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Something tugs at me, and I find myself speaking before thinking. “I used to hate the water.”
This catches her attention.
“You swim every day, though.”
I swallow the lump in my throat. I’ve never really talked about this at length, not even with Jaxon. We’ve always kept our personal shit on a minimal level, knowing each other has a past we don’t want to talk about.
“I used to blame the water or at least Lake Michigan, for my dad leaving. I think I needed something to hate so I wouldn’t blame myself.”
His love of being out on the water caused him to prioritize it over his wife and son. I might still have my doubts about Mom, but I know he helped drive her away from me.
“Then, my friend helped me realize that if I was so mad at the lake, then I needed to defeat her, and the best way to do that was to learn about her and embrace her. Then, I figured out that the water is the only thing that has stayed the same in my life. She will always be there. That’s why I started surfing and learning these random facts. The water stayed the same, and I needed that to drive me forward, especially when I felt alone.”
Suddenly, a pair of arms wraps around me, pulling me out of my thoughts. The scent of flowers pushes into my nostrils. My arms wrap tightly around her, and breathe in everything. The water and flowers combine into an assortment I’ve grown to need.
“I meant what I said when we went to the pier. You deserve to be loved, Oliver,” she mumbles into my shoulder.
“Thank you for listening. Ella’s right. You are a good listener.” The pain from before subsides, but I don’t want to let go. “Sally, will you come to dinner with my mom and me? Also, we would need to spend the night.”
Sally’s body tenses. I want to hold on, but I let go, and she slowly backs away with red cheeks.
I bite the inside of my cheek. “I know it’s a lot, but I told her I was here with someone, and she assumed you were my girlfriend, and I didn’t correct her.”
Her eyes widen, and I swear I see steam waft off her body as she turns back to the water. I train my eyes on her as she takes a breath over the edge. I ready myself to grab her if she really tried to throw herself into the water. I don’t think she would actually do that, but some people do weird things when they feel cornered.
She suddenly stands up straight and turns toward me. Her breathing is calmer, but her cheeks are a scarlet red.
“Oliver—”
“Sally, please,” I beg before she can say no. “I know this is sudden, and honestly, I’m not even sure if anything will come out of this whole trip, but I need to see it through to the end. She’s my mom.” The last part comes out as a whisper.
Sally wrenches her brows and takes a deep breath. “If I get uncomfortable, can we leave?”
I’m not even sure if I heard her right. “Is that a yes?”
“It’s an agreement that if I want to leave, you’ll drive me back to Alliance.”
“Of course.”
This could be a mistake. Her pretending to be my girlfriend, when I know the minute we get back, I’ll be nothing again, is going to hurt.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Sally
I’m not sure what emotion I feel when seeing Oliver play catch with a little kid. The sun is starting to set, and the smell of freshly cut grass fills the air.
Oliver cocks his arm back and sails the football across the dimming yellow-orange sky right into Marcus’s arms.
His laughter after every catch is contagious because I can’t help but smile every time they exchange the ball.
Reminds me of the backyard nights back home. The boys and Ella would play some sort of interactive game while the rest of the family watched.
Leon would always reluctantly play along because he loved spending time with Richie and Miggy. There were even times Lennon, our uncle, would stop by just to annoy Mama and see all his nieces and nephews.
“Oliver, did you play football in school?” Marc asks.
He shrugs at his little brother’s question. This is such a weird reality we’ve found ourselves in. Oliver was an only child, just like me, and then one day, I found my family, and Oliver now has a blood-related brother.
