Page 70 of Second Tide's the Charm
Goose bumps break out on my arms all over again. I don’t want Adrian driving in this. “Let’s take my car.”
“My SUV has all-wheel drive, and I’m more familiar with the roads. If you’re worried about leaving your car—”
“I’m worried about you,” I half shout, then bite my lip. “Sorry. It’s just...” I gulp to clear my throat from worry, but it doesn’t work. “Eric lost his life driving on slick roads. And I know accidents could happen anytime, but...” Worry over losing him burrows its way into my chest, the fear a palpable ache. I rub my palm against my goose-bump-pebbled arm in a poor imitation of Adrian’s soothing touch.
“Shit, Hope,” he says. “I should’ve realized.” He gathers me into a tight hug, and I let his strength shore me up. Three years since I held Zuri up during her husband’s wake. A long time, but emotion heightens my memories.
After a long embrace, he pulls away, hands sliding down to grasp my own. “We’re going to be all right.” He gives my fingers a squeeze. “This is part of life here, something I’m prepared for. We’ll be okay.”
He can’t know that, but his surety is catching. I grab the emergency bag Marissa reminded me to pack. Add my toothbrush and zip my phone into my purse, then follow Adrian out into the storm.
Rain pelts down, driven sideways by a fierce wind that kicks up ridges of waves on puddles that stretch like rivers crisscrossing the parking lot. Lots of spaces are empty, and Adrian’s SUV is easy to pick out. We jog over and it doesn’t escape my notice that he stays on the windward side of me, blocking the worst of the gusts. He pulls my door open and waits for me to get in, then rounds the hood to the driver’s side, dumping the grocery bags in the back seat.
I pause, wet hand on the seat belt, as a thought occurs to me. His house is on the river, so we can’t be headed there. “Where are we going, a hotel?”
His face is grim for the first time all evening. “To my sister’s.”
twenty-seven
adrian
Muffled from behind the door, my sister’s voice is distinct enough to carry. “...Warned you not to buy a house so close to the water.” The door swings open, and her eyes drop to the rainwater pooling on her threshold.
I step to the side, soaked shoes squelching on the hallway carpet. “We’re fine, thanks for asking.”
Iris’s eyes pop wide at the sight of Hope. “You stayed?”
I may have neglected to mention I was bringing her.Can my ex-girlfriend come along too?Not a simple topic to broach over text.
Still, I didn’t realize Hope’s presence would come as a total shock. “You really don’t watch our channel, do you? Hope’s in all our latest content.”
“Is she?” My sister packs a whole lot of subtext into two words, but she pulls the door open wider to let us in, not bothering to conceal her open appraisal of Hope.
Maybe I ought to have rethought coming here, but I’d already set up the plan with my sister, and she’d suspect something if I ditched out on it. Not that I plan to give her any hint of what’s happening between me and Hope. Especially since I’m not sure yet what to make of it.
I attempt to keep my dripping contained to the tiled, narrow entryway, and Hope follows suit. It’s a lot of dodging elbows and hips as we both endeavor to peel off our outerwear without inadvertent contact, like two live wires primed to ignite at the slightest touch. I manage to shimmy out of my jacket first and step past the vestibule to give her room to maneuver.
Papers clutter every surface of the living room, bringing to mind my parents’ house, and admittedly, my own. Abstract prints in bold primary colors frame a pair of floating shelves, and on the lower one, math theory texts threaten to dislodge geometric bookends. The other holds a bedraggled collection of potted plants in varying stages of health, like a science fair project gone awry.
“I see you revived the spider plant.” I’ve only visited a handful of times since I helped her move in, what with our busy schedules and my nagging insecurities over what she might think of my online platform.
Iris eyes the wilting flora skeptically. “At the expense of the others. My course load this semester is intense.” She swings her gaze toward me, eyes alight with mischief behind her wire frames. “Maybe I should follow your lead and broaden my horizons in case I need a backup plan.”
Our conversation about the wisdom of my career move may have been forestalled by Hope’s arrival, but her comments today make her stance clear.
“Backup plan?” Hope peels off a wet sock and jams it into her shoe. “You mean the channel? The one with over a million subscribers that he runs in addition to his faculty position at the university?”
“No one’s denying my brother and cousin’s success,” Iris says, which feels a tad disingenuous. “But how can putting your life on display be more fulfilling than pure science?”
“You’re a professor,” Hope says. “The core of your work is a blend of your own research and teaching. Adrian’s doing the same, both through his work at the university and his channel. It’s an extension of his commitment to science and conservation, not a detriment to it.”
My jaw goes slack at Hope jumping to defend me. I know we’re friends now—and after that last kiss, my heart’s holding out for something more—but I didn’t expect her to come to my rescue in such a bold way.
Maintaining eye contact with Iris, she sets her shoes to the side, wiping off her hands on her shorts. “He’s working with college programs and reputable nonprofits, collaborating with other scientists, and in doing so, demystifying shark research and shining a light on science-based conservation efforts. Where’s the harm in that?”
Iris’s brows are visible above her glasses. “When you put it that way, I sound incredibly stuffy.” For my sister, that admission doesn’t come lightly. “But you left out the part about blurring the lines between his private life and public persona. That part is still unpalatable.”
“What he shares isn’t gimmicky.” Hope glances my way. She knows about my efforts to maintain healthy boundaries, and my distaste for the blurry lines that come with creating content. “I’m not suggesting you subscribe or even watch their content, but maybe give him and your cousin a little more credit.”
