Rip Current

by Jill Sanders

  “Which docks?” he called out, but the kid was already inside. Cole smiled when he heard the locks click behind him. Smart kid.

  The docks were less than three blocks away, but he drove since he didn’t know exactly where he’d end up. He spotted his brother’s car right away, since there were only two large buildings along the road.

  Pulling in next to Roman’s car, he sighed and looked at the sign above the door.

  “Dog’s Landing” was etched in thick wood and painted a bright teal. The shop looked like a free-for-all type of store, not unlike many he’d seen in his life.

  When he walked in, he realized it wasn’t actually like any he’d seen before. While most shops like this were cluttered and unorganized, this one was spotless. Its narrow aisles were neatly filled with groceries, gifts, and everything one would need on a vacation stay in the area, including bait and fishing tackle.

  Walking up to the counter, he smiled at the pretty brunette behind the counter.

  “Can I help you?”

  “I hope so.” He glanced at her name tag. “Jenny. I’m looking for my brother, Roman.”

  She smiled and nodded. “He’s helping Missy out on the boats today.” Cole felt his fingers start to tingle.

  “Missy? Marissa?” His voice sounded hollow.

  When Jenny nodded, he felt a wave of relief rush through him, followed quickly by anger. “Where can I find him?” he asked between clenched teeth.

  Jenny blinked and looked around. “Um, the boat should be coming back”—she looked down at her watch—“in about ten minutes.”

  He nodded and left the store without another word. He stepped out on the large deck of the pier, reached in his pocket for his phone, and dialed Marcus.

  “Hey.” Hearing his brother’s voice helped calm him a little.

  “You’ll never believe where I am.”

  “Aren’t you back from Hawaii yet?”

  “Yes, I’m in Carrabelle, chasing down our crazy brother, who appears to have found Marissa.”

  “What?” Cole could hear he had his brother’s full attention. “Have you seen her?”

  “No, not yet.” The phone was silent for a while.

  “Maybe you should come back.”

  “What?” Cole blinked a few times.

  “Listen, if Roman hasn’t called to tell us that he’s found Marissa, maybe he has a good reason.”

  Cole shook his head, not sure if he was hearing Marcus right. “Are you nuts?”

  “Maybe he’s trying to convince her not to get spooked away again.”

  He thought about it and felt his heart skip. Damn, why hadn’t he thought of it. Marissa might still be running from whatever had caused her to leave all those years ago, and if anyone could convince her to come back, it was Roman.

  He turned his head when he heard a boat engine. He watched as a ferry made its way slowly towards the dock. Quickly making up his mind, he rushed from the dock and jumped in the car.

  “You still there?” he heard Marcus say.

  “No, I’m going.”

  “Good. Give Roman a little more time. At least we know they’re both alive and well.”

  “I think she has a kid,” he blurted out.

  “What?”

  “Marissa. The kid looked just like her.” He remembered that expression on the boy’s face and knew that’s where he’d seen it before. On Marissa’s face, years ago, when she’d first come to the Grayton’s.

  “Well, dang. We were hoping we’d be the first ones.”

  “First ones what?” he asked as he drove by the little house again.

  “To have a kid in the family.”

  “You’re doing what now?” He blinked and stopped at a stop sign.

  “We’re having a kid.” Marcus laughed. “Just found out yesterday.”

  “Well damn!” He laughed. “Congratulations. I’ll be home in a few hours and we’ll go out to celebrate.”

  “Sounds good.” He heard Marcus sigh. “I was just hoping we’d wait until after the house was done.”

  “Not to mention the wedding.” Cole chuckled.

  “That doesn’t matter much.” Marcus laughed. “At least to me.” Cole laughed.

  ***

  Four hours into her shift, Wendy watched Cole and Marcus walk into the bar with their arms slung over each other’s shoulders. They looked great together. Happy.

  “Well, well, well.” She smiled at the pair. “Look what the cat dragged in.” She leaned across the bar and took the kiss that Cole gave her, then was shocked when Marcus leaned over and planted one on her lips as well.

  “We’re having a kid.” He smiled at her. She felt her heart skip and then she was being hugged from across the bar.

  “Does Shelly know I’m having your baby?” she joked as he pulled away, only to have him laugh. “Congratulations.” She hugged him back. “This calls for a drink.” She walked over and started pouring their favorite drinks.

  “Damn straight it does.” Cole smiled at her. “Plus, I found Roman, who apparently has really found Marissa this time.”

  “What?” They all jumped when Cassey screamed it from the other side of the almost empty room. “Just when in the hell were you going to tell me?” She marched across the room, her hands on her hips.

  Cole recoiled, and then hid behind Marcus.

  “Cole Stephan Grayton.” Cassey stopped right in front of him. “Where are they?”

  Cole’s eyes went to Marcus for help. Marcus stepped in front of his sister and took her shoulders in his hands.

  “Cass, give Roman time to convince Marissa to come home.”

  “I will not!” She tried to push his arms away so she could wipe away the tears that were streaming down her face.

  “Honey, he hasn’t actually told us,” Cole started to say, but when his sister glared at him, he stopped talking and reached for his drink instead.

  “Where are they?” she asked Marcus.

  “Just down the coast a ways. Promise me you won’t tell Julie or dad just yet.”

  “Where?” she asked again, crossing her arms over her chest.

  Marcus just shook his head and then smiled. “We’re having a baby.”

  Wendy watched Cassey’s eyes go from mad to happy quickly. “You…” She blinked and swallowed. “Shelly’s…”

  He nodded, then hugged her tightly and winked at Wendy who just laughed.

  For the rest of the evening, the three of them sat at the bar instead of the back booth. At eight, Shelly walked in, looking a little tired. Marcus rushed over and hugged her, spinning her around in circles.

  He almost carried her over to the bar stool, where he ordered her dinner and they sat and ate together. Cole shared some fish tacos with her while they watched the news on the upcoming hurricane.

  Hurricane Donna was due to arrive on Thursday. So far, it was set to be a category two, which meant that most everyone who lived there year-round would be sticking it out. Some people evacuated for every small storm, but not her.

  “So, we’ll just have a party then?” Shelly asked, sounding a little concerned.

  “Don’t worry, honey. There’s no real danger if we’re someplace safe.” Marcus hugged her. “It’s her first hurricane,” he said to the group who smiled.

  “This will be my tenth,” Wendy said, laughing.

  “Ten?” Cole glanced at her and thought. “I guess that’s about right.”

  She shook her head. “I’m sure you lose track of all the times you’ve hit the water in a big storm.”

  He smiled. “Which reminds me…” He held up his finger and took out his phone to make a call.

  She leaned on the counter and watched him persuade someone to come visit during the storm.

  “Who was that?” she asked when he walked back over to the bar.

  “Deyon.”

  Her eyebrows shot up in question. “Deyon?”

  He smiled and nodded. “He’s been hounding me for a rematch, since he was sure someone g
rabbed his board in the surf, so I told him about the storm and he’s coming down.” He smiled.

  “You are not going to be out in the water when it hits, are you?” Shelly asked, her eyes going big.

  He shrugged his shoulders. “It’s what I do.” He smiled at Shelly.

  Wendy turned around and tried to keep busy so she could keep her mind off of what she wanted to say to him. She thought about duct tape, rope, even getting some handcuffs, but knew better since he’d just talk his way out of it. There was nothing she could do to stop him from hitting the water the second the waves started getting big.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Cole watched the waves from the boardwalk and itched to grab his board. Deyon had texted him that he was half an hour away, so he was waiting to hit the water with him. In waves like this, you always took someone along, even if it wasn’t someone you liked. Trust was the key factor here and Cole trusted that if anything went wrong, Deyon could be professional about it.

  He heard the loud music from the bar behind him, and when he stepped in, he glanced over and saw Willow, Wendy’s sister, sitting at the bar, laughing at something her sister had said.

  Wendy had filled him in on their conversation and how she felt like everything was mended between them. He sighed and wished that Roman had returned his calls instead of texting the vague message.

  -Heard you stopped by. Thanks for not sticking around. Give her some time. She’s warming up to the idea of coming home soon. R

  “How’s it looking out there?” Carl asked, slapping him on his back. His photographer was all dressed up in his diving suit, just like Cole was.

  Carl was one of the best storm photographers around, and he’d been lucky enough to catch him before he’d booked a flight to South Africa.

  “It’s warming up nicely.” He rubbed his hands together and smiled. “Just waiting on Deyon.”

  Carl nodded and then walked over to sit down in a booth to talk to a few other storm surfers, who’d arrived earlier that day. Everyone would head out as a team and keep their eyes on one another.

  He walked over to the bar and smiled at Wendy, who was biting her bottom lip and looking very worried.

  He tried not to chuckle. He’d spent the last two days trying to convince her that this was nothing big. After all, he was in his own backyard, doing something he loved. Besides, it was only a category two. The waves wouldn’t be as big as the one’s he’d surfed in Hawaii two years ago during the tropical storm.

  That little bit of information didn’t help soothe her, nor had the fact that Deyon would be his wingman.

  “I don’t like that man. Maka told me what he did to you.” She’d crossed her arms and glared at him, only to have him laugh.

  “Yeah, but that was years ago. I’ve gotten him back for it. He’s still an ass to my face, but he doesn’t pull stunts like that.”

  She’d just glared at him until he’d kissed her senseless and changed the subject.

  Just then the front doors opened and Deyon walked in. All the other surfers jumped up from the booth and cheered, and then they quickly gathered their gear and started towards the door.

  Deyon walked towards the bar, smiling.

  “The damn taxi didn’t want to bring me all the way here.” He laughed. “Told me there was a hurricane coming.”

  Cole chuckled and held out his hand. This time, Deyon took it warmly in his. Competitions were different. Riding a storm was for fun and all egos were put aside.

  “Glad you could make it.” Cole smiled.

  “Had to. Can’t let you show me up outside of competitions, too.” He chuckled. “Of course, that wouldn’t have happened…” Deyon started his spiel about his board being grabbed as they started to head out.

  “Hang on a sec,” Cole said and everyone groaned. “Just a sec,” he yelled as he rushed back behind the bar and kissed Wendy until he felt all of his nerves rush out of his body. “I’ll be right back.” He smiled and ran to catch up to the rest of the group.

  ***

  “I can’t believe they’re going out in that,” Willow said as she sighed, watching the surfers head out in the rain.

  “It’s what they do,” Wendy said, not completely feeling convinced herself. She wanted more than anything to argue about it, but so far, Cole had sidestepped the conversations or had tried to convince her that he’d be completely safe.

  So she just stayed busy during the party in order to keep her mind off of the million and one dangers he and his buddies could be facing. There was actually a good crowd growing inside, which kept her busy enough. Especially since she was the only bartender there. Alan had driven down to stay with a friend during the storm, and the rest of the crew had bailed out of state to wait it out in safety. Willow had shown up just after it started raining outside, which had been a big relief.

  Cassey and Luke were upstairs in her office, while Marcus and Shelly had decided to wait the storm out at the Grayton’s across the bay. Cole and Cassey had both been relieved that their brother would be there to watch out for their dad and Julie.

  The music had been cranked up to drown out the sound of the rain and wind. Wendy watched as Cassey and Luke walked down the stairs a few minutes after Cole and his friends had left. Cassey walked over to the bar, frowning.

  “When did they leave?” she nodded to the empty booth.

  “About ten minutes ago. Why?”

  She shrugged her shoulders. “Just wanted to say…” She shook her head. “Tell him good luck.”

  Wendy smiled and took her friend’s hand. “I know.” She shook her head. “If this storm doesn’t knock some sense into him, I will.” She chuckled and felt her hands shake in Cassey’s, who squeezed them.

  “He’s a pro at this.” She chuckled. “Rode out his first storm when he was only seventeen.” She sighed. “Of course, Mom was alive, and she swore she’d kill him if he ever did anything like that again.” She smiled.

  “I thought I could change him.” She shook her head.

  Cassey laughed. “Sorry, honey, Cole isn’t going to change unless Cole decides he needs to change.”

  Maka’s words flashed into Wendy’s mind.

  “One day, he will ride a wave and decide that it’s not enough. That he’s still missing something.”

  She’d hoped that she was what he’d been missing, but since they were in a relationship and he hadn’t even slowed down, she doubted he would anytime soon. It made her sad to think about it. She hadn’t asked for a commitment from him, but she had hoped for one.

  Less than an hour later, the news station updated the storm to a category three, which meant the winds were stronger than they had first thought.

  They could hear the howling and the patter of the rain hitting the outside. Since they weren’t in the direct path of the storm, it sounded like a normal storm to everyone inside the building. Luke and Marcus had secured the storm shutters the day before, so it was a lot darker inside than normal at this time of day.

  Right after they had gotten the update on the news, the front doors opened and a bunch of surfers rushed in.

  “It’s too crazy out there,” one of them complained. “You’d have to be nuts to stay out there.”

  Wendy instantly knew that Cole wouldn’t be with the group and her heart sank a little. She glanced around and noticed that Deyon and Carl were the only three still out there.

  She stayed busy with the storm surfers who had decided it was more fun to get loaded and play pool than try and kill themselves in the storm. With the wind howling outside, she kept her mind occupied by talking to her sister or serving up drinks. She’d even had a beer herself when Cassey had demanded she relax a little.

  When the doors opened again, almost an hour later, she felt her heart skip. Then it stopped completely when she noticed that only two people walked through the doors.

  “Where’s Cole?” Cassey rushed to the door.

  Carl wiped the water from his face and frowned. “We got separated. That’
s why we’re back here.” He frowned and looked around. “We thought he’d be back by now. The current dragged us a mile up the coast.”

  Cassey glanced back at her and Wendy held onto the countertop, which was holding her up at this point.

  “We’ll go back out and see if we can find him,” Deyon said, setting his surfboard along the wall with the rest of them.

  “I’ll go with you.” Carl and two others stood up.

  “No, not you.” Cassey pointed to one man. “You’ve had a few too many beers. We don’t need someone else wandering off.”

  “I’ll go.” Another man stood up and Cassey glanced at Wendy, who nodded when she remembered the kid had only been drinking soda.

  “Okay.” She nodded.

  “Let’s meet back here in ten minutes,” Carl said, glancing at his watch.

  As they left, Cassey made her way back towards the bar.

  “I’m sure he’s on his way back here. Like they said, the current dragged them a mile down shore.”

  She nodded and then glanced down, trying to hide her tears of fear. “I’ll…” She looked around and noticed that they were low on limes. “I’ll just run to the back and cut some more limes.” She grabbed the container and rushed from the room blindly.

  When she made it to the back fridge, she leaned against the cool door and took a couple deep breaths. What had she gotten herself into? She’d known going into the relationship that it would end like this.

  Even if Cole walked through those doors right now, she had to admit to herself that she couldn’t handle being with someone like him. Not after growing up with her father. She wouldn’t—no, couldn’t—put herself through that again.

  When she felt the tears streak down her face, she cursed herself for exposing her heart so easily. This is why she had avoided him for years. She’d known he was trouble.

  Using her sleeve to clean her face, she closed her eyes and desperately wished for some fresh air. Setting the container of limes down, she opened the cooler and stepped out. Still hearing the wind and rain, she opened the back door and smiled when she noticed she could just stand under the overhang to the side and not get wet. When the door shut behind her, she sighed and felt herself steady a little more.