Page 28 of A Future in the Bay

“Thanks for stitching me up,” he said, reaching out with his unbandaged hand to shake hers. “I appreciate it.”

“Of course.” Her tone was a little clinical, but her eyes were decidedly warmer than they had been when he’d first arrived. “Call us if something goes wrong.”

She stepped out of the examination room and started toward her office. He watched her go, smiling quietly to himself. He hoped that he would get the chance to see her again soon.

CHAPTER NINE

Michael tapped a pencil against his bottom lip, staring down at the small notebook that lay open on the counter in front of him. He was at Tidal Wave Coffee, surrounded by the familiar, rich aroma of coffee and the sound of people laughing and chatting as they drank their beverages. There was a lull in customers, as there usually was in the early afternoon, and he’d decided to use his downtime to work on his wedding vows.

“No, that’s not right,” he muttered, scratching out the sentences he’d just finished writing. He exhaled in frustration. That had been his seventh attempt at writing out his vows, and he was becoming increasingly frustrated that he couldn’t put his feelings into words. He kept making an attempt and then not liking what he had written.

Sighing, he tucked the pencil back behind his ear and started to stare into space. His mind tried to piece together what it was he wanted to say in his wedding vows to Caitlin, but he felt like he was grasping at straws. He knew what his feelings were—but however he tried to phrase those feelings, the words either came out sounding too cheesy or not expressive enough.

At that moment, the front door to Tidal Wave Coffee opened, and Willis Jenkins stepped inside. Michael smiled as soon as hesaw the older man—Willis owned The Crab, one of Blueberry Bay’s most popular restaurants, and he was a good friend despite his quiet, somewhat gruff demeanor.

“Welcome in,” Michael said to the other man with a smile. “You here for some coffee?”

Willis rubbed his hands together. “What else?”

“I seem to recall you buying some bakery here now and again,” Michael teased, turning a thumb toward the glass display case, which featured a pleasant array of baked treats.

“That was when Paige was baking for you,” Willis joked back. “Come to think of it, though, a muffin might be nice. One of those blueberry almond ones.”

“You got it. And a cup of coffee?”

“Black, please.”

“Perfect.” Michael smiled and got to work putting together Willis’s order. “You on a break at The Crab?”

“I am—got to take a break at some point in the day. I’ve got one of those kids cooking right now. Makes me nervous, but she is good at it.”

Michael chuckled, knowing that “kid” could be anywhere from eighteen to thirty-five. “I’m sure it’ll work out great. And hopefully this coffee helps perk you up.”

“I’m sure it will.” Willis smiled, and then he glanced down at Michael’s notebook, which was still lying open on the counter. “What are you up to?”

Michael grimaced good-naturedly. “More like what I’m trying to do. I’m trying to compose my wedding vows for my and Caitlin’s wedding.”

“You are, huh?” The older man’s face lit up in a huge grin. “That’s so exciting, Michael.”

“I wish I could just enjoy the process. I’m really struggling. I know how I feel about her, and how much I love her, and how much I want to make sure I’m a good husband to her—but I’mhaving trouble putting all of that into words. I don’t know how much to say, or how to say it.”

“Wedding vows are tricky—you’re not just talking to her. Ultimately, you’re also talking to everyone at the wedding. You’re making a promise to her and they’re your witnesses. So whatever you say to her needs to be personal to the two of you and your relationship, but it also can’t be so personal that the people watching misunderstand what you’re saying.”

“Exactly.” Michael grinned at him. “I’m getting stuck between sounding too cheesy and feeling like I’m not doing what I have to say to her justice. You got any advice for me?”

Willis smiled. His eyes took on a faraway, sentimental look, and Michael felt sure he was thinking about his girlfriend, Marsha Dunlap, who he’d rekindled a relationship with recently after spending many years apart from her. “You have to reach out and grab love—you have to be brave enough to reach for it and grab it. Making a marriage vow is like that reaching out and grabbing—you’re telling everyone else and each other that you’re determined to make your relationship last. I almost lost out on love, and it was difficult to find that courage to reach out and take hold of love. You both have already made it to this important point—you’re ready to make vows to each other. That’s the most important step. Now the trick is keeping that flame alive—fighting for it, so to speak. Lasting love is both grand and simple.” He smiled as he talked, and Michael couldn’t help smiling too. It was a long time since he’d heard Willis say this many words at once, so it was clear that what he was saying meant a great deal to him. “Marsha makes me feel like I’m the luckiest man in the whole world, and sometimes the way I love her fills me up so much it’s like I’m going to burst. Sometimes it’s grand like that. Other times, it’s simple. It’s just normal days, made of hours strung together, and all those hours are filled with little details. Sometimes love has its big, grand moments likegetting married, but a lot of it is just the day-to-day stuff. Little things that don’t feel important, but ultimately, they are.”

“Choosing someone every day, over and over again,” Michael said, smiling and feeling a kind of sweet ache in his chest. He knew the feeling Willis was talking about, of feeling like there was so much love in him he was going to burst.

“Exactly.” The older man nodded. “Remembering that even through the bad days, they make your life so much better than it would be without them. We’re all human, and sometimes marriage is hard. But what you want to say to Caitlin and all your family and friends through your marriage vows is that you’re going to keep choosing her every day, to keep that flame alive—not only because of how much you love her in the grand moments, but because of how much you love her in the little moments too.”

As Michael listened to his friend, he felt as if the spark of inspiration had been lit in him. His mind was suddenly filled with thoughts of how much Caitlin had made his life better. He felt that he couldn’t wait to start writing down all of the sentences that were suddenly in his mind.

“Wow, thank you, Willis,” Michael said, hurrying to fill Willis’s coffee cup. He didn’t mean to nudge the older man out the door, but he felt eager to get back to writing. “That helps me a lot.”

“I saw how fast you made that coffee. Trying to get rid of me now, huh?”

Michael laughed, and Willis laughed with him.

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