Page 21 of Mail Order Splash

“Same.” I grabbed us each a bottle of water from the office frig.

“What are you going to do about this place?” he asked after we’d downed two slices each in silence.

“I don’t actually know. I’m scared, that’s for sure.” I chugged some water. “The city isn’t going to play nice. I think they want this land for something else, hence the hardball.”

“What about that Hawthorne family Doc was mentioning?”

“Yeah, they scare me even more. I mean, if they are that rich and powerful, why would they even care about some run-down aquarium?”

“Because there aren’t many left, and you do a lot of good here.”

“WE do a lot of good, Josh.”

“I’m not the one with the veterinary degree. I drive the boat and swim with them and, let’s not forget, keep you company, which has become a big job.”

“That is the most valuable thing you do for me.” I stared at him. “I mean it, ya know. You’re the best friend ever.”

“Love you, too, but I’m not taking lead at the party tomorrow. Nice try.”

“I wasn’t going to ask but, if I start freaking out, kick me or something.”

“I can do that, and you dress with good shoes for dancing because I plan to hit that dance floor all night.”

“You and the dancing. Please don’t embarrass me.”

“I’m going to be me, like it or not.” He reached for a third slice. “This stuff is addictive. I never eat three slices.”

“That’s the difference between good pizza and junk pizza.” I grabbed a third too. “Ya know, Netty is good tonight, why don’t you go spend the night with your girl before she leaves?”

“I appreciate the gesture but she’s leaving, so why put myself out there any further?”

“What if she comes back?”

“Then maybe we start seeing one another again, but we’ll cross that bridge when and if we come to it.” He shrugged. “What about you and Triton? You gonna give him the time of day?”

“What are you going on about? Who is Triton?”

“You know, Ariel, it’s your dad…the male mermaid.”

I laughed until I gasped for air. How in the world did he know I thought the jet ski guy looked like a mermaid?

“Josh, did I say something to you to make you think of that?”

“No, I said it because you referred to yourself as Ariel.” He squinted his eyes, looking at me. “Did you think something about him and thought you said it out loud, like maybe he looked like a mermaid?”

“I hate that you know me so well.”

“No, you don’t, you love that I know you so we can get away without speaking things in front of other people.” He nodded. “We have our own telepathy.”

“Okay, since you know now, don’t you agree he looked like a mermaid, or is the term a merman?”

“I can’t fantasize about him that way, but I suppose I can see where your mind went with it. He has the golden skin and long blond hair and all, though I didn’t see a trident.”

“Funny, Josh, very funny, and now when I see him again, I’ll be looking for a trident.” I groaned. “It’s bad enough that I keep wanting to look under the water for fins instead of legs when he’s helping.”

“You didn’t! Did you?” he gasped.

“No, but I surely wanted to,” I chuckled. “At least he had legs on the jet ski.”

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