While she waited for Jake to return, she got out her ukulele and started to play again. It was one of those incredibly beautiful evenings. No fog, no wind, and it was beginning to look like a gorgeous sunset.
The sky was just starting to get rosy when Jake returned. To her delight, he had brought Thai food. “I got you some bagels and orange juice and stuff for your breakfast,” he said as he set the bags on a cabinet in the covered area of the deck.
“I thought we could eat outside,” she said as they loaded their plates.
“Perfect.”
“This smells delicious,” she said as she led him over to her makeshift dining area.
“This is nice,” he said as he sat down. “Great view too.”
“But of course,” she teased, “I arranged for the sunset.”
“You know, this is nearly summer solstice,” he told her. “Almost the longest day of the year.”
They visited companionably as they ate. Tia decided that Jake was definitely an easy person to be with. In a lot of ways, he wasn’t so different from Leo. Perhaps a bit more of a jokester. She could understand why the two guys were such good friends.
“Your dinner has hit the spot,” she announced after she finished her last bite. “Thank you.”
“Thanks for letting me share it with you.”
“Don’t forget that I owe you one now.” She looked out at the sky, which still had some color in it. “What a gorgeous night.”
“How about that ukulele?” Jake asked as he picked up their paper plates and dropped them in the carryout bag. “I didn’t hear much of you playing, but it sounded like you know what you’re doing.” He pulled a harmonica out of his shirt pocket. “Want to do some jamming?”
She laughed as she picked up her ukulele again. “I don’t think I’ve ever jammed with a harmonica, but it’s worth a try.”
They were just getting going when Tia heard a clunking sound down where the Jacob’s ladder hung. “Sounds like visitors,” she said.
“Huh?”
She pointed to where Leo’s head was just emerging above the gunwale. He looked even more surprised than they were. “What’re you doing here?” he demanded as he stepped onto the deck.
Something about his tone made her want to challenge him, but instead she answered calmly, “Having dinner. What are you doing here?”
“I was taking Natalie for a boat ride and I thought I’d check to see if—”
“Help me aboard,” Natalie called out in a weak-sounding voice. “Before I fall in.”
Leo whipped around, going over to pull Natalie up and onto the boat and helping her to stand.
“Oh my.” Natalie was swaying slightly. “I don’t feel too well.”
Tia could tell something was wrong with Natalie. Maybe she’d been drinking.
“Tia!” Natalie stumbled over to her, holding on to her. “Please, help me to the bathroom.”
Tia glanced at the guys, but they looked just as lost as she felt. Without saying a word, Tia rushed Natalie through the gutted main cabin, to the stateroom, and into the head there. They were barely in the little bathroom space when Natalie fell down in front of the toilet and started to vomit violently.
Feeling sorry for her, Tia held Natalie’s hair back, telling her it would be okay. Finally she dampened a washcloth for Natalie to clean her face with as she sat on the closed toilet lid.
“Are you better now?” Tia asked with concern.
“I, uh, I dunno.” Natalie looked up with running mascara.
“Did you drink too much at dinner?”
“No.” Natalie barely shook her head. “That’s not it.”
“Do you think it’s food poisoning?” Thanks to culinary school, Tia knew that food poisoning was a real threat to any restaurant.
“No, that’s not it.” Natalie’s voice was so soft Tia could barely hear her.
Tia took the washcloth, rinsed it out in cool water, then gave it back.
“Please, don’t tell,” Natalie whispered.
“Don’t tell that you got sick?” Tia was confused.
“No.” Natalie looked at Tia with frightened eyes. “Promise you won’t tell.”
Tia didn’t know what to say, but Natalie looked so pathetic, she agreed. “I promise. What’s going on?”
“I got seasick.”
“Seasick?” Tia blinked.
“On Leo’s little boat. I could feel it coming, but I was trying to hold on.” She started to cry now. “I’ve never been good on boats.”
“But you went to that sailing camp.”
“Yeah. I took so much Dramamine on that trip that I was sick for a whole week afterward. And the seasickness has gotten worse as I’ve gotten older.” She put her hand to her head. “In fact, I feel it coming on now. Is this boat moving?”
“We’re at dock,” Tia told her.
“I gotta get off.” Natalie threw down the washcloth and stood. “Help me.”
As Tia put an arm around Natalie, she could feel her shaking. She hurriedly escorted her through the main cabin, down the gangplank, and onto the dock. “Here you go,” she said quietly. “Just take some deep breaths and try to calm yourself.”
“Thank you,” Natalie gasped.
With an arm still helping Natalie to stand, Tia waited until she calmed down. “Better?” Tia asked.
“Yes. I think so.” Natalie looked at her with grateful eyes. “You’re a good person, Tia.”
“Thanks.”
“Please don’t break your promise. Do not tell Leo about the seasick thing, okay?”
“Okay.” Tia nodded.
“I’ll just let him think it’s food poisoning.”
Tia wasn’t sure what to say now.
“Will you go get him for me?”
“Yeah. But how are you going to get home? I mean, you guys came by boat.”
Natalie glanced over to where Jake’s pickup was parked. “I’ll handle that. You just get Leo and tell him that I’m pretty sick, okay? That’s not a lie either.”
“Okay.” Tia went back to the boat, finding the guys seated in the deck chairs, enjoying the last streaks of color in the sunset. “Natalie’s really sick,” Tia told them. “She’s on the dock now.”
“On the dock?” Leo jumped to his feet and took off.
Jake turned to Tia. “What happened?”
“She was throwing up,” Tia told him.
“Uh-oh.”
“Yeah. It wasn’t pretty.” Tia tried not to remember the stench in the stateroom head. She would sanitize it later.
“Had she been—”
“Jake?” Leo was calling. “Can you help us?”
Jake and Tia ran over to the other side where Leo was helping Natalie to Jake’s truck. “Hey, Jake,” Leo said. “Do you mind giving Nat a ride home? We think that would be quicker than rowing back across and getting my Jeep and driving her. I’ll go too.”
“Uh, yeah, sure.” Jake gave Tia an apologetic look. “Sorry to—”
“No, I understand,” Tia said. “Thank you for the lovely dinner. Remember, I owe you one now.”
Jake grinned. “That’s right.”
“Get better,” Tia called to Natalie as they all got into the pickup. She watched as they drove away, then returned to the boat to clean up the dinner things and put her ukulele away. It was sort of a strange and abrupt way to end what had been a surprisingly pleasant evening. She didn’t mind much, though. Not that she was glad Natalie had gotten ill. But the whole thing with Jake, while enjoyable, was a little unsettling. Although she knew the reason why, she didn’t really want to think about that right now. Besides, unfortunately, she needed to clean the head.
16
By the time Tia got everything shipshape and herself ready for bed, she realized that something was thudding against the starboard side of the boat. It was clunking loudly enough to keep her awake all night. Guessing that it was Leo’s rowboat, which probably hadn’t been properly secured for the night, she forced herself out of b
ed and went to investigate. Sure enough, it was only tied from the bow, and the rest of the boat was getting bounced around with each movement of the water.
Climbing down the Jacob’s ladder, she noticed that the wind had picked up and wished she’d thought to pull a sweatshirt over her tank top and shorts. Hopefully this wouldn’t take long. But getting the rowboat aligned with the big boat, with the soft bumpers arranged as padding between the boats, and tying the whole thing off took longer than she expected. Plus, as she leaned over to fuss with the ropes and bumpers, she was getting splashed by the water until she was damp and cold.
Finally, feeling like it was safe and sound and like she might be able to get some sleep, she scaled the ladder. She was barely to the gunwale and shivering from the cold when she saw the shadow of a man hovering over her. Startled by the intruder, she lost her grasp with one hand so that she dangled from the ladder, then slammed into the side of the boat. She hit so hard that she tumbled from the ladder and plunged into the bay.
Hitting the cold water was a shock, but more frightening than being in the bay was the thought that a stranger had boarded the Pacific Pearl. She was about to swim around the boat, planning to climb onto the dock and scream for help, when she heard someone calling her name.
“Tia!” he yelled. “Over here.”
She looked up to see Leo leaning from the rowboat, holding out his hands. “Come on.”
She reached out in relief, allowing him to pull her up out of the water like a big fish and flopping down into the boat with a big thud.
“What on earth are you doing out here?” he demanded.
“Besides freezing?” she said through chattering teeth.
“Let’s get you up that ladder.” He helped her to her feet, positioning her on the ladder.
“My hands are so cold, I’m not sure I can hold on,” she said as she started to climb.
But Leo was right behind her, using his arms and body weight to support her as she slowly made her way up to the deck, standing there in a dripping, freezing mess. “Let’s get you inside.” He put his arm around her shoulder, walking her through the main cabin and pushing her into the stateroom. “Get into something dry,” he commanded.
She hurried inside, stripping off her soggy clothes, pulling on her sweats, and wrapping her hair in a towel before she went back out to check on Leo. “You’re pretty wet too,” she said. “Let me get you a towel.”
“That’s okay.”
Ignoring him, she returned to the cabin for another towel. By the time she got back, she realized he’d brought a couple of deck chairs into the main cabin, and he’d turned on the heat. “Here.” She handed him the towel.
“Thanks.” He used it to absorb some of the water from his shirt, then finally just wrapped it around his shoulders like a shawl and sat down. “Now, tell me, what are you doing here? And why were you down there on my boat?”
She explained her plan to stay overnight and how the boat was clunking and keeping her awake.
“Sorry about that. I knew it wasn’t tied down well. But my plan was to come back and row it home.”
“In the night?”
“Sure. I’ve got my GPS. And it’s not far.”
“How did you get back here?”
“Nat drove me.”
“She’s better?”
“Yeah. She really snapped out of it. Whatever she ate must’ve fully exited when she lost her dinner here. By the time we got to her apartment, she was just fine.”
“Oh . . . good.” She was curious when that was but at the same time didn’t care. It just felt so good to be sitting here with him. Except that . . . well . . . she didn’t want to think about it.
“Natalie really appreciated how helpful you were, Tia. She thinks highly of you.”
“That’s nice.” Tia looked away with a frown.
“I was pretty surprised to see that you and Jake were on a date.”
“A date?” Tia turned back to glare at him. “Says who?”
“Well, it looked like a date,” he said. “I think Jake was hoping it was a date. He’s really looking forward to when you fix a meal for him. Isn’t that the same as dating?”
She scowled. “I guess it depends on how you define dating.”
“A couple having a meal together? Doesn’t that equal a date?”
“I’ve had a meal with you before,” she pointed out. “I wouldn’t call that a date.”
He chuckled. “You seem a little defensive.”
“I just don’t like you insinuating that Jake and I are dating.”
“Do you have something against Jake?” He almost sounded hopeful.
She considered her answer. “The truth is, I think Jake is very nice. I actually like him a lot. And he’s a good harmonica player.”
“Yeah, he is,” Leo agreed in a glum tone.
“But I wouldn’t say that we were dating. Not yet anyway.”
“Aha. So it is a possibility in the future then?”
Tia stood up. “I don’t know what time it is, Leo, but I know it’s getting late. The carpenters will be here bright and early. I need to call it a night.”
“Yeah.” He stood too. “Sure.”
“Will you be warm enough?” she asked suddenly.
“I’m fine. Thanks.” He handed her back the towel.
“I hope it’s not too hard to untie your boat.”
“I’m sure I can manage.” He reached for the door. “Don’t forget to lock up after me.”
“Don’t worry.” She sighed. “You scared me so badly when I was on the ladder, I’ll be very careful about security.”
“I’ll pull the gangplank in,” he said as he opened the door.
“Anything else I need to know?” she asked. “I mean, about staying on the boat?”
“Well, if you hear a rumbling noise, like an engine, it’s just the generator down below.”
“Generator?”
“Yeah, for the electricity. That and some batteries keep your lights and water pumps and things running.”
“Right.”
“You sure you’re okay spending the night here?” he asked with a concerned brow.
“I’m fine.”
“Goodnight then.” He tipped his head, backing away.
“Bon voyage,” she called out before she closed and locked the door. She didn’t envy him rowing through the fog in dampened clothes. Hopefully he wouldn’t get lost.
As she returned to the stateroom, locking that door as well, she wondered at Leo’s reaction to her sharing a meal with Jake. It was quite possible she was delusional—especially after her unexpected dip in the bay—but it almost felt like Leo was jealous of Jake. However, that seemed pretty unlikely. Not to mention unfair. Especially considering he was engaged!
Despite her late night, Tia was up bright and early in the morning. As she munched on her bagel and juice and banana, she went over the notes she’d made with Julie the other day. By the time the carpenters, the two Murray brothers, arrived, she was ready for them.
She was finishing walking them through the boat, showing them what walls needed to go and what needed to be done, when she heard Leo’s boat clunking against the starboard side. She was handing Jack Murray copies of the hand-drawn blueprints that she and Julie had worked on together by the time Leo came on board. Tia quickly introduced everyone, pointing out that Leo was the captain. “He’s in charge of everything on the exterior,” she told Jack. “I’m in charge of the inside.”
“Well, unless you’re talking about the bridge. I’m in charge of that.” He grinned at Tia. “And the engine room. Those are both on the inside.”
“Of course.” She made a stiff smile. “But the galley, dining area, heads . . . those are all my responsibility.”
“Speaking of the galley.” Jack looked at a page in his hand. “Do you have final blueprints for that yet?”
“Those are the general dimensions,” she explained. “Showing how we want it opened up. The plan is to keep the p
ropane stove and the plumbing in the same place. But I’m still getting specs on the appliances. I think I’ll have it figured out by the end of the day.”
“Great.” He nodded. “Sounds like you know what you’re doing.”
“Well, it’s sort of learn as we go. I’m a professional chef, though, so I do have certain expectations for the galley. Plus my aunt has a kitchen consultant friend on speed dial. She’s done a lot of galleys.”
“Then we’ll get started,” he told her.
“I’ll be aboard most of the day,” she said. “If you have questions.”
“I’m here to lend a hand if you need it,” Leo said.
“Great.” Jack pointed to the biggest wall in the main cabin. “I think we’ll start removing that first.”
While the guys were making a lot of noise in the main cabin and down below, Tia focused her attention on the galley blueprints and the appliance catalogues, slowly figuring out what would work best, then calling Julie for approval before she called in her orders. “It’s really coming along,” Tia assured her.
“Great.” Julie sounded tired. “I’m looking forward to getting over there in the next day or two. In the meantime, it’s really reassuring to know you’re on it. By the way, how was your night on board last night? I thought about you.”
“It was fine,” Tia said. “I love the feel of the boat gently moving in the water. It sort of rocked me to sleep.”
“You’re a sea person, Tia.”
She laughed as she remembered plunging into the bay. “Yeah, maybe so.” She told Julie to give Roland her love and promised to send new pictures of today’s demolition.
By the end of the day, the main cabin was completely opened up, and Tia could envision how it would look with tables throughout. Julie’s plan was for twelve small round tables, six on each side. They would be fixed to the floor and big enough to seat two comfortably and four if people wanted to be squeezed together. In the middle would be six slightly larger square tables that could seat four or be combined into larger tables to accommodate groups. No doubt, it would be pretty cozy. There would be additional seating out beneath the covered deck area, although the weather would factor in.
All Summer Long Page 14