The Leftover

by Brooke Williams

  Grace giggled. “Please promise me you’ll do that for the next meal.”

  Megan stared at the crappie in her hands, unable to think about anything but the feel of its scales. “I better get this to Carson for . . . prep.”

  “Think we’ll need more?” Grace asked.

  Megan shrugged as she held her arms as far away from her body as possible. “Probably. Tank could eat these two alone. More wouldn’t hurt.” She gingerly walked toward the woods and found Carson pulling guts from the first fish to create a fillet. “She got another one.” Megan held the jerking fish out to him.

  Carson shook his head. “Amazing. Forget the hooks and lines, all we need is Grace. I’m glad she’s on our side.”

  Megan smiled as he removed the fish from her grasp. She hadn’t talked to Carson much, more because of her embarrassment around cute guys than anything. But she was starting to think of him as a brother-like figure. That helped her now when she found herself alone with him in the forest with only a slimy crappie between them.

  “Can you get this one on the fire?” he asked. “The sooner we eat, the better.”

  Megan agreed. They were all hungry. Starving, really. And the first fish didn’t look much like a real fish anymore. In fillet style, it looked much more like what she was used to seeing at the supermarket. “I’ll see what I can do.”

  She took the bucket with the fresh fish from Carson and turned to hit the beach.

  “Hey, Megan,” he called. “Do me another favor?”

  Megan turned back in his direction. “What’s that?”

  “Put in a good word for me? With Grace?”

  Megan cocked her head, half teasing. “What about Kat?”

  “Kat?” Carson asked, looking confused.

  Megan thought back to the past few days. Kat had placed her manicured nails on Carson’s shoulder at every possible moment, but Carson hadn’t reciprocated, or even noticed. Perhaps Kat wasn’t his type. Megan assumed any man would like a put-together woman like Kat. At least in appearance.

  “Never mind,” Megan said. “I think Grace enjoys your company and I won’t have a hard time saying nice things about you.” She admired Carson’s work ethic and he never said a bad word about anyone, even when those sleeping on the beach annoyed the lean-to crew.

  “Wow, thanks, Megan.” He beamed at her.

  Megan nodded and spun on her heel to deliver the fish to the fire. She was glad she was over her initial crush on Carson. He was a charming, attractive man and now that she could speak to him, she considered him a friend. In her years working at home, relating to her clients via email, she had trouble calling anyone “friend.” But here on the beach, she’d made several in a matter of days.

  By the time she reached the pit, the others from the beach group were starting to stumble out of their shelter. They’d spent a long night in the lean-to and no one got much sleep. While Grace, Megan, and Carson got to work finding food in the morning and Leo kept the fire going, the others returned to their original shelter and went back to sleep.

  Megan watched Leo stoke the flame then spear the fish on a stick and string it across the top of the fire to roast. She watched as Kat emerged from the beach shelter, stretched and looked around, probably trying to locate Carson. Andrew followed, buttoning his suit jacket as if he were preparing to prosecute a trial, and Tank appeared when the first line of smoke peeled off the fish.

  “I smell food!” he announced. Everyone quickly gathered around the fire.

  “Did you get that with my earring?” Kat fingered her empty ear.

  “No. Grace caught it. And there’s more where this one came from.” Megan turned as Carson joined them from the woods with the second fish.

  “Welcome to our feast.” Carson bowed as he placed the second fish on another stick.

  The group eagerly took spaces around the fire, watching the fish sizzle. Grace sent Carson back into the woods two more times with several more fish before she joined the circle.

  “I don’t even want to know where these came from,” Kat said as she took her share from the first fish. “Don’t tell me anything.” She bit into the fish and made a face. “It’s the most disgusting and most delicious thing I’ve ever had in my life.” They each got a small bite of the first fish, just enough to whet their appetites.

  Tank devoured an entire fish on his own. Given his recent medical emergency, no one complained. The rest of the group shared two more fish as they came off the fire. By the time the fifth fish was ready, Tank was back in the mix and no one begrudged him his share. All eyes remained on whoever was taking a bite as the contestants waited their turn with each fish. There wasn’t enough to completely satisfy everyone, but their stomachs were fuller than they had been in days.

  Andrew sidled up to Grace while everyone let the protein settle into their systems. “We should chat later.”

  Megan leaned in their direction. She wanted to hear what he had to say, and she needed to remember to warn Grace against deals with Andrew.

  “We’re chatting now, Andrew. What do you want?”

  Megan stifled a laugh. She loved Grace’s direct approach.

  “I think you and I could work well together.”

  “Is that so?” Grace gave him the once over. “Are you willing to part with that tie?”

  Andrew blinked down at his tie. “My tie? You want my tie?”

  Grace shrugged. “It would make a cozy pillow.”

  “You want to use my tie . . . as a pillow?” Andrew looked aghast at the idea of his precious tie lying in the sand, acting like nothing more than a piece of fabric cushioning someone’s head.

  “At least that way I’d have my eyes closed when I was near it.”

  Megan snorted and Andrew turned and glared at her. He got up and stormed away. Grace giggled softly and bumped her fist against Megan’s.

  Megan should have known. Grace had his number. She wouldn’t work with him if he were the last man on the beach. And if the lean-to crew had anything to say about it, he wouldn’t be the last one left anywhere.

  The morning sun burned into the afternoon hours and the contestants split off into groups. Some wandered by the water while others took refuge in the shade. Megan took advantage of the empty lean-to and napped for a while. She’d had a more spacious place to sleep the night before, but she’d been up late listening to Cane’s stories, and she needed to catch up to be fresh for the competition. Now that her stomach had a little food in it, sleep would do her good.

  As soon as she dozed off, she found herself back inside Cane’s tent, his arms wrapped around her. One of his hands rested at the small of her back while the other one stroked her spine. She looked unabashedly into his eyes and puckered her lips as she stood on her toes. His eyes sparkled as he stared back at her and leaned down to press his lips against hers.

  She moaned softly as she tilted her head and threaded her fingers through his curly hair. The curls were even softer than she imagined. The kiss went on much longer than Megan dreamed any kiss could last and when it finally ended, they pressed their foreheads together and gazed into each other’s eyes. Neither spoke, but no words were necessary. They were perfectly in sync and completely comfortable.

  “Megan. Megan, wake up!”

  Megan jolted awake and found her hand in her own hair, tangled in her ponytail.

  She blinked a few times and prayed she hadn’t been talking in her sleep like Tank the night before. “What? What is it?” she asked as Grace’s face came into focus.

  “Wendy’s on her way over. The competition is going to start soon. The crew said to wear swimsuits.”

  Megan rolled to her side and sat up. She was stiff in places she didn’t know she had, and her mind was obviously preoccupied with things outside of the game. She needed to get her head back in the game.

  As she changed into her swimsuit, she hoped Cane would be nearby to guide her through whatever the challenge held that day. And she tried to imagine a competition that required a
swimsuit but no swimming.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Megan stood on the beach. There was nothing in sight but Wendy Weathersby on her board. She exchanged a look with Grace. There was nothing set up for them to do. Megan’s body ached from head to toe. The beach was not her friend. She needed to start dreaming of soft, cozy mattresses instead of Cane.

  Thinking his name caused her to search for him. She found him standing amidst the crew, just to the right of Wendy.

  “Welcome, Leftovers!” Wendy greeted. “You may be wondering about today’s challenge.”

  The group looked at each other.

  Wendy gleefully pointed to the water behind them. “Today, Wendy Weathersby has organized a water competition.”

  Megan slowly turned as the blood drained from her face. Surely, Wendy hadn’t jumped in that water and organized anything at all, but that was beside the point. They were going to swim.

  Wendy picked up where she left off. “You will all swim out to the middle of the bay where you’ll find a colored buoy.”

  Megan squinted. She could see five buoys lined up in a row. This was worse than she could have imagined.

  “Each buoy has a series of knots below the surface. Dive down, find the knots and untie them. Once all the knots are untied, bring the buoy back with you to shore. The first person back wins protection from tonight’s elimination.”

  Megan let the instructions settle in. Could she even make it to the buoy in the first place?

  “Here’s the catch.” Wendy paused. “There are five buoys and ten of you. We will run the competition twice and two people will receive protection.”

  Danae gasped and Nathan cheered. Two people safe from elimination. It was huge.

  Megan sighed. She would be lucky to survive the competition, much less win protection.

  “I’ll draw names for teams.” Wendy pulled out the first five names, and Megan was relieved not to be among them. At least she could watch the first round. Maybe she would gather some useful tips.

  Megan cheered Grace on as she swam the distance with long, wide, confident strokes. Grace took a large lead, even ahead of Andrew who had swiftly shed his suit all the way down to what looked like a Speedo. Megan tried not to look at him, but it was like a car accident . . . hard not to stare. Everyone else had come to the beach in their swim attire—Megan in her black one piece; Kat in her itsy bitsy, teeny tiny, yellow polka dot bikini; Juan in bright blue swim trunks; Grace in her red tankini. But Andrew had to go for the dramatic striptease.

  Megan removed her glasses and wiped them against her swimsuit. When she put them back on her nose, she shielded her eyes and tried to catch sight of Grace. Her head was gone. She was below the water working on the knots. After Grace popped back up for air, Andrew reached his buoy followed by Nathan, Leo, and Juan.

  “Come on, Grace, you can do it!” Megan called every time Grace’s head surfaced. She was underwater at least a minute each time, if not more. The fifth time she disappeared, the buoy jerked and then started moving toward the beach. Megan frowned and watched as Grace surfaced partway back to the shore. Not only had she untied the knots, but she had started swimming in the right direction. She was amazing.

  Grace reached the shore to a line of cheers. Even those who lived in the other shelter knew what she had done was quite a feat.

  Wendy screeched through a mega phone. “Grace wins! The rest of you can return to the beach.”

  Crew members in canoes visited each buoy and retied the knots for the next round. Megan listened to Grace’s excited descriptions while wondering if any buoy was looser than another. She needed all the help she could get.

  “Second group, take your spot on the shore,” Wendy commanded.

  Megan glanced down the beach. She was up against Carson, Danae, Kat, and Tank. She didn’t think Tank would be competition. He would probably sink to the bottom, especially after his rough night. Kat might have to fight to keep her top in place so maybe Megan could best her as well. But Carson was strong and athletic, and Danae looked determined with her hair piled atop her head in a high ballerina bun. She wore a purple and pink swimsuit that looked like it came out of an Olympic swimwear catalog. If Megan had to guess, she’d say Danae was not new to the swimming scene.

  “I’m out,” Kat called as she stood from her readied position.

  Wendy’s face registered shock. “You’re not going to participate?” With no explanation, Kat shook her head and backed away from the water.

  One down, three to go. Megan shook her head. At least the crew wouldn’t have to worry about blurring out Kat’s chest if she had a swimsuit malfunction in the water. Megan found herself slightly disgusted by the high-maintenance woman. Megan wasn’t a strong swimmer and she knew it, but at least she was willing to try. With that kind of attitude, Kat didn’t deserve a spot on this beach.

  “Are the rest of you ready?” Wendy was way too close with the megaphone.

  Megan nodded uncertainly, searching over her shoulder for a glimpse of Cane. He raised a hand to her, his lifeguard flotation device gleaming in the sun. He was their medic and their lifeguard too, apparently.

  “Megan, you want to leave your glasses here?” Wendy asked loudly.

  “No glasses, no vision,” Megan replied.

  Wendy shrugged and yelled again. “And go!”

  Megan waded out into the water, lifting her legs up high to gain as much time as possible. She watched as Carson and Danae started swimming. Tank floated on his back and made slow progress.

  What do you know, Tank can float. Megan’s feet could still touch the bottom of the bay. There was no reason for her to start swimming yet. It would be slower than walking in her case. She stretched her toes so she stood on their tips and took a few more steps. The water crept up to her chin. She was halfway to the buoy. It was time.

  Megan kicked her legs and lifted herself from the sand below. She paddled her hands in front of her. Yes, she was doing the doggy paddle on TV, but what else was she supposed to do? It was her most commanding stroke. The other competitor’s heads started to disappear as they worked on their knots. Megan’s only hope was that they would struggle to untie their buoys.

  When she reached her destination, her body was exhausted and she was out of breath. She clung to the large buoy, thankful that it kept her afloat. She watched Carson resurface to grab a breath and go back under.

  “Here goes nothing.” Megan gulped in as much air as her lungs could hold and pushed herself under the water. She squeezed her eyes shut and worked her hand down the rope and found the first knot. It came undone easily. Megan went back to the surface and wiped some of the water from her glasses. She took a moment to survey her competition. No one else was swimming toward the beach yet. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. She could do it.

  Megan gulped in a big breath of air and plunged back underwater. Her fingers moved down the rope until she found the next knot. She didn’t bother opening her eyes or cleaning her glasses. It didn’t matter where the other contestants were. The second and fourth knots were just as easy as the first, but the third gave her trouble, and she had to surface, gasping, before throwing herself down to finish it.

  After the fourth knot, she struggled to the top and attempted to get enough air into her lungs to satisfy her body. With a final deep breath, she threw herself back underwater. By the time she found the last knot, her lungs were begging for air. The knot was more complicated and her fingers grew numb around it as she struggled to untie the rope. Her body screamed for air, but she really wanted to free the buoy to prove she could complete the task.

  Megan let air bubbles escape slowly as she worked the knot. No luck. She had no choice but to surface. With a gasp, her head popped above. There was some garbled yelling coming from the shore, but water filled her ears and she was unable to make sense of it. Probably just Wendy narrating the race as she had the first. Megan guessed someone was heading back to the beach. She wasn’t going to win, but she couldn’t pull a Kat an
d quit trying until it was over for sure.

  She dove back into the water and found the final knot again. She unraveled a bit more of it, surfaced for one more breath, and then freed the buoy with a final tug.

  Megan was gasping for air when she returned to the surface. She ignored the now-free buoy and began to dog paddle back to shore. She couldn’t see much around the drops of water that clung to her glasses, but at least what she could make out was more clear than blurry.

  Come on, arms, keep going! She only had to make it halfway before she could stand and walk the rest of the way, but she was so tired. She felt her head slip under water and strengthened her resolve. Go, legs, go! Her arms weren’t working very well anymore so she kicked harder with her legs to resurface. She sucked air in before resting her legs for a moment. Megan tilted her head back to keep her chin above the water as she tried to get her arms going again. She was concentrating so hard on telling her limbs what to do and failing that she didn’t hear the splashing figure coming toward her.

  “I’ve got you.” The voice rang through her haze. “Just relax.”

  Megan turned onto her back, her muscles screaming even though she had stopped moving, and let herself be dragged toward the beach.

  “I got the buoy,” she said softly.

  “You sure did. Well done, Megan.”

  Once Megan was sitting on the sand, her senses returned. Her glasses were blurred with water. She took them off and shook them. Cane was kneeling beside her. His hair was wet but still just as curly. He had the flotation device strapped around his bare chest. Megan blinked as embarrassment rose onto her cheeks. Her glasses were still in her hand so she couldn’t see very well, but what she could make out was impressive. He definitely had the body of a lifeguard.

  “I . . . guess I got tired.” She wanted to explain herself and push the embarrassment away as quickly as possible.

  Cane patted her shoulder. “You did well. You might have even made it to shore, but I was concerned.”

  Megan nodded, ducking her head. “Thanks for saving me.”