“I know, dear, but there are a million things to do. The whole family is at the Silversteins’ villa in Anacapri. The view is average but they’re in Shanghai for some reason so we are their guests. I dropped off your tuxedo and one for Hayes with the concierge.”
“You brought one for Hayes?” I ask, realizing what she said. What is wrong with her? My throat tightens as the anger grows but I put a lid on it, like I always do. This would be the perfect time to tell her that I’m not going to the wedding. That I’ll be flying home and heading to Boston and getting my teaching certificate.
“Of course I brought one for him. He’s here with you, isn’t he?” I point to the pool. “Great. Glad that worked out. Lawyers and doctors are always a good set.” That’s what I am to my mother, something to match the drapes, but there’s also pride in her voice that makes my chest ache. Would being a lawyer finally make her proud of me? Unlikely, but doesn’t every child want to make their parent proud? Just once?
“Brady. Hello?” Her voice snaps me back to reality.
“Mom, I want to tell you…” but I stop. This isn’t the right time. I’ll tell her later. She’s here all week. Right now, I just want her to go. She doesn’t know that Hayes told me he loves me a few moments ago and I felt how truly wonderful that word can be. I get a glimpse of Hayes in the pool, his arms slicing through the water with confidence. I don’t want to have this conversation with her right now. I want to be with Hayes. I get up and go to hug her.
She stands back a bit and offers her cheek for a peck.
“It’s so humid here, dear. But it’s nice to see you. I love you,” she says. She means it, but the words lack any real feeling.
“You too, Mother.” I immediately flash back to parents’ weekends at school, when I would watch my friends and their parents almost tackle each other on the quad with warm greetings of love and joy. That’s not how my family operates. You mostly get a kiss on the cheek from my mom regardless of the weather.
She looks at her phone and says, “They need me back at the villa. I have to run.”
“Don’t you want say hello to Hayes?”
She lowers her sunglasses and scans the pool. “I don’t want to interrupt his swim. Just make sure you have everything altered before the weekend. And nothing too baggy. All eyes will be on the family.” She walks away.
I turn my attention back to Hayes. There are two women at the opposite side of the kidney-shaped pool but he’s the only one swimming laps so he has the water to himself. I try to block out my mother’s visit and the immediate tension it causes me. Just once I want to feel like her son, not a member of some firm.
Hayes doesn’t make me feel that way. When I’m with him, I feel like we’re emotionally connected. He makes me feel taken care of, and important to him, like he needs me to be his best self. I need him to be my best self. I watch him gliding through the water. I want to be a part of his life in big ways and small. I want to need him and be needed by him. And it’s not just his muscles or that thick hair that has never once seen a proper conditioner. It’s all of who he is. We just fit together. Then it hits me. I love him. I am in love with him.
He’s swimming breaststroke toward the end of the pool but I want to tell him. I need to. I don’t even think about taking off my shirt or kimono or my hat or jeans. I get up from the lounger as he approaches the side of the pool closest to me, walk over and instead of bending down to stop him, I take a few steps back and cannonball into the water and shout:
“Hayes, I love you!”
My butt lands on the surface, causing a spray to unleash across the pool as I submerge and then reemerge to Hayes standing with his goggles off and his hand on his head.
“What did you say?” he asks.
I tread over to him. “I said, I love you. I love you, Hayes Carter. I love you.”
He swims closer to me and then bends down to scoop me up in his arms. He holds me in front of him, the added weight of my wet clothes no match for his strength or determination. “You are absolutely nuts, you know that?”
I nod repeatedly.
“And I love you too.” He kisses me.
Chapter 43
Capri
Hayes
“It’s not every day one of the world’s richest men gets married,” Brady says as we continue our climb. I reach my arm out to help him up the next few levels of the Phoenician Steps. His palm is slick with sweat as he tentatively clasps his fingers around mine. The ancient stone crumbles under his foot.
“Hasn’t he been married like five times?” I say. “It may not be every day, but it seems to be every few years at least.” I squeeze my bicep to lift him up and over the last step. “Good work,” I grunt, and slap him on the back.
A cluster of olive trees growing on a plateau create a shady tunnel for us to rest. “Let me get you some water and then we can grab some content.” Brady has been a trooper as we’ve explored the island. We’ve hiked along dusty trails and down to private beaches, but I saved this view so we could catch the sunlight on the water. He’s panting when he sits on the rock next to me. “These steps are torture. Now I have another thing to hold against the Phoenicians.”
I open the lid of the water bottle for him and watch the way his lips caress the spout. A line of sweat trickles down his cheek. Without thinking, I lean in and kiss his soaking forehead.
“Hey, what? I’m all sweaty.”
He lowers his chin and I gently raise it up. “I don’t care.” I kiss him again in the same spot. This time my mouth is more open so I can taste him. “Wait.” I stop kissing. “What was the first thing you have against the Phoenicians?”
