“Keep on walking, little Greene.”
“Cam? Is that really you?” Declan tries to look through the breathing screen.
“Shit, man. What’d you do?” Rylan asks and laughs.
“He’s probably doing it to get in Chevelle’s pants.” Declan laughs.
Rylan jabs him in the arm. “Gross, that’s my sister, man.”
“I lost a bet,” I tell them.
“You? I’m shocked.” Declan, who I think has always looked up to me for some reason, should be appalled, because I am too.
Declan’s parents have money, and they belong to the same club as my parents. His dad is a hotshot lawyer in Anchorage and commutes so his son can live in a nice area. I don’t think he realizes that his son is the delinquent of the school.
“Keep it moving, boys.” I point down the road.
“Why would we do that when we can be here, harassing you? Besides, we’ve been trying to think of a senior prank, and I think you’re just the man to help us.” Declan smacks me on the back.
“My high school days are over. And didn’t you guys get into trouble a couple years ago? Breaking and entering?”
“We were amateurs.” Rylan laughs.
“You’re still amateurs,” I say. “Not to mention your brother’s the sheriff and your brother-in-law is the mayor. You have way too many people that you’re going to piss off.” I wish he could see how serious I am, but to them, we’re on equal footing. Probably because I don’t take much seriously. “Go find something productive to do.”
“See you later, Moby,” Declan says as the two walk away.
“Why would you say Moby?” Rylan asks.
“You know, from that book,” Declan says.
Rylan’s head falls back in laughter. “Man, Moby Dick was a whale.”
And that’s why that kid already has a scholarship to Stanford. Not only is he a soccer god, but the kid’s got brains too.
Once they walk down the sidewalk toward whatever trouble they’re going to find, I wave at a few cars and take a few pictures with kids, handing out brochures from Chevelle, mine, and Rowdy’s charters.
An hour into it, I spot my parents walking back from their lunch. I purposely sidestep to not be in their direct line of sight.
“Oh, I love the fish costume. Did you bring that back?” my mom asks my dad as they approach.
“Yeah, I think it brings the friendly vibe back.” He smiles at my mom, and I want to call him out on his lie.
“You haven’t demoted our son to that position, have you?” she asks.
“No.”
“Are you about done with this little experiment? We both know that you’re going to hand him the business,” my mom says.
They continue walking, so I pretend I’m waving to someone behind them so I can get closer.
“He’s been doing okay on the charters. I wish he’d show more initiative, but I guess I’ve punished him enough.”
“Yes, you have. He’s our only son, and you know we’re to blame. We gave him anything he ever wanted without him having to work for it.” My mom slides her arm through my dad’s.
“I’ll call him in this week.”
They walk toward the marina offices, and I sit on the ledge. I’ve enjoyed my time out of that office. I never thought I would, but I do. The excursions aren’t great, but I love being on the open water, on my own schedule for the most part, and away from my dad.
I really need to figure out what I’m gonna do if I decline his offer to bring me back. There’s no maybe in whether I can make it without him. I have to make it without him.
Nine o’clock on the dot, I arrive at Fisher’s place with my toolbox to help him with his basement. It’s the least I can do since I’ve gone behind his back and slept with his sister. I feel guilty about it, but not as guilty as if it had just been a quick romp I didn’t want to lead to anything. Which is exactly why I’m here today.
A few Greene boys’ trucks are already in the driveway, so I sit in Chevelle’s car she let me borrow and try to gather the nerve to talk to them all. They’ve known me their entire lives, so there shouldn’t be a problem with me dating Chevelle, right? Plus, they know how much I protect her, just like they would.
Adam pulls up next to me and gets out of his truck, then looks at me sitting inside the car. “What are you doing?” he asks through the window.
I grab the keys and toolbox, exiting the car. “Nothing. I didn’t want to wake the twins.”
His forehead scrunches. “Well, the fact that Jed and Cade are already here says they’re probably up.”
“Yeah, right, of course.”
He gives me a funny look, then walks up the steps of his childhood home and looks over his shoulder. “You okay, Cam?”
I nod, wishing I wasn’t already sweating when I haven’t even taken one swing of my hammer yet.
All the guys used to live in this house together, but one by one, as they found love, they moved out, except for Fisher, who decided he wanted to live here long term with Allie and raise their kids. I have to assume some of the Greenes struggle with being here since just beyond the trees is the small lake where the accident happened with Chevelle and their mom.
Adam walks in the house without knocking.
Allie is on the floor in the living room with Axel and Laurie, trying to get them to interact with some toy. “Boys.”
“So, is that a rule, we can just walk in?” I ask.
“Sure, but no complaints when you find us swinging with another couple.” Allie eyes Adam. I’m assuming this isn’t their first conversation about this.
He cringes. “Hard habit to break. Sorry.”
She smiles at him because Allie is too nice for her own good. But I guess that’s the difference between her and Fisher. She’s sunshine, he’s grumpy. It works.
“They’re downstairs. I’m just about to take these two to my friend’s house in Lake Starlight, so I’ll see you guys later,” she says.
I see the twins’ coats on the floor.
“You’ll be having more fun than us.” Adam walks toward the basement.
“Do you need help getting them dressed?” I ask.
Adam stops and turns to look at me.
Allie laughs. “Thank you, but I have it.”
I follow Adam down the basement stairs, and we find Fisher, Cade, and Jed all sitting on buckets and shooting the shit.
“What the hell is this?” Adam asks.
“We’re talking plans before we get started,” Fisher says.
There are piles of two-by-fours and drywall in the corner. At least Fisher took care of that.
I’m not sure I can work side by side with them all day without blurting out what I need to talk to them about, so I grab a bucket and sit in their circle. “Good. Can we talk about something else for a second?”
They all look at me, and I feel the weight of their stares like lead on my shoulders.
“You know how I’m staying at Chevelle’s, right?”
“Yeah, we’re all surprised one of you isn’t buried under the back porch,” Jed says, and they laugh.
“Actually, we get along pretty well.”