Page 13 of Tell It To The Waves

Bohdi walks to the edge of the porch and faces the ocean. “I saw your bag in the walkway. Are you staying?”

Rubbing my face, I scrunch my nose. “Yeah.” I draw the word out. “Just for the weekend, so I can get everything going.”

He nods his head before pocketing his cell phone.

“Kai is pulling in.” He turns to face me, and his blue eyes stare straight into me; the ocean can’t compete with how blue they are. It was the first thing I noticed about him when I was fourteen. Him running from the water, dirty blond hair dripping wet, and his skin so tanned. I was immediately enamored by him, but didn’t talk to him for a few more weeks. We were just friends for four years until we weren’t.

I’m so focused on him, I don’t see Kai walking toward us.

“August.” I swing around and Kai stands there. I can’t help the smile that transforms my face, seeing him all grown.

“Hey. Thanks for coming.” I don’t know what else to say.

In a moment, he has his arms open and is walking toward me. “Come here.”

His hug engulfs me, bringing me tightly to his chest. Quietly, he whispers so only he and I can hear, “Welcome home.”

I tip my head back to look at him, and he smiles so wide that all his teeth are showing. And I shake my head no.

He squeezes me one last time, letting me out of his hug. “Yep.” He turns around and shakes his brother’s hand, while I stand there dumbfounded. I’m not home.

“Okay, Bo sent me pictures, but let’s go take a look.”

I squint my eyes at him, calling Bohdi Bo.

He tightens his lips. “We got into a drunken fight and he won. So, I have to call him Bo now.” Kai leads the way back into the cottage. I let him and Bohdi go into the bedroom, while I wait in the living room for his verdict.

Wiping my hands across the mantel, they come away with dust. This whole place is one big dirt ball. Looking around, the TV in the corner gives me a reflection of the hallway behind me, and I see Bohdi standing there, watching me. I don’t turn around but watch him watching me.

Is this as weird for him as it is for me? We both broke one another. Me with words, him with actions. Nothing but broken pieces left behind.

I hear Kai call Bohdi’s name, and he turns around and walks back down the hall. I’m breathing so hard, I have to sit down. The way being in his vicinity has shaken me to my core.

“Okay, so I’ll need to go back to my office and put together a proposal for you. I’m going to get on the roof so I can inspect that, but I think this all happened from the pipe leading from the bathroom,” Kai says before heading out the front door.

Standing, I watch Bohdi walk to the icebox. When he turns to me, “Where’s the pictures?” His voice holds a bit of worry.

“They’re at my apartment.”

“I’m sorry about Craig. I know you loved him so much.”

Smiling weakly, I say, “I do. But look at what he left me.” I try to be funny, throwing my hand toward the bedroom.

“This is just a bump. Kai will have it fixed in no time, and you can get out of here once and for all.” Those last words feel like he had poison on them.

Raising my eyebrows, I say, “Absolutely.” That one word holds so much. I watch him hold his tongue, wanting to say more, and the look I give him tells him to. I want to hear it. Maybe hearing this will help me leave it all in Driftwood Bay, close the door, and throw away the key forever. But he says nothing. He swallows those words, turning and heading out the front door.

I stand there, breathing in one deep breath, blowing it out with my annoyance with him. I didn’t think being so close tohim would fuck with me so much. But everything is bubbling to the surface; everything I rolled up and packed down so tightly is coming undone just by being here and by him being around.

Eight years changes a lot. Eight years can remake you or destroy you. I don’t know what it did to Bohdi, but for me, it just kept me in a void.

My skin is already itching to leave this place.

“Hey! So, I got up on the roof. The good thing is nothing seems amiss up there. That’s a huge plus for you,” Kai informs me, walking through the back door.

“Great.” It comes out sounding bitchy.

Kai looks at me. “No. Sorry. That’s great. The faster this gets done, the sooner I can put it on the market and be done with it. I appreciate you, Kai.” I give him a smile.