Gabe
“Can’t believe you talked me into dawn patrol.”
“Whatever, dude. Don’t try to tell me you sleep in.” Tate strapped the leash around his ankle and picked up his board.
“I had to put on a wetsuit. And it’s pretty flat. We should’ve gone paddle boarding.”
“Suck it up, Chesterton.” In response to his snark, I pointed my middle finger up and cursed under my breath as brisk water hit my ankle.
We pushed the boards atop the dark, cold water until we reached the beach break, the place farther out where the mack waves crashed on the sandbar. By the time we reached the sandbar, I’d built up a low level of perspiration pushing against the current.
I straddled my board. The sun rose behind our backs, and random seagulls flew overhead, our only company out this early. I leaned back on my board and closed my eyes. Water splashing nearby informed me of Tate’s presence. Under normal conditions, we’d drift apart on a slow morning like this. He’d actively be on the lookout for a wave. I’d meditate.
“I hear things are going well between you and Poppy.”
I laughed out loud, not at his comment, but because now his push to bring me out here made sense.
“Surfing, my ass. You’re on a fact-finding expedition.”
He slapped the water with his palm. “So…spill.”
“Things are going good. Or they were. She got a little pissed about something ridiculous, but she’ll get over it.”
“What’d you do?”
“Nothing.” I stretched back on my board. He gave me a look. “I paid someone to help her with her business plan. That girl is fiercely independent. You gotta respect that, I suppose. Is that what you’re asking about? Is she still upset? It’s over and done.”
“Luna’s scared you’re going to hurt her.”
A wave rose, and I paddled hard to take it, but I bogged it. As I made my way back to Tate, another wave crested. Tate passed on it. I climbed on my board next to him.
“Okay. So, what does Luna need to know? Let’s get this over with so we can go get the paddle boards and get some exercise in. It’s too flat this morning.”
“Luna didn’t mention a fight. She told me Poppy’s stressing about moving into your place. Luna doesn’t know what advice to give her.”
“Tell her to move in. What the fuck? Why isn’t Poppy coming to me if she’s got concerns? Luna’s living with you.”
“Yeah, but I’m all in with Luna. She’s it for me.”
I splashed some foam away from my board, weighing his words. “And I’m going back to New York. This is temporary for us. That’s what you mean? So, even though I’ve been upfront with Poppy, and she knows the score, Luna is worried Poppy is going to be hurt when I leave?”
“Pretty much.”
“Look, I don’t want to hurt her. You can tell Luna that if anything, I’ve been working to build her up. Some guy from her past did a number on her. Got in her head.” He squinted, possibly from the sun, but his expression tweaked my defenses. “I care about her. I keep offering to help her out where I can.” Under my breath I muttered, “She turns me down.”
“You think it’s not going to hurt when you leave? If she moved in with you?”
A woman and her dog meandered down the beach, and I tracked them. “Did you see a forever scenario with every single person you’ve ever dated?”
“No.”
“Well, then, why does it have to be forever for me? I like her. We’ve got a good thing going. I mean, yeah, we’ve had a disagreement here and there, but she’s been at my place every night for the last week. It’s good. Easy. Why is Luna getting involved?”
“Dude. She’s not getting involved. She just thinks Poppy shouldn’t move in with you.”
I ground my teeth and refused to look Tate’s way. I liked the idea of Poppy being in my house after I left. It’d give us a reason to keep in touch, to segue to friendship. And I’d be helping her out while she got her restaurant going. Got her feet on the ground.
A larger wave with promise rolled up, and for the next minute a paddle battle broke out. Tate coasted on the wave, while I wiped out.
He laughed, and I headed in.
I shouted a goodbye from the sand. He’d said his piece. I peeled off the wetsuit, rinsed, and went for a run down Federal Road, through the middle of the island.
I returned sweaty and pissed off. A few negative earnings reports cemented my foul mood. My phone rang, and I recognized the first digits as being my firm.
“Hello?”
“Hello. May I please speak with Mr. Chesterton?”
“This is he.” The woman called my business cell, but I played along.
“This is Mrs. Rodriguez in Belman Human Resources. This phone call is being recorded.”
I placed the call on speakerphone and pulled out my legal file and pen.
“You’ve been on a paid leave for the past four weeks.”
“Yes.”
“In light of the ongoing investigation, we will be terminating your employment, effective immediately.”
“Excuse me?”
“Under normal circumstances, we would notify you in person, but given you have chosen to relocate to another state, we are notifying you via a recorded phone call. Additional paperwork will be sent to you via both email and courier.”
“I have been working under the advice of Belman legal counsel. Let me get Pulman on the line.”
“Sir, Mr. Brooks, our general counsel, and Mr. Pulman are both aware of this decision.”
The rest of the short phone call blurred. The moment the call ended, I called my legal team and left a message with a secretary. Then I lobbed a call to Nigel, my old boss. He registered zero surprise. Said I should’ve expected this.
“But I didn’t do anything wrong!” I shouted into the phone. The mother fucker hung up on me. I didn’t do anything wrong, but he sure as fuck did.
Stocks scrolled by on my computer screen. The numbers blurred out of focus. I slammed my front door behind me. I stood in my yard, the sole occupant on East Beach Drive. I needed to get the fuck away. The silence drove me mad. I needed horns and restaurants and bars and life. Something other than a squawking seagull. The nuisances ruined meals. Hovering nearby, attempting to swoop in and steal food.
I jumped on the golf cart. I craved the squeal of tires, the roar of an engine. Instead, my cart putted along with the sound of crunching gravel and sand beneath the tires. Blaring the Foo Fighters from a golf cart lacked the same cathartic effect as blasting it from the open window of a squealing Ferrari.
By the time I reached Poppy’s place, my emotions boiled. I slung her screen door back, and it slammed shut behind me with a loud bang.
“Hello?” she called.
I pounded up her stairs. She met me two steps down with a silk kimono wrapped around her and a face full of make-up.
“They fucking fired me.” I’d always known this was a possibility. My lawyers warned me. But I couldn’t fucking believe it. I’d made that firm so much money. And I hadn’t done a god damn thing wrong.
Poppy stood on the stairs, frozen. Those big blue eyes…I stared into them, lost. She descended the stairs and met me midway. She looped her arms around my neck and pulled me into her soft curves.
“I’ve never been fired before.” The words stung. The wave of anger crashed. An unease grew. Unfamiliar emotions dragged me down like a weight. Her soft lips brushed my neck. Her fingers slid between mine, and she tugged, leading me up the stairs. I sat on her bed while she stepped into the bathroom.
The faucet turned on. I collapsed on her bed and stared at the ceiling, waiting. I had options. But I didn’t feel like thinking through my options. I didn’t feel like thinking.
Poppy leaned over the bed, hands on her hips. She wore jeans, a sweater, boots, and less make-up.
“I’ve been fired before. This is what you do.” Her fingers grazed my chin, urging me to look up at her. “You take the day. We do whatever you want. Ice cream. Beer. Whatever. The rest of the day is your day.” Her proposal struck me as ludicrous. “And then? Tomorrow, you make a plan. One door closed. So tomorrow, you’re going to decide what door you’re going to open. But today? Today, it’s all about you. It’s what they call a mental health day.”
I sat up. Her breasts were inches from my eyes. I rested my hands on her hips and smirked up at her. “What if I want something a little different than ice cream?”
“Whatever you want. My day is cleared. For you.”
I slipped a hand underneath her sweater and caressed her soft skin. Her touch did things to me. I breathed out. Relaxed. Focused. Her idea had merit. I pulled her close and rested my head against her breasts, the world’s most desirable pillows. Her fingers combed through my hair. The soft brush of her nails on my scalp sent ripples of tingly sensations along my spine.
“I should’ve seen it coming.”
“You did what you thought was right. That’s all you can do.” She got it. Nigel had warned me, but I felt a loyalty to the firm. Maybe a little guilt that I hadn’t probed further. Realized what was really going on.
Her fingers dug into my tight shoulder muscles, and I let out a groan. My whole world had flipped upside down. But she made it better. Bearable.
I rested against her, letting her fingers work through knots, for god knows how long.
“Get your things. Let’s go back to my place.”
She obediently picked up the overnight bag she hauled between our two places. “Do you think you might want to go out on the boat today? Or flying? What should I pack for?”
“Why don’t you pack a bunch of stuff? When do you have to be out of this place?”
“In a couple of weeks.”
“Get some suitcases. Let’s start getting you moved. What about all the furniture?”
“The place was furnished. So, it’s just my stuff.”
I stood and opened her closet door, scanning the top, searching. Two suitcases filled the top shelf. I lifted them one by one and set them out on the bed.
“Let’s get these packed.”
“I’m not sure about this.” She gazed at the suitcases like one of them might grow teeth and bite her.
“Poppy. You already spend nights at my place. Where are you going to move?”
She chewed on the corner of her lip. I stepped past her, opened a drawer, and packed.