Finding Solace (53 page)

 
"You
suck! That was shitty for me, but smart of you to take two out at the same
time. I wish I would have thought about it."

 
"Who
wants to take me on next?" Ash was getting cocky already.

 
Each of them
went against him. Each one of them lost. His head was huge. When I was the last
one left he said, "Anyone want to take this on again?"

 
"I will."
Knock him down to size, that is.

 
"Oh, I
forgot you wanted to play, Sadie."

 
"I bet
you did. Are you ready to get your ass kicked?"

 
"We
will see."

 
We lined up
and they all started counting down. "Go!" was heard but I was already
gunning the engine. I knew with all the talk that he was going to do the same
run again if possible. What he did not know is I had my eye on three boats
coming that were evenly spaced apart. Ash cut through the first two while I
went head on at the first boat. Pulling an "S" move, I took out all
three that I needed while Ash was on his way back for number two. Completing my
boats meant
I
only needing my 360's. I waited until I
was almost back to the finish line before I did them. I splashed the crap out
of my friends and kicked Ash’s cocky ass at the same time. I got to sit back
and wait for him to come in, and let me tell you, the look on his face was
priceless.

 
"Would
you like to talk anymore smack, Ash or do you think maybe you're done for the
day?"

 
"Ash,
don't answer that. It was nice to see you get your ass handed to you by your
girlfriend, but I'm ready to go parasailing. Let’s ride over there now and see
if they have openings still."

 
Jason
managed to defuse the bomb that was about to go off between Ash and me. He
didn’t like to lose any more than I did. Right then, my stomach growled loud
enough to be heard by everyone and I needed to eat again.

 
"Can we
grab some lunch too?"

 
Thank God
for Heather because she backed me up saying, "I'm starving."

 
None of the
guys wanted to wait but with two hungry girls along, it meant that they had no
choice. We found a little restaurant on the lake and it even had a place where
we could park the wave runners. I was so grateful for inside seating. The
temperature outside was 102 degrees. It wasn’t too bad if you were on the water,
but sitting on a deck would have been miserable. Amazingly enough, once the
guys sat down they all of a sudden had an appetite, and a huge one at that.
Mozzarella cheese sticks, something called toasted ravioli (that the waitress
said was a St. Louis thing), onion rings, potato wedges and jalapeno poppers
were just the appetizers ordered. Not the sampler platter either. How they
planned on eating all that was beyond me. Then again, each one of them was in
the best shape their body would allow. I ordered a grilled chicken salad.
Heather decided she liked that idea and ordered the same. Each one of the guys
ordered a three quarter pound burger on top of all the other food. So my
curiosity got to be too much and I had to try the ravioli. It is a finger food
that you dip in marinara sauce. There was not a ton of flavor, but it was good
enough I went back for a second one. One hour later I thought Heather and I
were going to have to roll the boys out the door.

 
We got back
on the wave runners and I couldn’t help but tease Ash that he was going to sink
his. He then pushed me off mine. Everyone laughed and I was right along with
them. We were all having so much fun. I never wanted this feeling to end.

 
When we got
to the parasailing place, the line was forever long. We knew it was a bucket
list thing, so we waited it out. Forty minutes later, we were next. They
allowed three at a time so it made it easy to split the six of us up. Jason,
Mike and Heather went on one while Tony, Ash and I went on the other. Each boat
went in opposite directions which bummed me out. I wanted to see Heather freak
out. She said she would be fine, but I knew she was going to lose it. We got
loaded into the boat and we drove out to the middle of the lake. Then the
harnesses were put on and the bar was handed to us. It seemed so simple that I
knew nothing could go wrong. Well, that was until the guy told us to hold on
and then we were climbing. Higher and higher we went. I have never been afraid
of heights in my life, but something about being over water scared me to death.
When the rope was at its maximum length, I finally opened my eyes.
Big mistake, huge.
I screamed at the top of my lungs. It
didn’t matter that my boyfriend and one of my best friends were on either side
of me. I was petrified.

 
"Get me
down. Get me down. Get me down!"

 
"Babe,
listen to me. You’re fine. You will be just fine.

 
"Get me
down!”

 
"Sadie,
shut up. You’re killing my eardrums."

 
"Did
you just tell me to shut up?"

 
"Now
you’re mad, good. At least you’re not screaming. Now look around. This is cool
as hell."

 
I did and it
was. I don’t know what brought on the initial fear but I was past it.

 
"That
was crazy. I have never been afraid of heights or water. Combine them and I
turn into a lunatic."

 
"You
weren't a lunatic, princess. You just needed to get past your fear."

 
"Bullshit.
She was too." Leave it to Tony to speak the truth.

 
We floated
behind the boat for a good ten minutes. I am glad I did it, especially with my
boys. The rope started pulling us in and I started to freak again but I kept it
under control this time. It had to be the fact I was at their mercy. I don’t
really know for sure and I doubt I ever will. I have never been so glad to have
my feet back on the boat, is all I can tell you.

 
We got back
to the beach area where we started as the other boat was pulling in. The three
of them bounced out cheering each other on about how cool that was. How is that
possible? I panic and Heather stays calm. The world must be coming to an end.

 
"How
did it go?" Mike asked.

 
"Don't
ask." Tony answered.

 
"Why,
did you get scared, Tony?

 
"No, I
didn't at all actually. Miss competitive over here, lost it like a crazy
person."

 
"Sadie,
you did really, seriously? Jason, Heather, did you hear that? Sadie freaked
out!"

 
Ash stood
next to me rubbing my back to try to smooth the beating I was about to receive.

 
"Shut
up! You freaked? You always make so much fun of me and I loved it. This is
awesome!"

 
"Now
you have to stop teasing Heather so much." Jason always hates how much I
pick on her but it was just part of how we are.

 
"Are
all of you done yet? I'm ready to go now.

 
"Aw,
did we hurt your feelings?"

 
"Mike,
you’re going to be hurting if you don't leave me alone."

 
"Point
taken, let’s get out of here."

 
We rode
around on the wave runners until it was starting to get dark. None of us were
ready to hand them over, but it was a safety issue. When we were back in the
cars, Ash grabbed me and kissed me so sweetly.

 
"If I
haven't told you yet or before I forget to, I had the best time this weekend.
Thank you for inviting me."

 
"You’re
welcome. I wouldn't have had nearly as much fun without you here. Thank you for
coming."

 
"Oh
don't thank me for that yet. I plan to do that when we get back. After, of
course you’re taken care of."

 
"Never
has an idea sounded so good."

 
The next
morning we packed up and left. All of us said we would do this trip again and
make it an annual thing. The house was set to be our place forever. Well, that
is, if they continue to rent it. The drive home was a smooth one. No one
stopped unless it was a necessity. We made it back in a little
under
five hours. Ash and I unloaded all of our stuff and
went inside to veg out. It is funny how after you sit in a car for five hours,
all you want to do is relax and do nothing. The rest of the day was spent on
the couch, cuddled up next to each other and watching movies. Not once did I
think of Colt. Well, unless you are counting now,
which
actually was not then.
Ha
ha
gotcha.

CHAPTER
44

 
With
the new school year starting at the University, business was going to increase,
as it does every year to replace the loss of the graduates from the end of
spring. Students were just getting into town and that meant every coffee shop
had a line out the door. It always cracked me up how the kids felt it was a
rite of passage to drink coffee. What also came with the new round of students
was the one girl I was looking forward to seeing again. What I didn’t expect
was her big brother to escort her. Bryan came down with Marissa to help her get
settled. All of us received a text from him this morning.

 
Bryan: IN
TOWN WITH MY SISTER. WANT TO MEET UP TONIGHT?

 
My phone
started going crazy immediately with responses. Group texts can be annoying,
but in this case I was smiling with every notification coming through.

 
Jason: ITS
ON!!!

 
Mike: CAN’T
WAIT DUDE

 
Heather: I'M
SO EXCITED TO MEET MARISSA

 
Me: I AM SO
EXCITED PERIOD

 
Colt:
WOULDN'T MISS IT.

 
Wait, WHAT?

 
Colt is
coming back in town.
Tonight?
Oh my God! I had to stop
and think.
Ash.
I need to call Ash.

 
"Hey Sadie.
How are you doing today?"

 
"I'm
having a crazy day, how about you?"

 
"Crazy
is a good word for me too. I have school, then drills and cleaning at the house
all night tonight. I probably won't get to go home or sleep until tomorrow
night."

 
"I hate
that you go so hard at this. You need to take care of yourself."

 
"And I
love it that you care that much about me, you know. Sadie, this won't last
forever. I'm almost half way through school. Just think, someday the schooling
part of all this will only be a memory."

 
"I look
forward to that day. I miss you sometimes something fierce."

 
"I feel
the same way. So what are your plans for tonight? Lying in bed dreaming of me,
I hope."

 
"That
will absolutely be happening regardless to what time I get home, but it will be
a late one tonight. Bryan brought his little sister to school so he's in town
for the night."

 
"That
sucks for me. You guys are going to have a blast."

 
"Well,
except Colt is coming also."

 
Ash got
quiet. When I couldn’t take it any more I said, "I love
you
, you know that, right?"

 
"I do.
To be honest, I just never felt that you got the closure you needed from him."

 
"I
don't know what you want me to say? I'm madly in love with you, Asher Williams.
You are just going to have to trust me."

 
"I
already do. And I love you too. Go have fun tonight and call me when you get
home. No matter what time it is. I want to wish you a good night."

 
"I can
and will do that. Talk to
ya
soon."

 
"Love
you, Sadie"

 
"Love
you, Ash, goodbye."

 
It would be
so much easier if he could have come with me. I needed to call Heather. Like
always, I just got her voicemail. I sat there in the break room of my salon
shaking from nerves. What do I say? What do I do? I mean, am I supposed to hug
him and say it is good to see you? How can I be this freaked out, it’s Colt,
not some weirdo. Besides, this night should be about Bryan and his sister, not
Colt. The receptionist, Ally, came to tell me my next client was waiting for
me. Thank God for distractions.