Page 44 of Before Forever

“Come on. Let’s take a different way.”

She followed me down to the shore of the lake, which would lead right up her back porch after a mile or two. I was in the mood for a nice long walk, and it was only better with Melody by my side.

“That woman was flirting with you,” Melody teased with a smile, but I could tell it bugged her deep down.

I was kind of relieved that Melody finally knew more about me and everything I had lost. It made it easier to talk to her.

“Ever since I lost my wife,” I clicked my tongue and shook my head. “Every woman in town has been after me. Always batting their lashes and cooking me casseroles. I think I know a thing or two about what pretty women like you go through every day now. Like you’re a piece of meat for sale. It’s exhausting.”

“Oh, yes. It must be so hard to have every young, pretty woman in town drooling all over you,” she laughed sarcastically.

“It might not be so bad. If…If I was interested in any of them.”

Her smile and laughter faded as we walked on, giving me the feeling I had said something wrong.

“I didn’t exactly mean you,” I added softly. “I mean, it’s complicated. But you know that I…well it’s different with you.”

“So you don’t mind me flirting with you?” she asked.

“I’ll give you a pass,” I winked. “Anyway, Jan and I go way back. It’s all harmless fun for her. We went to high school together, and she used to have a big crush on me.”

“So, you’re a heartbreaker?” she smirked. “It has to be so weird growing up in a small place like this where everyone knows each other. And you all have so much history together. You said all these women started hitting on you after what happened. When I lost my mom, the only people in New York who knew or even bothered to care were my best friend and the people at my office. Mostly just my boss, since I was missing work. And my co-worker Jeffery, because he wanted to steal my job.”

“I have a feeling you wouldn’t let him do that so easily.”

“I’m trying not to. Being stuck here with the unstable internet is working in his favor,” she sighed.

“Yeah, but just look at where you are right now.”

I stopped and waved my arms across the horizon where seagulls were gliding through the air, dipping down to scoop up what they could from the water. Pieces of driftwood glittered in the sun, bobbing back and forth against the rocks on the shore. Three fishermen were lined up on the dock in the distance with their legs and poles dangling over the edge. The gentle tide of the water was so rhythmic that it could lull you right to sleep if you let it.

A cold breeze gushed through Melody’s ponytail. She closed her eyes and inhaled the smell of algae and water. The air was still touched by an earthy smell from that morning’s rain, and dark heavy clouds still hung overhead.

“Do you think Jeffery is looking at anything half as beautiful as this right now?” I asked her, referring to the scene around us. But secretly, I was comparing the sight of her taking it all in, which was just as beautiful.

“Depends on your definition of beauty, I guess,” she shrugged, pursing her lips to the side. “He’s probably pouring all of his attention into Natasha and her friends.”

“Natasha?”

Her eyes darted over to me, then rolled up to the sky. “Oh, just a supermodel my firm represents. Some might argue that a hoard of gorgeous size two lingerie models with big boobs and long legs are more enjoyable than a smelly old lake. Not that I feel that way about this place. But you know, some people. Like my ex. He hates the outdoors. And he loves girls like that. Natasha, specifically. But I imagine any old supermodel would do.”

My eyes burned into her as she ranted. I knew she had been hurt, and I could tell those wounds were still stinging. I also knew she had no idea how truly gorgeous she was. She had more to her than any model I could imagine parading around in lingerie. Those women never seemed real to me. They were like plastic Barbie dolls. There was no soul in their eyes.

“How do you feel about this place?” I asked.

She looked back over the water and gave it some thought. “Not the way I expected to,” she admitted. “In a good way. I like it more than I thought I ever could. But I didn’t grow up here. I don’t know if I’d feel the same way if my ex lived right around the corner and everyone knew what happened between us.”

“It’s not all gossip, you know,” I said as we turned to keep walking. “Everyone looks out for each other. It makes things challenging when you’re in a dark place, and you think you just want to be left alone.”

“Tell me about it,” she huffed. “That’s exactly how I felt when I first came here.”

“But maybe that’s what we need at times like that, you know? Someone to stick with us and look out for us. Even if we swear it’s the last thing we want. My brother has a special knack for that kind of thing. Saying or doing something that drives you nuts, that later on proves to be exactly what you needed.”

I didn’t mention that she was a perfect example of that. He didn’t like Melody much because he didn’t know her. But he knew me spending time with her was good for me. That didn’t make it any less annoying when he was right.

“My friend Katie is like that sometimes,” she flashed a fond smile.

We walked all the way back to her place, but then somehow, we just kept walking. Over an hour passed with us talking about everything, how we grew up, and how different Silver Point was from New York.

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