I need your son to love me back, Rennie thought to herself.
“Dinner, tomorrow night at our house. I won’t take no for an answer.”
“I’ll be there, Mrs. Chamberlain.”
Johanna waved her hand. “None of this Mrs. crap. Call me Jo or Johanna. As far as I’m concerned, you’re family.”
Next, George stepped forward. He was much more subdued than his son and wife had been. He shook Rennie’s hand and thanked her before he went to rummage through the coolers. The rumor was George stopped drinking the day Grady went into rehab because he wanted to support his son and finally realized he hadn’t done a very good job of it.
Graham stood off to the side, watching Rennie interact with his family. When they made eye contact, she smiled and then diverted her eyes to the sand. She felt him approach but didn’t look up.
He placed his hand on her hip and stepped close to her. “Can we go for a walk?” Rennie nodded and finally lifted her gaze toward Graham. His green eyes sparkled, and his crooked smile was back. Graham led her away from their friends and toward a large rock formation, which formed different alcoves and inlets of water.
Graham found a place with privacy and motioned for her to sit on a rock while he stood next to her. He leaned against the rock with his hip and reached out to touch some strands of hair that had fallen from Rennie’s ponytail.
“I got your letter in the mail. I have to say, getting fun mail when it’s not my birthday or a holiday is quite the treat.”
Rennie smiled and let out a tiny laugh. “I can’t remember the last time I wrote a letter. Everything is text or email these days.”
“How’s the shack?”
She laughed harder this time. “Still the same shithole it was when we were in college, but very nostalgic. I’m glad I went. I needed the time away to clear my head.”
“Is it clear?” he asked, and she nodded. “That’s good . . . good.” Graham hesitated before continuing. “I want you to know I read your words a few times, actually. I wish like hell we could go back to the night we spent in the back of my truck under the stars. I had no idea what the hell I was doing. I just knew that every time I was around you, I had this ache, and you were the cure. I never wanted our first time to be in the back of the truck, but it was, and I’ve never forgotten that night. I should’ve told you then that I was in love with you. I knew from the moment I met you I wanted you to be my wife. I was embarrassed, though, because guys don’t talk like that, so I kept my mouth shut.
“When you said you planned to study law in California, I looked for schools near you. I thought we’d live down there, and us becoming a couple would be a natural progression. I could see it all playing out in my head. We’d become roommates, and before long, you’d be in my bed every night. We’d fight, make love, and finally grow up enough to tell each other how we felt.”
“What changed, Graham?”
He looked away and fiddled with the rock Rennie sat on. “The week before I met Monica, you and I were at this party. We were dancing, making out like we usually did. You took me into the bathroom, which wasn’t out of the ordinary for us. What was, though, was what you said. It caught me off guard and really made me take a step back. Do you remember that night?”
Rennie shook her head.
“You said, ‘Make it quick.’ That’s when I realized we were nothing more than fuck buddies.”
“Oh, God.” Rennie covered her mouth. “I’m so stupid.”
“We were young, in college, and having fun.”
Rennie shook her head and looked off into the distance. Her smart mouth had finally done her in, and now she knew why Graham chose someone else over her. Who would want to bring a crass college chick home to their parents, no matter how many times she had met them before?
Graham’s thumb gently brought Rennie’s face toward him. “I don’t want to live in the past, Rennie. It’s not healthy. But I want you in my future. I want to date you. I want to take you places, spend every minute we can together. I want to wake up in your arms on Sunday morning and read the paper together. I want to call my mom and tell her I’m bringing my girlfriend over for family dinner. I want to show up at your house in the middle of a rainstorm just so we can dance together outside.”
“I want those things too, Graham.”
“Can you live with me being a bartender? Knowing this is my life. It’s the life I chose out of duty to my family. Is this going to be okay with you? I’m not rich, Ren, and I never will be, but I can love you until my last breath if you’d let me.”
Rennie sprang from her seated position and launched herself into Graham’s arms. She kissed him deeply and wrapped her legs around his waist. His hands went to her hair, back, and finally under her shirt, where she shivered from his touch.
“I love you,” she said as she pulled her mouth away from his. “I love you so damn much it hurts.”
“I love you, my Rennie.”
THIRTY-TWO
It was the middle of the summer when Graham asked to borrow Bowie’s boat for a long weekend. He loaded it full of food, made sure to grab bedding, and told Rennie to pack light. They were going sailing to celebrate the end of Rennie’s employment at Rhoads PC and the start of her new private practice. Main Street in Skagit Valley had a new resident, Wallace Law Firm, with two employees, Rennie and Ester. Rennie had fretted about asking Ester to join her new endeavor. She was a single mom and depended heavily on her income. One night, when Graham and Rennie were over at Brooklyn’s, it was Bowie who suggested a compromise. Rennie would do all his legal work, and in exchange, Ester could live in one of the small cottages he and Brooklyn recently renovated, rent-free as long as she paid utilities. The deal was too good to pass up, and Ester agreed to move.
Before Rennie submitted her resignation, she started taking a couple night classes. She wanted to expand her knowledge of the law and work as a general practitioner, which would allow her to help anyone who walked through the door. Her colleague Jefferson had also resigned, and she promised to send any criminal cases his way. Working at Rhoads PC had become overwhelming, more so after the frivolous accusations toward Graham were found untruthful. Ester had uncovered the real reason Donna’s attitude toward Rennie had changed—Rennie’s promotion. Donna had felt Rennie wasn’t ready or deserving, and when she was promoted, Donna wanted to send a strong message to her former mentee. When Rennie found this out, she had no choice but to quit.
While Rennie focused on her career, Graham poured his attention into his house. If he and Rennie were going to live together, changes had to happen. He worked with Bowie and Brooklyn to create a bigger space and then took the necessary permits out to start construction on his houseboat. They would add four inches of width and up to thirty inches to the length, giving them a lot more room. The plan, as it stood, would be to add two additional bedrooms, one of which would double as an office. It was an absolute must that the bathroom be expanded, as well as their living space. They wanted to live together, but neither was willing to pass up the views and ambiance the houseboat provided. With the additions, they’d be able to live comfortably.
As soon as Graham had everything secured on the boat, he jogged back over to his house. His neighbor Shari was outside; they waved at each other before Graham ducked inside his home. He was still too embarrassed to speak to her after the incident last year. When he told Rennie about it, she laughed and went over to introduce herself to Shari. The two were now friends, which made Graham feel even more awkward.