I take a breath and try to keep my voice even. “That’s why I do what I do for a job. The sea is the only place I can still feel my dad’s presence. And Tony, your godfather—and uncle—was my father’s best friend,” I say, my voice way too raw—and way too vulnerable. “I just gave Lynn a photo of them the other night.”
Emery gasps. “She showed me that photo. It was beautiful.”
“I wanted her to have a copy.”
Emery stares at me. “Wait. So you were at the coffee shop to see Lynn the other night? She was talking about how Tony’s best friend’s son was on his way to meet her, but she calls you Mikey. I never put two and two together…”
“She still thinks of me as a kid,” I say wryly. “She calls you Mimi.”
“That was my family’s childhood nickname for me, and it stuck. My close friends call me that too.” She blinks. “I get it now. Tony was my dad’s brother. Lynn never mentioned my actual name to you, so you wouldn’t have made the connection.”
“It all makes sense,” I say. “But it’s pretty incredible that we met all on our own. And that we…”
I trail off, but a current passes between us, a connection so intense I don’t know how to make sense of it. I just know that I’ve never felt a bond like this with anyone. I wanted to get to know Emery before I found out about who her godfather was. But now, I want to learn everything about her.
Because she gets me.
Somehow, I already know that.
We’re still staring at each other when she stands up and crosses over to sit on the same couch as me.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Emery
“Whew.” I didn’t realize I was holding my breath until I let out a big gust of air. “This is pretty intense.”
“Yeah.” Michael’s eyes are fathomlessly dark. “It is.”
I show him the anchor tattoo on my wrist. “I got this in memory of my uncle.”
He traces it gently with the rough pad of his index finger. “You two were close?”
“He was like a second father to me. He and my aunt…” I choke up. “They are just the best.”
“I’m sorry for your loss, too.”
“Thank you. Tell me about your work.”
Surprise crosses his face, but his voice is neutral when he says, “People don’t usually want to know about fishing.”
“I’m not most people. I want to know.”
He rolls his shoulders. “I guess I always thought it was my thing. You know, the one part of my life I could never live without.”
I watch as he clenches his jaw. Something has clearly stressed him out related to his job.
“And now?” I ask him. “Your thinking has changed?”
He shrugs. “I’m not sure. We survived a storm last month on the water. Barely survived.” His voice cracks.
“I’m so sorry.” I shift closer to him. “That sounds terrifying.”
He gives me a second look. “It’s worse for the people on shore.”
“What do you mean?”
Pain laces his face. “My mom. My brother. Myself. All the families standing on the pier or waiting in the bar. Just hoping for good news. Or any news, frankly. Because even bad news is better than nothing. We found out that the Lucky Queen wasn’t coming back at sunrise.”
