The Kid, the Boss, and the Incorrigible Nanny

Part Twenty-Three

Kid pulled her knees close to her chest. She was sitting on the beach, losing herself in the glow of the moon as it danced on the waves and kissed the sand. She swept a hand across the towel beneath her, trying to free it of some of the granulated roughness.

Several paces away, a couple was scanning the sand with a flashlight. They carried plastic buckets and stopped every few seconds to take a closer look below them. Kid wondered what they were looking for.

She felt her heart sink a bit in her chest. What's wrong with me?

Dinner had been delicious. Aiden had eaten his chicken and even his fancy lemon and garlic-coated green beans.

John and CJ were wonderful dinner companions. She didn't even mind the almost constant flirting that seemed to well up between them. In fact, she found it comforting. Her own parents hadn't had that kind of love.

Her heart sunk even lower. She suddenly felt lonely. A memory of her mother's voice, cold and hard, skittered through her thoughts. 

"That man ruined my life."

Kid sighed. It was like she was there again, at that moment.

"That's where he first met you," her mother had said as they drove past an empty parking lot. The nearby buildings looked dilapidated, uncared for.

"What?"

"Your father. He met you right there. About a month after you were born."

Kid's breath had caught in her throat. "You mean he wasn't at the hospital?"

Her mom laughed, a familiar, bitter sound. "No." A pause. "That man ruined my life."

"Hey." Adrian's voice drifted through her mental fog, startling her. He was standing behind her towel.

"Oh, hey." She smiled up at him. "Aiden stayed with Sam."

His face was set in its usual frown. She laughed to herself. Did he know he always looked angry?

"Yeah. John sent me a message." He scratched the back of his neck, looking somewhat awkward out on the sand in his suit and tie. He carried his shoes in his hand. "Do you mind if I join you?"

She moved over, forgetting to respond as his warmth reached her left shoulder. Her stomach flipped when he looked at her.

"You didn't come back." The words tumbled out of her mouth before she realized she was thinking them. "During dinner." 

His eyebrows raised for a moment before falling back into place. "I'm sorry. We got caught up."

She felt heat rising to her cheeks. "Sorry. You don't have to apologize to me. I was just... observing, I guess."

He turned his face toward the ground below them. "Are you alright? I thought you looked... upset... just now."

Her fingers found a stray thread at the hem of her dress. "Oh, I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You can tell me if something is bothering you."

She found herself chewing on her bottom lip. "I think it's the water. The sound of the waves, and the pull of the sea... I don't know. I think they have a way of making you feel..."

"Small," he whispered.

She nodded. "Yeah."

He began to play with the sand between his feet, tucking his fingers beneath the surface and pulling his fingers away, coated in the tiny granules. "Insignificant."