"All right. Good to know," he said. "Aside from that celebration, do you get away from the Covemuch?"
"I take long weekends when I can," I said. "It seems like I'm always going to weddings. Back before marriage equality was passed nationwide, it was legal in Massachusetts. Many of my friends went there to get married, so I was always sailing down to the Cape." I glanced down, suddenly feeling shy. "I did the internet minister thing a couple of years ago. I've officiated for some of my friends. A few people in town,too."
Cole blinked at me, silent for longer than comfortable in this type of conversation. "That's—that's amazing," hereplied.
"You really thinkso?"
"Yes," he said, slapping both hands on the table. "I want to hear all about this. How did youstart?"
I rubbed my neck, thinking back. "It all started when some friends from Portland were planning their wedding and they couldn't find an officiant they liked. They wanted someone who knew them and actually gave a shit about them taking this step in their relationship. For reasons I still don't understand, they decided I was the guy for thejob."
"And you kept going?" Cole asked. "After that wedding, you keptofficiating?"
"Pretty much," I said. "I didn't set out with the intention of starting a side hustle in the wedding business, but I'm happy to take part in these specialdays."
He shifted, leaning out of the booth and peering around the tavern. "I want to know who you've married here," he said. "You've got me hooked on towniegossip."
I held out my hand, ticking off each couple on my fingers. "The harbormaster and his wife. It was the second marriage for both of them. If you believe the rumors, they filed for divorce because they were cheating on their partners with each other. Now," I said, pausing, "I can't tell you whether those rumors are true but I know they got together right after their divorces, and they were engaged a monthlater."
"Huh," Cole murmured. "He's a nice guy. I haven't met thewife."
"She's a physician's assistant a few towns south of here." I held up another finger. "The couple that runs the inn. They bought the old motel about eight, maybe nine years ago, and fixed it up. They don't have any family. They moved up here for a fresh start after a gruesome tragedy. I don't know the particulars, only that it was bad. It seemed only right to offer my services tothem."
"Whoa," he murmured. "I can't believe you've never mentioned this. The innkeepers with the horrible historyandyou moonlighting as a minister. All this time, and you've kept this incredible side of yourselfhidden."
I took a sip of my beer as I considered Cole's comment. "I'm not like most people," I said carefully. "I don't feel the need to post all my thoughts and experiences on the internet, or see anyone else's thoughts and experiences. I'd rather take my time to understand someone piece by piece. I don't want to condense anyone down to a blurb or caption. I want to hold and treasure every piece, and I want someone to do the same tome."
Cole brought his fingers to his eyelids. He laughed, but I couldn't imagine why. Unless he thought I was an antiquated fool. That was entirelypossible.
"I am so happy we're doing this," he said, dragging his hands down his face. "I'm truly amazed by you, and I want to hearmore."
My eyebrows arched up. "Really?"
"Let me hold and treasure this piece of you," he said. Warm sensation rippled down my spine with his words. "Okay?"
"There was a couple I met a few years ago," I said, resting my head back on the booth. "Two of the strangest people I've ever met but I've never forgottenthem."
"What made them so strange?" he asked, his face split in a warmsmile.
I shook my head, still struggling to put those two into words even after several years. "To start, they were wandering around the docks in Wellfleet at four in the morning. He's a doctor, she's some kind of scientist, and they wanted me to take them on as deckhands for the haul. At first, I thought they were high on Ecstasy or something. Turned out, they were just really fuckingweird."
"You are always short-staffed, aren'tyou?"
I waved him off. "I don't work the water when I'm outside of the Cove, but there's an old timer down there who had a hip replacement that year. A bunch of us pitched in to help him out so he could cover his costs. It was just one weekend. I didn't need a full crew forthat."
"Okay, now that we've established you're the nicest guy in the world," Cole said, gesturing to me, "tell me about this strangecouple."
"From the first moment, they were like magnets. Chemistry so intense I could see it radiating off them. What they had, it was palpable. Part of me was jealous," I admitted. "But the other part of me was happy I was able to stand in the presence of real, limitless love. Even if they wereannoying."
"You married them? On the boat, at four in the morning?" Cole asked. "How did that work, legally? If they were wandering around the docks, they couldn't have had a proper marriagelicense."
"I married them while the sun rose over Cape Cod Bay. It was one of the coolest ceremonies," I said. "It wasn't legal, but that wasn't an issue for them. They belonged to each other and it didn't matter whether they had the documentation to back itup."
Cole laughed. "Now I'm jealous of them,too."
"The strangest part came last year," I continued. "It was December, a couple days before Christmas, and they showed up at my door. I still don't know how they foundme."
"Thatisstrange," hesaid.
