Page 21 of Island Girl

But watching Ray sit alone in that corner, something in her ached. She knew that loneliness. She'd felt it herself, sitting by her mother's bed in the quiet hours, wondering if anyone would ever understand what she was carrying.

Maybe that's why she couldn't look away. Because she recognized something in him. Something that felt familiar.

Justin brought Ray his Jameson without being asked. Ray nodded once, barely, and Justin walked away.

“Same thing every night,” Justin said when he came back. “Like clockwork.”

Merritt finished her tacos and her wine. She stayed a while longer, watching the bar fill and empty, listening to the hum of conversation and the clink of glasses. Ed and Margie left around eight. The fishermen got louder as the night went on. Dottie stopped by the bar to say goodnight to Crocker, who almost smiled.

Ray never moved. Never touched his drink. Just sat in his corner, staring at something no one else could see.

Around nine, Merritt slid off her stool and left money on the bar.

“You don't have to pay,” Justin said. “You work here.”

“I wasn't working tonight. I was a customer.” She smiled. “Thanks for dinner.”

“Anytime.”

She walked toward the stairs, then paused and looked back at the corner table. Ray was still there. Still alone.

She thought about going over. Saying something. Asking if he was okay.

But she didn't. Not tonight.

Instead, she climbed the stairs to her apartment, unlocked the door, and stood at the window looking out at the water. The moon was up, casting silver light across the Gulf. Somewhere out there, the spoonbill was probably sleeping, tucked into the mangroves, safe and still.

She thought about Raymond Burr and his shells. About Crocker and his stories. About Justin, who understood that some things weren't his to fix but who also carried his own weight, hisown story she hadn't yet heard. About Ray, who came every night and spoke to no one.

This island was full of people carrying things. Grief, memories, love, loss. They all ended up here, at the edge of the continent, looking for something.

Maybe that's what islands were for. A place to carry your weight until you were ready to set it down.

She got ready for bed and lay in the dark, listening to the waves.

Tomorrow, she'd go back to work. Learn more drinks. Remember more names. Keep finding her way.

But tonight, she just rested.

CHAPTER 7

Justin noticed things. It was part of the job.

He noticed when Ed's whiskey sours started going down faster than usual, which meant something was bothering him at home. He noticed when Dottie wore her turquoise blouse, which meant she was feeling confident and would probably flirt with his grandfather a little harder than usual. He noticed when the fishermen switched from beer to bourbon, which meant someone had caught something worth celebrating.

And he noticed Merritt watching Ray.

She probably didn't realize she was doing it. She'd be wiping down a table or refilling water glasses, and her eyes would drift to that corner where Ray sat. Not staring. Just checking. Like she was keeping track of him without meaning to.

It had been almost two weeks since she arrived, and she'd settled in faster than anyone he'd hired before. She learned quickly, worked hard, and the regulars loved her. Ed and Margie asked for her by name now. Even the fishermen, who weren't exactly known for their manners, treated her like one of their own.

But this thing with Ray worried him.

He'd seen it before. Not with employees, but with customers. Well-meaning people who thought they could help. Who saw Ray sitting alone night after night and decided he needed saving. They'd try to strike up conversations. Ask him questions. Invite him to join their table. And every time, Ray would shut down even further. Pull deeper into himself. Sometimes he'd leave and not come back for days.

Justin had learned to head it off when he could. A quiet word to the well-meaning stranger. “He likes his space. Best to let him be.” Most people got the message.

But Merritt wasn't a stranger. She worked here. She saw Ray every night. And there was something in the way she looked at him that told Justin this wasn't casual curiosity. It was recognition.