Page 21 of Sharkbait
She’s sporting her typical tank top and skort. I don’t even know where she finds these things. Until I met Mabel, I thought skorts were left back in the nineties. Unless you’re a professional golfer or tennis player. And Mabel is neither of those things.
Calliope watches James and Mabel, confusion etched on herface. Then the proverbial light bulb goes on. “Ohhhhhh, you and Wally go way back, right?”
“That’s right,” James says. “I wouldn’t be standing here today if it weren’t for that guy.”
“Wally saved his life!” Mable chirps.
“Ha. Okay,” I say.
“No, really,” James says. “Wallace saved my life. Summer after senior year of high school. I nearly drowned, and he pulled me to the surface.”
“How’s that possible? You’re a swimmer! You free dived in Sri Lanka. You have the lung capacity of a whale! You love extreme sports!”
He smirks. “Someone’s been taking notes on me, I see.”
“No, I have not been taking notes,James. I just—I remember you said that you—ugh, forget it.”
Calliope’s brows scrunch together. “What the hell is going on here? Have you two hung out?”
“No!” I shout at the same time James says, “Yes.”
Calliope chuckles. “So is that a ‘no’ or a ‘yes’?”
My eyes fly to his in a you-better-not-say-a-single-word stare.
After a moment of silence, James clears his throat and turns his full attention on Mabel.
“Is this a good place to set up?” He gestures to the kitchen island.
“Yup. Here is perfect!”
Mabel frantically clears the surface of candles and potpourri. Potpourri: another thing I thought was a thing of the past until I met this new friend of mine.
Welp, if he’s going that way, I’m officially heading in the opposite direction.
I plop myself down on a floral-patterned loveseat, which has to be a hand-me-down from Mabel’s parents.
From across the room, I watch as James lines up a series of silver shakers and small liquor bottles. He dumps a bag of lemons and limes into a bowl and starts slicing fruit and mixing drinks.
I try my darnedest not to watch his forearms flex while he works.
“Can I help?” Mabel asks him. “You know I’m a helper.”
He chuckles. “I know you are. Why don’t you unwrap that charcuterie board and line up those crackers for me?”
“Sure thing, dingaling!”
Dingaling?
Mabel and James are operating like a weird, well-oiled machine. I guess they’ve gotten close since she started dating Wally.
“Love the new place!” James says while he slices.
“Aw thank you, friend!” Mabel chirps.
I startle when Calliope sits next to me.
“Staring much?”
