‘Me neither.’ Clearly relieved she asked, ‘Any sign of Adrian coming down here?’
He shook his head. ‘Unfortunately not, but him being back in town is a start.’
‘It sure is.’
‘Mum and Dad still worry about him a lot but I know they’re relieved to have him down this way.’ It felt good to have someone to talk to about Adrian, someone who understood. He tried not to say too much to his parents as he didn’t want to worry them any more than they already were, so he kept up the positivity about his brother whenever they asked. And it wasn’t a lie, he felt sure Adrian was on a good path now.
‘You know,’ said Nina, ‘the three of us couldn’t have timed our returns any better, we’ve all shown up in the space of a few weeks.’
He began to chuckle. ‘That’s true. Funny how life works out sometimes …’
‘Yeah.’
‘I’d better get back.’ He hooked a thumb over his shoulder to indicate the boathouse.
Leo left Nina and Jonah to it and headed down to take return of the kayaks. He gave them each a good clean and once they were safely stowed in the shed headed back up the grassy slope to find Nina and Jonah carrying out a small bookcase.
With no customers waiting outside the boathouse Leo went over to join them. He’d be able to see the entrance to the shop from here anyway so he could run over if he was needed.
Jonah was kneeling on the groundsheet Nina had laid out flat beside her cabin and he was already dipping his brush into the tin of paint Nina had opened.
‘It’ll need a couple of coats,’ Nina instructed before reminding Jonah that there was another glass of juice on the step for him when he got thirsty.
‘He’s not afraid of a little hard work is he?’ Nina confided as Jonah got to work. ‘Maybe you could come back tomorrow if Mum agrees,’ she suggested to Jonah.
‘Can I?’ He was delighted with the suggestion.
‘Of course. You could do the second coat yourself if you do.’
‘Cool.’ He said it without looking up this time, his forehead creased in concentration.
Leo and Nina sat down on the steps of the cabin so that Leo could see the boathouse from his position and they could keep Jonah company. Nina had offered to take over but Jonah was having none of it.
‘I was going to paint the bookcase at the same time,’ she said quietly to Leo so Jonah wouldn’t hear, ‘but he insisted I let him do it himself. I’ve plenty to get on with inside but I thought I’d supervise out here for a little while first.’
‘He’s a great kid,’ said Leo. ‘He’s meticulous when he’s helping me at the boatshed, I reckon he’ll do a good job with whatever he turns his hand to.’
The sun warmed their backs as they sat there and Nina turned a little so her body was almost facing him so she could lean against the railing. She had on rolled-up jeans exposing slender ankles, a white shirt that looked old and well-suited to painting and with the buttons undone at the top he could see the softness of the skin on her neck, skin he knew what it felt like to kiss.
‘It must be tough being a single mum,’ Nina contemplated as they watched Jonah, whose enthusiasm didn’t wane.
He ran a hand across his jaw. ‘I can’t imagine how Maeve does it.’
‘Do you know anything about the father?’ Nina wondered.
‘That’s girl talk, she’s not likely to tell me is she?’
‘Good point. I wonder if he wasn’t good to her, maybe she had to get away, that’s why she’s back.’
‘We shouldn’t speculate. But again, it’s not something she’d talk to me about.’
‘Maybe in time she’ll talk to me,’ said Nina. ‘For now I guess she’s making the best of it, doing what she can for Jonah.’
‘Growing up here is great for a kid like him.’
‘More independence than in a big city, although she’s wary of the sea.’
‘I think her being here is good for that too. I think slowly she’ll fall back in love with it.’ He gulped at his choice of words that could easily be referring to Nina and him, not just Maeve or the mighty ocean.
