Beating in time, p.3
Beating in Time, page 3
“So you were developing your relationships with them.”
He put his knife down and leaned on the counter. “Yes, but that didn’t mean I needed to ignore the friendships here. Especially the important ones. Like Wyatt...and you.” He touched my arm and I jumped.
“Oh, shit. I got chicken guts all over you.”
“That’s okay.” He turned the tap on and I waited to wash my hands, too, as I was finished with my cutting. “Come here.”
“What?” I thought he was referring to something in the sink, so I checked it.
He moved behind me and reached around to take my hands. “We can wash them together,” he said softly.
His voice in my ear made me weak. I was so stunned, I just let him do what he wanted to. He spread lather on my hands, across the palms, in between the fingers...in the most sensuous way. Then he rubbed the tops with his thumbs, squeezing and massaging them...
“Well,” Wyatt announced as he barged in the door. “Isn’t this cozy?”
Levi led me to the running water to rinse off the soap and released me, grabbing a towel from the counter.
A stampede of feet followed Wyatt, and they pushed past him. Misty ran to me and hugged my legs. “Mommy!”
“Hey, baby. How was swimming? I’d hug you but I’m wet.”
Levi tossed me a towel. I caught his gaze and felt a flutter in my stomach.
Wyatt took over and I sent up a silent prayer of gratitude that the pressure was off me and maybe I could find a way to disappear. “Levi, I’d like you to meet my sons. This one’s Beck...”
Levi shook his hand. “Nice to meet you, Beck.”
“And this here is Kane.” He leaned in. “He’s my hell raiser.”
“Wyatt,” I scolded.
He laughed. “What? It’s true.”
Kane’s eyes were shining with excitement. “Levi Cannon. In my house. This is so cool.”
“Are you kidding, man?” Levi took me by the shoulders and shoved me forward. “What you should be excited about is having the top hunt maker in the country as your aunt.”
“I don’t know if you can say—”
“She does make cool hunts,” Beck spouted.
“You make hunts for them?” Levi asked out of the corner of his mouth.
“Not like yours. Scavenger hunts, right guys?” Misty was tugging on the end of the blue jean shirt I wore over a white cami. “What?” She was gawking at Levi. “Oh. Levi,” I found myself a little choked up for some reason, “I’d like for you to meet Misty.”
He crouched. “Very nice to meet you, Miss Lawson.”
“Boyd,” I corrected, my married name.
He stared at me blankly for a moment. “Oh, Miss Boyd.” He shook her hand and straightened. “I’m sorry. I forgot.”
“No problem.” I blinked away tears, trying to reel it in. I addressed the boys. “Dinner’ll be ready in about fifteen minutes, so don’t go too far.”
“We won’t,” came their sing-songy answer. They scrambled off, whooping and causing a general uproar, with Misty on their heels begging them to wait. It reminded me so much of myself when I was younger, tagging along with Wyatt and all his friends.
Wyatt took a step farther into the room. “You’re staying for dinner, aren’t you, bud?”
I jumped in. “Oh, Wyatt. He doesn’t want our food. He’s used to five-star restaurants. This is...” I looked at my bowls of raw chicken and carrots. “...plain.”
“Actually, a home-cooked meal sounds fantastic.”
“But...I mean...I could cook you something way better than—”
“I’m sure it’ll be delicious.”
I guess there was no getting around it. “O-okay.”
Misty popped back in. “Mr. Levi? Do you know you’re named after a pair of pants?”
I heard snickering from around the corner. Her older cousins had put her up to it. Out of the blue I was struck by a memory.
I was probably...thirteen, and I’d followed the sound of laughter into the kitchen. The guys must have been practicing and had taken a break to get some snacks and Kool-Aid. Without stopping the conversation, Levi invited me over by lifting his arm, and wrapping it around me when I drew near. Phoenix was sitting on the counter. Wyatt was returning the pitcher of Kool-Aid to the refrigerator, and Dakota and Levi were standing opposite each other, all in a lively discussion. Later, when I left to do my homework, I paused right outside the kitchen to grab my backpack. Their hushed words floated to me.
“I’m telling you, man. She has the hots for you.”
“Who? Remi? Nah. You guys are sick. She’s just a baby,” Levi retorted.
“What about that note she wrote you? You know, the marry me, check yes or no?”
“She was, like...in second grade. I was in seventh. I told her no then, and the answer hasn’t changed.”
The high I’d had moments before, when he brought me under his wing, dissipated. It stung to hear him, of all people, talk about me like that.
“Earth to Remi.”
I looked at my brother. He was reaching into the same refrigerator he’d put the Kool-Aid into all those years ago.
“I asked if you wanted a drink.” He had a couple bottles of beer for Levi and himself.
“No. That’s okay. Thanks.” I went back to preparing dinner, listlessly going through the motions.
Wyatt glanced out the window and frowned. “Hold on a second.” He set his beer down and jerked the door open. “Beckam Alexander...” We couldn’t hear the rest but watched him lecture Beck and help Misty onto a swing.
“He’s...uhh...kind of protective of Misty. Kind of took over the papa role, if you can believe that.” My voice caught as I thought about all the things Jay had missed in her life.
Levi crossed to me. “Hey, are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” I responded hurriedly. “Just fine.” But I didn’t even sound convincing to myself.
CHAPTER TWO
Levi
I had come to Last Chance Beach with a shitload of baggage, and not the kind Samsonite makes. It had been eight years since I’d left, and I’d only returned once, and that was to lurk in the shadows, not to talk to anyone. I’d called Wyatt every so often; he was my best friend, after all. But, to be honest, it was more in hopes that he’d mention Remi. She’d never left my thoughts. I couldn’t remember a time when she wasn’t in them.
It was weird walking back into the house. It was like it had been frozen in time. Zero had changed physically, that I could tell. Maybe a little more wear and tear...but otherwise it seemed to be the same as the day I’d left. Still had the 70s era ripped and stained linoleum, paper-thin doors, same cabinets in the kitchen...he’d never replaced the one that Dakota accidentally tore the door off of; I could still look right into that cabinet...I think the refrigerator was newish, but it was still white and fairly non-descript. It was like the eight years I’d been gone hadn’t happened. It was almost creepy.
She was quiet during dinner. I tried to draw her into the conversation a couple of times, but the most animated she would become was when she was talking to her daughter, who was a hoot. Misty always seemed to be thinking, and she would come up with these questions that were hilariously random.
“Mommy, why is it called a hurricane and not a himicane?”
Without turning her head, Remi held out a hand to Wyatt. “Don’t.”
Wyatt shut his mouth as he did seem to be on the verge of saying something, probably something smart-assed.
“I don’t know, baby. Let’s look it up after dinner. Make sure you remind me, okay?” By the time dinner was through, they had about a half dozen things to research, including “what is the name of the spaces between the pointy things on a comb?”
But...Remi was different. She’d changed. Just as Last Chance Beach had, as she had mentioned earlier, perhaps a little passive-aggressively. She’d surrendered one of the qualities that had made her magical. Her lightness and airiness in the face of some pretty brutal struggles. She and Wyatt had lost their parents in a boating accident that happened near the lighthouse when she was fourteen, and Wyatt and I nineteen.
One of Julio’s—their dad’s—brothers had maintained a loose conservatorship over them after that, but Remi had been the one to take charge, for the most part. Wyatt had quit school and was making some bad decisions. He and his dad had a rough relationship, and I think it ate at Wyatt that he didn’t have the chance to fix that before his father died. I’m sure the judge deciding on what to do with the two of them thought nineteen-year-old Wyatt would be the one to fill the role of parent, not Remi. But Remi was always more mature than the rest of us put together. Still, she had maintained a bright and sunny disposition that made her irresistible to be around. Now it seemed all the weight she’d been carrying for so long had crushed that. It made me sad.
After dinner, I brought my plate to the sink where she was cleaning. “That was so good.”
She didn’t look at me but tilted her head. “You don’t have to keep saying that.”
“I’m not just saying it. You have no idea how tired I get of eating restaurant food.”
Wyatt handed her his plate, which she rinsed. “Oh, poor baby,” he said with an edge.
“Wyatt!”
I guess I’d pissed off more than one person with my prolonged absence. He peered at her with raised eyebrows then was called away by one of the kids, and he needed to get them going on their homework.
“I’m sure it gets tiring eating out all the time,” she said mildly. “I feel that way whenever I’m on the road for an extended period of time.”
I studied her. “That’s another thing I like about you. You’re always able to see other people’s viewpoints.”
“Oh, well...I try.” A pretty blush rose in her cheeks.
“And I’m serious. That was good. It filled me up but wasn’t too heavy. My stomach is happy right now.”
She turned to say something in response, but Misty ran in. “Mommy, how did the first people to make tools do it if they didn’t have tools to make them with?”
Remi glanced at me, her lips quirking, seeming more like the Remi of old. “That’s a good question. Why don’t you go ask your Uncle Wyatt? I’m sure he knows.”
“Thanks, Mommy.” Then plat, plat, plat, went her bare feet on the linoleum as she ran off.
Remi dried her hands and leaned against the counter. “The only thing more amusing than Misty’s questions are the answers Wyatt comes up with to them in order to maintain his hold on the World’s Smartest Uncle title.”
I chuckled. “You come over here a lot?”
She found something to wipe on the counter. “Yeah. We eat together every Thursday. It’s not as...quiet here.”
And there was that sadness again. I looked down. “I’m sorry about Jay. He was a good guy.”
She stopped wiping and grasped the edge of the counter. In her reflection in the window above the sink, I saw that she’d closed her eyes. “Oh...uhh...thanks.”
I shoved my hands in my pockets to keep from trying to hold her and rested against the opposite counter.
Should I tell her?
“I came, actually, the day of his funeral.”
She didn’t turn but gripped the countertop more tightly. “You did?” Her voice pitched. “I...I didn’t see you.”
“I hung near the back. And wore a cap. I didn’t want people to disturb you.” I had taken a huge chance. Having some fan cause a scene would have been the worst. But I needed to see her. See for myself that she was okay. She’d been broken but incredible. Got up, even, to say a bit about Jay and the kind of man he was. It killed me to listen. I cleared my throat. “You were amazing that day. So strong.”
“I—” She circled to face me, and I was struck by the pain that was carved into her every feature. “I was pretty drugged up, to tell you the truth.”
I nodded, not sure what to say.
She stepped forward suddenly and took my hands. Hers were trembling. “Thank you. That was kind of you to come.” She squeezed then dropped them, looking away. “I...umm...need to get Misty home. It was nice seeing you again.” She rushed out of the room.
I exhaled and sank more heavily against the counter. I’d wondered what it would be like to be around her again. Would seeing her demystify her and make it easier to forget her? Or would I still feel the same way? All it had taken was a couple of hours with her to know the answers to my questions. Neither was the case. The emotions I had when I was with her were intensified, and I was filled with a clarity that had been lacking in my life. I knew what I needed. Her. It remained to be seen if that was even in the realm of possibility. I took a long pull on my beer.
Hearing someone approach, I straightened. Misty rushed into the room with Wyatt and Remi in her wake. He had his arm over Remi’s shoulder. “Text me when you get home, okay?”
“Okay.”
He hauled her into his side and kissed her above her temple, holding on to her for a moment. She melted against him and stretched her arms around his waist.
My attention was drawn to the pint-sized distraction at my feet. “It was nice meeting you Mr. Levi.”
I rubbed her hair. It was dark and curly. She resembled Jay more than Remi. But she had Remi’s smile. “It was nice meeting you too. You’ll have to let me know what the answer is to that whole why do we have two eyes but only see one thing question.” She grinned and nodded then tore off for the door.
“Misty?” Remi called.
She spun.
“Aren’t you going to say goodbye to your Uncle Wyatt?”
She beamed and ran back into his arms, and he lifted her with a growl. She squished his face between her palms, and he blew on her and she laughed. He set her on her feet.
“Come on, you.” Remi gave her a swat on the rear, and Misty responded with a fake yelp. “Goodbye, Levi.” Remi looked at me partially. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
And then they were gone.
Why did she say she’ll see me tomorrow? I mean, I figured she would be at the benefit we’d come to play, as it was in her late husband’s name, but she seemed so sure of seeing me...
After he closed the door behind them, Wyatt stood holding the doorknob for a few seconds then turned slowly to me with a frown. I waited for him to speak. I’d gained a little wisdom over time and learned that if you don’t know what to say, it’s best not to say anything at all. He retrieved his beer from the kitchen table then plopped into a chair heavily and took a drink, staring straight ahead. Despite my new-gained wisdom, I couldn’t take it. I grasped the top of one of the chairs at the table, wringing it like I thought it was a motorcycle that could take me away from there.
“Boys asleep?”
He shifted his gaze to me without moving his head. “In bed reading.”
“You’ve got kids that read?” Reading was always a struggle for him. He gave the first glimmer of a smile. It started slow and spread.
“Yeah, smart-ass, I do.” He kicked the chair I was holding. “Have a seat.”
“Will you kick me if I do?”
He tipped his beer back, not breaking eye contact, and took a long drink. He wiped his mouth and nodded to the chair. “We’ll see.”
I pulled it out gingerly and slowly settled myself into it, a distance from the table. He grinned. “Before we launch into a discussion here, I’d like to just say one thing, in case that’s all I get to say.”
“Go on.”
I leaned up, lacing my fingers, my forearms on the table pointing toward him. “I’m proud of you.”
His eyes widened and he rocked back in his chair. “What the hell for? For living in a dump? Having a dead-end job? Putting on weight? What exactly do you think is praiseworthy?”
He was out of shape. He’d probably put on close to a hundred pounds or more over the years, but he’d been a beanpole to begin with. Now he was a big bear of a man, and with his beard, he reminded me a lot of Dak. “For raising two boys practically by yourself.”
He shook his head vigorously. “Not by myself. With Remi. She has as much to do with how they came out as I do. She’s the one who read to them and got them into books. It sure the hell wasn’t me.”
“Okay. Even so...you’ve worked hard to support them and...you stayed, man. When your lucky break finally arrived, you stayed. That took a lot of guts and a whole lot of heart and you shouldn’t sell yourself short. You’ve been here for your boys. And...” This was a little harder to say. I stared at my hands. “You were there for Remi.”
His mouth hung open. It was clear he didn’t know what to do with this conversation. He abruptly leaned in, fists on the table, exhaling through his teeth and shaking his head again. “I don’t know, man. I worry about her.”
“I can tell.” He didn’t add anything. “Look, I said this to Remi...sort of...and I’d like to tell you...I’m sorry. Not so much for leaving. I would have been miserable if I hadn’t taken my shot. But I am sorry for not trying harder to keep in touch. To be honest, I did it for purely selfish reasons. I didn’t think I could do things part-time with you and Remi. I thought I’d feel torn in two and that would be no good to either you guys or my career, but it was wrong. You don’t just cut people out of your life. I’m...kind of ashamed of what I’ve done.”
It finally appeared as if he had something to say but we heard...
“Da-ad!”
“Shit.” He studied me tensely. Talk about torn in two. He got to his feet. “I need to go see what he needs, but it won’t take long. You—”
“I should probably go. It’s late. It’s a weekday. I get it.”
“No. Don’t leave,” he said with a hint of desperation. He licked his lips. “It’s...nice having you around. I’ve never really made any other friends. No one except for you could put up with me, which should tell you something about you, by the way,” he joked. He gestured toward the garage. “You wanna...maybe play a bit together? I mean, I get it if you don’t want to, but—”
“Yeah. I’d like that,” I said genuinely. “Don’t tell the guys, but I’ve always liked playing more with you than them.” Then I looked toward the light that was coming down the stairs. “Won’t it keep the kids awake?”
