“I heard that!” Dex protests. “This isn’t a toy, it’s a quality piece of machinery.”
“Like your sports car and motorcycle?” Tegan teases him.
“Abso-fucking-lutely.”
“Toys,” she repeats. “Oh, wait, you’ve met Dex, right?”
I give a little wave. “Hi.”
“Welcome on board SS Chaos,” he replies cheerfully. “You better just hope we don’t capsize out there.”
My eyes must have shown my fear, because Tegan laughs. “He’s kidding,” she tells me. “He’s a great captain. And we’re not going far, just around the bay to a private beach.”
“Oh, OK.” I feel a rush of relief. Heights may be my number one fear, but drowning comes pretty close.
The others come aboard and join us sitting up on deck. In addition to Ryland and Dex, there’s another local couple, Hunter and Brit, and a friendly red-haired woman who turns out to be Dex’s fiancée, Alicia. I study her, surprised to find someone so neat and preppy engaged to the rock star.
“Who wants beer?” Tegan asks, opening the cooler.
“Me!” Alicia exclaims, holding out a hand. She takes the bottle and swallows a long gulp. “Planning this wedding is driving me crazy,” she sighs. “I never realized there were so many details. The cake, the flowers…”
“At least the dress is taken care of,” Tegan points out. “Brit’s a designer,” she adds.
“You should do what we did,” Brit smiles, leaning back against her husband. “Backyard wedding, no mess, no fuss.”
“No chance for my mom to turn into a wedding planning monster,” Hunter adds.
“Don’t tempt me,” Alicia says, rueful. “Dex says we should just elope.”
“No!” Tegan cries. “You can’t. We all need to be there with you guys.”“I know, I’m just kidding,” Alicia reassures her. “It wouldn’t be the same without you all, and this town.”
I sit back, content to let their conversation wash over me. Then I feel the motor engine start, and see Ryland on the dock, casting off the ties.
“Wait,” I say, confused. “Where’s Ash?”
“Oh, he’s on some business call.” Tegan sighs dramatically. “Big deal negotiations, or something like that. He says he’ll meet us there later, if he gets finished in time.”
My heart falls. I thought that he’d be here, that we’d have some time to talk. I try to hide my disappointment, but Tegan’s mouth quirks in a knowing smile. “You know, I think I’ll text him,” she says casually. “And let him know you made it. Who knows, maybe he’ll find he’s finished sooner than he thought?”
She winks, and I have to turn away to hide my blush. “I’m going to go check the cupcakes are in the cooler,” I say quickly, getting up. “I don’t want the frosting to melt.”
In a way, it’s a good thing that Ash didn’t join us. Without him there, I can simply enjoy myself, not nervously looking to see if he’s watching me; wondering what he’s thinking, or if he’s paying me any attention at all.
I didn’t realize how on edge he makes me, that glitter of anticipation fizzing in my stomach at the smallest glance. Instead, I’m free to chat with the others; relaxing out in the sun on the top deck as we slowly cruise across the bay. It’s a perfect day: blue-skied and hot, and I soon strip off my tank and lay out in my bikini top, letting the stress and anxiety of the past weeks simply melt away.
“This is the life,” Tegan yawns from beside me.
I murmur in agreement, the sunlight bright even behind my dark shades.
“Typical Ash, staying cooped up in the office instead of out having fun,” she adds. “I know he’s my brother, but I swear, sometimes I just want to give him a good smack. He doesn’t know how to have fun.”
“He does,” I find myself protesting. I sit up. “He can be fun when he wants, he just has a strong work ethic. That’s a good thing, that he’s got a drive to succeed, and is able to stick to it.”
Tegan shakes her head. “Drive is one thing, but Ash has a total obsession with work. That’s why I was trying to fix you guys up,” she adds. “I thought maybe he could hold his calls for an evening for once in his life. But clearly, he’s got his head stuck up his ass too far to see what he’s missing out on,” she adds, raising one of my cupcakes to prove her point.
I know that Ash hasn’t exactly made his intentions clear towards me, but I feel bad, listening to her criticize him like this.
“He works because he’s got a lot of people depending on him,” I say quietly. “He always has. He wants to take care of you guys, there’s nothing wrong with that.”
Tegan looks guilty. “I know he’s sacrificed a lot for us. It wasn’t fair, that he had to be the one to step up and keep everything together. But that was years ago. We can take care of ourselves now. Dex is multi-platinum, Blake’s off starring in movies. I have Ryland, we’re making a life together,” she adds. “I want that for Ash too. I want him to be happy, and settled, and…you know, free. He deserves that, after everything he’s done.”
She stops, then rolls her eyes, self-conscious. “I’m sorry, here I am blabbering all the Callahan family drama, and you’re here to have fun!”