Page 92 of The Shell Collector
“What is it?” Hailey asked.
“Guess,” she said.
Paul watched their interactions with pleasure.
“Turtles?” Jesse looked hopeful.
“Nope.”
“More lights. Colored ones!” Hailey’s guess should’ve been no surprise.
Amanda lifted up the shopping bag, then tugged out a giant bag of marshmallows. “S’mores!”
“No way!” Hailey clenched her hands into fists. “Oh my gosh. This is the best night ever.”
“We collected sticks for a fire and everything,” Jesse said.
“Okay, and there’s still more.” Paul went inside and brought the yellow bag out with him. “When it gets dark, we’re going ghost crabbing.” He handed out headlamps and buckets with matching shovels to everyone. “Amanda, you can be in charge of the net. It even has a light on it.”
“My. This is quite an adventure.”
The kids raced around the yard, wearing their headlamps, and Paul and Amanda sat in the tent.
“This is a lot of work. Thank you. It’s really nice.”
“You seem off. Did something happen while you were out?”
“Yeah. It’s stupid.”
“Tell me.”
“I don’t know why I’m letting it bother me.” She let out a huff, then looked him square in the eye. “I ran into one of the wives from base at the store. She’s here vacationing for the week. She made a comment about us spending time together.”
Paul grimaced. “I mentioned it to Scottie when I saw him. He must have said something. That got around fast. I’m sorry.”
She lifted her hand to stop him. “No. We’re friends. It’s fine. It’s just the way she said it. I felt so…”
The look on her face weighed on him. Why did people have to be so judgy? And what if theyweremore than friends? It’s what he wanted more than anything.Please don’t shut down on me now.“She’s a pot stirrer. It doesn’t mean anything.”
“Maybe.” Amanda shrugged, but the mood still hung over her. “What would Jack think? I wonder.”
“I think he’d be glad you’re smiling. Or you were. I think he’d be glad we’re renewing a friendship that meant the world to all three of us. He’s not here to take care of you. I think he would trust me with this.” He hated the fact that one little comment had made Amanda second-guess things.
“Is it duty? Honor? Is this some kind of secret Marine code, you being here?” Her jaw pulled taut. “You don’t have to do that.”
“No, no. You’re my best friend. I want to be here. You make me happy. Don’t let this ruin our night. Come on. We all need this. Life is good.”
“It does feel good, but does that make it right?”
“Something brought us back together. I think this is meant to be.”
“What is this?” She gestured between them.
“I don’t know. I know what I want it to be, but I don’t want to scare you away.”
“I’m already scared.”
“Don’t be. Please don’t overthink it.” He took her hand. “Relax. It’s time to ghost crab.” He turned on his headlamp, then reached over and flipped on hers too. “Let’s gather the troops.”
