Page 68 of Sea La Vie
Jordan: oh no…And?
Tate: She’s taking over my lease and I’m staying here.
Jordan: ????
Tate: Dream girl. I’ll explain later. Call me soon, okay?
Jordan: *thumbs up emoji*
Jordan: I’m proud of you, man.
I smile at the screen and wonder when I can get him down here for a visit. Then, I hit my mom’s name and wait for her to answer. Right when I thought it would go to voicemail, her voice fills my speaker. “Tate, honey. How are you?”
“Good,” I answer. We make small talk for a few minutes before I can’t wait any longer and cut to the chase. “Listen, mom. I’vebeen thinking. I know you wanted to sell the cottage. But…what if I bought it?”
“You want to buy it?” she asks, not bothering to mask the surprise in her voice. “You haven’t been there in years.”
“I know. I told myself I wasn’t ever going back, but things change I guess.”
“That girl’s still there, isn’t she?” Mom asks. “Lainey was her name, I think?”
I pause. I didn’t think my parents paid us enough attention to know the names of the friends we kept while visiting Grandpa, always too busy fighting.
“Yeah,” I say slowly. “She is.”
Mom hums softly on the other end of the phone. “I wondered if this would ever happen.”
“What?” I ask.
“I knew you were crazy about that girl since the first time you met her. I also knew the second you quit talking to her. You became so focused on your goals, and I didn’t figure that was a bad thing, but I hated to see you so heartbroken.”
“I didn’t realize,” I say, then trail off, because how was I supposed to say I hadn’t realized she had paid us so much attention as kids without insulting her? She was a good mom, just sidetracked from the constant bickering and fighting with dad.
“I’m sorry for the way things turned out,” she says softly. “I wanted you kids to have a stable home to grow up in. I knew that us constantly moving was affecting your ability to make friends and your grades. I realize now I shouldn’t have picked so many fights with your dad about it, he was just doing his job. It was just…tough. And I’m sorry for dragging you all into it. Please don’t blame your dad, though.”
“It’s okay, mom,” I say. “It’s fine. I think I forgave him a long time ago.”
Mom’s silent but I can picture her smiling. “If you want the cottage, it’s yours. We can figure out details later. I’m planning a trip down there to visit Grandpa in a few weeks, actually.”
I briefly consider telling her about the note and Emma, but decide against it for now.
“That’s great, mom,” I say, distracted by a light bobbing along the horizon. Could it be? “I’ve got to go, though. I’ll call you soon.”
We hang up, and the light grows brighter with each passing second. Soon enough, everyone makes their way from Mugs and Memos, and we form a line down the docks. As the boat gets closer, I spot her, her wild hair blowing in the breeze, Midge tucked safely under her arm.
She doesn’t wait for the capitan to fully dock before she jumps over the edge, and winces landing on her feet. I’m running to meet her, dodging past half the town that’s congregated on the old wooden planks, and when she spots me, her face lights up in a smile. I all but tackle her with the biggest hug I can muster, her face buried into my chest, the smell of the salt water in her hair tickling my nose. From somewhere behind me, I hear Eden’s unmistakable cat call, and slowly, people join in and begin clapping. When Lainey breaks free from our embrace, she grins up at me.
“You’re safe,” I whisper, finally letting out the breath that’s been stored in my chest since the moment I knew she was missing. Her family joins us, and she breaks away to give each of them hugs too.
“I’m sorry,” she says, when she finally gets to her dad. “Your boat is gone.”
Her dad frowns and takes her by the hands. “I don’t care about that boat,” he says. “I care aboutyou. You’re here safe, and that’s all that matters.”
“Yeah but…it was the last place—” she gulps, and glances out at the water. “I failed you. I failed the family business.”
“Lainey, honey. You didn’t fail anything. Look at me, my girl. You think I can keep going out there, fishing for money as old as I am? I’m ready to retire.” He grins but Lainey wipes at her eyes.
“You love fishing,” she says. “And our books—”
