Page 83 of Inseverable (Carolina Beach)

I clasp his hand and shake it strong. “You’re a good man, Mason. And you’ll make a damn fine lawyer.”

“Thank you,” he says, knowing I mean it. He turns to Trin and Becca when they walk toward him, lifting them both in his strong arms. “My girls,” he tells them quietly.

Hale glances down the path, but there’s no sign of Sean. I’m scared shitless right now. I know I’m not ready to be a daddy. But I also know I love Trin, and that I’ll do right by her . . . and anyone else who comes along. Except I can’t talk to her about it until everyone leaves. So I step back and allow her a moment to say goodbye to her friend.

“I’ll go look for Sean,” I tell Hale.

“Thanks,” he says.

I take off in a steady jog, but as I reach the end of my property, there’s Sean, rummaging for pieces of wood.

He glances up. “Hey,” he says.

“Hey,” I say back.

I’m not a girl, and neither is Sean. I’m not asking him to pour his heart out or “share”. I’m going to gather some wood with him because that’s what men do. We wait in silence until someone speaks. Or we don’t speak at all.

I’ve already gathered an armful of twigs before he says his first word. “Mason was the first friend I ever made. Trin might have been my second if you don’t count Eddie Gufferson who spent recess picking his nose. I think he’s running for office in the fall, hopefully he’s a lot smarter now than he was then.”

“Hmm,” I say.

“Did you know me and Mason were roommates in college?”

“Yeah, Trin told me.”

“Everyone warned us it would be the end of our friendship. Too much of a good thing, they said.” He adds another stick to his pile. “But they were wrong. We were buddies through school. But in college, shit, we became family.”

“You’ll see him again, Sean. When people are that tight, they find a way to stay close.”

He sighs. “I don’t know. Mason’s going places. He won’t just have a job; he’ll have a career?maybe even change the world for the better while I spend my life saving men like Old Man Perrington from erectile dysfunction.”

“Someone has to, Sean,” I say, meeting him with a grin.

But he doesn’t smile back. If anything, he seems worse. “How are you doing it?” he asks. “I mean,damn, I can barely accept my best friend being a state away, but how areyoudoing it?”

I straighten, unsure what he’s talking about. “Doing what?”

He shakes his head. “I know you and Trin haven’t been together long, but I can see what she means to you. How the hell are you going to let her go? Especially to some shithole country the Peace Corps will stick her in?”

“What?”

He freezes. “What?” he repeats.

Steps close in behind me. I glance to my left to see Hale, but he doesn’t keep my attention.

I toss my stack of wood aside and march toward Sean. “Tell me what you said.” He shakes his head, like he’s ready to bolt, but doesn’t answer. “Sean,” I say again. “What did you say about Trin?”

“Shit, I . . .” He looks to Hale for help. Hale’s eyes are wide, but not because he’s shocked by what Sean said. He’s shocked by what hedid. He told me something I wasn’t supposed to know?something apparently everyone else knew but me.

“Trin’s going into thePeace Corps?”

Hale shoves his hands in his pockets and moves to stand by Sean. “Callahan,” he says. “You really need to talk to her about this.”

Yeah. I do. I storm down the path. Mason and his date are gone. Trin and Becca are sitting by the fire speaking quietly. They stop talking when they see me.

Trin stands, reaching for me. “What’s wrong, hon?”

I step out of her reach. “Please tell me you’re pregnant,” I tell her, my voice harsh. “Please tell me that’s what you want to talk to me about.”

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