Page 81 of Sail Away with Me

“Hopefully, I’m the one holding the trophy.”

“Go get ‘em,” Dune said before Sail turned toward his boat.

The fleet launched their boats, and Sail’s ILCA 7 glided gracefully over the water. The familiar creak of the tiller and the taut hum of the mainsheet felt like home. As the five-minute countdown began, Sail positioned himself near the starting line, scanning for clear air. And making sure he knew where Lex Danke was.

“Two minutes!” the committee boat signaled, and the fleet jostled for position. Sail stayed calm, his eyes darting between the windward mark and the cluster of boats around him.

The horn blared, and they were off. Sail surged forward, his timing perfect. His boat caught the breeze, and he quickly found himself in clear air. The wind filled his sail, and the dinghy shot through the water like an arrow.

The first leg was upwind, and Sail hiked hard to keep the boat flat, his legs burning with the effort. He adjusted the cunningham to flatten the sail and squeezed every ounce of speed from his boat. The fleet spread out, but Sail was neck and neck with Lex. He the seasoned veteran and Sail, the one no one expected to give Lex a challenge.

The first tack came quickly. Sail executed it with precision, shifting his weight and trimming the mainsheet in one fluid motion. The boat responded instantly, gliding through the tack with minimal loss of speed. He gained a few feet on Lex, a small but critical advantage.

Sail focused on catching the waves, using them to gain bursts of speed. His timing was perfect; he surfed down a small swell, extending the gap between him and Lex. At the leeward mark, Sail’s maneuver was flawless, and he moved further into the lead.

The final leg was a short upwind dash to the finish. Sail held his position, covering his rival and defending against his everymove. When Sail crossed the line, the horn signaled his victory. He leaned back, letting out a deep breath.

And then the tears came. They rushed forward without warning or pause. He wiped at his cheeks as he steered back to his slip, where his dad and brothers waited. When they came into view, they were clapping wildly, just as he imagined his mom and Galvin were doing.

The sudden urge to get to Galvin had him pushing his dinghy a bit faster. When he reached his slip, his brothers were there to hold the dingy down so Sail could disembark. As soon as his foot touched the dock, Jack pulled him into his arms. He lifted his son off the ground and spun him around, and then it was Dune, Tidal and Crew’s turn. Their moment was short before the officials reached them.

Doing the publicity stuff was the last thing Sail wanted to do right now. He wanted to go to Galvin and see her, celebrate with her.

The official congratulated Sail and led him up the dock. Sail looked over his shoulder at his dad. “Can you go get Galvin and Mom?”

“On it,” Tidal said as he held his phone to his ear.

Sail was thankful for his brother. It slipped his mind that his dad would want to be included with everything that was about to happen. It’d been years since he raced and won, but each time his dad was by his side.

Jack caught up with Sail and walk by his side. “I’m damn proud of you.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

“Mom and Galvin are on their way over here.”

“Great. I want everyone with me.”

“We’re not going anywhere, son.”

By the time they reached the official tent, Pearl and Galvin were running toward them. Pearl got to Sail first and huggedhim. She praised her son and then hugged him again before stepping aside.

Galvin smiled and seeing her look at him the way she was, was worth more than winning. Sail pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly, blocking everyone out. She was all that mattered right now.

“You did it,” Galvin said as she stepped back. “You won!”

“Yeah, I did.” He had, in more ways than one.

“Mr. Carter, if you could come with me, please.” The official waved him forward. He grabbed Galvin’s hand and tugged her behind him. They were taken to the back of the official’s tent and told to wait there while they finalized the race results. Dune, Tidal and Crew came back there and another round of hugs and congratulatory pats on Sail’s shoulders happened.

“I can’t thank you enough for kicking my ass,” Sail said to Crew. “If you weren’t as good as you are, I wouldn’t have stood a chance.”

“I learned from the best,” Crew said.

The brothers hugged.

“Do you think Lex Danke is going to file a protest?” Sail asked his dad.

“Your race was clean,” Jack said. “Everything fell into place when you needed it to.”

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