Falling In (5 page)

“Oh
yeah,”  He grabbed a pair of all-black sunglasses from the collar of his shirt
and used them like a headband, pushing the hair out of his stunning eyes before
he continued, “Kim, right?”

Audrey
couldn’t help but look surprised, which elicited a smirk from her new friend.

“How’d
you know?”

“It’s a
small town,” he said with a shrug and extended his arm over the shelf.  “The
name’s Liam Stone, by the way.”

Audrey
reached out and watched as the faded tattoos on his hand wrapped around her
pale, virgin skin and gripped firmly.  His palm--unlike his cool
disposition--was hot like fire and made her want to melt into the floor.

 “Audrey,”
she said.  “Audrey Davis.”

They
shook hands for a moment.  When he let go, a faint hint of disappointment
teased the back of her mind.

“So,
Audrey,” he said, mulling over each and every letter in her name.  The way that
he said it sounded like music.  “Are you going to be in town tonight?”

Her
stomach fluttered.

“Unless
something horrible happens.”

Liam
laughed, “Nice.  Well if you’re still alive around seven, me and a bunch of the
locals are going to have a little get-together down by the Seaside Docks. 
Maybe you’d like to join us?”

Audrey
was stunned.  Though the prospect was tempting, there was so much going on that
she didn’t know whether or not she could even make it through a party.  Perhaps
sensing her hesitation, Liam said, “Why don’t you give me your number?  I can
text you directions and you can stop by if you want to.”

His
offer was a relief and Audrey was immediately grateful.  She watched as he
pulled out his phone and waited, his tattooed thumb hovering over the screen.

“630-555-8321.”

He
tapped around a few times, then locked the phone back up and shoved it into his
pocket, adjusting the bag once more.  When he did, the glass liquor bottles
inside clattered together.

“I have
to run,” he said.  “But you should stop by.  We always have a good time.”

“Thanks,”
she said to him as he walked away.  Soon he was gone, leaving Audrey to process
what just happened.

In a
daze, she rounded up only a couple of things--extra bandages being the most
important--and quickly paid with one of the many 20 dollar bills that Kim left
for her.  Shortly after plopping the bag into the bike’s noisy basket, her
phone beeped and vibrated.  On the screen, Liam’s phone number appeared above concise
directions to the party.

Audrey
smiled and tucked the phone away.  After she pulled the bike back up and
pointed it toward home, she muttered to herself, “Maybe it would do you some
good.”

Chapter
4

Audrey
escaped back to the blissful stillness of her temporary home and quickly
changed into a new set of clothes: a pair of clingy, olive green shorts and a
plain, black, strapless top.  Seated at the very top of the home’s front
staircase on a pair of knotted, warped wood planks, she stared off into the
marshy world that stretched to where it met the blue, cloud-dotted sky.

Off to
her right, a group of pelicans 8 or 9 strong waddled around, nipping at each
other and sounding their obnoxious calls.  Audrey watched them stumble around
for a while and did her best to get her mind off of everything.  But even when
she managed to feel a little bit of calm, the nervous twitching in her legs was
a clear indication that the battle in her head still raged.

Breaking
through the din, Audrey’s cell phone rang loudly.  When she finally pried it
from her tight pockets, the disgust of seeing Max’s name pop up on the screen
was immense.

“Fuck
that,” she mumbled and forwarded him to her voicemail.  Much to her relief, he
chose not to leave one.

She
flipped over to the text message screen and eyed Liam’s directions.  The dock
was just down the street from where they met--though it started to seem like
everything in Cedar Key was “just down the street” from everything else.

After
locking the phone’s screen, she set it down onto the wood next to her and
looked back out at the boisterous flock.  Resting her chin into her hand, she
sighed and wondered whether or not she should go to the party.  As tired and
worn-down as she was, Audrey knew that nothing good ever came from stewing
alone in the dark.

As if
giving her an answer, one of the pelicans honked loudly in her direction.

“Okay,
okay,” she responded and threw both hands up like she was at gun-point.  “I’m
going.”

She
gathered herself and left an hour later.  The clattering basket attached to her
ride signaled her departure.  None pleased with the racket, the pelicans
decided to leave, too.

By the
time that Audrey rolled up to the dock, it was just past 7 and the sun was
already on its way down, throwing out a spectacular fire-hued tone that made
the underside of the clouds glow with brilliant pinks and reds.  Down on the
dock, an undulating mass of bodies moved about.  Even from far away, she could
hear their garbled conversations and hearty laughs, which seemed to blend
seamlessly with the millions of crickets that chirped in the background.

All
along the dock, tall poles suspended lines of clear balls of light that dipped
and zig-zagged in seemingly random directions.  Under the darkening skies they
looked like tiny moons, casting soft discs of white onto the buzzing party.

Liam cut
through the crowd, waving both hands over his head to signal her over.  He
changed his clothes at some point, switching to some black shorts and a light
green tee shirt from the local hardware store.  Just like before, his shaggy
mop hung around his face, framing his statuesque facial features and fiery
eyes.

 “Hey!”

“Hey to
you, too,” she said with a smile.

Upon
reaching her, Liam’s hand slipped gently onto the small of her back.  With no
warning, Audrey felt his hot skin meet where her shirt hiked up during the ride
over.  Between her already dazed state and his surprising show of affection,
she stumbled over the toe of one of her flip flops.

Liam grabbed
her waist just in time to keep her from falling.

“You
know,” he said with a laugh.  “I think riding a bike drunk can still catch you
a DUI.”

 “No,
I’m not drunk.  I, uh,” she stammered as she looked for an excuse.  “I haven’t
worn sandals in a while.”

He
rolled his shining eyes, which sparkled almost as bright as the lights over
their heads.  On Audrey’s right hip, his calloused fingers curled tighter into
her skin.

“Yeah,
okay.  So you don’t want a beer?”

“Hold
on,” she responded with a playful chuckle.  “Let’s not get carried away here.”

“I like
your style.  Come on.”

Liam
started them toward the party and glanced down, stealing a quick look at her
golden hair, which was pulled back into a loose, messy braid.

He moved
his hand back to the small of her back as they stepped onto the hollow-sounding
wood planks with everyone else.  Near the entrance, a big, red bucket with rope
handles waited.  It was filled to the brim with melting ice and brown bottles
that bobbed gently.  Liam dipped into the icy slush, pulled two out and popped
them open.

“Thanks,”
Audrey said and accepted one of the freezing beverages, stopping just long
enough to clink the mouths of their bottles together.  “To new friends.”

“Absolutely.”

They
paused for a moment to take a few hearty chugs.

Audrey
let the welcome blast of cold slip down her throat.  She could feel it travel
all the way down into her empty stomach, which immediately started to gurgle. 
Looking over the end of the raised bottle--past the new bandage that she put on
before leaving--the diverse mix of residents shuffled by.

Liam
lowered his beer and started to guide her deeper into the mix, pointing people
out as he went.

“Over
there’s Marv.  He’s one of six police officers that live here.  Behind him is
his wife, Colleen.”

Somehow
hearing her name over the crowd, the hefty, round-faced woman turned around and
waved to him.

“Hello
there!”

Liam
waved back and continued, “She’s won hundreds of baking competitions and makes
one hell of a peach pie.”

“Really?”

“Yep,”
he said and took another drink.  “Like bites of fucking sunshine.”

“I’m
sorry I asked,” Audrey snickered.

 “Don’t
be,” he responded and tapped her lower back with the tip of his finger three
times.  “Over there are my neighbors, who also happen to own a little dive bar
on the other side of town.”

Audrey
struggled to remember the name of the place that she was earlier that day,
hoping by chance that it would be the same one so that they would have
something new to talk about.

“The
Island Hotel, right?”

Raising one
of his full eyebrows, he replied, “No.  That distinction lies with this guy.”

Liam’s
inked hand left her longing for more and clamped around the shoulder of a man
whose back was to them.  Before he even turned around, Audrey recognized the
silvery halo of hair that surrounded his head.

“This
is-”

Audrey
exclaimed, “Arthur.”

The old
man turned around with a smile so wide that he looked like he was in the middle
of delivering a joke.

“Hello
there again, ma’am.”

She
shook his hand.

“Please,
Audrey is fine.”

“You
know Mr. McBride, here?”

“Yep,”
Arthur responded.  “We just met this morning.”

“Right
before I met you,” Audrey added and then directed her voice to Arthur.  “But
you didn’t tell me that you owned the place.”

“I don’t
often find that I need to.”

From
across the dock, an older, graying woman called out to Liam, “Hey, can we get
your help over here?”

He
glanced over in Audrey’s direction with a little look that said he didn’t want
to go, but needed to.  Even with his lips pursed and brow furrowed, Audrey
couldn’t help the attraction to him that started to build.  She did her best to
shake the feeling but quickly found that it was easier said than done. 
Something about being the center of his attention was intoxicating.

“I’ll be
right back.”

“Sure,”
Audrey smiled.  “No problem.”

She
watched him jog off and carefully eyed the wax that the muscles on his upper
arms rippled and flexed with every swing.  When he was out of sight, she turned
back to her new friend.

“Arthur,”
she said and patted the faded linen sleeve that stopped just above his elbow. 
“Long time no see.”

“Ah,” he
laughed.  “I told you that I would be seeing you again, young lady.”

Audrey
killed the last of her beer and heaved it into a nearby trashcan.

“Here,”
Arthur said and handed her a brand new one, seemingly out of nowhere.  “This
has probably been a long day for you.”

His
comment made Audrey glance down at her bandaged wrist.

“It’s
actually been okay.  I got a nice little nap earlier.”  She moved the
conversation in another direction, “So how long have you owned that place?”

“How
long,” he guffawed.  “Why, the land’s been in my family since before the
hurricane in 1896.”

Audrey
thought back to their earlier conversation, but found that the beautiful mural
that was partially hidden by bottle necks occupied her thoughts.

“And
those paintings you have all over the place?”

“Most of
them have been there as long as the building has.”

Without
thinking, Audrey answered, “I painted for years when I was younger.”

While it
was true, it was the first time that Audrey was actually able to reflect on how
much she changed over the years--how much her marriage to Max influenced who
she was, even almost a decade later.  It was only weeks after the wedding when
the two of them packed up all of her painting supplies and shoved them into the
garage to make room for an office.  That marked the start of her new life, a
life that Max’s likes and dislikes essentially dictated.

“Is that
so?”

“Yeah.” 
She added, “But it was a long time ago.”

Arthur’s
face lit up like he had a brilliant idea.

“Hey,
why don’t you stop back by the hotel tomorrow?  I have something that I want
you to look at.”

Just
then, Liam appeared again.  His hair had been pulled back into a short, stubby
ponytail.

“Can you
make it?”

Audrey
forced her stare back to Arthur and responded, “Sure.  I have nothing but time
anyway.”

“Great,”
he said as Liam reached where they stood.  “See you then.”

“I leave
for five minutes and you’re already making plans without me?”

A
slender man, who just happened to be passing by, replied, “That’s what happens
when you leave a woman with Arthur.”

Everyone
in the vicinity roared with drunken laughter while Liam reached out and
playfully popped him on the shoulder.

“You
silver fox!  Have you no shame?”

Arthur
shrugged and turned back to his previous conversation with a grin, leaving Liam
and Audrey alone, relatively speaking.  The harmless, airy banter quickly
started to raise her spirits.

“Are you
hungry?  The food’s almost ready.”

She
motioned for him to lead the way with her beer.  Though she hadn’t consumed a
ton, the small bit of alcohol running through her body worked fast, lowering
the conscious wall that she tried to keep between them.  She didn’t attempt to
hide the bandages anymore; didn’t worry about the judgment of the people around
her.  Instead, she let herself simply fall into the moment.

The two
of them joined a mass exodus from the dock that was already in progress.  Just
to the right--at the peak of a small hill--bellowing clouds of smoke rolled off
of a busy grill.  Nearby, dozens of blankets were spread out, dotted with a
mish-mash of different beach chairs.  Coolers, purses and even more buckets of
beer also punctuated the hillside.

“Come
on,” Liam said and finally went back to the bare spot on her back.  “My
blanket’s near the top.”

Soft
dirt gave way to a lush spread of silky grass as the two marched to the
precipice of the hill and sank down onto the gray sheet that was laid out. 
It’s high thread-count--and the soft grass below it--made Audrey feel like she
was sinking into a cloud.  She kicked off her sandals and pressed her bare feet
into the supple blades, letting them slip between her toes.

Just
below them, the hundred or so residents in attendance filed like ants to
wherever they left their things.

“It’s
not so bad here.”

Audrey
polished off her second beer and laid the bottle down into the grass.

“Who
said it was?”

“Well,
nobody I guess,” he said and sank down next to her.  “It’s just that I always
bring people here and no one seems to understand why I like it so much.  Am I
way off base or something?”

On the
back of a gust of wind, the fragrant scent of burgers and fresh corn cooking on
the grill swept by.  Audrey closed her eyes for a second and mulled over his
question.  There was a relative quiet that settled over the densely-populated
area as the residents started to eat more and talk less, allowing the subtle,
soothing sound of water lapping up against the dock below to reach where they
sat.