Never Summer Again

Chapter Thirty-Nine- Three Little Words

Score: Señorita - Camila Cabello & Shawn Mendes

Mark

I walk away from the table and down the sand strip, looking for Lydia. There's a row of sun beds and parasols on the beach right in front of the line of beachfront tavernas, and, a little further down, there is a deserted area with clear, soft sand. I stalk to that lonely strip. Even though I want to find her, I don't want to hurry. I want to clear my head first, as much as possible. I take my shoes off and savor the feeling of the cool sand between my toes. I even walk to the water and let the tide wash at my feet.

This is when I see her. A white spot, sitting on the sand, at the far end of the clear strip of sand. The moon is shining high in the sky, painting a lunar path on the surface of the sea. The waves are softly lapping at the shore, muffling the voices of the people, dining in the tavernas, who suddenly look far, far away. Like, in another world.

She's sitting on the sand, hugging herself. It's warm, so she's not shielding herself from the night chills. It must be something else that she's trying to keep away, having her arms wrapped tightly around her shoulders.

I walk to where she's sitting. I take my dress jacket off and drape it on the sand, then I lower myself beside her and gesture to her to come to sit on the jacket next to me. She obeys, scooting closer to me. She reaches with her hands, smoothing her white, lacy dress over her shins.

"We'll figure it out," I'm the first to break the silence, saying out loud what we're both thinking.

She lets out a small laugh.

"How?"

Sooner or later, we would have to talk about what is going to happen with us, once the summer is over. I just hoped I'd have more clarity as to what's going to happen with us then. And I really didn't want to have to talk about this on my dad's wedding weekend.

Fuck, I can't even imagine how I'm going to say my best man's speech tomorrow. I fucking hate him right now.

"I meant what I said at that table. I'm not going to work on the merger. Which means I don't have to go back." I say, finally.

"You can't do that," she says. "Your father counts on you."

I click my tongue and shake my head, looking straight ahead of me. This woman amazes me every single day. Even after what happened, even after my father was so disrespectful to her, she's still thinking about him counting on me. I really don't get why she's still sympathizing with him so much, when she can chair a fucking Parents Haters club.

"He only wants me there, because he doesn't want me back in England," I say. "He doesn't need me back home, meddling with his new family. I don't have a dental clinic or an orthodontist lab." I chuckle, realizing that what I just said is at least partially true. I bet that even his decision to marry Laura was a carefully calculated business move. Now that I've seen Laura in action at the table, I can't help but wonder whether it's the same on her account, as well.

"Besides, he has way more qualified and way better-trained people, who can do a perfectly decent job, overseeing this merger. I'm not his last resort, Lyds. Neither am I his first." I bump my shoulder into hers.

"But it's a great opportunity for you."

"I don't want that." I shake my head. "I don't want to work at my father's company. He's always wanted me to take after him. But I don't want that."

She nods slowly.

"I can transfer to a university back home," I add, hoping to cheer her up.

She nods again.