Page 60 of Stepping Into Tomorrow

Nash waited until she drove away to get back in the boat with Eli.

“Okay. Give it a little gas—not too much.”

“This is a no-wake zone,” Eli said.

“Yup. So, let’s go slow and get past the buoys.”

Eli listened as Nash helped him navigate the boat into open water, following the coast towards the Noveas Marina.

“You know owning a boat is a huge responsibility.”

Eli nodded. “Yes. I’ll take care of it. I’ll keep it clean. And perform maintenance checks every month. Or when there is a problem.”

“And always keep your life vest on, okay, bud?”

“Yeah, Mom already told me that.”

“You shouldn’t take it out alone yet—not until you get some more experience under your belt and you’re older.”

“Like Anthony?” Eli asked.

“Eh, even Anthony isn’t ready for some weather. The forecast out here can change on a dime. It’s good practice to always keep an eye on the weather.”

“How do I do that? Mom won’t let me have a phone, and even if she did, I can only have screen time between certain hours. And when I sleep I have to close my eyes.”

Right. Eli doesn’t understand idioms. “I just mean, make sure you check the weather before you go out.”

“Okay.”

“Also, make sure you let someone know where you’ll be going when you do go out. Just in case, for safety.”

“Okay,” Eli repeated.

The kid was probably sick of his safety talk, but the ocean could be the most beautiful thing Mother Nature had created one minute and the nastiest bitch the next.

“We’ll have to get it fitted with a new radio,” Eli said.

“Yes. You know, you can come out with me and Anthony more often if you want to learn the ropes of things.”

“I already know how to tie eight types of knots.”

Knots? What does that have to do with . . . oh. Ropes. “I meant you can come with us and learn how to manage a boat and how to fish these waters.”

“Like an apprenticeship?” Eli asked, scanning the water ahead.

“Sure. I know you only have another month until school starts, but you’re welcome to join us if your mom says it’s okay.”

Eli beamed, looking at his chest like he’d hung the moon. But that wasn’t the case. If anything, Nash was the darkness that surrounded the light, trying to extinguish the brightness not because he was nefarious, but because it was his curse. He ruined everything he loved. Ana. His family had suffered from the accusations against him, losing contracts with some local stores because of Nash’s reputation. His body tensed as a dark cloud of regrets loomed over him.

“My dad would be happy if he was alive.” Eli’s monotone voice pulled Nash from his depressing thoughts. It almost sounded like he was bored, but that was just how Eli spoke.

“Yeah?” Nash’s voice came out hoarse.

Eli’s gaze stayed on the horizon. “We looked at a Boston Whaler Montauk together. It was in his top-five choices of boats for us to get.”

“Did you like going fishing together?”

“I did. I think my dad only went because I liked it. He wasn’t really interested in outdoor things.”

---