Jagger frowned. He didn’t have to say what he was thinking because somehow I’d already learned his faces. This one said—you’re making this poor girl spend the day with her ex-fiancé and his new wife and three other couples?His eyes moved back and forth between his watch and me a few times before returning to my stepfather. “What time did you say you were leaving?”
“Probably about one.”
Jagger took a deep breath and exhaled. “I’ll tell you what, I’ll see how much work I can get done. Maybe I’ll join you after all.”
I seriously wanted to hug him. He was probably the only person who could distract me enough to make thirty-six hours with my ex bearable.
Edmund slapped his boss’s back. “Excellent. You work too much. I hope you can make it.”
Jagger nodded. “I’ll try. But don’t wait for me if I’m not at the dock by one.”
***
I checked the time on my phone a dozen times. At 1:04, there was still no sign of Jagger.
Mom and I sat at the back of the boat with her best friend, Patrice, while everyone else was inside, still checking out the luxurious interior. I didn’t know much about boats, but I was pretty sure this one qualified as a yacht. The seventy-five-foot Benetti was insanely beautiful. It had two cabins, a living room, a dining room, and a kitchen.
Edmund stood on the dock, getting ready to untie the lines so we could leave. He checked his watch. “I guess the boss got sucked into work. Shame. He could use a day off.” He waved his hand and gestured to the captain, who was up top on the bridge deck. “You all ready?”
The captain nodded and yelled back, “Whenever you are.”
Four dock lines kept us tied to land. Edmund untied the first rope from a cleat, and my eyes bounced to the wooden path that led to the parking lot. No one was coming. The same thing happened as he untied the second and then the third rope. When he got to the fourth and final one, there was still no sign of Jagger. My shoulders slumped.
Once we were untied, Edmund jumped on board and gave the captain a thumbs up. He shifted the throttle forward, and slowly we began to pull away from the dock. It felt like I was leaving all my hopes behind. But then I looked back one last time and saw a man jogging down the path.
I jumped up from my chair. “Edmund, stop! Jagger is coming!”
CHAPTER 16
Sutton
You would’ve thought I had a disease.
Jagger kept his distance all afternoon. Though I was absolutely certain the same wasn’t true of his gaze. Even with his dark sunglasses on, I could feel his eyes on me every time I went anywhere near him. I might’ve made sure of it, shamelessly stripping down to my bikini and sunning myself while everyone else still wore their cover-ups.
It was less than an hour ride to Block Island. The captain slowed the boat as we entered the five-mile-per-hour zone that led to the marina.
“Which beach are we going to?” I asked Mom. She’d been here before, but it was my first time.
“Mansion Beach. It’s only about a ten-minute walk from where we’ll dock. But I’d like to stop on Water Street and do a little shopping first.”
Patrice lifted her sunglasses and smiled. “Did someone say shopping?”
Edmund chuckled. “I can give you kids directions if you don’t want to shop. We can meet you at the beachwhen the ladies are done. There aren’t that many stores, so we shouldn’t be more than an hour.”
“That sounds good to me,” Colette said.
“Me too.” Chloe shrugged. They both turned to me, waiting for an answer.
I had to spend time with Brendan and Colette because it was my mother’s birthday. But if Mom wasn’t going to be with them for an hour, neither was I. I pulled my cover-up out of my beach bag and shook my head. “I’m going to go check out these cliffs I read about while I was on the train this morning. Mohegan Bluffs?”
“Oh, they’re beautiful,” Mom said. “But we’re on the north side of the island, and the bluffs are on the south side. It’s probably at least a five-mile walk, right, honey?”
Edmund nodded. “Well over an hour, I’d say. Each way.”
I wrinkled my nose. “Oh.”
“There’s a scooter rental shop right on Water Street, though,” Edmund said. “Have you ever driven a scooter?”
