

I opened the door while inhaling a large gust of air that sailed across my face, the smell of fish abruptly overtaking my senses. I used to know this place like the back of my hand, having been here so many times before. This place was the good kind of familiar. I grasped onto that feeling, relying on it to anchor me to this moment and push me to do what needed to be done.

CHAPTER 7

“Hi, I’m here to pick up something from Jack Windsor,” I said with much more confidence than I felt.

The girl looked up and stared at me with astonishment. “You’re Georgia?” she asked, her voice tinged with awe.

I hesitated, and while I was thinking of how she might know who I was, an intense voice bellowed from behind me. “Well, if it isn’t Georgia James Windsor.”

I hastily spun around, half expecting to see Jack himself standing there after hearing my full name.

I was wrong.

Very fucking wrong.

Instead, I was met by hands-down the most attractive man I’d ever seen—literally,ever. Holy hell.

I froze, giving his well over six-foot frame a once-over. As I looked up, his piercing gaze could’ve brought me to my knees, a pair of the most alluring blue eyes staring back at me. The same color as the waves that crashed ashore, they were a light blue with specks of a deeper navy. They reeled you in to the point of no return, leaving you floating out at sea with no lifeboat. Somehow, they were bold and soft but hungry and seductive at the same time.

His complexion was proof that he didn’t just spend his summers here on the island. No, his skin was a soft golden brown that screamed at me to graze it with my fingertips.

He wore a Sullivan’s Island Aquarium hat,backwards.His hair was a dark, dirty blonde, similar to the color of the sand that filled the island, and it fell perfectly to the nape of his neck, naturally wavy and a little messy. I found myself lost in a fantasy about running my fingers through it, tugging at it with just the slightest touch of need.

I knew I had literally just broken up with Ian, but I couldn’t resist looking at this man.

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