Page 67 of Never Forever

“Hey,” I said, remembering Roy had more on his mind than the game last night. “How is your baby girl, Charlie?”

“Good,” Roy said with a smile that said more than words could. If you’d told me even three years ago that Roy Barnes was going to be married with two kids and be happy about it, I would have said you’d hit your head. But here he was, as happy as I’d ever seen him.

“And Vanessa?”

“She’s tired. But she’s…” again, that smile. Like he had the inside line on a new fishing spot. “Good.”

He took another pull from his beer and looked like a man who had it all.

“You took some time off?” I hadn’t seen his boat go out lately.

“Getting to the end of summer, so it’s slowing down,” Roy said. “Nora is a little possessive of Ness, so I try and distract her. Especially around bedtime.”

“This is bedtime?” I asked. Roy nodded.

I looked over at the sleeping toddler. She was snoring, little exhausted kid grunts like she’d had a long day. Roy reached over and pushed damp bangs off her flushed face.

“The second she falls asleep she starts sweating,” Roy said. “Like she’s working so hard in her dreams. Makes me wonder what she’s dreaming.”

He looked at that kid like she was a miracle.

There were a bunch of questions I wanted to ask. Like how was he going to get her out of that stroller? And how many more kids was he going to have? Do they smell as good as everyone says? Does he get any sleep? Did he think he was ever going to have sex again? Was it loud at his house? But instead, what came out was:

“Is it…hard? I mean, with business and everything?” A lot of marriages that involved a fisherman ended badly. Roy’s parents did. My parents did – and Dad wasn’t even a fisherman. But the ocean was a demanding workplace environment.

“Yeah,” Roy said with a nod. “It’s hard. But I can’t think of my life without these girls. I’d give up fishing tomorrow if I had to.”

Those were bold words from Roy Barnes, who was made up of motor grease, salt water and lobster shells.

I wondered briefly if Dad had been given that option. If Mom had said, it’s me or the boat, and Dad picked the boat. It didn’t seem likely, but there was a lot about that time Dad never told me.

I drained my beer.

Roy kicked his legs out in front of him. He wore athletic shorts and tennis shoes. It was like seeing a priest in regular clothes.

Roy grunted.Another?

I grunted.Sure.

“So,” he said, after he’d reached into the bag, pulled out another Bud, and twisted off the top. “Can I ask a nosy question?”

“That’s not like you,” I pointed out, bracing myself for what he was going to ask.

“Curious is all. About you…and Carrie Piedmont?”

“What about her?” I snapped. It was a defense mechanism. Say her name and I start spitting venom in all directions.

Roy looked at me. “Don’t give me that shit. I was here. I remember how you two were in high school. Everyone thought it was endgame for you two despite being so young.”

“Well, that was a long time ago.”

“Right. Except you’re still sparking off each other.”

“Only because she hates me.”

Roy grunted. But I couldn’t translate it.

“She does,” I insisted. She had to because of what I did to her.