“I’m not that desperate for cash,” Cat says tersely and finishes her drink in one big gulp. “Where’s Ginny?”
Just like with everyone in this town, Cat is on a first-name basis with the staff here. She waves at Ginny who comes right over with a big smile on her face. “Another?” Ginny asks. After Cat nods, she looks over to me. “How about you, sugar?”
I look at my almost empty glass. “What the hell.”
“Gin, before you go, explain to Winnie here why we hate Holden Hendricks,” Cat says.
Ginny, who was about to walk back to the bar to get our order, pauses and puts a hand on her hip. “I don’t hate him,” she announces and for a brief, fleeting moment I relax. I really just don’t want to hear bad things about him, which is crazy because I shouldn’t care, but that kiss made me care. “I just don’t trust him as far as I can throw him, and there’s no way I can throw him. That boy is the size of a small pickup truck.”
“See?” Cat says with a triumph smile on her cherry red lips. “It’s not just me.”
“Oh, he’s banned from here,” Ginny explains. “Been that way since he was sixteen and came in here with fake ID and started a brawl that brought the cops and got the owner fined because he didn’t catch the fake ID. Plus his sister, Bradie, used to work here and we’re all still good friends with her including the owner. I saw her just last week and she says he hasn’t changed. He pretends he’s different, but in the end he pulls the same old garbage, like offering to help her out and bailing on her.”
I have no reason not to take Ginny’s words as the truth but…for some reason I don’t. I feel like there’s more to the story than she knows. Why would the guy who went out of his way to help me when I was hurt blow off his own sister when she needed him? He wouldn’t. Would he? Unless…were those the plans that got messed up because he helped me when I wiped out on my bike?
Ginny looks at me. “Didn’t you punch him in the face when you were younger? Or was that one of your sisters?”
I give her a sheepish smile. “Yeah that was me.”
Cat giggles. “Oh my God, I had forgotten about that! Why did you do that again?”
“Because he tried to fight my brother,” I reply. “It was dumb. Jude didn’t need me to defend him. Holden was drunk and really angry and just picking on Jude for no reason and honestly, he used to pick on me all the time when we were teenagers so I think I just needed an excuse.”
“You’re my hero,” Ginny says and winks. “I’ll be back with the drinks in a jiffy and consider them on the house.”
I watch her head back to the bar and turn back to Cat. She gives me a sympathetic smile. “Look, I know that you’re going through a lot right now. Of course you’re feeling raw and kind of alone, but please think twice before you lean on that boy for anything—emotional or physical. I mean, I get it. He is pretty, but that’s the outside. On the inside he ain’t pretty.”
I avert my eyes, staring out at the churning water beyond the windows and I nod. Not because I agree with her but because I just don’t want to talk about it—him—anymore. My stomach churns, and I feel so conflicted. I can see Cat and Ginny’s points. However, I also feel like I know him in a way they don’t. I’m also worried I’m letting that kiss color my opinion.
Cat and I stay at Riptide’s for another couple of hours and then she tells me she has to get home or she won’t be able to get up and make the cinnamon buns tomorrow. Not wanting to deprive the locals of the delicacy, I don’t argue, even though I’m not at all tired and not looking forward to going home and being alone. Being out and doing something has been good for me.
The walk home isn’t long, but the temperature has plunged in the last few hours and fall weather is definitely here. It’s downright chilly and I didn’t bring a sweater. Cat notices me shiver and gives me a sympathetic smile. “If you think this is bad, wait until November.”
“It’s just that it was so warm this afternoon,” I complain and she nods.
“Yep, you know what they say, if you don’t like the weather in Maine, wait a minute.” She grins at her own joke. “Your place is heated, right? I know not all cottages are.”
“Yeah, my dad had it winterized when I was a kid because he had always planned on retiring here,” I say and that all too familiar wave of grief crests inside me.
“I can’t believe you don’t want to go back to San Francisco,” Cat says and looks at me like I’m a puzzle she can’t solve. “You’d have better weather and more nightlife and your family. Hell, just talking about it makes me want to move there.”
I laugh but it’s hollow, just like I feel. “San Francisco is nice—don’t get me wrong—but it never felt like home,” I say, which is something I haven’t told anyone. “And Toronto isn’t home anymore because there’s nothing left there for me. This place was always the one constant in my life and I love it here.”
“I do too,” Cat replies and gives me a quick side hug. “I’d never leave the business or the state, but…California just seems like such a dream.”
“It’s not a dream when you’re there to watch your dad die,” I blurt out.
She gives me another side hug and I look away, willing the sadness to stay at bay. I had been doing so well tonight. As I blink back tears, I notice two men standing on the edge of the sidewalk, near a hedge just up ahead. They’re huddled together, heads down, as if having some kind of secret conversation. My step falters. “Is that Holden?”
Cat’s head snaps forward and her eyes narrow at the very same time the two men step apart and look at us. She doesn’t need to answer because it’s clear as day—that is Holden Hendricks. I’m startled because I didn’t expect to see him out at almost midnight but Cat’s expression is more than startled, it’s disturbed. “Yeah and that guy he’s with is the town drug dealer.”
“What?” I gasp, like an idiot.
“Hey!” Holden says and starts toward us. He glances back at the guy he was talking to. “Take care, Kevin.”
Kevin nods and walks away without looking back. Holden stops on the sidewalk directly in front of us. “You guys have a good night?”
“Until now, yes,” Cat snaps at him and it makes him frown. She doesn’t seem to care as she looks over at me. “Come on, let’s go.”
