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

clue how to be a father. And I owed it to him to get to know his wife and kids. No matter what, he’d always be my brother. Family would be good for my daughter. My daughter…

As I cleared out of the business center, an unease settled over me. The kind of unease that said you’d made a poor decision. That you weren’t up for what was coming down the pike. I pulled up Luna’s contact information on my phone but couldn’t bring myself to press her name.

My twenty-two-year-old surfer girl. What the fuck was I thinking, letting myself be with her? I’d thought we were short term. She’d leave to finish her master’s, or for another one-year research gig. I’d expected we’d part ways long before anything like this came to fruition.

And Luna, she’d probably grow attached to my daughter, maybe even do something stupid like consider not completing her degree or come back to a nothing job at the conservancy center so she could stay near us. I knew nothing about being a parent, but I knew what it was like to be twenty-two. I knew a twenty-two-year-old had no business carrying the burden of an adopted twelve-year-old girl.

I’d always hated goodbyes. Never liked emotional communication. The idea of saying goodbye to Luna, of tears welling up in sad brown eyes, it crushed me. I couldn’t do it. I liked how I said goodbye to her this morning, with an expectation we’d be together again. We hadn’t made plans. We had assumed it. We’d been happy.

If I met up with her and told her we had to end things, she’d fight me. She’d argue we could still see each other. That she wouldn’t be sacrificing anything. But she would, and I knew it. A letter struck as the most reliable method of ending things. There would be no risk of my caving. Maybe it would stir up a little righteous anger in Luna. Anger would be good. Someone else would ask her out, and she’d move on to the next guy.

I scribbled in my journal. I might not make it off the island without running into her, but I could try. I liked my plan. Leave with happy memories. No painful goodbyes. No begging for more.

Thoughts of Luna surrounded me as I packed up my papers. Her giggles, her coconut sunscreen and her strawberry shampoo, her optimism. Her hair flitting behind her as she sped along. I closed my eyes and focused on my mental image of her flying down Wynd Road, surfboard strapped to the top of the cart, and memorized it.

I left the business center uncertain, with a half-baked plan, clueless. I left the island with a book from the adoption agency on what to expect, and an itinerary to become a father.

Chapter 23

Luna

A few of the researchers staying over for the week excavated the last remaining turtle nest on the island. We didn’t find any remnant eggs, but we joked around and got to know each other. The research team comprised senior members of a volunteer conservation group. Most were professors at various universities around the country. I’d stumbled into a potential career-making networking event, just by doing my job.

The scientists invited me to join them during some of their work sessions. Exhilaration carried me through the afternoon like a full, smooth tidal swell.

I texted Tate. They offered for him to join us. Networking opportunities in our field had to be seized. Even if he had no interest, they’d love to hear his stories. But I didn’t expect a return text. Phones and Tate mixed like oil and water. I rushed around the center, sweeping sand into a pile, eager to close up the center for the night and find Tate.

“Hello, child.” Alice’s kind voice preceded her into the large room filled with aquariums.

“Hi. What are you doing here? It’s after ten.” I set the broom and dustpan against the wall and scanned the room for any remaining things to do before turning off the light.

“I’ve been looking for you.”

“Oh, is everything okay?” I gave her my full attention. Her braids fell around her shoulders, and she wore a multi-colored dress that flowed with the current of the air. Well-worn brown suede Birkenstocks adorned her feet, and her collection of toe rings glinted in the light.

“I have something for you.” She held out a milky white envelope. “The tide ebbs and flows. The sun sets, but it also rises.”

I played her odd riddle over in my head.

“Tate asked me to give that to you.” She spoke so softly I stepped closer, unsure I heard her correctly. “He had to leave.”

“Is he in danger? Did that man come back?” She’d told me to put out that bucket of water. And I did. I’d hidden it beneath his kitchen sink. I hid it so Tate wouldn’t laugh at me, but I did as she said.

“He’s finding his way. He’ll be back.” She took my hand. “You focus on you. All will come to be.”

She turned and disappeared down the hall, her long dress flowing in her wake. What the fuck?

I ripped the letter open.

Luna,

I suck at goodbyes.

Please know that I’ve loved getting to know you. You’ve reminded me of what I used to be.

I’ll always think of you with your golden hair flowing behind you, zooming along the island paths. I’ll remember you on your board, catching a wave with grace.

I don’t know if I’m returning. Do not wait for me. Live your life. Change the world for better.

One day when my feet are on the ground and I’ve figured out a plan, I’ll reach out. Connect. Maybe I’ll become a texter. When I do, I want to hear all about what you’ve done and what you’ve accomplished.

Maybe we can compare notes.

Love,

Adrian Tate

P.S. If I were twenty-two, I’d never let you go.

Eraser dust covered the postscript notation, but the indention in the thick stationery paper left the