“I’m not,” Grey chuckled. “I just…really?The Cutting Edge?”
“Shut up.” Lauren waved a hand at Grey. “You likeWind.”
“Yeah.” Grey nodded. “As an avid sailor who grew up in Newport freaking Rhode Island, my favorite movie centers around the most prestigious sailing regatta in the world.”
“Yeah, well, I grew up in Minnesota. We do some skating up there,” Lauren grumbled. “And Moira Kelly was hot in that movie.”
“So you have a thing for bitchy spoiled brats?”
Lauren laughed. “No. And I’m not going to get into a discussion about a character from a movie that you obviously hate.”
“Aww, you’re no fun,” Grey teased. “And I don’t hate the movie, I just don’t think it’s favorite movie material. But, fine. What’s your favorite television show?”
“Of all time?The West Wing,” Lauren said automatically, giving Grey a look that dared her to argue. “ButWarehouse 13is also right up there for me. You?”
“Favorite show of all time has to beBuffy. But I binge watched the first two seasonsOnce Upon a Timeduring the off season this year and actually really liked it,” Grey admitted with a small smile. “The first season, anyways. The second one just kind of annoyed me.”
Lauren nodded. “I gave up on the show in the second season because I hated what they were doing to Regina’s character. To me, that’s one of those shows that are better in fic than in real life.”
“You read fanfiction?” Grey asked, looking over at Lauren in surprise.
“It’s fun to read stories about characters I love from television or whatever where they actually do something about the subtext.” Lauren shrugged. “Besides, since you knewexactlywhat I meant when I said ‘fic’…you obviously do too.”
Grey nodded and held her hands up in surrender. “I do. And, let’s be honest, most shows are better in fic than they are in real life.”
“Absolutely,” Lauren looked down at her iPad that she had more than a hundred such stories downloaded onto, and thenback up at Grey. “I think I’m going to go make something to snack on. You want anything?”
Grey looked out over the water and nodded. “Sure. I’ll come help.”
“I can bring it out to you if you want,” Lauren said as she got to her feet.
“Are you trying to get away from me?”
“You caught me,” Lauren drawled, rolling her eyes. “Seriously though, if you think you should play lifeguard, I can bring you something to snack on.”
Grey waved a hand at the water between them and the island. “The water is actually pretty calm and it looks like everyone over there is content to stay in the shallows, so there’s no reason for me to stay out here.”
“You just want to keep making fun of me for likingThe Cutting Edge,” Lauren said, grinning over her shoulder at Grey as she made her way into the salon.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Toe Pick.” Grey winked at Lauren as she slid onto a barstool. “So, we’ve covered movies and television shows… I’m guessing you’re a Twins fan.”
Lauren shook her head as she set a couple apples and a chunk of gouda onto a cutting board so that she was facing Grey. “I actually grew up rooting for the Cubs because my dad played in their farm system for a while.”
“Seriously? That’s awesome.”
“Yeah. He was a pitcher, but he blew out his shoulder and that was the end of it.” Lauren pulled a paring knife from the drawer in front of her. “Since you’re a New England girl, I’m guessing you’re a Red Sox fan.”
“Absolutely.” Grey nodded. “So were you a softball player?”
Lauren smiled and shook her head as she began slicing one of the apples into wedges. “My dad would have liked that, but no. I was a decently-awful basketball player though.”
Grey chuckled. “I bet you weren’t that bad. I mean, the fact that you’re tall had to’ve helped.”
“You would think so, but the fact that I was constantly tripping over my own feet made my height rather irrelevant,” Lauren replied drolly. She looked up at Grey as she began coring one of the wedges. “I mostly played left ben—” She dropped the piece of apple she had been holding and her knife. “Shit!”
Grey frowned as her eyes automatically dropped to the slash of blood seeping from Lauren’s thumb. “Stay there, and I’ll go grab the first aid kit.” She hopped off her barstool and hurried down the steps to the small landing between hers and Lauren’s cabins to retrieve the kit from one of the cupboards.
Only vaguely aware of what Grey was doing, Lauren turned to the sink, flipped on the tap, and pinched her injured thumb under the stream. This was not the first time she had accidentally sliced through her own finger. Cuts and burns were an unfortunate hazard of her job, but it had been a while since she had gotten herself quite this good. She rested her elbows on the edge of the sink and let her head fall between her shoulders as she became dangerously lightheaded. “Fuck.”
