“I don’t know. I haven’t really dated before. First, Mom was sick. Then when I moved to my aunt’s, I didn’t have much luck making friends there.”
“So, you’re saying this would be your first date ever?” Heather stored away this detail she did not know about her son.
Blake nodded sullenly. “Yeah. That’s lame, right?”
“No, it’s not lame,” Jesse chimed in. “But you should ask her out if you want to. What’s the worst that can happen?”
“She’ll say no? She’ll laugh at me? I ruin us just being friends?” Blake scowled.
“Sometimes you have to take chances to get what you want.” Heather offered the advice and for a moment felt very motherly, a feeling that suited her just fine.
“Maybe. We’ll see.” Blake rose. “I gotta run. See you tonight, Jesse.”
“I’m on The Destiny until we dock. You want to wait for a late dinner?”
“Nah, I’ll grab something at the cafe or something.”
“Okay, have a good day.” Jesse frowned at the empty space where Blake had been.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
Jesse sighed. “I feel like I’m always trying to balance everything. Being a father to Blake. Running The Destiny. And I feel like I’m falling short in both areas.”
“I’m pretty sure that every working parent feels that way.” She reached over and took his hand. “And you should let me help more. I can make Blake dinner when you’re busy. Or anything else that would help.” Truth be told, she was so jealous that Jesse got to live with Blake every single day.
“I’ll sort it out.” Jesse rose and took his cup to the sink.
She got up, put her cup in the sink along with his, and stood beside him. “The offer still stands. I’d love to see more of Blake.”
He turned and pulled her into his arms. “I know. And I want you to have more time with him. It’s just that everything still feels so new and I’m trying to find my way with him.”
“And you don’t want to throw me into the mix?” That thought hurt her feelings, but she understood where he was coming from.
He sighed. “It’s not that. It’s just that we’re still trying to figure things out between us—you and me. Add that to trying to figure things out with Blake. Figuring out the whole father thing. It’s a lot.”
She stepped back and looked directly at him. “And I’d like the opportunity to figure out themotherthing, too,” she whispered.
Jesse’s eyes widened, and after a moment, he nodded. “You’re right. I know you do.”
And yet, he didn’t ask for help. Didn’t offer her more time with Blake. “I—I should go.” She turned and walked out of the cottage.
Jesse Brown could sometimes be the most infuriating, clueless man. He should let her help more. Shewantedto help. But he seemed to think he was going to figure out some kind of magic playbook all on his own for dealing with all of this.
And she was pretty certain that eventually he would find out it wasn’t going to work like that…
Emily sat with Blake and Angela at lunch again. Today they weren’t trying to decode calculus. They were celebrating that they’d conquered yesterday’s problem and both been given extra credit.
“You two math geeks did pretty well figuring that problem out. I heard no one else in the class did.” Emily took a sip of her drink.
“We did. We rocked it. I couldn’t have figured it out without Angela’s help.” Blake smiled at Angela.
Angela blushed.
Emily grinned.
That was until she saw Jeanie Francis heading their way. “Incoming.” She nodded her head toward Jeanie and was rewarded with a frown from Blake.
Jeanie slid into the chair beside her. “There you are, Blake. I was looking for you. I’ve decided you should take me to the Sandcastle Festival.”
