Persuaded (25 page)

Hanna’s
eyes flicked up to CJ before settling back on Derick. “That’s kind of gutsy.
I’m not sure that taking the kids out of their environment and stranding
ourselves on an island with them is a good idea.”

“Good
point. We need reinforcements. I’m sure Adam and Sophie would come along if I
asked.”

“What
about Benny?”

“I
could invite him as well.”

“And
you have sleeping accommodations on the
Laconia
for seven people?” Hanna
grinned.

Derick
laughed. His boat was by no means a floating hotel. “We would have to rent
something bigger, but it wouldn’t be a problem.”

Biting
her lip, Hanna said, “Sounds expensive.”

“Again,
not a problem. I’ll get all the food, and you won’t have to worry about a
thing.” He didn’t want her to say no on account of money. “So, what do you
think?” Suddenly he felt like a kid, offering a fistful of dandelions to his
kindergarten crush.

After
an agonizing pause, Hanna said, “Okay.”

Restraining
himself from punching the air in victory took an enormous amount of
self-control. “Cool.”

Hanna
looked away, but he could tell she was smiling.

“I’ll
go see about a rental, then. How long will it take you to get packed?”

“Maybe
a couple hours.”

Derick
did a mental calculation. That would put them on the water around noon, which
would get them to Block Island around dinnertime. Of course, this whole plan
hinged on whether Sophie would be up for it, but as the scheme included Hanna,
it shouldn’t be a problem. Adam, being the good, housebroken husband that he
was, didn’t get a vote since Sophie always had the final say on everything.

“Text
me when you’re ready to go, and I’ll send Sophie over to help you with your
bags.”

“‘Kay,”
she agreed, and Derick turned in the direction of the marina. He wanted to take
off like a speedboat, but he kept a measured pace until he was out of sight.

☼

The
boys watched a movie while Hanna put together an overnight bag for each of them,
then packed her own things. But her mind was far from the task at hand. It was
on Derick, the way he’d seemed on the edge of flying to pieces when she’d
finally agreed to the outing. She smiled again as the image came back to her,
absently dressing in a pair of denim capris and a wide-neck sweater. Straying
from her reliable regime of skirts and maxi dresses was out of her comfort
zone, but she didn’t know how windy it might be today, and didn’t want to risk
it. The breeze up the skirt thing only worked if you were Marilyn Monroe.

A
cursory glance at the clock told her it was eleven thirty, and Hanna decided
that feeding the boys before leaving would probably give the adults the best
chance for “smooth sailing.” With any luck, Walter would fall asleep on the
boat and nap most of the way.

As the
boys devoured their PBJs, Goldfish crackers, string cheese, and juice boxes,
Hanna texted Derick to let him know they were almost ready. Several minutes
later, Sophie showed up to help get the boys and their stuff down to the dock.

“I
take it Derick got a boat without any trouble?”

Sophie
nodded, holding her arms out for Walter, who waddled over. “He and Adam are
getting it rigged as we speak.”

“What
about Benny?”

“He signed
up for a fishing charter that leaves in the morning.”

Hanna
felt a twist of disappointment that was promptly blotted out by a flurry of
anticipation. It would have been nice to have Benny to talk to, but at the same
time his absence would free her up for the person she really wanted to spend
time with.

It was
almost five hours before the group reached New Harbor, nestled in the cove of
the Great Salt Pond on the upper west side of Block Island. After securing the
mooring line of the
Asp
to the dock, Derick and Adam collapsed and
folded the sails. When all the lines were coiled and hung up in their
respective places, Derick toweled off his face and neck before turning to the
others.

“I
don’t know about you guys, but I’m famished. What do you say we go grab
something to eat?”

“I’m
starving,” Adam agreed, and that settled it.

Hanna
pulled out some cash and asked Derick if he would just pick up something for
her and the boys—taking her restless nephews to any kind of a restaurant
sounded like torture to her. Derick agreed but refused the cash, and Hanna
turned CJ and Walter loose in the water. She was finished with swimming long
before the boys were, so she pulled out her sketchbook and began a rough draft
of the boat Derick had rented for the weekend.

It was
much bigger than the
Laconia
. There were four separate cabins for
sleeping and two bathrooms that reminded Hanna of the ones on airplanes. In the
center of the cabins was a kitchenette. There was plenty of deck space up top,
and the name,
Asp
, was spelled out in an elegant swipe of royal blue on
the hull.

A
short time later, Derick and the Crofts returned with sub sandwiches from the
deli inside the marina store, and they all ate together on the beach. By the
time it started to get dark, the boys were exhausted. Being in the sun all day
had made them both cranky, and Walter had only catnapped in Hanna’s arms on the
trip out.

Despite
their protestations, Hanna wrangled them into one of the cabins to sleep for
the night. CJ flat-out refused to close his eyes until Derick agreed to read to
him. Hanna offered to stay, but Derick assured her he could handle one bedtime
story, so she left him to it.

☼

“Okay,
little man,” Derick said with a sigh, “what am I reading?”

Each of
the boys had a book, and both wanted theirs read first. Derick started with
Walter’s pick—
Little Mouse, Bittle Mouse
—then took the book CJ thrust
under his nose.

“
Where
the Wild Things Are
,” he read out
.
“How appropriate.”

Derick
got only a couple of pages in when CJ cut him off. “You’re reading it wrong.
You have to do it like Banana.”

Derick
wanted to bop CJ on the head with the book. Instead, he settled for mussing his
hair. “Why don’t you read it to me, then.”

CJ
took the book out of Derick’s hands and read. He really was a smart kid. He
only misread a couple of the trickier words, like
rumpus
and
gnash
.
When he’d finished, he closed the book and looked up at Derick with a tiny
wrinkle between his eyebrows.

“Are
you in love with Banana?”

Derick’s
heart stopped, his fingers going numb with adrenaline. “Why would you think
that?”

“‘Cause
you’re always at our house, and you’re always looking at her.”

What
an observant little devil
. “I’m always at your house because you
and your brother are such a handful,” he said, tweaking CJ’s nose and hoping it
would be explanation enough.

CJ
eyed him skeptically for a moment, then shrugged. “I guess Aunt Hanna
is
pretty,” he allowed, scooting down into his blankets. “Except, her face is
always red when you’re around.”

“Is
it?” Sounding barely interested was tough work. “Does she ever talk about me?”

CJ
scowled.

“Never
mind. Get some sleep.”

“‘Night,
Derick.” CJ yawned and balled up on his side.

Walter
mumbled something unintelligible around his pacifier, then copied his brother.

Out in
the galley, Adam had talked Hanna into playing cards, and Sophie had her nose
in a book.

“Anyone
up for s’mores?” Derick asked the room at large. Adam nodded, always game for
food, but Sophie yawned.

“I’m
exhausted. I think we’ll probably turn in early.” A glance at her husband
settled the business, though he looked like he wanted to revolt.

Hanna
answered by standing and pulling marshmallows, chocolate, and graham crackers
out of the cupboards. Derick took a couple of cold sodas from the fridge, then
followed Hanna upstairs. On his way out he sent his sister a nonverbal thank
you. She grinned and resumed her reading.

Up on
deck, Derick loaded his arms with the firewood they’d picked up at the marina
earlier and chucked it onto the sand. “Why don’t you find some good roasting
sticks while I do the manly job and start the fire?” he suggested.

Hanna
gave him a look that said
really, gender stereotyping?

Derick
winked to let her know he was teasing her, and Hanna’s whole face lit with a
breathtaking smile in response. Did she have any clue what that smile did to
him?

When
she returned several minutes later, Derick had a modest blaze going.

He
watched her pick her way toward him, her bare feet sinking in the sand with
each step. Her hair was twined and twisted away from her face—all she needed to
complete the picture of a Dutch milkmaid was an apron and wooden shoes. Flyaway
hairs had worked themselves loose during the course of the day and carelessly
framed her face. Her sweater kept slipping off one shoulder.

Derick
couldn’t help thinking back to his initial reaction on finding himself
face-to-face with his ex. She hadn’t been the girl he remembered—the one he’d
tried and failed to wipe from his mind and heart. He’d barely recognized her.
But now he could see that it wasn’t because she was somehow less; it was
because his own heart had wasted in her absence and diminished him. He had seen
her through darkened eyes, dimmed by what he assumed to be unrequited love. But
now, when he looked at Hanna he didn’t just see her. He saw into her—into her
heart and its limitless capacity for love. Her physical beauty was just a perk.

Tearing
his eyes away before she caught him staring, Derick ripped the marshmallows
open and impaled a couple with his stick. “The boys conked out fast.”

Hanna
looked up from her occupation of peeling Ghirardelli caramel chocolate squares
and placing them on graham crackers. “Swimming wears them out pretty good.
Hopefully they’ll sleep all night.”

Popping
the top of his Coke with a “psh,” he took a good-sized gulp. “I spiked their
root beer with Benadryl, so you should be good.”

Hanna
choked on her Coke, laughing as she wiped the brown dribble off her chin. Derick
lazed back against a chunk of driftwood and clunked his can against Hanna’s in
a toast. “To drugging the future generation!”

“To
vacation from vacation!” Hanna added, and they both laughed.

“Come
on,” Derick reasoned. “You know a whole weekend with me more than makes up for
seventy-two hours with the boys.”

Hanna
uncurled the marshmallow bag and skewered one on the end of her roaster. “It’s
not a bad trade,” she admitted with a shrug.

Was
she teasing him? Not nice. Derick sandwiched his marshmallows between the
crackers and pinched.

Hanna
did the same, moaning when she took the first gooey bite. “S’mores with caramel
and chocolate? I may never use boring old Hershey bars again.”

“It
was a good idea,” Derick agreed. “Remind me to thank Sophie for her
Pinterest
addiction.”

She
giggled, and Derick noticed her sweater slipping off her shoulder again. The
sight made him feel as if a marshmallow was lodged in his esophagus.

Three
s’mores later, Hanna sat back with a groan. “I’m done.” She had a smudge of
caramel on her bottom lip. He watched her until she reddened from his scrutiny,
adjusting her sweater and tucking some hair behind her ear. The sweater slipped
again.

When
Hanna looked up to find his eyes still on her, she scowled. “What?”

I was
just thinking how stunningly beautiful you are.
“You’re pretty.”

Splotches
surfaced on her face and neck like newborn strawberries as she turned her head
away.

“And
also, you have caramel on your face.”

Her
hands twitched to hastily wipe at her chin and cheeks. But the caramel was
still there, calling to him.

“Here,
let me . . .” He reached out, pressing the pad of his thumb to her lip. At his
touch, the tendons of her pale throat stood out as her breathing sped up, and
the strawberries ripened. Pretty didn’t begin to describe her, but Derick
wasn’t sure any word in the English language would. His fingers skimmed down
her cheek as he dropped his hand, and a song he’d heard on the radio echoed
through his mind:
“hanging by a moment here with you . . .”

Since
the day they had knocked heads on the beach, there had been so many moments.
This one might have turned into something else if Hanna’s phone had not trilled
from her pocket, causing them both to jump. Flustered, she answered the call.

“Hey,
Mary . . . yeah, they’re fine . . . sleeping.”

Why
did Mary have to choose this moment to become a concerned parent? Derick
started gathering the trash while Hanna assured her sister that she was holding
down the fort. She didn’t mention that it was a floating fort, which was
probably wise. After reassuring Mary at least twice that things were well at
home, Hanna finally disconnected.