Rogue Wave Isabel Jolie (books for 20 year olds .TXT) 📖

heard from you, you were somewhere in the Indian Ocean. Did you ever think about Dad? Or Nana?”

A wave of guilt crashed over me. I didn’t think. Not about them. I felt indestructible, and any concern by anyone felt silly. As the years went by, I didn’t feel so indestructible, but I had detached.

“You showed up maybe a month after the reading of the will. No word for so long, and then, out of nowhere.”

“You assumed the worst. Got it. Loud and clear.”

“That’s not fair.”

I gave him a look that said really?

“Who stole Dad’s car when he was fourteen and crashed it? Who snuck out of the house countless times? Who emptied half Dad’s liquor bottles and filled them with water?”

“That was high school. Look…you want to write me off, that’s fine. I don’t care. I left. You’re the one who showed up here. And, just so you know, I don’t even need that blasted inheritance. I did earn money on my own when I was gone. It’s in offshore accounts at the moment. That’s why I called Gabe, because he’s helping me transfer funds.” Gabe had set the accounts up for me a couple of years ago. I had one small account that I used for day to day, and I’d had larger payments sent to the offshore account, partially to minimize taxes, but my intention had been to put it to good use. Donate it or do something worthwhile with it. I lost all the account information when one of my phones went overboard, but I wasn’t about to admit that to Gregg. All that would do is bolster his view of me as a delinquent.

Gregg exhaled loudly and stretched while the waitress picked up our empties and delivered fresh beers.

“You know, a guy called the house looking for you. A while ago. Said he was trying to locate you. Struck me as odd. If you were in trouble and needed my help, would you tell me?”

“Probably not,” I answered. “But I’m telling you the truth. How long ago did that guy call?”

“A few weeks ago. It’s what prompted me to reach out to Gabe.”

I huffed. Traitor.

“Don’t go getting mad at him. I dug into him before he’d share anything. And even then, he didn’t share much.”

The bubbles in my fresh beer floated to the top.

“My old boss knew about the inheritance. Was there an article or something?”

“Little snippet in the Hartford paper, I think. Laura mentioned it.”

“Do you know if dollar amounts were specified?”

“No. Wouldn’t take you long, though, to Google and read whatever he found.”

I gulped my beer, aiming to down it quickly, pay for dinner, and say goodbye.

“Hey, it’s late. What do you say we pay here and pick this up tomorrow? I’m here through Sunday. Besides, I’m sure your girlfriend is sitting at that bar getting hit on.”

I chuckled. “If we were anywhere else, that would be true. On this island, this time of year, it’s all married people or old people. I’m pretty safe.”

“I like her.”

“I do, too.”

“So, you say she’s in grad school?”

I couldn’t hold back my grin as I shook my head at him. “I have to give it to you. It took you hours before you got that question back in for round two.”

He held his hands out and lifted his shoulders in his classic you-got-me move.

“She’s twenty-two.”

“I would’ve guessed twenty.”

“You think I’m wrong to date her, right? She’s too young for me?”

“Nah. You remember my buddy, Dalton? He came around some. He was on my lacrosse team?”

“Yeah, kind of. Big guy, brown hair?”

“Yep. He lives in our neighborhood, on my street, actually. My age, thirty-seven or eight. Guy just left his wife and young twins for his twenty-two-year-old assistant. Now, he’s a total schmuck. His wife gained weight after having twins, and he said he was no longer attracted to her. To me, he’s despicable. Curls my stomach. Laura’s good friends with his wife, so I know a lot.”

I sat back, waiting for him to get to his point.

“In that case, age plays a part. It just adds to the whole sordid picture. In your case, you’re not married, no kids, in some ways you’re starting a new life just like she is. Age is just a number. Fourteen, fifteen years isn’t that much. And you guys are both environmentalists. You’ll both spend your weekends picking up litter and planting trees.”

“You are such a fucker.” He laughed. “She can do better than me. You’re right about me starting over.” He nailed that one. “But…she’s me when I was twenty-two. Optimistic, believes she can better the world. I’ve lost that. And I don’t want to dampen her…everything. She’s pretty incredible, and I feel…”

“Hey, maybe you’ll balance her. She’ll inspire you. Show you that you can plant enough trees to improve the oxygen count or whatever…or, what does she do?”

“Right now, she’s focusing on sea turtle conservation.”

“Perfect. You guys can save hundreds of sea turtles together. You’ll help her see that shipping across the world might not be the best choice for a young woman, and thereby save her from the ocean underworld. And she’ll maybe inspire you to get a job. It’s a win-win.”

“It’s amazing how you can annoy me even when you are trying in your own way to be supportive.”

“Nah, seriously, you’ve never met Laura. You’ve missed a lot.” He paused, giving me a pointed stare, casting blame. “But I do believe finding a partnership is a good thing. Laura…she’s my world. And you and Luna, I could see her being that for you.”

I didn’t argue. We paid and headed out. While I agreed she could be great for me, I failed to see me being anything for her long term. Not that it was an issue. Luna wasn’t worried about the long term. At twenty-two, she was all about the now and life experiences. As she should be.

In the morning, I woke with Luna sprawled out over the bed like a starfish. The sheet fell