The Summer Girls (27 page)

Once the wind hit the kite, Carson felt the strong pull toward the ocean. She gripped the bar, leaned back, and felt a tremendous gust of power. In the time it took to suck in a breath, she was skimming across the tips of the waves, headed out to sea, the pilot of a single wing! It was intoxicating. More thrilling than anything she’d experienced on a board before.

Far out from shore, Carson felt secure with her wingman out there with her. Dragging her butt against the waves, Carson was reminded that she was still a beginner. Whenever she lost wind and collapsed into the water, Blake was right there to help her back up. The reputation of Charleston as the city of manners extended to Sullivan’s Island. The riders at Station 28 were a kindly group—and forgiving.

In celebration of her first day on the water, Blake had invited his cousin and Carson’s old surfing buddy Ethan to join them. Ethan’s wife, Toy, and their children formed her cheering squad, whooping and calling out her name whenever she drew close to shore. Before too long Carson called it a day and glided into shore. She collapsed on her towel, elated but exhausted.

“My arms feel like rubber,” she moaned.

“You did real good out there,” Blake told her. “For a rookie.”

Carson peeked out from the hand covering her eyes from the sun. “I thought you were going to say
for a girl
.”

“I’m not that stupid,” Blake said with a laugh.

“Good call,” Ethan teased.

“There aren’t hardly any girls out there,” Toy added. “I’m glad to see you represent our sex.
Woot, woot,
” she called out, rolling her arm in the air.

Carson really liked Toy Legare. She was cute in a Christie Brinkley kind of way, all wild blond hair and curves. She wore a modest, one-piece black swimsuit and was attentive to her children, who were busy building a sand castle a few feet away.

Ethan and Blake grabbed the gear and took their turn to go out for some serious kite surfing. Carson and Toy sat against the beach chairs and watched from their island on the sand as the two men sprinted to the water.

“Those two are just kids when they’re near the water,” Toy said, slathering suntan lotion on her arms.

“They look more like brothers than cousins,” Carson said, watching them head to the sea. Both men were tall and lanky, had brown eyes and heads of dark curls. But it was more than just looks. The way they moved, the swagger of their hips, the sinewy arms. “Maybe even twins.”

“A lot of the boys in that family have that brown curly hair. But those two really are like peas and carrots,” Toy replied. “Their mamas used to claim they each had gained another son, they were at each other’s houses so much.”

“It’s interesting that they went into the same line of work.”

“Marine biology?” Toy asked. “Not so surprising. They’re both water bugs. Blake’s working with dolphins and Ethan works for the SC Aquarium.” She added with a smug smile, “With me.” Toy applied lotion to her legs. “Ethan’s in charge of the big tank, so he’s into fish of all kinds.” She laughed lightly. “Me, I’m all about sea turtles.” She handed the tube of lotion to Carson, then leaned back, pressing her palms on the towel as she faced the sky, eyes closed.

Carson knew that Toy was being modest. She was the director of the sea turtle hospital at the aquarium, an impressive and high-profile position.

“How long have you been married?” Carson asked her.

“Oh, gosh, it’s got to be seven years already. Goes fast.”

Carson looked over to the two children playing in the sand. The little boy couldn’t have been older than six. But the girl, even though she was petite, had to be double that.

Toy opened one eye and followed Carson’s gaze. A crooked grin eased across her face. “I know what you’re thinking. That’s my little girl, Lovie. She’s my daughter from before we got married. Ethan’s her daddy in all ways that count, though. He’s a great father. You know,” she said coyly, “Blake will be a good family man like Ethan, too.”

Carson squeezed some lotion onto her arms. “Why hasn’t Blake married yet? I’d expected he’d be snatched up by now.”

“It’s not for lack of girls trying, let me tell you!” Toy said with a laugh. “I don’t know. He traveled around a lot with
his work. You never saw a mama so happy to see her baby come home as Linda Legare was when Blake announced he was going to study here with NOAA. Girls started dropping by the house like flies on a sugar cube. He dated around, of course. There was one girl we thought might be the one, but they broke up last year.” She leaned in closer. “I was glad. She was pretty, but she wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, if you know what I mean.”

Carson laughed and was secretly pleased to hear this. She could well imagine that Blake would eventually grow bored with someone who was not well-read.

Toy continued. “Blake says he’s just waiting for the right one.” Her eyes pinned Carson with a tease. “Maybe he found her.”

Even knowing it was a tease made in jest, Carson was annoyed. She handed the tube of lotion back to Toy. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Blake and I are just friends.”

“Just sayin’,” Toy said with a smirk. “Besides, you’ve already been preapproved by Ethan. Be right back.” Toy rose and went to sit beside her children at the sand castle. The little girl silently submitted to the slathering of lotion over her body, but predictably the boy groused and tried to squirm away. Toy was quick and efficient, and in a flash her two young ones were coated in the thick white lotion.

“Those two keep me busier than a moth in a mitten. Want some water?” Toy asked, wiping the lotion off her hands on a separate towel. She pulled a large thermos out from her bag.

“Love some,” Carson replied, helping her with the four cups. She marveled at Toy’s mothering. Her enthusiasm for
her children and Ethan, for life, hummed around her, creating a cool and confident aura.

Toy poured cold water into the red plastic cups, then screwed the top back on the thermos and put it back into her enormous beach bag. She rummaged through it and extracted a plastic container. Opening it, she set out crackers and cut celery and carrots. In another bag were sugar cookies. These she carried to the children, along with cups of water. “Don’t you throw those cups away,” she ordered.

“I don’t use plastic bottles anymore,” Toy explained to Carson. “When you’ve pulled out as much plastic from a turtle’s belly as I have, you learn to not use plastic bags, bottles, or whatever.”

“You are an amazing mother,” Carson told her.

Toy’s face lit up. “Thanks. If you knew my mother, you’d know how much that means to me.”

“Did you always know you wanted to be a mother?”

“Oh, Lord no,” Toy said, putting on her head a navy cap emblazoned with the South Carolina Aquarium logo. “I was a mother before I was old enough to even wonder about it. I had little Lovie when I was nineteen. Her father was a no-good scoundrel. But even being with him was better than being with my mother.”

Carson realized she’d met someone whose childhood was probably worse than her own.

“But once I looked into Lovie’s eyes”—Toy’s own eyes took on a wistful expression—“I knew I was home. That’s what I always wanted, you see. A home. Course, then I met Ethan and that was that.” She looked out at the water and tracked her man’s ride on the waves. “Will you look at him,”
she said, her face a vision of infatuation. “He’s just showing off for us.” She turned to Carson. “And it turns me on like nobody’s business.”

Carson spotted Ethan riding close along the beach, kicking up a large spray. She scanned the water and farther out she caught Blake catching air. He soared high into the sky and at the peak he lifted his legs, arching to bring the board high behind his back.

Toy giggled and pointed. “Ethan’s not the only one showing off.” She turned her attention back to Carson. “I see the way he looks at you. I’d say that’s one fish that’s been hooked.”

Carson’s gaze drifted away from Blake to Toy, grateful for the sunglasses covering the discomfort she knew was reflected in her eyes. The comment both delighted and troubled her. When people started pairing her off with someone, that was usually her cue to cut and run.

Later, Toy suddenly straightened on her knees, laughed, and pointed to the ocean. “Here come those two rowdy boys, back from the war. Take off your hat, girlfriend, ’cause they got up-to-no-good smirks on their faces. You just know they’re going to drag us down to the water.” She squealed as the men rushed toward them.

Carson looked up to see the two men bearing down on them at full speed. She went into a defensive crouch. “Don’t you dare,” she warned as Blake grabbed her by the arms and gave a tug that had her on her feet. Ethan went straight for the two children, hoisting one under each arm. Toy had no choice but to run after them, laughing and crying out to Ethan that little Danny wasn’t a very good swimmer yet.

The tide was in and the sun shone high in the cloudless sky. The group caught their second wind, splashing in the waves while the children laughed and squealed in delight. Blake and Ethan put the children on their shoulders and had a chicken fight while Carson and Toy cheered them on. Danny crowed like a rooster with triumph when he and Blake toppled Lovie and Ethan into the surf. As the afternoon waned and the children began shivering, their fingers and toes wrinkled from the time in the water, they returned to their towels, where Ethan and Toy rubbed their shoulders dry. The women gathered the supplies and the men packed up the kite gear. The two children stood, towels wrapped around their slender shoulders and dragging in the sand, their damp hair sticking out at odd angles, nibbling cookies. Their eyelids were drooping like lowered awnings.

Carson watched them and felt a strange ache in her heart. She’d never seriously considered having children. All her life she’d been consumed with whatever project she was working on, the glamour of traveling to exotic places, meeting famous people. Today, however, she’d had a lovely time playing with these two little ones on the beach, enjoying their squeals and refreshingly honest comments. She’d enjoyed spending time with Nate at Sea Breeze. This past month she’d rediscovered a different, quieter kind of happiness in the lowcountry with her family, new friends, and Delphine.

They formed a ragtag army as they left the beach. Blake and Ethan carried kite gear and bags like pack mules. The two children trailed behind them, dragging their heels. Carson and Toy brought up the rear with the rest of the
bags. Carson’s gaze followed the men. Blake was taller than Ethan, but not by much. They shared the same easy gait and the same devotion to these lowcountry waters.

Blake turned his head to check on her. They made eye contact and smiled a message that spoke volumes. He was unlike other men she’d been with, and she’d dated a lot of men. Or, was he really that different? she wondered. Was the difference in her? Or was it simply more about the place and the timing?

They had been blessed with sunny days and balmy breezes all week. In addition to spending time on the beach with Blake, Carson had spent an hour every day bringing Nate to the dock and slowly getting him acclimated to the seawater. Once the boy got over his initial fear, Carson discovered Nate loved being in the ocean. There was something about the rocking motion of it and the tightness of his life preserver that he found soothing. She was patient, helping him with rudimentary strokes and the art of kicking, unabashedly using the lure of Delphine for motivation.

On the first day Nate complained about everything—the temperature of the water, how dirty it looked, the greasy feel of suntan lotion, and that he simply couldn’t do what she’d asked. She turned a deaf ear to his complaints and kept up her encouragement. She moved forward at his pace and gave him lots of praise, careful not to push him too hard. Nate needed to be allowed to trust himself in the water. As the week progressed, every day he complained a
little less. And every day she kept her eyes peeled for the sleek gray dolphin.

Delphine didn’t appear. With a stranger in the water, it was no wonder that the wild dolphin kept her distance. Carson knew she was checking them out, however. Once she’d felt the unmistakable tingling of echolocation on her legs. On the seventh day, however, Delphine made her appearance.

“There she is!” Nate called out, almost leaping from his preserver.

Carson shared his joy at seeing the large head emerge alongside them, Delphine’s dark eyes following their every move with great attention. She released a big bubble of air from her blowhole and hung back a bit, both curious and shy.

“Where have you been?” Carson asked Delphine.

Delphine tilted her head to peer at the boy as she swam past them, graceful and sleek. On the second pass, they heard the soft buzzing noise.

“That feels funny,” Nate told Carson.

“She’s checking you out. It’s okay. You’re feeling her echolocation. It’s kind of like an X-ray.”

“You mean sonar,” Nate corrected her.

“Yes,” she replied, thinking she had to be on her A game with Nate. He spent every night studying his books.

As had she. Carson had read that dolphins liked children, and it was clear today that Delphine was curious about the boy. Delphine dared to come closer to brush Nate’s leg with her pectoral fin. Later, she swam closer again and nudged Nate’s leg, this time with her rostrum. Carson held her
breath, knowing Nate didn’t like to be touched. It was a miraculous moment. Nate not only tolerated the dolphin’s touching his leg, he reached out and let his fingers graze her body as she swam by.
He’d touched the dolphin
. And Delphine had allowed it. Carson knew she’d never forget this moment. Some barrier had been broken. A connection made. She wished Dora was here to see it.