Page 31 of Goldilocks
There was a light breeze, but it was going in the right direction to fill the sails toward Sam’s boat without having to cut.
“I’ll untie us,” Connor said. He walked down the steps toward the front, where a length of rope held them to the dock.
“What do you want me to do?” Sam eyed the tied sails. He’d been out a few times now with Connor, and though he’d never been on a yacht before Connor bought this one, he’d sat in on enough lessons with Laurence and had enough know-how to be a help rather than a hindrance.
Connor pointed where he wanted him and then leaned out, tossing a length of rope onto the dock haphazardly. “Any requests?” He dug his phone out of his pocket and held it out.
“Thought you liked listening to the ocean?”
“I do. But don’t think I didn’t see you roll your eyes at me when I told you that.”
“You don’t remember that. That was like…” Sam trailed off, thinking hard.
“Four years ago.” Connor tugged the tied ropes at his side loose, not even having to look to undo the knot. “You remembered halfway out to your pots that you’d charged up Eric’s old Bluetooth speaker and asked what I wanted to listen to. And when I said I liked the sound of the waves—”
“I didn’t roll my eyes,” Sam denied. He stood with his feet planted and his hands on his sides.
“You rolled them up to the stars,” Connor said, dry amusement in his tone. “And you said—”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“You said ‘And do you also like the sound of the engine?’in the most sarcastic tone I’ve ever heard out of you,” Connor persisted.
“That’s some imagination on you,” Sam said. He hoped the lights on the yacht weren’t enough to reveal that he’d reddened. He did remember that. He thought he’d always been fairly nice to Connor, but maybe that wasn’t strictly true. How could Sam have listened to‘I like the sound of the waves’, with the boat’s engine roaring because it needed a repair, and not been a little exasperated?
“So, requests?” Connor prompted.
Sam bent to untie the rope Connor had pointed at earlier. “I actually like the sound of snapping sails, and birds and waves, nature’s music, you know? And if there’s an engine choking too, that’s all the better,” Sam said. Connor’s laugh ate his sentence up.
It was a peaceful sail by moonlight, a warm breeze leading them across the ocean along the flat water. The land was a distant, dark smudge and only the odd bird call disturbed them. Adonis caught up just as they reached Sam’s boat, and Sam saw his large mass beneath the waves only when he came close enough to the surface for the lights to reflect off his scales. Sam could never quite figure out what colour Adonis’s tail was; it seemed to bounce colours rather than hold its own.
As Sam finished securing the sails, Connor dropped anchor, and when Sam was done, Connor was digging through the cooler. “I have two ciders left. That good with you?”
Sam nodded.
“Let’s sit over the edge.” Connor grabbed two pillows and tucked them under his arm. “Adonis will get huffy if he can’t see us.”
Sam sat next to Connor, and their feet hung several feet above the waterline. As Sam cracked open his cider can, Adonis’s face emerged from the water right beneath them, and he studied Connor briefly before dipping below again.
Music hummed in the background, and the sound of the waves soothed Sam, almost putting him to sleep. He fought that sleepiness, wanting to stay in this relaxed, peaceful state longer.
“What happened to exploring the other world?” Sam asked, needing to talk before he drifted off.
“I had to come back to sort a few things out,” Connor explained. “I’m waiting to sign the deed away to the old house. My realtor said if I go AWOL on him again when he has a buyer waiting, he’s going to sell it at half price. I keep telling him that Trevor can sign for me, but the realtor won’t let me do that.”
“I’m sure Trevor is happy to have you sticking around. And Laurence.”
“It’s nice spending time with them,” Connor agreed. His eyes tracked Adonis as he circled past them once more. “Even though it makes Adonis grumpy. Speaking of…I’m surprised your admirer didn’t stick around.”
Sam rolled his eyes and leaned back, snagging a pillow from the nearest lounger to rest his head on. “He’s aself-admirer. And he’s probably off sulking somewhere after getting in trouble with me.” Not that Sam gave out to him per se…If anything, Sam was more irritable with him before he fell into the ocean.
“Aha, so somethingdidhappen. You went swimming with him?”
Sam snorted and shut his eyes. “More like he…” Saying he knocked Sam into the water would be a lie. “He grabbed my book because I wasn’t paying attention to him, and I fell in trying to get it back.” Sam opened his eyes, realising something. “I didn’t even ask if I hurt him.”
“Their well-being is something you don’t need to worry about, I promise you that.” Connor reclined next to Sam. “Adonis, I’m cold,” he called.
“How can you be so sure?” Sam asked.