Amelia crouched down in the sand, inspecting the marked-off sea turtle nest. Stakes had been driven in and rope wrapped around its circumference after some locals saw a turtle digging and lying there. Though the tracking of local turtle nests often fell to another NGO, one specifically focused on sea turtles, Amelia had come out the day before to partition off the spot before the turtle people could send someone over.

As Wildlife Manager for Florida Keys Conservation, Amelia was probably the most qualified person when it came to jumping into the field, collecting data, and figuring out how best to mitigate, develop, or all around manage a situation. Nicole was constantly in awe of her skills—and, luckily for Nicole, being Amelia’s intern meant having a front row seat to the show.

“Looks undisturbed,” Amelia said. She stayed squatted for another minute, checking over the sand once more.

Nicole looked around the area. Residential, with big beach houses, each one seeming larger than the last. It was the fancier end of the beach, the kind of neighborhood Nicole’s parents would probably rent in, were they ever to come to a ‘middle of nowhere’ town such as Haven Sound.

“So are you going to say yes to that guy?” Amelia popped to standing and stared at Nicole, her dark eyes intense and her cocoa skin gleaming in the sun.

“What?”

“Don’t play coy.”

Nicole shrugged and looked away. She’d almost forgotten about how Aidan had embarrassed her in front of all her new coworkers. What she hadn’t forgotten was the way his eyes had shone when he looked at her or the swirling, giddy feeling she got in her stomach the instant she saw him standing in the office.

“No,” she answered, hating the word as it slipped from her lips.

“You sure? He’s really cute.”

Nicole turned halfway back to Amelia. She’d only been working at the organization a week, but she and Amelia had clicked right away, despite the fact that Amelia was at least ten years older. The other woman had an easiness about her that Nicole really appreciated. No matter what happened, she remained calm.

“Yeah, he’s cute,” Nicole admitted. “But that’s not everything.”

Laughing, Amelia shouldered her backpack. Together, they started pushing through the sand, headed for the nearest beach access parking lot.

“Why are you laughing?”

“Sorry. It’s just—I heard your whole conversation this morning, you know? Everyone did.”

Nicole groaned and dropped her head back. “That’s what I was afraid of.”

“He seems to really like you.”

“He doesn’t know me,” Nicole answered right away.

“And you’re not going to give him the chance to?”

Nicole clomped up the wooden steps, her irritation growing. “Why are we talking about this?”

“Because...” Amelia stopped halfway down the walkway and looked back at the beach. One of her dreads had come loose from the scarf she had them wound up in and sweat shone across her forehead.

Nicole waited for more, feeling Amelia was in intense contemplation and didn’t want to be interrupted.

“You haven’t gone out since you’ve gotten here,” Amelia finally said.

“How do you know that?” Nicole asked.

Amelia gave her a ‘gimme a break’ look. “Name one restaurant or bar in this town.”

“Um—”

“Or one person, besides someone who works with us.”

“There’s—”

“And not your landlord.”

Nicole’s shoulders slumped. “I like being alone, Amelia. I’m an introvert, okay? Some people just are.” She pressed her palms against the worn, wooden railing and stared down at the sand next to the walkway.

“Even when it comes to a nice, cute guy?”

Her voice was filled with so much kindness—so much concern—that Nicole could no longer skirt around the truth. Sighing, she nodded. “I’ve never really dated. I went out with one guy a few times before senior year, but that’s really it.”

“That’s okay. I didn’t start dating till college. But when a perfectly nice guy walks into your life, you gotta listen to your heart, girl.”

Nicole pursed her lips, struggling to keep her emotions in check. She was a sensitive person who dreamed of a quiet family life and the idea of the right man walking into her life warmed her heart. But what seemed to be even stronger than her need to love and be loved was her fear of being hurt. “You never know who’s a perfectly nice guy and who’s a fake. So listening to your heart can prove to be pretty dangerous,” she said bluntly.

“Sweetie, with that mindset, you wouldn’t recognize a perfectly nice guy even if you tripped over him.”

Amelia joined her at the railing and together they silently stood there for a few minutes, listening to the waves and the rush of traffic a block away. Nicole knew there was a good chance Amelia was right, but that didn’t change anything for her heart. It wasn’t going to suddenly open up all because one guy seemed nice.

“It didn’t work out so well for my parents.” Nicole hadn’t even known the words were coming. Once they were out, she stood there in shock, her whole body trembling. She hardly ever talked about her mom and dad. What had suddenly made her bring them up?

“They divorced?”

“Yeah,” Nicole answered, her voice thick. The divorce had been the easiest part of it all. After what her dad had put Nicole and her mom through, his leaving had been the only appropriate ending.

“I’m sorry.”

“Thanks. They never really got along, so, you know, maybe it was inevitable.”

“Never?” Amelia asked.

Nicole released a sigh. “Not that I can remember. Even years before the divorce, they didn’t spend much time together. We hardly ever had dinner with the three of us. My dad was always away, working or…who knows.”

Nicole wasn’t sure where the sudden bout of honesty was coming from. She didn’t usually like to share about her family. Maybe it was that Amelia was so open and such a good listener.

“That was a heavy ‘who knows’,” Amelia said.

The two of them exchanged a smirk. “I won’t ask anymore if you don’t want me to.” Amelia seemed to understand that Nicole touched on dangerous territory.

Nicole nodded, and there was another quiet pause. A few people walked by them, laughing and talking, their flip flops smacking against the boards as they made their way to the beach.

“But you’re not your parents,” Amelia said, once they were alone again. “I do think I should say that. And maybe, by acknowledging whatever mistakes they made, you’ll be sure not to make the same ones.”

Nicole let the words sink in. She knew they made sense, but the advice couldn’t be easily applied. She’d worked endlessly to erase the pain from fifteen years ago. Now, she was finally at the point where she had something of her own to live for, something that didn’t have to do with her parents’ drama, and she wasn’t giving up her focus that easily. Her life was about work. Animals. Conservation. Her mom had made her life about a man, constantly giving to someone who never even acknowledged the effort, and look at how that had ended.

Nicole shook her head and pushed away from the railing. “Shouldn’t we be getting back?”

Amelia opened her mouth slightly but then nodded. Together, they made their way to her car.

Opening the passenger’s side door, Nicole paused. “Hey. Thanks for talking to me. I get what you’re saying.” She found it hard to look Amelia in the eye. “I just don’t know if I’m ready for men yet. I like where my life is now.”

“I get it. What about a simple night out? Are you ready for that?”

“With Aidan?” Nicole asked, hating how good it felt to say his name.

“No.” Amelia grinned. “With me. Nothing fancy. There’s live music tonight on this awesome restaurant’s patio. What do you say?”

Nicole thought about it. Lauren was flying in the next day, but until then, the hours off were sure to all be the same. Dinner. Couch. TV. Bed.

Walks on the beach were now out, as she was afraid of running into Aidan again.

“Sounds fun,” Nicole answered. “Count me in.”

“Nice. Hey, maybe we’ll meet some hot—” Amelia cut herself off just in time. “You know what? Tonight is about us. Forget men. We’re just two girls having fun.”

Nicole nodded and ducked into the car. What she didn’t say was that she wished badly she could be like Amelia—like everyone else, it seemed. Other people weren’t terrified of the opposite sex. They didn’t turn tail and bolt at the first sign of romance.

Maybe one day Nicole would be one of those people. Maybe.