Page 43 of Kraken the Seal

The one thing her purse was missing was a phone. It wasn't a surprise. Phones would allow her too much freedom.

I pulled a pen out of my much smaller purse. “Could I see that book again? Now I'm not sure if I read that one.”

She dug it out and handed it to me with a confused expression. I opened it and wrote my number on the inside.

“I was wrong, I haven't read this one,” I showed her the number before handing it back. “You'll have to tell me if it's good when you finish.”

It was weird to speak in code, but she seemed to understand.

“I will,” she promised. “The moment I finish, I'll make sure you know.”

Feeling a lot better about being here, I nodded. I was about to say something when there was a knock on the door.

“Are you ladies finished yet?” Archer asked. “Frank is getting anxious, and Delmar looks like he's tempted to eat him.”

I snorted, and Abby covered her mouth to keep from laughing. She closed her purse, then hitched it up on her shoulder before we filed out.

Archer was standing there with a small smile. “I know it's tough right now,” he murmured to Abby. “But I promise I'm working on it.”

To my shock, she shot him an angry look before turning and walking away without speaking to him.

I was so curious. I looked at Archer with a raised eyebrow, but he was too busy watching Abby walk away.

The look of longing on his face broke my heart.

Chapter 15

Nina

I'd never been so relieved for a dinner to end.

Despite the tension and Frank's unbelievably annoying one-sided conversation, Delmar managed to eat all his food.

I'd been so irritated by Frank and worried for Abby that I only picked at my dinner. When I handed it over to Delmar, he finished it as well.

Frank only stopped when Archer asked me a question. Abby didn't say a single word and ate every last morsel on her plate.

It was clear that being so thin wasn't her choice.

Finally there was no reason to stay. Frank, Abby, and Archer left first. I was sure Frank would've pushed for us to continuesitting there, but Archer pointed out that the first day of tourist week was tomorrow and everyone needed to get their rest. Reluctantly, Frank got up to leave, but not before he made a comment about how he couldn't wait to introduce me to his son.

Eww, no!

When we went to pay, we found out that Frank had paid for me, but not for Delmar.

Of course he hadn't. I paid and included a generous tip.

It felt good to get out of the crowded restaurant and feel a fresh, cool sea breeze on my face. Without needing to say a word, we linked hands and walked back to the marina as fast as we could. It was all downhill and soon we were striding down the dock. Seeing Delmar's boat was such a relief.

“At least the food was good,” Delmar said as we climbed from the dock to the boat.

“The walk was nice too,” I said. “It's a pretty night.”

Instead of going into the cabin, I walked around the side of the boat to the pointed front section.

Bow. The front of the boat was called the bow. Look at me, learning nautical terms.

“Do you ever swim at night?” I asked him. My seal had been content since our swim earlier. She wasn't pushing me to jump into the water and shift. She was like a gentle hum in the back of my head, a soft interest but no pressure.