The Summer Getaway: A Novel(47)

“The man frustrates me,” she murmured, saving the spreadsheet. He also disappointed her emotionally. First dating Zafina and then cheating on her mom. She sighed. Okay, those had occurred in the opposite order in real time, but from her emotional perspective, the cheating was the most recent thing.

“Fathers,” she grumbled.

She finished her paperwork for her charter, then reviewed her schedule for the week. In the back of her mind was a vague sense of unease. There wasn’t any one specific item bothering her—it was more low-grade worry on an assortment of topics.

The visit to the club had pointed out how very little she knew about Kip’s life before her. They just didn’t talk about their past very much. At some point, they needed to share a little more. First up—financial goals. She’d assumed they were going to save for a house, but they’d never discussed it. What if Kip didn’t see himself as a homeowner? She couldn’t imagine that, but some people preferred to rent.

What about their attitudes toward spending and saving? If they made about the same, shouldn’t they split expenses evenly? And what about getting her on the lease? Or leasing a place together?

She also had to talk to her dad about the wedding. She had no idea what he expected to spend and if he would ask her mom to pitch in. A few weeks ago, she would have assumed they could each pay the same amount, but now she wasn’t sure how much money her mom had. Thinking about that made her mind circle back to how much it would cost to get married at the club. Did she really want to spend that much? Did Kip? What were his expectations for their wedding? He’d never said. Was it because he was a typical guy who only wanted to be told when to show up, or was there something else going on?

Her phone buzzed. She glanced at the screen and saw a you have a sec text from Kip.

She smiled as she called him.

“I was just thinking about you,” she said when he picked up.

“That’s good.” He chuckled. “I wasn’t sure if you were back from your charter.”

“About a half hour ago. I’m locking up tonight, so I’m waiting for the rest of the boats to come in. I should be done in about an hour.”

“Good. Can’t wait to see you.” He paused. “My mom called.”

Harlow ignored a sinking sensation. “Okay.”

“She’s upset about how things went at the club. She wants to have you over for dinner. Not to talk about it,” he added hastily. “Just to have a nice evening together.”

Harlow liked Kip’s parents well enough, she supposed. They never spent much time over there. While she mostly wanted to refuse, she not only knew that wasn’t an option, she thought maybe this would be a good time to learn more about Kip’s childhood.

“We can do that,” she told him. “Ask her what I can bring. She shouldn’t have to cook dinner on her own.”

“Really?” He sounded surprised. “You don’t mind?”

“Of course not,” she lied. “Please let her know I’m not the least bit upset about her reaction to the club. In fact, I appreciate it. Getting married there would be a lot of money. Maybe we should look at other venues.”

“I’ll let her know. Thanks, Harlow. You’re being great.”

“Because I love you,” she said, her voice teasing. “See you in a bit.”

She hung up just as Austin walked into her office, looking more than a little grumpy.

“We’re back,” he told her. “I’m going to clean up the boat, then I’ll clock out.”

“Bad trip?”

“No. It was fine. Just a bunch of men fishing. They want to drink beers, lie about how successful they are, and catch fish. Easy duty.” He glanced down the hall. “Dad and I were supposed to talk tonight when I got back.”

“He took off about a half hour ago. I’m locking up.” She walked over to Austin. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you had an appointment.”

“He keeps blowing me off. I have stuff I want to talk to him about.”

Austin was uncharacteristically intense as he spoke.

“Can I help?”

“No. Thanks for the offer, but this is between me and Dad.” His mouth twisted. “This is the third time he’s either not shown up or told me he was too busy. I miss Mom. She listens.”

Harlow nodded. “She does, and I miss her, too.”

“Then text her.”

“I should. I will.”

“Liar.”

“It’s hard to give in when we had a fight.”

“You mean it’s hard to admit you were wrong.” His mouth curved up. “You were the wrongest.”

“I’m not going there.”

He laughed. “Harlow the Harpy.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Harp, harp, harpy.”

She pointed to the front door. “Go clean up your boat. I’ll inspect it in twenty minutes.”

He grabbed her in a neck lock, kissed the top of her head, then released her. She watched him go, grateful that at least one relationship in her life was uncomplicated. Now if only she could find a second one that was equally easy, she would consider herself very, very lucky.



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