by Sarah Morgan
“Whenever we get the chance.” He glanced in his mirror and saw Lulu looking back at him, loyal and devoted. He was hoping she played her role well and helped Fliss to unwind.
Fortunately she seemed relaxed enough at the moment.
“Matilda said you and Chase sail together.”
“Sometimes. And sometimes I sail with his brother Brett. Sometimes I just take Lulu.” He parked at the pretty waterfront and heard Fliss sigh.
“I love this place. They have the most spectacular Fourth of July fireworks display. Grams used to bring us.”
“I saw you a few times.” And he’d watched her, seen her face glow as she’d watched the night sky light up with a glittering explosion of stars. “We used to come here, too. My dad was a member of the yacht club.”
She turned to look at him. “You must miss sailing with your father. I know you loved that. I used to sit on the beach and watch the two of you.”
The pain was sudden and acute, like a kick in the gut. “Yes. It was the time we both used to unwind. He was the one who taught me. Took me out on the water before I could walk. He had so much knowledge about the waters around Gardiner’s Bay and Shelter Island.”
“And he passed that on to you.”
“Sometimes he took Vanessa, and I used to hate that because it was something I did with him. It was ours. I didn’t want to share it with my sister. I was fiercely jealous.” He glanced at her. “I bet you can’t understand that. You shared everything with your sister.”
“And nothing with my father. I guess every family is different.”
“I guess it is.” He parked and sat for a minute fighting off the memories that swooped and swirled around him. “Once a year we used to compete in the yacht race. My father was so competitive.” It made him smile to remember it. “Sometimes we just used to go out on the water and spend the weekend harbor hopping.”
“Is it worse sailing without him or does it help?”
“It helps. It definitely helps.”
“Then let’s sail. Let’s do this.” She gave his hand a squeeze and opened the car door.
Lulu sprang out, tail wagging approval, game for anything.
And so was Fliss. It was one of the things he’d always loved about her, the fact that whatever anyone suggested her answer was always yes.
He watched her tease and play with Lulu, talking to her, telling her she was a beautiful girl and clever.
Grateful for those few extra moments, he shook off the dark cloud, climbed out of the car and removed the cooler and a large bag from the trunk.
“I hope you’re hungry.”
“As it happens I am, which is just as well because over-catering seems to be a habit of yours. You inherited your mother’s hospitality gene.” She straightened. “I didn’t know you kept your boat at the yacht club. What about your private dock?”
“I might move it there eventually, but right now it’s convenient for me to keep it here.”
Lulu was running in circles, tail wagging.
“Someone is excited.” Fliss stooped to fuss over her again. “How long have you had her?”
“The boat or the dog?”
She laughed. “Lulu.”
“Six years.” Seth slammed the car door and carried the gear to the boat. “She was the star of a long-running TV series. She was injured filming a stunt, and they brought her to my clinic.”
“This is when you were working in California?”
“Yes. We got talking about how she’d have to be retired and how hard it would be to find a home for her. She gave me a look. Big eyes. Sorrowful. I was completely taken in. It was only later I learned that ‘sorrowful’ on demand was one of her party tricks.”
“So you kept her. Lucky dog.”
Seth glanced at Lulu, who could brighten his day with each friendly wag of her tail. “I was the lucky one. She’s a real character. And because she did so many things when she was working in movies, she’s game for anything. She’s so brave.” Another thing she had in common with Fliss.
“She’s not purebred Labrador?”
“Part Labrador, part retriever.”
Lulu sprang onto the boat with a single joyful bound.
Fliss stayed on the dock, studying the boat from bow to stern. “This isn’t the boat you used to sail.”
“I’ve had this about six years.”
“You had a little sloop. A classic wooden sailboat that your dad spent every weekend restoring. He was always trying to track down certain types of wood or canvas. I was always surprised that a lawyer would know so much about boatbuilding.”
“It was a hobby. And he was an incredible craftsman. The boat was his relaxation. His way of leaving the city and the job behind.”
“What happened to the sloop?”
“He sold it. Life got busier and we didn’t have the time to keep maintaining it.” And he missed those days. Those easy, lazy weekends where the only sounds had been the clink of masts and the soft slap of water against the hull of the boat. “This boat is easier to sail. And she’s fast.”
“How fast?” Fliss’s eyes gleamed. “Are we going to get a speeding ticket?”
“You’d like that.”
“It would be an adventure. It’s been a long time since I was on a boat. Does that matter? Am I going to need to help?”
“I can sail her singlehanded if I need to. She has a self-tacking jib and auto-whisker pole.”
“No idea what that is, which proves that whatever you taught me, I’ve forgotten.”
“You don’t have to know anything. I’ll tell you what to do. You just have to follow orders.” He stepped onto the boat and stowed the cooler. “Think you can do that?”
“If the alternative is taking an unscheduled dip in the ocean, then yes. You know how to motivate a girl.” She paused and glanced at him, and there was a wistful look in her eyes. The look she gave him made him pause.
“What? Now you’re scared that you’ll drown? Don’t be. I’m a good sailor and you can wear a life jacket.”
“It’s not that.”
“Then what?”
She shrugged. “This feels—this was one of my favorite things.” It was as close as she’d come to talking about their relationship, and he stopped what he was doing and listened.
The wind and the tides could wait. If Fliss was talking, he was going to let her talk.
“The sailing?”
“The few times you took us all out with you on the boat. I loved it. I used to wish it was just the two of us.” She shook her head. “So is this a date, or am I sharing a sport you love?”
“Call it what you like. Whatever makes you get your butt onto this boat, that’s what it is.” He lightened the mood and saw her grin. He loved her smile, the way her mouth tilted and her eyes sparkled with anticipation. “I’m hoping you’ll get on this boat before the sun sets. Of course, if you’d rather not, there’s always sex and poker back at your grandmother’s house. Your choice.”
“The choice is meant to be between the devil and the deep blue sea. The two aren’t meant to be one and the same.”
“Am I the devil in this scenario? I’m making you nervous?” He sensed it was him and not the sailing.
“Only because I don’t know the rules. I don’t know what this is. I don’t even know what I’m doing here. Oh, what the hell—” She puffed a strand of hair out of her eyes and sprang onto the boat, lithe as a cat. “I choose the devil and the deep blue sea.”
“I’m not the devil, and presumably you’re here because you want to be.” He put his hand on her shoulder and saw her smile falter. “We’re doing some of the things we never did before, that’s all. And there are no rules.”
Her gaze met his, and the smile returned. “Am I going to get seasick?”
“I seriously hope not because I have food in the cooler.” He let his hand drop, and she swept her hair back from her face and settled her sunglasses on her nose.
“Of course you do. Your name is Carly
le. So this is just two people enjoying a pretty afternoon on the water. Sounds good. Certainly sounds more appealing than poker night with reruns of Sex in the City.”
He guided the boat out of the marina and into the bay. To the west were the twin forks of Long Island, to the right the open water, the shape of Gardiner’s Island in the distance.
Fliss stood next to him, feet planted apart, steadying herself against the gentle rise and fall of the boat. “I used to dream about that first time you took me out on the water. You have no idea how much I envied you. I envied your tight loving family, too, of course, but I also envied you the boat. Being out on the ocean felt like freedom to me. You could have just carried on sailing and never come back.”
It was a thought that would never have occurred to him, but clearly it had occurred to her.
For him the summer had been an escape from life in the city. For her it had been an escape from life with her father.
“I saw you watching me. You always sat in the same place. On the sand, tucked between the dunes.”
She turned. “You saw me?”
“We all saw you.” He judged the wind and made an adjustment to the sails. “Although I admit I probably paid more attention than most.”
“You did?”
“Sure. You had great legs. I’m shallow like that.”
“That was it?”
“Your butt was cute.”
She punched him on the arm. “How do you know you weren’t looking at Harriet? From that distance, you wouldn’t have been able to tell.”
“I could tell. You never wore shoes. Everywhere you went, your feet were bare.”
“I liked it. Still do. It gives me a feeling of freedom. Makes me think of the beach. I do it at home, too. It drives Harriet insane because she’s always falling over my shoes.” She paused. “I didn’t know you noticed me. I thought I was one of the crowd. Daniel’s sister. You were always surrounded by girls. Older than me. They had confidence, flippy hair and not a single bruise on their personality.”
“I knew you existed.” He kept his eyes on the horizon, hoping that if he kept it low-key she’d keep talking. “You really thought the first time I noticed you was the night of your eighteenth birthday?”
“Until that night we were always in a group.”
“Sometimes in a group there’s one person who stands out. You were that person for me.”
“Because of my legs and my butt?”
“No. Not because of that.”
She was silent and suddenly he wished he hadn’t chosen to take her sailing. Sailing demanded concentration, and what he wanted to do was concentrate on her. He didn’t want his hands on the boat. He wanted his hands on the woman.
But that would be the wrong thing to do. Too fast, too intense, and they risked blowing what they had all over again.
“I didn’t know.”
“Your brother knew. He warned me away from you. Told me you’d been hurt enough.”
“He talked about our home life? Daniel?” She sounded astonished, as if the possibility hadn’t occurred to her.
“A couple of times. He’d had a beer or two and there had been some incident at home. From what Daniel told me, your father preferred ripping into you than eating his dinner.” And he’d listened, feeling his friend’s frustration, his hands balled into fists as he’d wondered what type of guy would find tormenting his daughter to be a sport.
“Daniel tried to get me to keep quiet, but I couldn’t. If I’d stayed silent, it probably would have ended sooner, but I couldn’t keep my mouth shut. Harriet hid under the table with her hands over her ears. I argued with him. The more I argued, the madder he got. My dad always had to win every fight. He had to have the last word. He wanted to see me cry, and I refused to ever cry.” She gave a soft laugh. “Some days I thought I was going to burst holding it all inside, but I would rather have burst than let him see he’d upset me. I’m stubborn like that.”
“I knew things were difficult for you, but I didn’t know the details.” And he hated hearing it, but he hated not hearing it even more. He wanted to know. In some ways dealing with Fliss was like dealing with a sick animal. They didn’t tell you what was wrong. You had to search for clues. It was a jigsaw puzzle, and up until today he’d had nothing but missing pieces.
“It’s the way it was. I just felt so bad for my mom. She loved him so much. She worked so damn hard to please him, and he didn’t even give her a morsel of affection in return. That was the worst part for me. Made me realize that loving someone isn’t enough. They have to love you back, and you can’t make that happen. Wanting it isn’t enough. I didn’t realize Daniel had told you.”
“Why wouldn’t he? We were good friends.”
“Before I came along and ruined it.”
“He was protective of you. I don’t blame him for that. And he was worried I’d hurt you.”
And he had hurt her.
It had been unintentional, but he’d hurt her nonetheless.
The wind blew them along, and he kept his gaze fixed on the horizon. Other sailboats dotted the horizon, two or three abreast as they bounced over the waves. Sleek yachts, the thoroughbreds of sailing, that wouldn’t be seen once the summer season ended. As the weather cooled and the wind whipped at the water, those boats would be replaced by fishing vessels loaded with nets and ice chests.
Fliss made a sound of annoyance. “I didn’t need him to police my relationships. But I did feel bad that I ruined your friendship.”
“I was responsible for that.” They slid through the waves with barely a whisper, the boat accelerating under his touch. “And so was he, by not listening when I tried to talk to him. But when it came to you he had a protective streak as wide as the Atlantic Ocean.”
“I know. He still does. Did you know that he’s getting married? They haven’t fixed a date yet, but it’s serious.”
“A woman called Molly? I met her when they brought her Dalmatian to the vet.”
“That’s right. She’s been good for Daniel. I’ve never seen him like that before. She brings out the best in him.”
“I guess that’s how it’s supposed to be.” He sailed the boat across to the island, turned the boat head to wind and dropped the anchor. “Grab the cooler. I raided the deli on my way home from the clinic. There’s cold chicken, fresh salad and a sourdough loaf.”
“Are we going ashore?”
“No. We’ll eat on the boat.”
“How about swimming?” Her eyes gleamed. “Are we doing that?”
“Did you bring a bikini?”
“As it happens I’m wearing one under my clothes. I promised Harriet no skinny-dipping.”
“Damn.” He handed her a plate. “If I’d known that, I would have invited a different woman. You’re no fun.”
“That’s me. Staid and sensible.” She peered into the cooler. “This looks delicious.”
“What’s your grandmother eating tonight?”
“Nothing I made, so you can relax. Her friends brought her dinner. Dora made a casserole that would feed the whole of the Hamptons. I’ve decided I want that when I’m ninety.” She sat down and stretched out her legs, tilting her face to the sun. “A bunch of great friends who will talk about everything, including sex, and feed me. I used to wonder why Grams didn’t move from here, but I’m starting to understand why she’d stay.”
“Dora?” He divided the food onto two plates. “Owns a chocolate Lab called Darcy?”
“You know her?” She took a bite of chicken and purred like a contented cat. “This is delicious.”
“I’m the vet. I know everyone. Darcy is my patient. Nice temperament.”
“That’s good to know because starting tomorrow, I’m walking Darcy.”
“You are? So that’s three dogs now. Maybe you should extend your business to cover the Hamptons.”
Fliss swallowed and stared at him. “There are already plenty of dog-walking businesses here already.”
“Upscale ones
that will give your pooch a spa day or fly it in a helicopter to Manhattan. I’m willing to bet there are plenty of people who’d use a quality, trustworthy outfit like the Bark Rangers. And for those people who shuttle between here and Manhattan, you offer continuity.”
She helped herself to more chicken. “That’s an interesting idea. It hadn’t occurred to me to formalize it. I mean they’re paying me, of course, but I hadn’t thought of it as a permanent arrangement.” She licked her fingers, frowning slightly. “It can’t be. I don’t know how long I’ll be staying, but no more than a few weeks.”
“In Manhattan you don’t do all the walking yourself, do you? You could recruit people.”
“Yes, and that part is hard work because we need reliable dog walkers. Do you know anyone who might be interested?”
“I’m pretty sure my vet tech might be interested. She loves dogs and she could probably use the money. And she has a couple of friends who work part-time. I could ask around if you like.”
“Thanks. I’ve thought about extending the business, but this option hadn’t occurred to me.” She finished the chicken and tore off a chunk of bread. “You think I could recruit enough dog walkers to enable me to run it from Manhattan?”
“Why not? You don’t do it all yourself in Manhattan, do you?”
“No. But it’s taken us a long time to build up a reliable team.”
“So start small. Build it up slowly. See how it goes. If it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work out.”
They talked it through while they finished the picnic.
“I need to crunch some numbers.” She wiped her fingers, then pulled her phone out of her purse and made some notes for herself. “I need to work out how many dog owners there are, and how many are likely to use the services of a reliable dog walker.”
“There are plenty of dogs. If you drop by the office tomorrow I can give you a number. We’re not the only vet clinic, of course, but it would give you an idea.”
“Could I put an advertisement on your bulletin board?”
“Sure.”
“I might be able to expand the business simply by walking the dogs of my grandmother’s friends.”
