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Dora slid her elbows onto the bar and swirled the wine in her glass as she listened to Devlin tell a colorful story of how he and his buddies had bagged a marlin She noticed the pleasant cadence of his speech, the way his Southern accent, heavier than Cal’s, drawled out vowels, and the mirth in his blue eyes as he chuckled

Devlin was the same amiable person she’d remembered, and yet so very different froained a confidence that replaced his cockiness, an assuredness that came from success As she watched his ani the story as much as the music of his voice

In a moment of sudden clarity, she understood that was hoas for Nate, too At bedtime he liked her to tell him stories until he fell asleep When he had a meltdown, she knehat she said didn’t matter as much as how she said the words to cal the si the attention of aat the bar She wasn’t a woman alone She ith Devlin--an old friend, a for a drink at a bar Yet it wasn’t a date, either She could stay or she could leave There were no expectations No pressure

And that, she realized with ah

Three days later, Carson was on her way to the Florida Keys Her hands clenched the wheel of the Blue Bo the miles She was overtired, over-caffeinated, and at her wit’s end Florida was one long state--it went on forever!

The sun was beginning to set by the tiot off the mainland to the first of the islands of the Keys She’d hoped to get to thefourteen because of all the stops Nate had to lanced in the rearviewquietly absorbed with his handheld video ga The front seat was littered with various brands of wipes she’d bought before Nate finally accepted one Lord knew, the boy needed to keep his hands clean Eating had been a nightmare Dora and Lucille had specially prepared food that they packed in a cooler Unfortunately, so" with the sandwiches they’dabout the way they were made or looked or how they smearedNate flatly rejected the the road, hoping he’d find so acceptable The car sht Nate haers, subreed to eat chicken nuggets and French fries--as long as there was not a drop of catsup or sauce on theh for Nate, elimination orse As far as she could tell, Nate had the bladder of a pregnant woman He had to stop to pee every two hours like clockwork He was terrified of having an accident, and the e he screamed for her to take the next exit

"We’re on the Keys now," she called in a cheery voice to Nate in the backseat after another shout for a bathroo now!"

"It’s six forty-seven," Nate said "We’ve been on this trip for twelve hours and thirty-two lanced in the rearviewat his watch She blew out a plume of air and wiped a strand of hair froood kid, she reminded herself Dora had prepared her for his idiosyncrasies--how he didn’t show emotion in his voice or face How he could develop an obsessive interest in soly inconsequential But driving to Florida with Nate was like being in the car with a dictator Meet his demands, or meet his wrath!

"Yes, we did plan to be there by now," Carson said evenly,her frustration "But we ot at least another hour"

"Oh" A o to the bathroom now"

The reen and billed as a "resort" Carson had booked the room online, and as often was the case, the professional photos looked better than the actual location Calling the s stretch, but it was close to the Dolphin Research Center and cheap and they had a rooet-conscious ravel lot After she checked in, she gathered their suitcases and led a wary Nate along the narrow, poorly lit paveuana or soht over the cottage door was diot the door open without trouble Her hand felt along the wall for the light switch In an instant, the rooe, spartanly furnished with cheap, beachy white wicker furniture And it was pink Pink walls, pink fabric, pink bathroom tile, and splashes of pink in all the nautical prints on the wall The space was divided into two sections by a half wall open to the front s The front area was narrow and long To the left, a cluster of mini white appliances ht was a lu futon and an ancient TV atop a white wicker stand The rear was a bedroom with a queen bed, a wicker bureau, a ss to the floor and walked around, surveying She opened the fridge and checked for ice There wasn’t any

"Make yourself at ho for the next five days"

Nate stood by the door, ra "I don’t like it here"

"It’s not a palace, but it’s clean"

"It smells bad"

"Yeah, it does," she said The scent of mildeas prevalent "We’ll open the s, okay? Get some of that nice ocean breeze in here"

"It’s dirty"

She followed his gaze to the corner where the linoleu "It’s not dirty, Nate It’s just old"

"I want to go home" Nate’s face crumpled