by Jess Petosa
A long dock stretches from the backyard. At the end it opens up into a large square, with lounge chairs and a fire pit built into the wood. I walk out to the end of the dock and kick my flip-flops off before settling into a chair. I lean back and close my eyes, listening to the water lap against the dock and the seagulls’ caws from up above. Once again, the memory of the kiss shifts back into my mind, and this time I let it. The sun is already heating my skin, but I can feel my nerves prickling.
What did the kiss even mean?
Will said he would see me today but was that for show, so Amy would think things were okay? Or maybe he is coming to the cafe for dinner tonight?
I'm distracted momentarily by the sound of a boat motor. A neighbor must be pulling into their dock, because normally on this side of the bay the boats don't come this close to shore. I open my eyes and sit up a little, looking out over the water. A white boat is coasting toward me, and I look in either direction. The neighbors on either side are a good distance away so their boat wouldn't be this close. I squint and hold my hand over my sunglasses, trying to get a better view.
Someone is standing at the wheel of the boat, one hand guiding and the other waving at me. I grunt in disbelief.
Will Davey.
CHAPTER TEN
I stand and slip on my flip-flops, walking to the far edge of the dock. Will turns the boat off and coasts to the dock, bringing it as close as he can get. He slips his sunglasses to the top of his head and smiles at me.
"What are you doing here?" I ask him.
As his eyes slip over me I'm suddenly aware that I'm wearing a two-piece bathing suit, not my uniform for the cafe, and not a dress. Will recovers and looks at me.
"I told you I would see you today." He steps away from the wheel and to the edge of the boat. He is wearing green board shorts and no shirt, a sight I've seen just once before. His bare chest is just as glorious the second time, and I'm glad I've kept my sunglasses on so that he doesn't know that I'm staring.
"Yes, you did," I say. "But I didn't know you meant here. How did you even know I'd be out here?"
"I had a hunch," he says with a grin.
"Is this boat yours?" I ask, surveying the white speedboat. It has gold lettering along the side to name the ship's maker.
He spreads his hands out. "My one and only. I call her Missy but I haven't had the chance to paint her name on the side just yet, even though I've had her five years."
I look the boat over again. "Missy? Is that a past girlfriend?”
He grins and I realize that I sound jealous.
"Want to come aboard?" He motions to the space around him.
I hesitate. "I'm not sure."
"I can tell you're looking for an excuse to refuse me, one you don't have." He pulls his sunglasses back down and leans over the edge, reaching a hand toward me. The boat has drifted a bit and is too far from me to just step onto it.
"I have to work tonight," I retort.
Will smirks. "I'll get you back in time. It's the least you can do after bombarding me with a kiss last night."
I gasp. "So now I kissed you?"
"Take my hand and we'll pull her in," he changes the topic.
I grab his hand and am almost pulled into the water, but I correct my balance, leaning backward. The boat jolts slightly as it hits the bumper along the dock. Will doesn't release my hand; instead he pulls me closer to the boat.
"Come on, Jane, what else are you going to do today? Get in the boat," he says.
I sigh. "Oh, alright."
Will opens a small door on the side of the boat and I'm able to step right in. I assess the inside quickly; white leather seats and a tan carpeted floor. There is even a little seating area in front of where Will stands to steer the boat. He motions for me to sit down in the chair across from where he stands to steer the boat, and he uses his foot to push away from the dock. Soon the engine is running again and we pull away from shore. I watch Charles and Marie's house grow smaller and then I turn to look out over the bay.
We are quiet as he pulls further out into the water, and I find the silence comforting. I no longer feel awkward over our kiss, or that fact that I am wearing a bikini in front of him. All those feelings seem childish and impulsive now, as the salt water clears my mind.
"So what is the meaning behind the name Missy?" I ask. "I had some guests at the cafe the other day who said naming a boat is almost as important as naming a child."
Will laughs and looks over at me. "Missy was a friend I had when I was five. I barely remember her, since it was so long ago, just that she was my best friend that summer. We would play on the docks some days, and down at the playground on other days. Then one day she was just gone," he says. "Nothing crazy, just some good memories from when I was a kid. When things seemed much simpler."
"That's neat," I say. "I like that. Good boat name."
"What if I had said it was my ex-girlfriend?" he asks.
"I may have asked you to take me back home," I reply with a smile. "Seems like a bad omen."
He directs his gaze back over the water and points to a small piece of land in the middle of the bay.
"There is a sand bar over there. Not many others really know about it, just a few locals."
He is right. In fact, when he parks the boat in the water, there is no one else in sight. The small piece of land is almost comical, just a circular sand spot surrounded by water. From here I can look back and see the eastern shore of the island.
I stand on one of the bench seats and look over the side.
"Am I just supposed to jump?"
Will comes up behind me and shakes his head. "Hold on."
He hops over the side of the boat, feet first. He looks so graceful when he lands in the water, and I know that I would look like a flopping fish if I tried the same move. He comes back to the side of the boat and holds his arms out. The water is waist high on him, which is nearly shoulder deep for me.
"I'll help you down."
I put my legs over the side of the boat and jump, not so gracefully, into his arms. He has one arm behind my back and the other under my knees, and I'm trying not to think about how my flesh is tingling where his skin touches mine.
"Aren't you going to put me down?" I ask.
"I'm not sure yet," he responds.
I roll my eyes and pinch his arm. "Put me down."
He sets me on my feet, and I hurry through the cold water, squealing slightly. I make it up to the sandbar and turn around to find that Will is still standing in the water. "What, you don't know how to swim?"
I laugh and then pause. "Well, I don't really know."
Thankfully, Will laughs too. "There is only one way to find out."
"I like it up here," I motion to the small piece of land.
One of Will's dark eyebrows raises and he moves through the water, reaching the dry part of the sandbar quickly. I try to back away from him, but with no place to hide, he grabs a hold of me in seconds. He throws me over his shoulder and heads back toward the water. I slap at his back, laughing, and try to kick with my feet.
"It's better if you just get it over with," he says as the water creeps higher and higher. When the water rises above his belly button he flips me around and drops me.
I plunge into the cold water and kick my feet underneath me, pushing myself to a stand. I gasp as my head clears the water and I push my sunglasses up onto my head. It's a miracle they stayed on at all. Pieces of my hair have fallen from my ponytail and now hang over my shoulders.
"That was so mean," I say through a smile, which I realize doesn't make my words very convincing.
"I'm known to be mean every once in awhile." He shrugs.
"I notice that you are still pretty dry on the top half." I poke his chest.
He looks down. "I guess you're right."
Before he has a chance to react I pounce on him. I wrap my arms around his neck and bring him down with me, straight into the water. I release my hold immediately and we both break
through the surface at the same time.
"Now who's the mean one?" he asks.
"I guess I can be mean every once in awhile, too." I shrug and push away from him, drifting back into the water.
He dives beneath the surface and I stand up, looking around for him. I feel his hands grab my ankles and I barely get out a scream before I am pulled under the water. We splash back and forth for a little while, before finally floating peacefully in the shallow water. I notice that I've finally lost my sunglasses, but I don't even mind. The water temperature feels warm now, nothing like it was when I first stepped in. The sun beats down on my skin, and I let the extra warmth wash over me. I wade back toward the shore and collapse on the sand. Will follows me and does the same.
"Did you really just have a hunch that I would be at home today?" I ask. I lean my head to the side and look at Will. He's close to me, and if I lean forward just a few inches our noses would touch.
He nods. "I stopped by the cafe for breakfast and didn't see you there. Amy told me you were off until dinner so I figured this was a good place to start my search."
"So you came by boat?" I laugh.
"It was either that or horseback. The boat felt faster," he said with a smile.
"Horseback?" I say with a laugh.
"I was trying to be romantic."
I turn onto my side and rest my cheek on the arm stretched above my head. With the other hand I draw pictures in the small stretch of sand between us.
"What are we doing, Will?" I look up and my eyes meet his.
"I don't know," he says softly. "I've argued with myself dozens of times since our talk on the dock. I know how risky and foolish it would be to date you given your current situation, but I think that short of leaving for the summer, I'm not going to be able to avoid you. And even if I wasn't in town, you would still be on my mind."
Will is drawing pictures around mine now, and every so often his knuckles graze my bare belly. I try not to shiver outwardly at the chills his touch sends up and down my body. Eventually his hand finds mine and we hold them together between us.
"What happens when I get my memories back?" I ask. "What happens when I remember who I am, and what my life was before this? What if it is just like you said, that I have a life and a boyfriend? I'll become a completely different person."
"Maybe it will be easier then." Will rolls onto his back and looks up at the cloudless sky. "I mean, once you remember you may not be Jane anymore. Maybe it will be easier for us to say good-bye."
I nod with him but deep down inside, I doubt his words. It is dangerous to get so close to him now, especially with how I feel. But then I remember that I came to this town for a reason, even if I don't know it yet. I feel like I'm supposed to be here, and maybe part of that has to do with Will. Maybe I was looking for a new start, and a new chance. Right now, I have one.
I roll onto my stomach and push up onto my elbows, scooting closer to Will so that I can look down at him.
"I say we give it a try," I tell him. "I don't care if this is bound to have a bad ending. The beginning feels good enough to be worth it."
Will smiles. "I was hoping you would say something like that."
He grabs my head and pulls me closer, bringing my lips to his.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Will gets me home around one in the afternoon, around two hours after he picked me up in his boat. I grab a quick lunch and run upstairs to shower and get ready for work. I'll need to take the bus into town today, and sometimes with all the stops it take three times as long as driving. We stayed on the shore for a while longer, kissing, talking, and finding shapes in the clouds. Every time I think about Will, happiness covers me like a warm blanket.
Our relationship feels right, and that is big for me in a time of unknowns.
By the time I get ready and call the dispatcher to make sure the next bus stops, it is two-thirty. I'm at work by three, just in time for my shift. I'm just putting on my apron when Amy cashes out her last table and drops her order pad on the counter.
"It's been a crazy day," she says to me. "The Crab Shack is having a special tonight so we might not be as busy, but tips have been good."
She takes her apron off and drops it into the laundry bin. "Have a good night!"
She is out the back door in a flash and I pick up right where she left off. The evening crowd is steady and the hours pass quickly. I'm so happy and content that I manage to get all the orders right, and my mood must be rubbing off on my tables, because I pull in big tips. Charles and Marie stop in for dinner around seven and I spend a few minutes sitting at their booth.
"How was Bangor?" I ask.
"Good," Charles says.
"We had a lovely day of shopping after the appointment," Marie says and I smile.
I love listening to the way she talks about life. Everything is lovely and dear. But today I think my own mood overshadows hers.
"I spoke to my doctor," Charles says. "He is an old colleague of mine and I told him a little about you."
My mood deflates just slightly and I look back and forth between the two of them.
"Don't worry dear." Marie reaches across the table and lays her hand on top of mine. "We thought it would be a good idea if you had a physical. We know nothing about your past, and you might have a condition that requires medication, or something of that sort."
I pull my hand back. "I've been fine so far."
"You have," Charles agrees. "But that doesn't mean you always will be. It is better to be safe than sorry. Unless, of course, you want us to hire someone to find out who you really are?"
It isn't a threat, just a question, but my muscles tense up immediately.
"I'll see the doctor," I respond.
"We'll go next week, on one of your days off." Marie pats my hand again.
"Do you need a ride home?" Charles asks.
I just shake my head.
"I need to get back to my tables." I stand and walk away quickly. My tongue is a lump in my mouth and I'm having trouble swallowing.
Charles and Marie leave while I am back in the kitchen, and I spend the rest of the night focusing on my tables. Shelley closes my section early and I am cleaned up and done by nine. After I turn in my apron and clock out, I rush to the office and pull out a bag I stashed there earlier. I head to the bathroom and change into a white cotton dress and comfortable sandals. I brush my hair and pull it back into a nice ponytail; it is already too creased to be worn down. I also spray myself avidly with body splash, even though I know that the smell of lobster is baked into my skin.
I'm going to meet Will tonight, down at the docks. For some reason I'm twice as nervous as I was with our first date. Maybe it's because we are moving forward with the relationship. Maybe it's because we've already kissed. Maybe it's because my feelings for him are stronger than I originally thought.
I mentally tell my stomach to stop the gymnastics routine and I stash my bag back in the office. I exit through the back door of the cafe and walk around to the boardwalk. Another warm, breezy night in Hampton Harbor.
The boardwalk is crowded tonight, full of families, couples, and teenagers. An old man is playing a trumpet along the ramp that leads up to the music store, and a clown is walking around making balloon animals for children. I pass by each group, wondering what their story is. Where are they from, why are they here, what do they do for a living, and so on? If they are wondering the same about me, then I can find comfort in the fact that other people don't know me either. I'm sure the stories they come up with are far more interesting than I really am.
By the time I get to the marina, it's almost nine-thirty, long before I am really supposed to meet Will. I told him that I could get out of work anytime between ten and midnight so he said he would just be around. I decide that maybe asking Charles and Marie to help me get a cell phone might be a good idea.
I wander down Dock B tonight, since I made it partially up Dock A last time. The further out I move, the bigger the boats get.
One particular yacht is lit up and music drifts over the rails. I spot a couple leaning against the edge, a man in a tux and a woman in an evening gown. I walk quickly so they won't catch me staring, and I pass by yacht after yacht. At the very end of the dock I come to a small sailboat. It seems out of place amongst the bigger boats. It has string lights wrapped around the mast, and they are twinkling in the gray blue twilight.
I hear quick, heavy footsteps on the dock behind me and spin around. The bright light on the lamppost above helps me to see easily, and I watch as Will comes jogging toward me.
"I thought that was you I saw from my office window." He is wearing his usual jeans and t-shirt combination, and his hair is brushed back nicely. "You know, it isn't safe to wander the docks at night."
He is smiling as he says this and I give him a playful smirk. "Well then it is a good thing I have you here to protect me."
"I've already rescued you once," he responds.
"Girls like to be rescued," I point out.
He moves past me and jumps into the sailboat. For a moment I think he is going to ask me to hop aboard, but he leans down and unplugs the lights.
"I keep telling Mr. Hatchet to unplug those as night, but he believes that it sets an ambience for couples wandering by."
"Do many people wander to the ends of the docks?" I ask.
He shoots me a wicked grin. "Frisky teenagers."
I cover my mouth with my hand and laugh. "I mean, for all we know I might be a teenager."
"God I hope not," Will says as he climbs back onto the dock. "I don't think you look sixteen."