Page 11 of Sea La Vie
“Lucille? Really?” Eden shudders. “I’ve lived here for years, and I still flip my sign to ‘closed’ anytime that old biddy walks by.”
“No, but I keep telling myself she’s not so bad so I can sleep with both eyes closed,” he admits.
“How long are you planning on staying there?” I ask. Okay, so maybe I do care about his plans, but only a little bit.
“Just until I can get the cottage liveable. Hopefully not too long.”
“And then what?” Eden asks sliding Tate’s order to him. He takes a drink before answering.
“I told my mom I’d take care of the repairs and then put it up for sale.” He wipes at the froth that’s gathered on his top lip, and my stomach betrays me, twisting at how adorable his little milk mustache is—definitely not at the news of him leaving again. I should’ve known better to think he’d ever stay. He’s gone on to bigger and better things in the city. Why would he ever want to stay in a quiet place like this when he doesn’t even have friends here? Not anymore at least.
“What should I do around here to keep me busy in between repairs?” he asks.
“What do you like to do?” I ask. I don’t have the heart to tell him the repairs are going to take a good chunk of his time, but then again, he couldn’t even change a tire so I have a feeling most of his repairs are going to end up hired out.
“Golf, try new restaurants, shop,” he answers.
I giggle. “Well you're in luck.”
His dark eyes sparkle, and he cocks his head to the side, all ears.
“There’s still the putt putt course in town. It hasn’t been updated since the eighties when everyone thought this place would be a tourist attraction, but it should do the job for you. As for restaurants, I’m sure you saw Shuckin’ Hucks when you came into town. And for shopping, the general store is open today from ten until seven. It also doubles as the post office, so all your bases should be covered.” I roll my lips together, trying to hold in my laughter.
Tate eyes me, a slight frown forming on his lips. “You do remember I lived here every summer for twelve years, right? You’re acting like I can’t make it a month in this town.”
“I don’t think you can make it another hour,” I snap back. Guys in this town don’t wear suits and wreck their sports cars because of rogue squirrels. Surely he can read between the lines.
“That’s kind of rude,” he answers, then eyes me skeptically. “You don’t even know me anymore.” A pang of sadness stabs at my chest that this is what things have come to.
I recoil at his comment, willing the hurt to not cross my face, and fold my arms across my chest.
Eden’s eyes ping pong back and forth between the two of us, then she reluctantly pulls away to help a customer.
“Touché.” Ultimately, he’s right. I have no clue what his story is these days, and it bothers me how many chapters of him I’d like to read.
He considers me for a moment, surveying me from head to toe. Goosebumps prickle my skin at his narrowed gaze. He crosses his arms defiantly, mirroring me, and the fabric of his Henley stretches tighter across his shoulders to reveal even more ripples of muscle.
His face softens when he realizes what he’s said. “It’s still me, Lainey. I’m sorry. I’m still the same old Tate.”
“A lot changes in ten years,” I say, looking past him to the door, the ceiling, anywhere but his eyes.
“I’m sorry for how things ended,” he says. When I don’t look at him, he reaches a hand out and lays it on my forearm. I’ve missed his touch so much, and when he removes it, it hurts just as much as the sting in my chest. For a brief moment, I’m wondering what’s better—to know what love feels like but have it ripped away from you, or to never know it all.
“Let’s forget about it,” I mutter.
“Can we be friends again?” he asks. “I need your help with the cottage. I don’t know anyone here anymore, so I’m not sure who to contact. Plus, what am I supposed to do when I’m not at the cottage? Sit at Lucille’s and watch Dateline with her?Pleasedon’t make me do that.”
I give him a half smile at that.Yes, we can be friends!,my heart screams. But I can’t get myself to say it out loud. I may have instigated the fight that led to us not talking for ten years—I’ll admit that—but he’s the one who left us like a shattered puzzle, never trying to piece it back together. But still…I’ve missed him.
“Meet me at the docks tomorrow morning at four a.m.,” I sigh. If he really wants to give this a second chance, I need him to prove it.
5
Tate
Idon’t know what I was thinking, asking Lainey to slip right back into the role of my best friend, as if the past ten years have never happened. I know she doesn’t want to help me get the cottage ready to sell, let alone spend time with me. I don’t even know what she does for a living, and I feel bad for never asking. It all just kind of slipped from my mouth before I could even process what I was saying.
There’s reallynothingto do in this town, which was kind of fun when I was a kid and my imagination ran wild, but now? She’s right in the fact that I’ve grown pretty accustomed to the luxuries of living in the city, so these next few weeks could be interesting. I’ll need to cancel my weekly haircut, put my gym membership on pause, and have Jordan watch out for my automated grocery delivery.
