Page 5 of Hometown Harbor 3

“Is she done trying to push him away?” April asked.

“She tried running back to Merritt Island, but he went and dragged her back here. Deb blocked his number, and he showed up at the door. She tried insulting him by calling him a whittler. She said they occupy different worlds, and by that, she meant she hob nobs with the Merritt Island elite. He laughed, and asked her if she’d like to meet Oprah who’s a big fan of his whittling,” Tabitha said.

They both started laughing and agreed that Deb had finally met her match. Before Tabitha went upstairs to get ready, they decided that it wasn’t fairy dust at all. Except for Mel, they were all going through their midlife crisis and had met men who were in theirs, too.

4

Zabu’s was pumping, and Tabitha was happy for the owners. It was family-owned and didn't advertise at all. It was word-of-mouth, and people were talking. Deb and Nathaniel were sitting in the back with a man she had never met. His style was more like Nathaniel’s than Deb’s, and if she had to describe him, she’d say he was a surfer. His blonde hair wasn’t from a bottle, and he wore a T-shirt with the outline of a wave emblazoned on the front.

"Look who's here. It's the road warrior. How many miles have you clocked this week?” Deb asked.

“Forty-five and I have yet to solve the world's problems, but I'm getting close,” Tabitha said.

“I consider Marcus a good friend, and if I had known he was going to pull something like that, I would have said something. It was as shocking to me as it was to you. I haven’t heard from him since he moved, but I will eventually. I’m friends with his sister Alison and keep an eye on her while he’s gone. She has a lot of children, and her husband works at NASA, so he’s rarely home. If the lawn needs mowing, I head over and do it. Dalton should pick up the slack, but he works, and he’s eighteen,” Nathaniel said.

“Even if you knew that Marcus was going to take off, it wouldn’t have been your responsibility to warn me. I’m a big girl and can take care of myself. I was reading the signals wrong, and didn’t know how much of a commitment phobe he was. That’s what a mid-life crisis will do to a woman. We begin to panic that we might be alone for the rest of our lives and do crazy things,” Tabitha said. “Are you going to introduce me to your friend, who must think I’m crazy like a loon?”

“Sorry, I forgot my manners. This is Winston, and we go way back to art school in Rhode Island. Winston is a painter and has some time off before his next showing,” Nathaniel said.

“What’s your medium?” Tabitha asked.

“Oil these days, but I started out with watercolors. That was before I had a studio, and it was easier to travel with watercolors,” Winston said.

Deb chimed in, which was what she did most of the time. “Winston has a showing in Florence, Italy, in a couple of weeks. He’s a regular Michelangelo.”

“I painted a lot in my twenties before I had my daughter. I majored in engineering, but for a while, I was considering painting. When I chose my direction, I didn’t have time for painting anymore, and I folded up my easel,” Tabitha said. “I’ve been meaning to pick up my brush this summer, and you’re an inspiration.”

“It’s not exactly like riding a bike but many brush strokes will come back to you naturally. Deb says you have a killer view of the sunset from your deck. I’d love to pull out my watercolors and paint alongside you,” Winston said. “I like painting with someone because you see firsthand what they see. It never ceases to amaze me how two painters can see the same thing differently.”

Tabitha paused for a moment. If Deb was setting her up, she’d be so mad. It was too soon for that, and he was leaving in a couple of weeks. Deb should know her well enough to realize she wasn’t a one-night stand type of gal. Then Tabitha looked at Deb and remembered everything they’d been through. She should calm down until she was sure what was going on.

“If you don’t mind that my roommates and my daughter are around.”

Winston smiled. “That’s fine. I was here for the conversation earlier. It sounds like you had three strikes and were out of the game for a while. I think you're beautiful, and if I were the type and you were the type, maybe we could have fun for a couple of weeks. To be honest, painting is enough for me these days. Would tomorrow at sunset work for you? I know where the house is.”

“Sounds great,” Tabitha said. “I need to order some ribs.”

“I already did. I made sure they were doing Texas barbecue today instead of Memphis. I like my ribs wet and sticky,” Deb said.

Tabitha’s eyes grew wide. “Who are you, and what have you done to my friend Deb? Your manicure used to be a top priority, and if you couldn't eat with a fork, you'd skip it.”

“It’s Nathaniel’s fault, and he suggested a trip to North Carolina, where they have his favorite barbecue. We’re going sometime in the fall. The sauce is vinegar-based, which gives it a unique tang, and then we have Kansas City barbecue, which is the smokiest of all.”

Tabitha was slack-jawed. Her salon-owning and image-conscious friend was talking like a pit master. She had never seen someone change so much in such a short time. She still had on her usual hair and makeup, so she wasn’t allowing Nathaniel to take away the important things. Deb would never change the important things about herself for a man. Nathaniel was just enhancing Deb, and she was doing the same for him. He wore a button-down shirt to dinner the other night and didn’t shave his beard but reined it in a little.

After they had nothing left but bones, Tabitha headed home to spend time with Deenie if she was around or even awake yet.

Deenie was in the kitchen having toast and a piece of leftover chicken. She usually woke at noon and ate something that resembled brunch. Her legs, which only a teen could have, were long and tanned, and she sat with them folded beneath her. If Deenie sat like that, her legs would freeze, and the paramedics would have to come and untangle her.

“Hi, sweetie,” Tabitha said. She filled her water bottle and sat snug next to Deenie. “We’ve been like two ships passing in the night. Are you enjoying Melbourne Beach?”

“Yes. It beats Houston. Dad rocks, but besides my cousins, I have no friends there. Kylen is like my brother, so I never get sick of having him around,” she said.

“Well, that sounds like he’s nothing like a brother,” Tabitha joked. “Your uncle Roth and I were at each other’s throats at that age. We became friends again in our twenties and began to appreciate each other when my dad died.”

“Dalton will have plenty of support when a parent dies because he has such a big family,” Deenie said with a note of disdain in her voice.

“His mother is divorced and remarried, and that’s one of the reasons he has so many siblings.” Tabitha sounded defensive for no real reason.