Sea of Love(25)

“To eat the seals,” Lacy said.

Dane shrugged. “They have to eat.” They descended the stairs and walked toward the beach. “Are you okay to go out on the floating dock?” He watched her for signs of nervousness.

“Yeah. I should be fine,” she said.

A fisherman stood on the edge of the dock with a bucket. He tossed fish into the water as Lacy and Dane approached, and within seconds, there were three seals arching their slick backs out of the water, then poking their enormous heads up and looking at the man with the bucket. He tossed a few more fish into the water, and the seals dove under the water to catch them.

“They’re so cute!” Lacy said. “Look how big their eyes are. And look at that one over there. See how it’s staring at us?” She moved closer to the fisherman. “Can you toss him one, please?”

Dane loved her enthusiasm, and as she moved toward the edge of the dock, he stood protectively by her side. She crouched down, and he knelt beside her.

“Dane, by saving the sharks, you’re allowing these cute creatures to be their meal tickets,” Lacy said.

“Lace, what’s in the bucket?” he asked.

“Fish?” she said.

“Right. Are fish more important than seals?” he asked.

“Well, no.”

“It’s the natural food chain, babe. Seals eat fish, and sharks eat seals. We eat cows and chickens. It’s the way nature works. Oceans are the most important ecosystem on the planet and our best defense against global warming. Sharks play a vital role at the top of the food chain by maintaining the oceans.” He dipped his fingers in the water. “Did you know that oceans absorb most of the carbon dioxide that we put into the atmosphere?”

Lacy shook her head.

“The oceans convert that carbon dioxide into a large percentage of the oxygen we breathe. Destroying the sharks could destroy our oceans and our life support system,” he explained. “That’s just one example. There are a million reasons to save sharks, just as there are a million reasons to save seals.”

“Thanks, Caleb,” Dane said to the fisherman. Caleb waved, and Lacy and Dane headed back up the hill to the car.

“Don’t you ever feel guilty saving sharks when you hear about shark attacks?” Lacy asked as they climbed into the car.

“Nope. I feel horrible when someone gets bitten by a shark, but sharks are not looking for humans to eat. If they were, there would be a hell of a lot more fatalities,” Dane explained. He drove around the corner and into Chatham.

“So you buy into the whole thing about sharks thinking humans on surfboards are seals?” she asked with a touch of sarcasm.

“Not at all. If sharks thought people were seals, they’d attack with torpedo-like speed. They’re curious creatures. When they appear in stealth mode, their goal is not predation. They use their teeth like we use our hands. When they bite something unfamiliar, whether it’s a person, a surfboard, or a license plate, they’re looking for tactile evidence about what it is. It’s like a test, a sniff from a dog. When they attack seals, they attack fast and hard, tearing them to shreds. It’s a different approach. So, yeah, I feel terrible when someone gets bitten by a shark, just like I feel terrible when a person gets bitten by a dog, stung by a bee, or hit by a car, but you don’t kill all dogs, snuff the bees, or dismantle the cars, right?”

Lacy nodded. “I guess I can see your point.”

“I sound like I’m lecturing. I’m sorry. I get a little passionate about what I do,” he admitted. “Rob and I spend a lot of our free time convincing people of the innocence of sharks. It’s a tough business.” Dane parked the car and they walked through the parking lot to Main Street.

“Where is Rob? I thought he was arriving Sunday,” Lacy said.

“He’s going through a hard time with his wife right now. To be honest, I’m a little worried about him.” Dane thought about Rob’s behavior on the boat. He’d have to remember to call him again later and see if he could get him to open up a little more about what happened between him and Sheila.

“Gosh, you’ve told me so much about him over the last year and a half that I feel like I already know him and his wife. If you’re worried about him, maybe you should be with him instead of me.”

“The enormity of your heart never fails to amaze me,” Dane said. “I’ll call him later. I left him a message this morning. You’ll get to meet him when we go out on the boat later this week.”

Lacy’s eyes widened.

“Don’t worry. We’re not catching sharks,” he assured her.

Lacy looked up and down Main Street. “I can’t remember if I have ever been here. It looks familiar, but…” Lacy said.

Despite the early hour, tourists walked along the sidewalk of the small town. Lacy and Dane peered into the shop windows as they passed. Unlike other parts of the lower Cape, Chatham was known for its predominantly preppy undertone. Pink Izod shirts and lime green shorts were displayed in almost every clothing storefront window. They looked over the books in front of the used bookstore, then headed across the street to Kate Gould Park, where Lacy walked through the plush carpet of grass with wide eyes.

“I’ve been here. I know I have,” she said.

Dane pointed to the white gazebo at the far end of the field. “To a band concert?” he asked. The Chatham Community Band had played every Friday night during the summers since just after World War II.

“Yeah,” she said. “I remember old men in red outfits, I think. Gosh, I must have been so young. I haven’t thought of that in…forever.” Lacy smiled. “Come on.” She took off running down the lawn to the gazebo and flew up the steps, then twirled around on the empty stage.

Dane jogged after her, watching the smile spread from her lips to her eyes.

“You know what?” she asked.

“What?” He wanted to touch her hand again, something, anything to let her know he was there for her, ready, willing, wanting to listen to whatever she wanted to share.

She sat down on the steps of the gazebo. “I don’t think happiness is based on the amount of time you have with someone. I think it’s all about how you spend that time and the enjoyment of each other while you’re together,” she said.

“You’re thinking about your dad,” he said.

“My dad wasn’t around a lot because he had another family, as I told you,” she said. “But when he was with us, me and my mom, he was present. He was there. Emotionally and physically present.”

“Lace.” He wondered if she was making the same connection he was between her father’s attentiveness and his own. “I’m sorry if it was difficult for you when you were growing up, and I’m sorry I wasn’t physically there for you over the last fifteen months.” Dane watched her nod, then pull her knees to her chest. The hell with keeping my distance. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her against his side.

“Thank you. You’ve heard me say it all before. I had a good childhood, but it was kind of weird knowing I had sisters that I had never met, and the kids at school thought I was making up stories.” She sighed. “But my dad loves all of us, and I never had any hard feelings toward Danica or Kaylie even though he spent most of his time with them. After I met their mom, I felt horrible about what he had done, but he loves us all. Even their mom, I think. And my mom was always there for me. I guess that really made things okay for me.” She touched his hand. “Even when you weren’t physically there, Dane, I still felt your presence as if you were.”

Dane closed his eyes, relishing in the confirmation of his attentiveness. He needed to hear that she at least recognized the efforts he’d made. It was another step forward.

“I think you’re right, Lace. It’s not how much time we have. It’s how much we enjoy the time we have with others that matters.” Like spending time with you right now. Her body was warm against him, and he had to remind himself that she was not his girlfriend. He hated that invisible line in the sand that he had to try not to cross.

“Are you thinking about your mom?” she asked. “You must miss her very much.”

Dane’s chest tightened. A familiar lump formed in his throat. He pushed past it and smiled down at her. “I do, Lace. Some days more than others.”

She smiled up at him.

Not wanting to push his luck, Dane withdrew his arm from around her shoulder and pushed to his feet.

“Library?” he asked.

“Sure.” She reached for his hand, and he helped her to her feet. Lacy didn’t release his hand. Dane didn’t pull away; he didn’t grip her hand tighter. He let her control the connection between them.

When they reached the stone wall in front of the library, Lacy walked up the edge of the grassy lawn and balanced as she crossed the wall like a balance beam, still holding on to Dane’s hand.

“I would bet that I did this when I was here, too,” she said with a laugh. At the end of the wall, she released his hand as she stepped onto the grass and he climbed the steps.

“This is gorgeous,” Lacy said as they passed through the entrance, lined with rich, dark wood, and crossed the Oriental rug to the hardwood of the library’s main room.