Page 2 of Landing Her Eagle
2
LOGAN
I can seethe longing and futility in Daphne’s face even through a screen and over six thousand miles. I don’t need to be on the same continent as her to know she wants what she’s always wanted—excitement, travel, adventure—but that she’ll never take it for herself.
I want to take a screenshot so she sees what I do and convince her to do something about it, but she’ll shut down and find a reason to end our call. It hurts me to see her sad, but it would hurt me more not to see her at all. Better to change the conversation.
“So, what did you do over the weekend?”
I have a feeling what the answer will be, but maybe she’ll surprise me.
“The usual. I read a new book by my favorite author, ordered yarn for a shawl pattern I’ve been wanting to try, and there was aMurder, She Wrotemarathon.”
I hold her gaze with mine. “You know you’re twenty-six, not eighty-six, right? You?—”
She huffs and turns away from the screen. She doesn’t want to hear what I have to say, but I’m going to say it anyway.
“You should be out at a club dancing with your girlfriends, not sitting at home, knitting and watching shows that were off the air before you started kindergarten,” I say.
Daphne sips her drink and shoots me a pointed glare. “First of all, you know I’m a horrible dancer. Second, my best friend is gallivanting all over Europe, and Shelby is all loved up with her new Bigfoot shifter boyfriend, so I have no one to go to the club with.” She hiccups and takes another sip. “Fourth of all, shut up. J.B. Fletcher is awesome.”
I narrow my gaze at Daphne. “How many of those”—I motion with my chin toward her glass of what I presume is rum and Diet Pepsi—“have you had tonight?”
She flushes a light pink. “Just one.”
I snort. “You know I’m aware of your trick of not taking the last sip and refilling so you can say you’ve only had one when it’s more like three or four.”
“Of course you know it! You taught me that trick!”
Shrugging, I can’t help the smirk that forms on my lips.
“You are a lousy liar. The trick helps you avoid it.”
Daphne sticks her tongue out at me.
“You can’t be mad at me for learning my lessons well! Anyway.” She pauses dramatically. “I’m going on an adventure next weekend!”
Even on the dimly lit, blurry screen, she sparkles. She’s vibrating with energy, bouncing up and down in her seat, her smile stretching wider than I’ve seen it in years. Her brown eyes are shining in a way I don’t see often enough, and she pushes her dark brown ponytail over her shoulder. When she bounces happily in her seat, her boobs jiggle. I like that very much. She may solely think of me as her best friend, but she’s my everything.
My heart constricts to see her so happy, so excited. Other parts expand, and I shift in my seat to ease the pressure in my jeans.
“That’s awesome! Where are you going? What are you doing?”
“It’s the New Jersey Lighthouse Challenge weekend, and I’m going to do it. Have you heard of it? It’s the third weekend of October, and it’s a self-guided driving tour of the land-based lighthouses in New Jersey. If you do the whole thing, you cover the Atlantic coast, the Delaware Bay coastline, and a bit of the Delaware River. There is so much history and unique architecture with great scenery on the drive. My parents and I used to do it every year.”
Her bright gaze falters, her light dimming. It could be the screen resolution or a bad bit of Wi-Fi, but it isn’t. She misses her parents.
She shakes it off, and her face lights up again.
“Saturday morning, I’ll start at Sandy Hook and do the Atlantic coast lighthouses, ending at the Absecon Lighthouse in Atlantic City. Sunday, I’ll start over in Paulsboro and do the river and bay lighthouses and finish at Cape May, like we always did.”
I swallow, my throat tight. I’m thrilled she’s going out and doing this. I never met her parents, but when she speaks of them, you can hear the love in her voice and see the sorrow in her expression. Looking at pictures, you can see how close they were. It’s not fair that they left her alone because of a drunk driver’s thoughtless actions.
“Anyway,” she continues, “I’ll finish at the Cape May Lighthouse. Depending on the time, maybe I’ll go to Sunset Beach and search for Cape May diamonds. Since there’s no romance at the lighthouse in my future, I’ll get my own diamond.” She laughs.
This is new. I love seeing her happy; that’s what I want for her. But she’s finally going on an adventure, and I’m not there to share it with her. She’s only ever talked about them in the abstract before. She’s never actually planned anything.
What else is she planning? Is she going to go out, start dating? Is she going to find someone? Guys have been trying to get her attention for years, but she never notices. What if she notices now? I’m across the Atlantic from her. She won’t be thinking of me when she has someone right in front of her. Why is she changing now? Is she finally making the change I’ve been dreaming of?
