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

We drifted apart. It happened. You could look at my parents, married for almost twenty-five years, and see it could happen even if you lived in the same house.

“We were kids, Brandon and I. Tate, he’s so different.” I’d thought we had a mature relationship, whatever the hell that was supposed to be.

“You mean because he’s old?”

“Mid-thirties doesn’t make you old.” I rolled my eyes at her naivety.

“Eh. I bet his balls sag.”

“Oh, my god.” I kicked her under the table, and she laughed. “Actually…”

“They do sag.”

“Stop it. Even though he’s in his mid-thirties, he’s still figuring things out. Trying to decide what he wants to do with his life. No, what I meant is there’s a depth to Tate. He’s lived enough to know that there are more important things than weekend plans or video game rankings. He’s lived hard. And he’s…I don’t know. None of it matters. He ghosted me.”

I looked off to the corner of the room as my eyes burned. I refused to cry in front of anyone, especially my little sister.

“If he doesn’t realize what a catch you are, then he’s not worth it. End of story. Move on. Next.”

A knocking at our back door interrupted us. The door swung open seconds later.

“I heard you’re back.” Brandon filled the doorway, and a wide grin spread across Nova’s face.

“As I was saying.” She raised her eyebrows and rapped the table. “I’m gonna go get a shower.” She waved as she backed out of the kitchen, eyes locked on Brandon. He smiled his warm, familiar smile.

With a nod, he stepped inside and opened the refrigerator and retrieved a water bottle, then asked, “You want one?”

People talked about deja vu. That moment felt like that, or more like it had transported me back in time to high school, when Brandon came over every single day. Like maybe graduation lay in our future, not in our past.

Chapter 24

Luna

Three months later

I blared the radio at deafening levels the entire drive from Florida to North Carolina, drowning out thoughts while singing along to the classic greats. After buying my ferry ticket, I called my parents to let them know I arrived unharmed.

“Honey, you go knock it out of the park with the rest of your assignment, okay?”

“Yes, Mom.”

“Honey, I love you. I know you’re hurting, but you’re strong. I raised you to roll with rogue waves. You can do it.” One thing about my parents, I might question how their marriage worked every single day, but I would never again doubt they were both in my corner.

“Love you, too, Mom.” Dad came on the phone, and we exchanged love, too.

The ferry horn bellowed out, warning a smaller craft. The choppy, dark whitecaps hinted of frigid waters. I huddled against the bone chilling February breeze on the wooden bench at the ferry terminal, my bare fingers ice cold.

Myself, a family, and an older couple handed over our tickets and boarded the ferry to return to Haven Island. I found a window seat below deck and stared out over the whitecaps as the ferry sliced through the wake.

Four months had passed since I’d last seen Tate, and I still bore a dull ache. I missed Tate. One night, I told Brandon all about him and how he left.

“If he doesn’t see you for all you are, then he doesn’t deserve you.” He proved himself a great friend, coming around every day to check on me. My parents were concerned him being around so much was responsible for my sad face, my dad’s words to describe my mood. For years, I’d thought my dad preferred Brandon to me, but he proved me wrong when he asked Brandon to not come around. I smiled as I remembered Nova tentatively knocking on my bedroom door and fiddling with the throw on the bed nonstop as she explained that she hadn’t meant for anything to happen, but she and Brandon were secretly dating. Secretly, because they didn’t want to hurt me. I laughed because, really, it couldn’t have been more perfect. Brandon and I had a history, sure, but all I wanted was for him to be happy. And maybe it was a little odd for my sister to be dating my first love, but Brandon and I had stayed together so long because it was easy, not because we were in love.

Brandon and I had a long talk. He’d missed the idea of us far more than us. He found himself leaning on Nova more and more while I’d been gone. Together, they concocted a scheme to see if him dating an old friend would upset me. It became clear to them both I really was over him, and he began to accept it. Without even realizing it, he fell for my sister, who had become his first call in the morning and his last call of the day.

Alice had been right. Things did have a way of working themselves out.

The captain swiveled the boat around the corner and up against the pilings with practiced ease. I deboarded with a handful of other passengers, and we all congregated in front of the baggage claim, cold and impatient. The clatter of the luggage cart banging the metal ramp reassured us of a short wait. Exhilaration stirred—a new season, a new spring.

“Look who’s back!” Tony bellowed from across the asphalt parking lot.

“Hey, Tony. How’ve you been? You working today?”

“Half day. Headed home now. As soon as the contractor ferry decides to show. You have a good holiday?”

“I did. It was good to be with my family.”

“You’ve got a nice tan. A glow.”

“It’s a lot warmer in Florida.”

He looked me up and down and licked his lips. I pulled my coat tighter around me.

“You know, your lover boy is back.”

“Back…Tate’s here?” I didn’t think I heard him right.

“Yep. Must’ve gotten in with the help ’cause he came back with a daughter about a month ago. Looks like