Page 40 of Sail Away with Me

“Another dolphin?” she’d assumed another animal had washed up on shore.

“What? No,” he said, shaking his head as he handed his phone over to her.

Her eyes widened at the text from his brother.

Dune

Sailors for a Safe Sea Regatta – Grand Prize $50K

“Whoa!”

Sail nodded. “It’s like the universe listened.”

“What does this mean, exactly?”

“This program plays a crucial role in protecting marine life while fostering a healthy relationship with the sailing community.”

“Are you going to do it?”

Sail took his phone back and began typing. He read aloud, “Sailors for a Safe Sea Regatta is a week-long laser regatta, promoting sustainability and awareness of the ocean. This competition will pit some of the best sailors against each other, with fleet racing and multiple obstacle courses.”

“What’s a laser regatta?”

“Laser is a boat type,” he told her. “They’re single-handed dinghies with a single sail and no spinnaker.”

“So, gibberish to someone like me?” She laughed, and he followed suit.

“It’s my preference,” he told her. “I like to depend on my knowledge and the wind.”

“Are you going to enter?” she picked at a piece of pepperoni and stuck it in her mouth.

Sail sighed, looked at his phone and then her. Slowly, a grin formed. “Hell yeah, I’m entering. I can win this thing.”

“Seriously?” She instantly regretted her tone. “What I mean is?—”

“I know what you mean, and yes, I can. I was the four-time state and two-time regional champion in this discipline. This will be easy.”

“How come you don’t do it in college now?”

“Sailing there is a club sport and some of the team members didn’t take it seriously, so I bailed.”

She nodded, pretending she understood. “So, when do we start training?”

“We?” He smiled at her. “I’ll start tomorrow, probably while you’re still in lala land. I’ll have to do it around my work schedule.”

“Well, I’ll cheer for you from the shore.”

“I’ll look forward to seeing you there.” He winked and then went back to eating his pizza.

sail

. . .

Sail blinked. More than once to clear the fog away from his eyes. He looked around his surroundings, trying to remember where he was when he felt someone press into him. It was then he noticed the heavy feel on his arm and tilted his head enough to find Galvin sleeping in his arms . . . with her leg between his, and her mid-thigh dangerously close to waking them both up. While he would welcome it all, he was certain Galvin would not.

Instead of waking her, he craned his neck to look at the window. The sun had begun to rise and push its rays through the trees and into her living room. The television screen asked if they were still watching.

Last night, after they finished dinner, they sat on her small sofa, which barely fit both of them, and started watching some romance movie. Sail usually went for the shoot up, conspiracy type of flicks, unless he was watchingWind—the movie based on the America’s Cup—and filmed in Seaport ages ago, long before he was even born. Still, it was his favorite movie and one he watched often.

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