But that doesn’t mean I can’t flirt with a stranger who is likely too old for me anyway. He isn’t leaving though, and has edged closer.
“Are you going to sit?” I ask, “Take off your shoes and socks, the water is lovely.”
I spin back around and dip my toes back into the water, cold drops hitting my shins as the waves slosh around my ankles.
“It’s Spring, it’s warm but not warm enough for that.”
“Live a little, Kolt, it only happens once.” I kick my feet against the waves, tilting my face to the stars.
I feel his eyes on me and then slowly, hesitantly, he crouches and then sits at my side, hands going to the shoes on his feet as he takes them off and then his socks.
He shuffles until he’s sitting next to me and then drops his feet into the water. A sigh leaves him, and I take it as a win. We sit in a comfortable silence for a while until he breaks it with a question.
“Did you know Grace?” He asks.
I dip my chin in a nod, “Yes, we grew up together.”
“Does everyone know everyone here?”
“Pretty much, it’s a small town,” I shrug, “Even if we don’tknowthem, we know who they are. It’s hard not to when it’s the same faces we see every day.”
“I’m sorry about Grace and Leo,” He says quietly and my heart aches a little. Losing Grace is tragic, but losing her infant son too, is completely devastating.
“I can imagine Torin is a mess too.”
“He’s not himself,” He sighs, “Blames himself.”
Grace and Leo were involved in a tragic accident caused by a particularly rough storm. Torin had made it to land, but they didn’t. Ravenpeak Bay had always and will always be, subject to mother nature. The weather here can change in the blink of an eye, storms batter us weekly but us locals are used to it. Our buildings have protection against the elements and the residents are educated on how to tackle the ever-changing weather.
“It will take time,” I say, “Grief will strip a person to their bones, but those layers will build back up.”
I let out a breath, the air between us turning somber. The whole town is grieving, but I can only imagine the pain Torin is feeling.
“Two truths and a lie,” I clear my throat, pushing down the sorrow that wants to rise to the surface, “It’s a game.”
“The rules?” Kolt asks.
“I tell you two truths and one lie,” I explain, “You have to guess which two are true and which statement is a lie.”
“But I don’t know you,” He says and I turn my face to him at the same time he looks to me.
“That’s the fun part,” I grin.
The light of the moon casts dramatic shadows across the handsome lines of his face, highlighting the strikingly high cheekbones and sharp jaw line, the darkness of his eyes appearing bottomless in the shadows of the night.
“I’ll go first,” I say, tapping my finger against my lip, the slight breeze teasing the blonde strands of my hair, “I can do the splits, I speak three languages and I love to knit.”
“Knitting.” He immediately replies.
Laughing, I shake my head, “The three languages is the lie. My mom taught me to knit, and I’ve been knitting since I was nine. Your turn.”
He clears his throat, “I’m adopted, I like to whittle, and I can fly a plane.”
My laugh bursts from me, “The plane.”
“How did you know?” He chuckles deeply.
“You don’t meet many pilots on an island this small.”
