Page 9 of A Wedding in the Bay

“This is good food, isn’t it?” Everett said, breaking the silence first and smiling at her in a friendly way. “I’ve never had pizza with this green stuff on it before. It’s good.”

“That’s arugula,” Johanna said stiffly.

“Hmm. It’s good,” Everett said through a mouthful of food.

Johanna cleared her throat lightly and took her own bite of pizza. It was very good—she had to commend Alissa for having the courage to follow such a daring recipe.

“Everett, Johanna used to live in New York,” Marsha said, smiling. “You’ve been to New York before, haven’t you?”

Everett shook his head. “Just passed by it in a boat. I wouldn’t know what to do with a place that had so many people in it. No offense,” he added, glancing at Johanna apologetically.

“None taken,” she said coolly.

Something was bothering her—something other than having to sit so close to a strange man and being expected to speak with him. It took her a while to put her finger on it, and then she realized that she could smell fish.

“Dane, is there fish on one of these pizzas?” she asked, and she didn’t understand when Dane and Michael burst into laughter.

“No, Johanna,” Alissa said, shaking her head at Dane and Michael. “We were joking about that earlier, but there’s no fish on any of the pizzas.”

“I smell fish,” Johanna protested. “I’m sure I do.”

Across the table, Willis cleared his throat, but Johanna had no idea why. She continued to frown as she took another bite of pizza.

“What’s your favorite kind of food, Everett?” Marsha asked.

The fisherman shrugged. “I eat a lot of ham sandwiches. And coleslaw is always nice.”

“You were telling me about a coleslaw recipe you were trying the other day, Johanna,” Marsha said eagerly. “With Mandarin oranges? You should pass it along to Everett.”

“Well, unfortunately, I’m allergic to citrus,” Everett said, smiling politely.

Johanna sighed. It was clear she had nothing in common with this man, and she wished Marsha would stop trying to get her to talk to him. She knew her friend meant well, and it was a sweet thought, but the evening felt so stiff and awkward because of it.

As she was taking a sip of wine, Johanna got another strong whiff of the smell of fish.

“I’m sure I smell fish,” she said, frowning. “Is there something here made with fish? It couldn’t be the salad, could it?”

Everett coughed lightly. “I apologize, I think you must be smelling me. I was out on the boat just before coming here. I got a great haul of cod and trout—so good I was kept busy with it until it was time to leave for the dinner party.” He paused, and then said, “I’m sorry if my smell offends you.”

Johanna flushed, feeling awkward and off balance. She hadn’t meant to insult Everett, but it was clear that he’d been a bit insulted by her words. She felt she had no idea what to say to him.

“Oh, well, I suppose if your job involves fish,” she said, a bit stiffly.

He nodded and took another bite of food. The table around them was quiet for a few awkward seconds, and then Caitlin said—clearly trying to rescue the moment—“Pearl told me the funniest story the other day. Pearl, do you want to tell everyone the story you made up? About the pig in the top hat?”

“Oh yeah!” Pearl, who was the only one at the table unaware of the awkwardness, happily launched into telling her story about a pig who went on a grand adventure, trying to get into show business. Soon the table was laughing at her jokes, and everyone seemed to have forgotten about the fish moment.

Everyone except Johanna and Everett. She could sense that the big, burly man beside her was uncomfortable, and she herself felt as though she couldn’t look at him again. Thankfully, everyone else around the table kept up a lively conversation, and Marsha stopped trying to get her to talk to Everett.

After the delicious meal had concluded, everyone went out into the living room to play board games. They drank tea and nibbled charcuterie and cookies as the snow fell cozily outside. The fire crackled and the room was filled with the sound of laughter. Johanna began to enjoy the evening immensely—but she did feel that her enjoyment was partly due to the fact that she was no longer sitting elbow to elbow with Everett.

When the games were over and everyone was beginning to put on their coats and hats again, Johanna lingered in the living room with Marsha.

“I know you were trying to set me up with Everett, Marsha,” she said quietly.

“Oh, I—” Marsha flushed. “Well, I mean—”

Johanna shook her head, smiling. “It was a sweet thought, and I wanted to say thank you. But he isn’t really my type.”

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