Willa stepped back a bit and let Margo handle this part.
Ace demonstrated, slowly and deliberately, filling his lungs completely. It clearly pulled at something that he wasn’t happy about, but he did it.
“Bruised, huh?” Margo said, raising her brows and tilting her head slightly as she observed him. “Okay, I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt. But I want to know immediately if that changes.”
“You’ll be the first to know,” Ace promised, with a lopsided grin, and Margo knew even if the pain exploded, that look meant he’d never let on.
Around them, the cave had settled back into something warmer. The teenager’s chatter had come back gradually. Tyler and Andy divided up the last of the trail mix into portions with careful fairness. Margo moved to sit beside Rad against the far wall as the rush of what had happened slowly subsided within them. She rested her head on Rad’s shoulder, breathing out a breath and closing her eyes. The fire was steady, warm, and doing exactly what it was built to do.
Willa sat down beside Ace.
For a moment, neither of them said anything.
“Thank you,” Ace said quietly. “For coming with Rad to rescue me.”
“Well, of course,” Willa replied. “You’d have done exactly the same for me, so I couldn’t really leave you hanging off the edge of a cliff.” She gently knocked his shoulder with hers. “Besides, I did owe you. You did dive into the ocean to save me.”
Ace gave a soft snort and looked at the fire.
Willa looked at Ace. She thought about Margo’s face over the edge of that rock when the flashlight beam had found nothing below, the three seconds of pure terror before his voice had come up from the dark. She thought about how it had felt standing at the anchor tree with the rope in her hands and his weight somewhere at the other end of it.
Willa thought about what she’d said to him in this cave not too long ago. She suddenly felt uncomfortable.
“I’m going to check on the teenagers,” Willa said, suddenly needing some space. “Can I get you some water or an energy bar?”
“I could do with some water,” Ace told her with a smile.
Willa nodded and moved to where the food supplies were. Her mind was spinning. A shadow fell over her as Margo appeared beside her, reaching out to take a water and two energy bars.
“Willa, don’t you think it’s time you told Ace the truth about how you feel?” Margo asked softly, after a while.
She didn’t answer straight away.
“It’s not the right time,” Willa replied, glancing around at her friend. “There is a lot to consider first.” She glanced at her two oldest children. “I have to talk to them first.” She looked at Margo, who was watching her with quiet, compassionate understanding. “But now isn’t the right time. We’re too close to their father’s memorial and it… It just seems like a slap in the face to Shaun’s memory to move into a relationship now.” She glanced at Ace, where Rad was now talking to him. “But I will tell him. I promise. Once we’re over all the drama of what’s going on in Sandpiper Shores, and the memorial is behind us.”
Margo nodded once and said nothing for a few seconds. “Maybe, you should tell Ace that.” She smiled knowingly at Willa. “I think he deserves to know that.”
Willa gave her friend a tight smile. “You’re right.” She glanced at where Ace was again. “He deserves to know.”
Margo hugged Willa. “Everything will work out as it should.”
Willa wished she could be as confident as her friend, but she smiled, nodded, and then crossed the cave to where Ace was now speaking quietly with Rad.
“Rad,” Margo called. “Come have some water and…” She held up some energy bars. “Breakfast, I guess?”
Rad laughed, excused himself, and went over to Margo, where they went to sit in their spot once again.
Willa sat down beside Ace.
“Can we talk?” Willa asked, handing Ace a bottle of water.
“Of course we can,” Ace replied, giving her a warm smile. “As long as it’s not another lecture about sliding down the side of a ledge.”
“No.” Willa laughed despite herself. “Although you did nearly give us all a heart attack.”
“I know,” Ace said with a sigh. “We were just trying to get more wood.”
They fell quiet for a moment.
