The more she thought about the past couple of days, the more it hit her. She had fallen out of love with Theo the day she walked into the Whale Spout and saw Graham. To her, he represented everything she wanted to be in life—the fun, outgoing, life-of-the-party person who people wanted to be around. With Theo, it was hard work to be the reserved, dull, and boring person he met the day of the conference. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind she was over Theo, and as she accepted this, she felt as if a ton of bricks had been lifted off her body. Rennie could finally be herself.
She stood and went over to Graham. He kept his focus on her until she was by his side, staring into his green-colored eyes that reminded her of emeralds. She suddenly felt like she could get lost in his beautiful orbs for hours. He peered at her intently, never breaking eye contact as he turned his body around slowly. She stepped forward, sliding her leg between his. Rennie yearned to have his hands on her, to feel his calloused hands grip and pull at her flesh. She reached for his hand, and he gave it willingly. They often held hands when out. It was natural for them, but now, as they stood face to face, she took her hand and pressed it to his, and it felt different. Her hand was much smaller in comparison, and he could easily wrap his around hers. She angled their hands, clasping their fingers.
“Graham, what are we doing?”
He hesitated before answering. “It looks like we’re holding hands.”
Always the smart-ass. His reply made her laugh softly. Was he flirting? It had been years since they spent seven minutes in heaven. The night they played spin the bottle, he took her into the closet while his friends cheered and egged him on. He hadn’t cared; she knew that much. The small room, cluttered with boxes and coats, had an overhead light, the type you pulled with a string. When they entered, it was dark, and Rennie expected they would stand there in silence or maybe talk. Graham had other ideas. He turned the light on and told her he wanted to see her, to look at her, because she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. After they shared their first kiss, they were inseparable. They hadn’t needed a bottle to tell them when to make out. They couldn’t keep their hands off each other. Graham rounded the bases quickly with Rennie, the summer after their junior year. Once they started having sex, neither could get enough of each other.
“Why didn’t we stay together all those years ago?”
Graham breathed deeply. “Were we ever together, Ren?”
His words stung, but he was right. She’d never wanted the label, and when she went to college, she wanted to be free to do whatever she wanted without having to worry about what her boyfriend across town might think.
“We had a lot of fun in those days.”
“That we did.”
“I think we should do it again.” Rennie waggled her eyebrows at Graham, who remained pensive.
“Ren—”
“I know,” she said with a shrug. “I just couldn’t let this moment pass me by.”
He looked confused by her words. That was, until his eyes went wide and then shut instantly as the white blob of suds moved toward him. Rennie dragged her hand down his face, covering his face from his forehead to his chin. Graham exhaled, and clumps of suds flew into the air.
Rennie giggled like a schoolgirl, and it felt damn good to do it. Graham brought the best out in her.
Graham sighed, shook his head, and turned toward the sink. He looked pissed, and she couldn’t understand why. When Rennie leaned in to taunt him, his arm snaked around her waist, and he looked deep into her eyes. They shared a moment until his free hand came forward, and he splashed her repeatedly.
She screamed and tried to get away, but he held on to her. She laughed hard, begged him to stop, and even tried to kick him, but he was far too strong for her. “I give. I give,” she said, completely out of breath. Graham set her down and waited for retaliation.
Rennie stood next to him, her chest heaving. She was happy with him, happy when he was around. She ran her fingers over his hair, right above his ear, and rose onto her toes. She placed a kiss on his cheek and lingered there for a moment. “Thank you, Graham Cracker.”
Rennie turned and walked down the stairs. When she shut the door to her bedroom, she leaned against it and smiled. They were going to have a good day. She was sure of it.
After she showered, did her hair and makeup, and dressed, she found Graham sitting at the small table, watching television.
“Hey,” he said when she appeared.
“Know what I’m thankful for?”
“What’s that?” he asked.
“The warm clothes I packed.”
Graham chuckled. “Couldn’t have planned this trip any better.” He turned off the television, stood, and reached for her coat, which she had draped over her arm. He helped her into it and then put his on.
The moment they stepped off the boat, Graham reached for her hand, and she snuggled into his side for a quick second before falling in step beside him. “It’s beautiful out here.”
He glanced down at her and said, “The view is amazing.”
Rennie should not have been caught off guard by his charm. By all accounts, she should be used to it, but his words put a little pep into her step. Regardless of whether he said the words to make her feel better about herself or if he truly meant them, she was going to believe the latter.
They walked through the parking lot of the marina, saying hi to others as they passed by. Every few steps, Rennie pointed at something and said, “Oh, look there” or “Look at this.”
“Graham, they have whale watching and kayak rentals.”
“It’s winter, Ren.”
“I know—I’m just saying it now so when we come back this summer, we can do it.” She made a list of things she wanted to do in the summer with Graham. He would be a willing participant, or she would ask Bowie to borrow his boat, and she’d kidnap Graham. He needed a little pampering, and bringing him back to the islands could be her way of returning the favor he had done for her.
They walked up Spring Street and stopped in a small café to get coffee, only to walk out with hot cocoa because Rennie loved the smell of chocolate. Their next stop was the Trident Bookstore. When Rennie opened the door and bells sounded, she looked at Graham and winked.
“Do you know what we’ll find in here?”
He looked at her quizzically. “Books?”
“Not just any books, but books on folklore, especially mermaids.”
Sure enough, as soon as they stepped in, MERMAIDS AND OTHER SEA CREATURES was the first section they came to. Rennie walked slowly down the aisle, her finger dragging along the spines of the books. Every few steps, she’d stop and hand her cup to Graham so she could leaf through the pages. Most of them had top-edge gilt, which Rennie loved. For her, the added gold made her feel like the book in her hand was a classic.
Each aisle they visited, either she or Graham found something to share with the other. Graham showed Rennie a book about the history of Washington. He flipped to the page that told the story of the Whale Spout and of how it had been built from a pirate ship. Rennie added the book to the ever-growing pile in her arm.
At the checkout, Rennie added a magnet for her refrigerator and a couple of bookmarks. One depicted the San Juan Islands, and the other had the name of the bookstore on it. After she paid, Graham took the bag and slung it over his shoulder.