Love Bait

30 | Hurricane watch

The night is slowly coming to an end. It's a hard thought to accept, because right now I feel happier than I've felt in a long time, and I want this night to last.

As though the island knows the end is near, the wind picks up, swirling my hair about my face. The waves in the distance seem more treacherous than usual, like maybe a storm is brewing.  I lift my head from Jordan's shoulder long enough to scan the beach. Most of the others have already slipped into the night, but the old couple is still here, as well as Lexi and Lina who are starting to pack away.

My arms hold Jordan tighter, because the moment I have to let go is drawing closer, and he must feel it, too. His arms do the same, and when Lexi looks over and gives me a nod, my heart sinks.

Jordan looks down at me, serious. "This is stupid."

"I know."

"No," he says, his eyebrows furrowed, "you're stupid."

"Excuse me?"

"Yeah," he says. "You're just going to let everything ride on a fundraiser? That's stupid."

"We agreed," I say.

"I didn't agree to anything."

My heart does this mini palpitation. Maybe he's right and this is stupid, but what's the alternative? Finding out tomorrow that we didn't raise enough? That he's selling the cafe? That I hate him even though it's not his fault? It's easy for Kali to give me some speech about taking that chance, but his chance worked out; mine never do.

He leans in closer, his lips ridiculously close to mine. "What are you so afraid of, Evvy?"

I swallow hard. All I can think about is the mermaid in that cave, who waited so long for her sailor to return that she turned to stone. If we don't raise enough money, Jordan will be heading back to Chicago and whatever this is will become long-distance – a disaster waiting to happen.

Over in the corner, Lexi is beckoning me over. I turn to Jordan, eyes soft, and unwrap my hands from his neck. Jordan's eyes darken like he knows what I'm about to say, but as soon as I open my mouth, he tucks my hair behind my ear, kisses me gently, and walks away. I stare after him, heart pounding, urging myself to call him back, but until I know how much we've raised, what's the point?

By the time Lexi, Lina, and I have cleared up the beach, it's past midnight. Lexi offers to drive me home, but I decide to ride on my bike, instead. Being alone gives me time to think, to process, to stop my heart from pounding. But most importantly, it gives me time to think about him. I start with his lips as my feet pedal faster, racing into the night. Nex is the slightly asymmetrical tilt of his eyebrow and the way his gray eyes cool whenever he's annoyed. But mostly I think about the way my body shivers whenever his fingers brush my skin.

Before I know it, I've made it home. I lock up my bike and tiptoe inside, heading straight up to bed. I'm at that level of tired where you don't take your clothes off or even your makeup, you just fall face-first into the soft satin sheets, losing yourself to the darkness.

The next morning, Lexi is at the table staring intently at her phone. It's hard to tell just by looking at her whether or not our fundraiser worked, so I hover by the door for a second or two, gathering up the courage to enter.

Dad is sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee, his eyes on the weather channel. They've issued a 48-hour hurricane watch, which isn't unusual for this time of year. Most people on the island are calm about Hurricanes. There's no rushing to evacuate even with a hurricane warning, there's no raiding the stores to stock up on tinned goods, because the majority of us are already prepared for something like this. All we can do is keep one eye on the weather channel and carry on as normal.