Page 36 of Diving In

“We all handle grief and loss differently, and that’s okay, but at some point, you do have to handle it. Keeping all that sadness and anger bottled up inside of you will eventually pull you under,” he told me, and I knew he was right.

Met with my silence as I considered his words, he continued, “After Fletcher died, I was struggling, likereallystruggling. That’s when Jack took me under his wing and pulled me to the surface. I think it was his way to feel close to Fletcher, and honestly, it was the same for me. You could say we bonded over losing him, and in building our relationship, we both began to heal, little by little.” He stopped, looking in my direction for any sense of what I was thinking.

“Jack? As in my Jack?”

He nodded. “In a sense, he saved me from drowning.”

“Sounds like you saved him too,” I said as a single tear dropped from the corner of my eye.

Neither of us said anything as we continued walking, but I found myself finding comfort in knowing that Cal had someone standing by him as he pulled himself from the depths of grief, even if that someone was Jack.

At first, I wanted to be jealous that Jack didn’t do that for Mom and me, but I knew deep down that Jack could never leave this place, especially after Fletcher’s death. And as much as that hurt, I was learning to accept it, and hearing that he’d helped Cal made it hurt less.

Swimming in my own thoughts, I noticed Cal was slowly inching us closer to the water. He pulled us to a stop before releasing my hand and bending over.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“Perfect.” He grinned as he reached down and splashed me with water.

“Hey!” I screeched. “That’s cold!”

He did it again.

Deciding two could play this game, I flung my hand in the water and scooped up a handful of water, hurling it at Cal.

Within a few seconds, we were both dripping with salt water and somehow waist-deep in the ocean. Where I’d usually feel terrified, I now only felt alive, like the water was made of something magical.

Cal came up behind me and consumed me with his embrace, whispering in my ear, “What do we have here, Little Miss I’m Never Going in the Water Again?” he joked, his breath sending chills down my spine. “And lucky for me, you’re wearing a white shirt.”

My body shuddered, feeling the walls I’d constructed around myself starting to crack. Along with it came the desire in my belly, begging to be released. And while I might have just broken up with Ian, that relationship had been broken for a while, and I could say with certainty that he had never made me feel the way Cal does.

I decided it was time to give myself permission to be present, to be here, because I’d realized I was allowed to want someone else. I rotated my body around until our faces were a mere centimeter apart and I kissed him. I mean, I really kissed him.

The kiss at the aquarium was good, but holy fuck, this one topped the charts.

Our mouths met, and this time, neither of us held back. My lips parted as his tongue crashed through—hot, hungry, and searching for all of me. I yanked his shirt, trying to get closer to him. One of his hands found their way into my hair, the other wrapping around the side of my neck, and with a slight tug of my hair came a soft moan from the back of my throat.

Even waist-deep in the ocean, I could’ve stayed in this moment forever, but Cal began to pull away, planting a few softer kisses, one right after another. I desperately tried to bring him back to me, but his voice lingered against my lips. “We have company,” he said.

Glancing to my right, I noticed a group of teenagers approaching the beach. Luckily we hadn’t been spotted yet, but it was probably better to stop the public makeout session before we were.

“Georgia James, sometimes the scariest moments lead us to some of the most exciting ones.” He smiled. “How about a swim?”

“I think I’ve had enough water for one day,” I responded.

“You gotta start somewhere,” Cal said encouragingly, tugging me out of the water and toward the beach. “I can’t stay anyway, and as much as I hate to do this, I’ve got to run back to the aquarium and secure a few things before this storm rolls in. Are you good to make it back to Jack’s?”

I raised an eyebrow, trying to hide my disappointment with sarcasm. “Yes, I’m pretty sure I’m capable of getting myself back to Jack’s.”

He placed his hand underneath my chin, his thumb lingering on my bottom lip before planting a kiss on my forehead, bidding me farewell with a “You tasted delicious” as he turned and walked away.

Thankfully, it only took me about six minutes to get home, because the storm clouds were moving in quickly. As I parked my bike, I felt the first raindrop splash on my cheek, followed by a thunderousboomthat vibrated my entire body.

Although it was the season for afternoon thunderstorms, I’d forgotten how often they rolled over the island during the summer months. My mind flickered back to all the afternoon play dates and beach days and whatever other trouble Fletcher and I could get up to that were ruined because of these exact storms.

I picked up my pace, typing0704in and opening the front door as the rain intensified. These storms brought strong winds, and being this close to the ocean made for even stronger ones. As I stepped inside, I heard a few forceful noises coming from outside and decided to make sure none of the doors had blown open.

As I walked around securing the doors and windows, the noises escalated. They sounded more like intentional slams and bangs versus storm-related noises, and they seemed to be coming from the boathouse. Located underneath the balcony and toward the beach a few feet, I grabbed a rain jacket and opened the doors to the balcony, wanting to ensure the boathouse doors were locked too.

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