Chapter 25
Carla
I saw Kellan before my mom did, looking handsome and casual in a pair of cargo pants and a soft cotton Siesta Key T-shirt he must’ve gotten at a souvenir stand in town. He looked radiant under the midday sunlight, and it felt odd to see him standing on the dock near my stepfather’s boat, appropriately named “Roy’s Retreat”. I gave a little wave and mom must’ve sensed the motion for she turned and spotted him as well.
“Oh dear,” she murmured as we turned onto the dock from the marina’s main entrance. “You weren’t kidding when you said you said he was a male model.” Kellan smiled as we approached, looking even handsomer as my mother, ever the coquette, peeled away from my side and wrapped him in a big bear hug.
“It’s so nice to meet you, Kellan,” she said in a small, girlish voice I hadn’t heard in years. “Carla has told me so much about you.” Kellan chuckled, embracing her warmly and winking at me over her shoulder. I had felt bad about the way I’d treated him after our encounter on the beach, and had thought introducing him to my mother would be a good way to undo some of the hurt I may have caused. I couldn’t help it. I was baffled and confused, battered and bruised as the reality of Roy’s grave situation continued to sink in.
“All good things I hope,” Kellan grunted as Mom finally set him free and he gave me a quick, curt hug.
“All good things,” Mom agreed. “All very good things. And let me add how grateful I am that you’ve taken time out of your busy schedule to comfort us in our time of need.”
He waved a dismissive hand. “Of course. I’ll help as much as I can.”
Mom blushed and nodded before looking back at me. “It’s very nice of you to introduce us, dear, but I can’t imagine why you’d do it here, at the marina.” Kellan and I shared a nervous glance, before he stepped in a little closer and said, “I’m afraid that’s my fault, Miss Childs.”
“Please,” she said. “Call me Rose.”
Kellan nodded and said, “Well Rose, with Roy in the hospital and his boat sitting idle, I thought I might be able to help him by taking it out for him while he’s in the hospital.”
Mom’s face screwed up a little at the suggestion, the businesswoman in her coming to the forefront. “Are you a licensed captain, dear?”
Kellan laughed and before he could confess that the only ship he’d ever piloted was a plastic boat in the bathtub as a child, I interjected, “No mom, but Ryan, Dad’s first mate, promised to supervise Kellan here, so they can work together to keep dad’s business afloat while he recovers.”
It was a strange and brilliant plan, I had to admit, but when Kellan had suggested it, I’d leapt at the chance. With dad’s bills mounting, it would be the perfect opportunity to bring in a little much needed cash. And with Kellan so eager, it felt like the perfect way to keep us both busy while Mom was occupied at the hospital.
She began to cry almost immediately, soft tears falling down a wrinkled face as I helped her onto the small plastic bench behind us, a weathered seat cushion over a hidden storage space full of hose attachments, extra life preservers and bait and tackle.
“I’m sorry you two,” she said. “It’s just, with being in that hospital all weekend, this is the first ray of light I’ve had and I guess I’m a little overwhelmed...”
“Not to worry,” said Kellan. “We’ll take care of all the details, and this way you can focus on getting Roy better and not have to worry about your income while he’s laid up.”
Mom found a couple tissues in her purse and used them to wipe her eyes. “I can’t thank you two enough,” she said in a weak voice, as if all the fight had just gone out of her. “I’ve just felt so hopeless lately…”
I sank down on the bench next to her, patting her hand gently. “We’re here for you, Mom. “Kellan and I just want to do everything we can so you can be there with Roy.”
“This means so much to me,” she said, squeezing my hand back. As if on cue, a young man came bounding down the marina walkway, a faded ball cap crooked on his head, his skin bronzed from the constant sun, and with a Roy’s Retreat Charter Fishing Service T-shirt clinging to his scrawny chest.
“Mrs. Childs,” he said as Mom stood and wrapped him in the same kind of bear hug she’d just given Kellan. “I was so sorry to hear about Mr. Roy.”
“Oh Ryan,” she said, letting him go but not without squeezing both hands in her own first. “It’s so good to see you.”
“Hi Carla,” he said, extending a hand. At that moment I was so grateful for his presence, I swatted it away and hugged him even more powerfully than mom had. “It’s good to see you, Ryan,” I said, before peeling away and nodding toward Kellan.
“So is this the landlubber who thinks he’s going to steer Roy’s boat while he’s in the hospital?” Ryan teased, shaking Kellan’s hand energetically. Though they were about the same height, Kellan was a good five years older and 25 pounds heavier.
“I’ll do my best,” he said and it sounded strange to hear the slightest hint of anxiety in his voice. Kellan was so good at what he did back in South Beach, he could hardly relate to modesty. But here he was clearly out of his element and—what’s more—he knew it.
“We’ll see about that,” Ryan said to Kellan while winking at me. “Come on aboard and let’s get acquainted before we take her out.”
Kellan looked more than alarmed. “What… now?”
Ryan gave him a withering glance. “No time like the present, right?”
“I thought we were just meeting to get oriented,” he blathered as Mom and I shared a private giggle.
“Oh we’re going to get oriented all right,” Ryan teased, laying it on thick for his new “shipmate’s shipmate”. “Three miles out to sea is where all the action takes place!”
As Ryan ran Kellan through the paces, Mom and I bid a fond adieu. “I see you’re in good hands, Kellan,” she couldn’t help but teasing as we drifted from the stern of Roy’s 36-foot fishing boat.
“Honey?” he asked, one of the rigging lines in his hand.
I couldn’t help but joining in on the fun. “Like mom said Kellan, you’re in good hands.”