Love Surfaced

by Michelle Lynn

  From the easy jokes being thrown, I become more relaxed with Tanner on this new venture we’re on. Before I can fully prepare myself, he’s opening his door and climbing in.

  When he starts the engine, the music blares out of the speakers. “Shit, sorry.” Tanner’s fingers quickly turn the knob on the stereo.

  “That’s okay.”

  It’s still weird between us. I’ve known this guy my whole life, and my voice picks now to go mute.

  He pulls out of the parking lot, turns onto Route 31, and heads toward our hometown of Marlowe. The town is known to be quaint. A fancy word for small and nosy. Even though we had a graduating class of over two hundred, it seems as though everyone knows everyone in Marlowe. Growing up there must not have been too terrible since we decided to stay close—two hours from our childhood homes.

  Since my meet was only half an hour away from Marlowe, the drive to the restaurant won’t be long—thankfully—but it will be a longer ride back to campus. If things continue to be so quiet, the drive will be excruciating.

  “What’s Brad doing tonight?” I ask. I’m not sure that Tanner and I have ever had a conversation that didn’t include my brother in some form.

  “I don’t know.” He shrugs his shoulders and peers over at me from the corner of his eye. “Do you mind if we don’t talk about him tonight?”

  Swallowing a big gulp, I concentrate on the pitch-black darkness outside the window. The two lane roads with no street lights were the norm for me until we went to school. Now the drive is eerie on the rural roads with nothing but headlights leading your way. “No.”

  “Good. Because I want to get to know you, Piper.”

  I giggle, shaking my head. “You do know me, Tan. You’ve known me practically your whole life,” I argue.

  Tanner drives the car, comfortable and relaxed. “I know the things everyone knows. You love to swim, and you’re a twin. You graduated from Georgetown Central High School where you won Best Smile—and let me add that I checked off that box.” He glances my way, his smirk in place. “But I want to find out what you keep to yourself.”

  “There isn’t much more,” I counter, crossing my legs, while pulling the fabric of my dress toward my knees.

  “I disagree.”

  “What do you want to know?” I scoot my butt in the cloth seat to face him.

  When he turns to me, he’s smiling, obviously enjoying that I’m intrigued.

  “What’s your favorite class?”

  “Sociology.”

  He nods.

  “What do you want to do when you graduate?”

  “I’m not sure yet. I know I should, but I can’t decide.”

  Tanner is asking the wrong questions because it forces my mind to flood with the dilemma of my future that my parents keep hounding me about.

  What do you want to do after graduation? Swimming most likely isn’t an option. Maybe you should earn your master’s.

  It’s enough to drown me, and the pressure of making the right decision has me believing that it’s easier not to choose.

  “What about swimming? The Olympics are in three years.” He briefly looks over my way, raising his perfect eyebrows.

  “I wish. You know as well as I do, that’s not an option.” A dream maybe.

  “Piper, you’re good. I mean, you can’t compare yourself to me because . . . well, you’re a girl.” He laughs, lightening the mood.

  Slapping him across the shoulder, I giggle. “Girls can do anything boys can do.” My whole life, I’ve heard that line from my parents, and it fed into my overzealous drive to beat my brother.

  “Usually better,” he agrees.

  I watch his long fingers turn down the volume knob further. My heart pitter-patters as I sense that he truly is intrigued to figure out what makes me tick.

  “Seriously though, you should consider it.”

  “It’d be a pipe dream, Tan. Look at what happened today. Fourth place isn’t going to claim me a spot to the Olympics.”

  I’ve dreamed so many times of standing on the pedestal and dipping my head down for the person to place the medal on. I’d imagine the weight of it on my neck and the flag transcending down in slow motion while the national anthem played. Hell, I’ve even pretended with my medals I’d won from junior meets when I was younger.

  “Come with me after graduation.”

  He changes course so fast that my breathing halts.

  Tanner received an invitation to be part of a preliminary group of swimmers this summer. Pretty much right after we graduate, he’ll hop on a flight to Colorado Springs to train in order to make the US Olympic Team. Only a handful of the top college swimmers are asked to attend the elite program. I wasn’t one of them and neither was Brad yet.

  “No. They didn’t invite me.”

  “I could talk to them, if it’s something you really want to pursue.”

  Isn’t that the question of the year?

  Once upon a time, swimming consumed everything I did. Eventually, I realized that I might not be good enough. I don’t have the same special something that Tanner does. The only problem is, I wish I’d figured it out sooner because I’m about to graduate with a degree in sociology and no clue as to what I’ll do with it.

  I place my hand on his knee, and it twitches at first before relaxing under my palm.

  “Thank you for the offer. Swimming isn’t my future. I just need to find out what is.”

  I begin to reel my hand back when his hand moves off the steering wheel and covers mine—threading our fingers together.

  “You will, Piper. I’m positive you’ll figure it out.”

  I hope he’s right. I’ve always been so independent. My worst fear is that if I don’t realize my life’s plan, after graduation, I’ll wind up in my pink bedroom at my parents’ house.

  Tanner doesn’t let go of my hand, and I don’t pull away. It’s nice and comfortable after such an awkward start to our night. Silence encompasses the car, but it’s not weird. It’s security.

  Tanner pulls the Jeep into the angled parking spot in the downtown square of our hometown, Marlowe. Restaurants and local retail stores outline the small square that has a white gazebo placed in the middle. The fire station is on one side, and the library is right next door. It’s charming and endearing—not only to the residents, but also to the small amount of tourists who visit every year around Christmastime. Lucky for us, tonight’s a quiet spring night.

  He turns off the ignition and releases my hand. We both sit for a second as though absorbing the comfort of the familiar surroundings. I think back to how many times I skipped along this sidewalk or got into a pushing fight with Brad until our mom yanked us aside, demanding we pull it together and behave like she’d raised us.

  Not wasting much time down memory lane, Tanner climbs out and circles around the Jeep to open my door. He leads me up to the sidewalk and links our hands. The smell of the tulips and other newly planted flowers across the way focuses more memories—prom night when I longed for my hand to be in Tanner’s instead of my own date’s. How I admired his broad shoulders as he walked two steps in front of me with Keira, who looked gorgeous in her sequined dress.

  “We could have gone anywhere, Tanner.” I step a little closer to enjoy my high school dream of his body next to mine coming true.

  “No, we couldn’t have.” He concentrates on the store windows, never turning in my direction.

  “Thank you.” The softness of my voice earns me a glance.

  Holding my eyes with his, he speaks in an appreciative tone, “You’re welcome, Piper.”

  God, I love the way my name sounds coming off his tongue.

  The sidewalk is empty since all the stores are closed, leaving just Carsen’s and Coffeehaus on the corner open. Just to make sure I don’t recognize any cars, I scan the parking spots along the street. When Tanner opens the door to Carsen’s for me, he pauses, peering out, and I assume he’s double-checking, too.

  The hostess at the podium
is writing something down with the phone perched on her shoulder when we approach. I’m thankful I don’t spot Mrs. Carsen because I can guarantee that she would notify my parents that I’m in town, and then the dinner date wouldn’t be just Tanner and me.

  Once the hostess hangs up, her head reels back in surprise to find us standing there, but a smile soon breaks over her face. “Good evening. Welcome to Carsen’s. Reservations?”

  Tanner steps up to the podium, placing his hand on the small of my back. “Yes, two under Boars.”

  I cock my head slightly, and Tanner lightly pinches my skin at the waist to keep me quiet.

  Her manicured nail scrolls down the page, and I worry we’re taking someone else’s reservation. I don’t know what exactly Tanner’s angle is here.

  “Oh . . . yes . . . Boars.” She grabs a pen from the holder next to her and scratches out the name.

  Grabbing two black leather-bound menus, she steps away from the podium. “Follow me, please.” She leads us to a table by the window overlooking the beautiful gazebo surrounded by an array of colored flowers.

  Tanner pulls out my chair like a gentleman, and I blush from the act of chivalry. She hands us the menus after we’re seated, and we thank her.

  Finally, when she walks away, I inch forward, leaning across the table. “You want to clue me in?”

  He laughs. “I didn’t want to use McCain because too many people around here know both of us by name. I was in the Student Center, eating a sandwich when I called, and there was a sign for Boars Meats.”

  He shrugs his shoulders, and I giggle, imagining the whole scenario in my head.

  “Good thinking. We’re lucky our parents aren’t here.” I slink back and act like I’m looking over the menu, which is crazy since I usually order one meal here—the filet mignon. I battle with myself on if I should order chicken or fish—not only because of the expense, but I also don’t want my first real date with Tanner to include me chowing down on a piece of cow.

  “I called my parents this morning, and they were going to that wine-tasting place down by Amish town, so we’re in the clear.”

  He’s covered all our bases, and I like the fact my worry bug can be turned off for the night. If our parents found out that we were on a date, his mom would be ecstatic, mine would be cautious, and our dads, especially mine, would more than likely tell Brad. Tanner might be like a second son to my dad, but I’m his only daughter, and the pressure has always been on Brad to make sure no one takes advantage of his little girl.

  “So, we can relax.” And I do, sitting back and crossing my legs, when the busboy comes by and fills our water glasses. “Thank you,” I murmur to the young high school kid.

  He stares at Tanner a little too long for my liking, but since he doesn’t say anything, I figure he doesn’t recognize Marlowe’s own celebrity—Tanner McCain.

  “Yeah, anyone else wouldn’t expect to see us, so we should be good.” The plate teeter-totters when he places his menu down on the table. “What are you having?”

  “I think I’m going to have the tilapia.” I grab my glass of water, the ice cubes jiggling from my shaky hand as I lift it up to my lips.

  “No, you’re not.” His head shifts back and forth.

  “Why not?” Was I not clued in on it being bad here or something?

  “Because you always order the filet, and you’ll order it tonight.” He winks, melting me into a puddle on the leather chair.

  “Maybe I want tilapia,” I argue.

  He amusedly shakes his head. “Piper, I’ve been here with you on your thirteenth birthday, sixteenth birthday, prom, and graduation. In all those times, you’ve never ordered anything different. You always get the filet with a baked potato, butter only, and a Caesar salad. I’ll be extremely disappointed if you don’t allow me to buy you that exact meal you love so much.”

  His hand reaches out to grab his glass while I try to compose myself. My heart soars with his recall of my favorite dish.

  “On one condition.” I force my memory to dig deep.

  He cocks an eyebrow.

  “You get the ribeye with the mushrooms on top and garlic mashed potatoes.” I let him know that I too, remember his meal of preference as well.

  “Deal.”

  He shoots me a wink again, and my heart flips over.

  The friendly older male waiter approaches, and we order our meals, adding on a glass of cabernet for me and a Stella for Tanner. As we sit by the window, we watch the middle school kids chase one another, laughing. Images surface of my carefree days of when the whole world was in front of me, and all I worried about was homework and my weekend plans. Now, I have the adorable boy turned gorgeous guy across the table from me, and the worry about word getting back to our families if we’re spotted doesn’t let me enjoy tonight fully.

  One of the boys wraps his arms around a girl’s shoulders, and she cuddles up to him while talking to one of his friends.

  “I don’t remember being like them at that age,” I remark to Tanner.

  He laughs. “Then, you have selective memory. Your brother was one of the guys who always had a girlfriend. It sucked most of the time. When we’d go out, I would be left to talk to whoever his flavor of the week’s friends were.” He continues to stare out the window at the scene across the street.

  “I guess.” I vaguely recall it. “I remember when he dated my friend Heidi. That was horrible because she only wanted to hang out with Brad.”

  His head twists to me, a frown in place. “That was one of the better times. You were the friend I got to talk to while Brad made out with Heidi.”

  My lips curl at the corners until a full smile breaks across my face. “Really?” My voice quivers.

  “Yeah,” he softly confirms, nodding his head. “Piper, I should tell you—”

  “Shit!” I interrupt.

  He stops, his head rearing back. “What?” he asks, inching forward.

  “No! Don’t! Parents.” I point to the McCains’ SUV parking right in front of the building.

  “What the hell happened to wine country?” Tanner’s teeth find the flesh inside his mouth.

  My heart rate thumps in my chest, watching my parents along with Tanner’s exit the truck. They all laugh and carry on while slowly meandering toward the front door.

  “What do we do?” I panic, watching Tanner run a hand down his face.

  “Give me a minute.” He stares into space and his thumb cracks his knuckles.

  “We don’t have a minute. We have, like, ten seconds.” Under the table is looking pretty good at this point.

  My dad’s roar of laughter fills the small restaurant as soon as they all enter, and I tuck my body as close to the window as I can get. Where are the damn curtains? Turning to the window, I place my hand on the side of my face as nonchalantly as I can.

  “Tan?” I beg.

  He mimics my motions, shielding his face from our parents. We’re acting as though they won’t recognize their own children.

  “Hello, Mr. and Mrs. McCain, Mr. and Mrs. Ashby. How are you all tonight?” The hostess is much friendlier to them than she was to us.

  “Oh, we’ve been better. We traveled to Jacob’s Winery, only to find out that it was closed for a wedding. Guess we should have called.” Mrs. McCain reveals more information than the hostess wanted to know, I’m sure.

  I try to sneak a peek. “Yes, calling next time is a must,” my mom chimes in, patting Mrs. McCain’s arm, making her laugh.

  From their mannerisms, I’d swear they’ve already shared a few bottles of wine.

  “I’m sorry to hear that. I have a table right this way. I know you prefer the window area, but unfortunately, you’ll have to be in the back tonight.”

  Please don’t glance over here. Please.

  My dad begins to twist around to check out the tables until a waiter drops a glass behind the bar.

  “No problem. We’re happy you can fit us in,” Mr. McCain speaks up.

  I watch the four
of them weave through the tables until reaching the last one in the back.

  Tanner grabs his wallet and tosses a bunch of bills on the table. Standing up, leaving his back to them, he holds out his hand. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

  I waste no time in taking his hand, and he keeps his body turned, shielding me in case my parents glance over. When we exit the front door, I release the huge breath I was holding, bending over to compose myself. Tanner laughs so hard that I’d think we just left a comedy club.

  “Shit, that was close.” He wraps his arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer.

  “Yeah, it was.” I join him in the amusement of the secret getaway.

  He shuffles me to the Jeep, and I don’t wait for him to open the door for me. Instead, I jump in as he starts the Jeep, and he immediately backs out of the spot.

  When we head back on Route 31, he turns my way when we’re stopped at a red light. “I’m sorry, Piper.”

  His face is so sorrowful that I want to grab it with both hands and press my lips against his.

  “It’s okay.” I place my hand on his forearm, squeezing it once.

  “I wanted tonight to be special. I’ll make it up to you.”

  “There’s nothing to make up. I appreciate the thought. You covered our bases. Who would have guessed our parents wouldn’t have called Jacob’s first?” I attempt to lift him up.

  He presses on the gas when the light changes. “I don’t want to take you home. Where can we go where no one will see us?” he asks.

  For the life of me, I can’t think. By the time we arrive back to campus, we’ll have the worry of Brad to contend with.

  “Wendi’s gone.” I bite my lower lip since I’m inviting him to my very empty apartment on our first date. Way to play hard to get, Piper.

  “Your brother is two floors up.”

  “He thinks I’m with the team after the meet. He’s probably way too busy with Taylor anyway.” I shrug, trying to convince Tanner to come home with me. I might as well strip off my dress right here and straddle him in the car.

  “Let’s at least pick up some food. Give me your second favorite place to eat.”