Page 62 of A Wedding in the Bay

Everett took a deep breath of the cold salty air surrounding him. He was on his boat, slowly wending his way homeward after fishing for many long hours. He felt tired and a little achy, but also filled with contentment. It was a beautiful day, and the air smelled clean and fresh from the cold. Even though his cheeks felt a little numb, the rest of him was warm enough, and he was looking forward to being back in his house, spending time with Oliver and putting his feet up.

I wonder what it would be like to go home and find Johanna there, he thought, a warm feeling rising in his chest.

His heart began to beat faster as he thought about it. Ever since he and Johanna had made their relationship public, he’d found himself thinking about her even more than usual. It was as though his excitement over her had intensified, and so had his feelings of nervousness.

She’d said that she wanted to make their relationship public, but he also hadn’t heard much from her since the wedding. He tried to tell himself that nothing was off with the two of them and she was just tired from all that dancing, but she usually checked in with him more than she’d been doing since the wedding ended.

His stomach flopped with nervousness again as he thought about it, but he brushed his worries aside forcefully and smiled. He told himself that everything was going to work out just fine, and he would get to see her soon. He missed her, even though it hadn’t been much time at all since he’d seen her last.

He allowed himself to go back to his daydream, letting himself picture what it would be like if he went home and she was there waiting for him. Or perhaps the two of them would live together in her house instead.

“Slow down, Howell,” he muttered, chuckling a little. “Don’t jump right from a public relationship to a proposal.”

He hummed a little as he brought his boat back toward the shore. The sun was sinking lower on the horizon, lighting up the waves in beautiful flashes of light. He felt an impulse to text Johanna a picture of the water, but he didn’t. He told himself it was simply because he needed both his hands to steer the boat properly.

He brought his boat back to the dock and secured it. Whistling, he got off it and got into his car. He shivered a little as he started to drive back toward his house, and he turned up the heat, heaving a sigh as the pleasant warmth touched his face.

When he got home, he parked his car in his garage and made his way inside. Oliver barked and wriggled as soon as he stepped through the doorway, looking ecstatic to see him as always.

“Aren’t you just an oversized puppy?” Everett murmured, grinning and scratching Oliver’s ears affectionately. “Do you like me or something? Good, because you’re my favorite guy around.”

Oliver wagged his tail and nuzzled his nose against Everett’s hands as if he knew just what was being said.

“Come on, let’s go into the kitchen and heat up some coffee,” he said, taking off his coat and hanging it by the front door. Oliver followed him into the kitchen, his earlier wriggling excitement turning into a cheerful calm.

Everett bustled around his kitchen while Oliver sat on the floor, gazing up at him with a look of infatuation.

“What should we do tonight, old boy?” Everett asked as he took a sip of his heated coffee. He rolled his shoulders back, pleased by the nutty taste and the feeling of something hot going through his cold body. “I’ll have to take you for a you-know-what, and—”

At that moment, Oliver’s ears pricked up. He turned toward the window, his tail starting to wag wildly.

“Well, something’s up,” Everett said, surprised by how excited Oliver was acting all of a sudden. “What did you hear, buddy?” He looked out the window that Oliver was staring up at, and his heart leapt up when he saw that Johanna’s car had pulled into his driveway. Oliver whined with excitement, his tail wagging so hard it was hard to see clearly.

“I guess we’re both pretty excited to see her, huh?” He grinned at his dog. “You’re just as head over heels for her as I am, aren’t you?” he joked, and Oliver barked as if in agreement.

A couple of seconds later, there was a soft knock on the front door, and Everett hurried over to it. He opened it to find Johanna standing there, smiling shyly.

Is it my imagination, or does she look a little nervous? Everett thought.

Johanna’s eyes looked a little wider than usual, and she was clasping her gloved hands together.

“Hello,” she said. “Are you busy with anything right now?”

He gave her a warm bear hug. “Just drinking coffee and hopefully talking to you. I’m very happy to see you.”

“Oh.” She laughed and then offered him a warm smile. “I’m happy to see you too.”

Things felt a little awkward between them, he couldn’t deny it. It made his heart beat faster with nervousness, but he told himself it was nothing a conversation couldn’t cure.

“Come on in,” he said, and she stepped inside. He took her coat and hung it up in the front closet, and then he led her into the kitchen, where the coffee pot was still warming on the coffee maker.

“Would you like some coffee?” he asked. “I’ve got cream and sugar for you.”

She smiled, and he noted to himself that something was definitely up. She looked worried about something—and that made him worried.

What if she had come there to tell him that she didn’t want to date him after all?

He told himself to keep his nerves steady as he poured her a cup of coffee and carefully added the amount of cream and sugar that he knew she liked.

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