Page 95 of Meet Cute Reboot
He shrugs.
“Okay. Um. I think I’ll go pick my room. The one with the bed.”
“Get ready to get wet.”
“I amnotgetting in that water. I’ll look at it, but I won’t get in.”
“Why not?”
“Alligators.”
“I haven’t seen a single alligator since I moved here.”
“They lurk.”
Luke laughs. “Fine. Suit yourself. Literally. Put your swimsuit on and get back down here so we can leave.”
I ascend the wide staircase and poke my head into every door until I come to the one with the bed. It contains a double bed—well adorned with a plush comforter and four fluffy pillows—a dresser, some dated yellow curtains, and nothing else. I’m not sure what Luke was thinking buying this house. It’s certainly big enough for a family of twelve. Much too big for a family of one.
A few minutes later, I re-enter the kitchen, modestly dressed in an orange one-piece that holds everything in—not that there’s much to hold—and an oversized white button-up that hits mid-thigh.
“Ready?” Luke hands me a water bottle.
“Bring it on.”
He touches his front teeth to his bottom lip and whistles. “Korg. Come on, boy.” Korg perks up from his spot under the kitchen table and saunters over to Luke.
“Korg is coming?”
“He loves it.”
We make quick time to Luke’s SUV and strap in for the fifteen-minute drive to Folly Island.
“Todd has a house on the river. He lets me borrow his kayaks whenever I want,” Luke says as he turns off Benton Street.
“What if he’s using them?”
“He’s out-of-town for the weekend. We’re good.”
Luke and I talk business the rest of the way. MatchAI stats, trends, projections. When we pull into Todd’s driveway, I say, “No more work talk the rest of the weekend.”
Luke looks at me, surprised. “Really?”
“Yeah, really. I could use a break.”
He smiles faintly. “I know.” He taps his temple. “There’s some method to my madness.”
“It’s definitely madness,” I say, nudging him.
Todd’s house is an impressive modern masterpiece, built on stilts with a first-floor garage, large windows on the second floor, and a porch with two sliders on the third, all of it fitted with white board and batten siding with black shutters. The well-shaded property boasts a breathtaking view of the marsh and winding tidal creeks, launching the house’s price into the million-dollar range, no doubt.
We hop out of the car and walk to the edge of Todd’s property where we follow a metal pier to a square deck. The kayaks are racked to the side. A wooden outdoor storage box sits next to them. Luke opens it and pulls out two lifejackets, handing me the smaller one, and keeping the larger red one for himself.
“You’re wearing a lifejacket too?” I ask.
“Always.”
“You were on the swim team.”