Page 44 of Peak of Love
It was a shitty trade, to be honest.
They never had Earth Day assignments growing up. The twins’ middle school curriculum, however, required the documentation of an outing that demonstrated kids appreciating both the wonders of nature and the impact of climate change. For most people, this assignment was likely meant to encourage a nature walk or a trail hike. Dane didn’t do what most people did.
When Celina gave him the green light to “observe” Earth Day with the boys, he rented a boat for the day to take them fishing in Beaver Lake.
He would have rented a charter to the Pacific Ocean, but knew for a fact she wouldn’t agree to it. Because she was a responsible mother and not an excitable man looking for an excuse to impress a couple of ten-year-olds. Maybe when they were older, he would take them on a real fishing trip. The thought made him smile because it sounded exactly like the kind of trip Asher would have planned for his boys.
“What’s the biggest fish you ever caught?” Jerome asked as they parked in the recreation area of the seventy-six-acre Beaver Lake Preserve.
Before the boys were born, Dane and Asher had gone wild salmon fishing off the coast of Oregon. “Your dad caught a twenty-pound coho salmon once. We spent the whole day catching and throwing back a bunch of tiny ones. Right before we were going to turn around, he reeled in a biggie.”
“Did you catch anything like that?” Jonas asked.
He was taken aback by the question because he always considered these inquiries as the boys’ way of asking about their father. It was never about Dane. After a thoughtful pause, he answered the question honestly.
“I went to Key West once. That’s in Florida. I caught a marlin which took me two hours to bring in. That thing was a beast. I thought the rod was going to snap!”
“Was it huge? Like a hundred pounds?” Jerome asked.
“More,” Dane said, recalling it must have been closer to two hundred pounds.
“Did you eat it?” the boys asked at the same time.
He chuckled. He was amused, although the memory also elicited other reactions. He could still recall the fish’s mouth when he got it halfway out of the water. It had stopped fighting. The stillness, after hours of struggle, allowed him to focus on the brown speckled silver scales. Dane saw his hook at the corner with no less than two other old hooks from previous, failed catches. Dane remembered the erratic movement of the fish’s glassy eyes when he decided to release it back into the water.
“Nah, I let it go.”
“If we catch anything today, I’m going to let it go,” Jonas announced.
“Why?” Dane asked, intrigued by the statement.
“Because that’s what you did,” the boy answered, and the words lodged themselves like a tattoo in Dane’s chest.
“I’m going to catch at least five!” Jerome declared.
Dane didn’t doubt it, especially since it was early spring and the lake was probably newly stocked with rainbow trout and largemouth bass for the upcoming season.
He ruffled both kids’ hair as they approached the dock where the small motorboat he rented was waiting. They had access to three interconnected lakes about an hour from Seattle. It was quiet for Sunday morning, probably because it was still chilly with the constant threat of precipitation. They were decked in rain gear, packed with lunch, and ready to Earth Day the shit out of that fishing trip.
It only took a little over an hour to realize the futility of Dane’s expectations. After having caught only water weeds and a couple of small trouts that had to be thrown back in, the boys asked to be brought to one of the shorelines so they could scrounge around the mud and dig for treasure. And by treasure, they meant worms and other critters that they tried to turn into bait. So much for the expensive rods and colorful baits Dane brought. The kids just wanted to muck around in their rain boots without anyone minding how dirty they got. It was truly adorable and kind of perfect.
He sent Celina a picture of the boys on their knees, building some kind of fort with driftwood and rocks. Their faces were smeared with dirt and their smiles brighter than the sun.
Celina:Wow! Looks more like digging than fishing, but you do you, boys!
Dane:I don’t think we’ll be bringing home anything for dinner tonight.
Celina:Aw, shucks. Was really looking forward to those delicious lake side worms.
Dane:No worries. I brought a cooler. Happy to put some of those worms aside for you.
It was the most they had texted each other in a long time. Dane felt the pang of wanting to call her.
Instead, he sent another picture. A picture of the boys pretending to dangle worms over their mouths. Jesus, was he this disgusting at ten? Probably. Certainly, Asher would have been the fun risk-taker who could talk Dane into just about anything. Including putting disgusting critters within inches of his mouth. He shuddered with disgust and amusement.
In response, Celina sent a picture of her at a brunch date with a few girlfriends. She was wearing the red sweater she wore in Whistler in what now felt like ages past. The angle did wonders for a view of her chest and basically secured a permanent vise in his chest.
He missed her. He missed her so much.
