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Well, it turned out I was the first to puke. Johnny was so used to getting pounded by the ocean, I think his stomach valve had welded itself shut.
"RIGHTEOUS!" he said, high-fiving me after I finished heaving my guts into a trash can.
"Oh man, Johnny," I said, wiping my mouth with a handful of napkins. "That did not taste as good coming up as it did going down."
"We're gonna get you so conditioned, you'll be able to go up to space with NASA and not even go through their gyroscopic twirly thing."
"Everybody's gotta have a goal," I said, not mentioning that was something more along the lines of Johnny's goals than mine.
Johnny handed me a water bottle. I swished some around in my mouth and spat it out.
"Well, if you're feeling better, maybe I'll let you get back to work. I forgot to lock up the surf shack," he said.
I looked at him strangely. "But you went back to close it up...?"
"I forgot why I was going over there and turned around, thinking maybe it would help me to remember why I was going to the shack, but then I thought about churros, and I forgot to remember that I was trying to remember something." He gazed off in the direction of the ocean. "Hopefully folks found the stuff they needed to borrow and will remember to bring it back."
That's my Johnny.
"Catch you later!" he said, walking away. He then stopped and turned around, walking backward as he spoke. "Oh! And bring Nate sometime for a surf lesson or something, would you? The man looks tense."
"I'll do that!" I replied, giving him a wave.
When my stomach finally calmed itself down, I decided to make my way back to Bitter Beans in case there was a late crowd looking for an afternoon cuppa. I'd feel awful if Granny came back to an empty till because I was too busy having fun at the Founders' Festival. But I decided to take the scenic route through the handcrafted section. I paused to look at some gorgeous jewelry, made by wrapping silver wire around mother-of-pearl shells. It reminded me of something a mermaid would wear. As I picked up a piece to admire in the mirror, a voice called out to me.
"Nate should buy you that."
I turned around and Trevor was standing in the grassy aisle, looking at me in the way he used to look at me when we first began dating. It was sort of this wistful admiration.
If I was honest with myself, I'm not sure when we dated if I liked him for him, or if I liked how he made me feel. When a guy looks at you like you're the most gorgeous woman he's ever laid eyes on, it takes a lot for an unattached girl not to fall for it.
Fortunately, I was older and wiser. AND I had a guy who was worth ten Trevors.
"Speak of the devil," I said, then regretting my words. "I meant, I was just talking about you with Johnny."
"Really?" he asked, his mouth crinkling into a mischievous smile. "And what were you saying about me?"
And then I realized I absolutely couldn't tell him that we were talking about was whether or not the red stuff on his hands implicated him as an attempted murderer, thank you very much, and have a nice day.
"Oh, just... Johnny broke up with his girlfriend and I was telling him that things can be awkward, but sometimes you can still be friends with your exes," I lied.
The reason that Trevor got into political science is that he's super competitive. Just like how I didn't know if I ever liked him for him or him for the way he made me feel, I think there were a lot of decisions he made, not because he wanted the prize, but because a challenge had been thrown down. I realized that by letting him know he was classified in my mind the same as Johnny, he suddenly decided he should be classified as something more.
"Is that what we are, Paige?" asked Trevor, suddenly stepping in close to me and picking something out of my hair. His fingers lingered. "Friends?"
"I hope so...?" I countered.
He smiled, then slipped his arm around my waist. It felt so natural and comfortable, I forgot for a moment that he wasn't allowed to touch me that way anymore. I put a little bit of distance between us.
"We are most definitely friends," I emphasized, stepping away.
He shrugged and looked off into the distance. "I don't know, Paige. I guess... I guess maybe it's just the summer and the beach and all of these people walking around together, but... It's just got me thinking about us."
"Um... you were the one who put an end to us, if I remember correctly," I pointed out.
"I just... I have just been thinking that maybe it was a big mistake."
I couldn't help the laugh that escaped my lips. "A big mistake?" I said. I realized how just a couple months ago, I would have done anything to hear him say those words. But now they held absolutely no weight or truth. He just wanted to be top dog.
"I just... I just thought that maybe I would ask how serious things are between you and Nate."
"Well," I said. "We're exclusive. And we really like each other."
"Are you sure you're exclusive?" he asked.
My eyes narrowed, wondering what game he was playing. "Why?"
"Well, I just saw him spending a lot of time with that blonde girl. What's her name? Madison? The one from the development company?"
I almost guffawed at his lame attempt to make me jealous. "Oh, there is NOTHING going on there," I assured him.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. I am absolutely, positively, without a doubt sure."
"I just saw them walking around the beach together and eating lunch together and it seems like every time I turn around, he's with her and not with you. And you deserve better than that. You deserve a guy who really appreciates you and treats you right."
"And you think that you're that guy?" I replied, folding my arms with incredulity. "A man currently hitting on another man's girlfriend?"
He shrugged. "We were good together, Paige. Say what you will, we had a lot of fun."
I spoke slowly and clearly so that there would be no misunderstanding between the two of us. "I'm involved in a relationship with a guy I really like."
"I know..." Trevor sighed. "I guess... I guess it's just being here and feeling so alone and being so grateful to have you here. It's just messing with my head. It's hard to feel alone."
"You're not alone," I tried to reassure him, while also making it clear that I couldn't be the remedy for the 'alone'.
"My uncle is in prison. Everyone thinks I’m a murderer. I know no one here. It is just hard." He looked at me with great big puppy-dog eyes. "Could I have a hug?"
It's hard when you have a history with someone and you sort of see the red flags, but you have a history with that person. You don't want to be a jerk, but at the same time... I sighed. It was just a friendly hug. "Um... sure," I said.
I put my arms around his waist, but also made sure to keep our lower halves in different global hemispheres.
"Mmmmm... that feels so good," he sighed, rubbing my back as he held on to me.
"That's enough," I stated, pulling away.
"Okay..." he said, still not letting go.
And that's when I looked over and saw Nate standing there staring at me. Madison's arm was linked through his and her jaw was dropped in shock. I pushed Trevor away.
"Um... hey," said Nate.
Trevor turned and his face turned red. "Um... that wasn't what it looked like. I wasn't macking on your woman."
"She's a grown adult and can do whatever she'd like," Nate said, but there was a little hurt in his eyes. "Is Trevor someone you would... like... to..." he started to say.
"No! NO!" I answered back. "He said he was just sad and needed a hug and—"
"Right," said Nate, detaching himself from Madison. "Um, I'm not feeling so well right now. If you'll excuse me."
He turned and walked away swiftly. I turned and punched Trevor in the arm. "IDIOT!" I said.
"Paige, I'm really, REALLY sorry. I did not mean to cause trouble."
"Yes, you did," I said, pointing a finger at him. "You knew exactly what you were doing."
I turned and stormed after Nate, glancing over my shoulder to give Trevor a death glare. I caught him looking down at the ground guiltily while Madison slid her finger up his arm suggestively. I had no idea what was going on there but I didn't like it.
Nate was walking towards the beach when I caught up with him. I grabbed his arm.
"Nate! Stop! It's not—"
He held up his hands, unable to meet my eyes. "No, Paige, you don't need to explain. Like I said, you and me? We're just... I mean... We're here for the summer and we're having a great time and you are free to be with whoever you want to be with."
"Nate," I said, stopping him. "I want to be with you. Trevor and I dated, but that was a long time ago and I don't feel for him that way anymore."
"It's okay if you do," said Nate. "I would understand. Exes can be complicated."
"Exes you still have feelings for are complicated. Exes you don't care about aren't. Trevor had just said that he was having a bad day and asked for a hug."
"Which is TOTALLY cool," Nate insisted.
"But he hung on and wouldn't let go."
"Well, that part isn't cool." He reached out. "Are you okay? Did he make you feel uncomfortable?"
"Yes, he did," I replied, allowing him to take me into his arms. "I don't like that feeling at all."
"I'll go talk to him if you'd like," offered Nate.
"No," I replied, with a sigh. "I am going to have to set some really hard boundaries with him." I leaned against him. "Thanks for taking my side."
"Of COURSE!" said Nate, horrified.
"It's not the way Trevor would have handled things." I looked up at Nate and smiled. "And that would be one of the many reasons I'm with you and not a guy like him."
"Well, I bet it was really strange to look up and see Madison's arm through mine," he said.
"Yeah, I'm not thinking that woman is much of a threat," I replied. "She's kind of horrible."
"She's like those Styrofoam peanuts that stick to your finger with static electricity and you can't get off. I swear, I'm ready to sign whatever she's got just to get her away from me."
I laughed. "I think signing a business agreement with someone usually means that you need to actually spend more time with them."
"Well, that's a lousy plan then."
"What does she want?" I asked.
Nate looked out at the ocean and rested his chin on top of my head. He heaved a heavy sigh. "She wants to create that cruise terminal over on the other side of the island by the old canning factory."
"Yeah? She still thinks that’s a good idea?"
"She said that they would be bringing in tourists five days a week. Thousands of them. People from all over the globe looking for the quiet life on a remote northern island."
"That kind of kills the whole quiet and remote part of things, though, doesn't it?"
"That's what I'm thinking," said Nate. "But the problem is it would be a financial boon for everyone living here. I mean, they all deserve an opportunity for financial prosperity, but..."
"Money isn't everything," I reminded him.
"I know," said Nate. "But think about your Granny. How much is it going to cost for her to be in the hospital like this? How many days will the shop be closed because you're trying to handle all the things while she's gone? This is the big week. All the vendors and the tourists die down from this point forward. What will your Granny do if she doesn't hit her financial marks during the Founders' Festival?"
"She'll manage," I replied, but his words hit home. I realized there was a lot of truth to what he was saying. Granny had weathered storms before, but not because of a medical emergency. Was she going to be okay? Was she going to find herself six months from now trying to make ends meet? She didn't deserve that. "We'll find out who did this and sue the pants off of them and then she won't have to worry about a thing for the rest of her life."
"I don't think that's how the justice system works," Nate informed me, kissing me on the top of the head.
"You're sure?"
"Pretty sure."
"Well, there goes that plan..." I sighed. "Oh Nate... what are we going to do?"
He gazed down at me. "I have to put together a town council," he said.
"Really?"
"I feel like if I'm going to start making decisions about all the land my family owns, I should get some input from the town."
"I think that sounds like a great idea," I answered. I looked back at the festival. "Hey, Nate. What would you say if you held it at Trevor's place?"
He gave me a laugh. "You want me to hold it at Trevor's place? The bar formerly run by a serial killer who terrorized this town? The one now run by your creepy ex-boyfriend who just pulled some seriously not-cool moves on you?"
"Okay, it sounds bad when you say it like that. It's just... the bar is going nowhere. I don't think Trevor is going anywhere. So if there's some way to make the island feel comfortable with it, it'll help everything. And I think Trevor seeing us together might help get it cemented in his head that I'm not on the market."
"Not on the market at all," said Nate, squeezing me tighter.
"I'll check with him tomorrow," I murmured into his shoulder. I hoped he couldn't tell that I had a whole other ulterior motive in wanting to get into Trevor's bar, and it had to do with checking out his supply of grenadine.