Page 4 of Saltwater Memories
Chapter 2
The last time that Will had gone to the San Juan Islands was when he was a kid. His parents had taken them there for an overnight camping trip. They weren’t able to take vacations when he was growing up, so at the time, he thought the camping trip was the coolest thing they’d ever done.
He didn’t know that his parents had to do everything on a shoestring budget, and that they didn’t pick camping because they were outdoorsy – rather because it was as close to free as it could be, with the borrowed tent they’d gotten from a friend at church.
Will hadn’t known the difference – he had a great time and came back to school to tell everyone about how much fun it was to sleep under the stars and skip rocks across the chilly waters. One of his schoolmates, Ellison, quickly put him into his place, telling him, “Camping is for poor people. That’s what my dad says.”
After that, Will didn’t talk about the San Juan Islands anymore.
But it was a new day and he was a new person. When he drove onto the ferry and parked his car, he felt like he was on an adventure. He didn’t care what the Ellisons of the world said anymore. He was making his own way, and somehow it felt right that the first steps were on San Juan Island.
His new assignment was to manage, maintain and repair properties on the island for Dirk Gold Group and their clients.
“If you can cinch this,” his boss Gordon told him, “I see a junior partner position in your future.”
That was music to Will’s ears. He would do whatever it took.
He wasn’t sure why, but everything about the ferry delighted him. Perhaps it was because in his memory, the ferry seemed like a magical place. Even now as an adult, it felt that way.
He climbed up the narrow stairs from the bottom deck and walked the distance of the decks three times. He went out front and peered over the railing, then out back to look at the wake. He loved the feeling of the wind against his face, and he loved the coziness of stepping back into the cabin where people were playing games, chatting and enjoying snacks.
Maybe it was childish, but he was giddy from it all. The San Juan project could solidify his position in the company for good,andhe was getting to spend time in a beautiful place.
After getting coffee, he decided to walk around the ship one more time, just to observe all of the people and admire the views from different windows. He was halfway through this trip around when he saw someone who looked familiar. It took a moment to place her, but he was pretty sure that she was the woman from the deli – the one who had slammed into him with a coffee and then run off!
“Excuse me?” he said, stepping toward her.
She didn’t look up from her laptop, seemingly engrossed in her work.
“Excuse me, Miss?”
She glanced at him. “Can I help you?”
“Don’t I know you from somewhere?”
She looked back down at her screen. “Probably not.”
He smiled. “No, I think I do.”
This time she stopped typing and actually looked at him.
He pulled open his suit jacket to reveal the coffee stain that covered half of his once-white shirt. “NYC Bistro Deli?”
“Oh. Yeah – that does ring a bell.”
“Ithoughtit was you,” he said, taking a seat across from her. “It’s nice to see you again.”
She looked him up and down. “Did you follow me all the way here? Just because I spilled some coffee on you?”
“No!” He sat back. “Not at all – I have some business on San Juan Island.”
“Sure. Stalker,” she muttered, looking back at her screen.
Will couldn’t help it – he laughed out loud. She was so delightfully disdainful. “I swear that I’m not a stalker. I work at DGG – er, Dirk Gold Group. We own some properties on San Juan Island, and I was put in charge of them. That’s it. I swear.”
She sat back and crossed her arms. “Do you have a card or something?”
He nodded, eagerly reaching into his pocket and handing her his business card.
