Page 59 of Sunset Beach
Before she could further ponder her line of questioning, she heard the front door opening.
“Drue?”
It was Jonah.
He had his head stuck inside the door. His hands and face were smeared with grease, and sweat dripped from his hair. “Hey, can I use the bathroom?”
“Come on in,” she said. He followed her through the living room and she gestured toward the bathroom. “Wait right here,” she said. A moment later she was back with a roll of paper towels.
“Thanks,” he said, wiping his hands on a wadded-up towel.
“I’m in the kitchen if you need me,” she told him.
Jonah appeared in the kitchen doorway a few minutes later. “This house is really awesome. It reminds me of my aunt and uncle’s house at Rehoboth Beach.”
She looked up from her notecards, trying not to act annoyed at the interruption. She reminded herself that he and Ben were doing her a huge favor.
“Rehoboth Beach?”
“In Delaware. My rich uncle was a lawyer in D.C. They had a house down the shore, as they called it, and they’d invite my family for a week every summer. My sisters and I looked forward to that all year round. For that one week, we thought we were rich too.”
“I stayed here with my grandparents for two weeks every summer for as long as I can remember,” Drue said softly. “Even after my mom and I moved over to Lauderdale, I’d come back here to Sunset Beach every year.” She looked around the kitchen, at the toast crumbs on the yellow Formica countertop,and the faded daisy-print valance over the sink window. “I still can’t quite believe that they’re gone and it’s really mine now.”
“It’s cool that everything’s so original. Especially all the wood walls. It’s solid, you know? My crappy little garage apartment in town is all Sheetrock. I hate Sheetrock. You bump up against a wall and it’s instantly gouged.”
Drue felt herself thawing despite her own stern resolve to keep her distance from him.
“So, did you grow up in Florida? I assumed you did, since you went to UF.”
“For law school,” he said. “I’m originally from Seneca, South Carolina. I got my undergrad degree there.”
“Where? Clemson? South Carolina?”
“I wish,” he said, flashing a lopsided grin. “No, I went to a dinky community college so I could live at home. I’ve got twin sisters who were only a year younger than me, so paying tuition for three was a stretch for my parents.”
“How’s it going with the car?” Drue asked. “Do you think the new starter is going to do the trick?”
“We’re almost there,” Jonah said. “Ben went to pick up some lunch for all of us.”
“What? No. I was going to buy lunch,” Drue said.
“Too late.” He paused, looking hopeful. “Is it okay if I look around?”
“There’s not much to see,” Drue said, leading him into the hallway. “You’ve seen my pink bathroom,” she said, gesturing toward the open door.
“My aunt’s bathroom had a mint green toilet, sink and tub,” Jonah said.
Her bedroom door was open. She was secretly thankful she’d made her bed. “Master bedroom,” she said.
“Man,” he said, stepping inside to look out the window. “What an incredible view. If I lived here, I’d never miss a sunset.”
“I try not to,” Drue said, deliberately herding him out of the room. Having him just steps from her bed gave off way too intimate a vibe for her.
Drue opened the next door. “Guest bedroom,” she said. “Right now it’s storage for my kiteboard gear and other random crap. Eventually, I hope to use it as an office.”
“Do you do a lot of kiteboarding?” he asked, running his hand down her favorite Naish board.
“It was pretty much my life, right up until I screwed up my knee,” she said. “From the time I got my first board in my teens, it’s all I thought about. I dropped out of college to go pro, even had a few endorsement deals, but shit happens, ya know?”
