Lost Hours by Paige Shelton

Author:Paige Shelton
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group

Sixteen

I’d taken a seat in the cabin.

“Hey there.” Eddy joined me.

“I’m so sorry,” I said to him. I’d said it to everyone, several times. “Please, I don’t want to ruin everyone’s day. Just let me finish my Sprite and I’ll be good as new.”

“You’re not ruining our day. People can’t help it if they get sick,” Betty said from her spot on the bow. The boat wasn’t big enough for any conversation anywhere to be private.

“I’m not sick. I just freaked out a little. I saw the gun, and … well, I am fine now. I’m so sorry.”

“Sure?” she called, her focus on her pole and the sea, though.

“One hundred percent.” I paused. “Although, I’m not sure I’m ready to shoot a fish in the head.”

Gracie laughed. I would be forever grateful for her ability to see the humor I was so badly attempting. We’d moved well past her earlier seemingly scripted words. She seemed natural and relaxed now.

Eddy studied me.

“Eddy, I’m fine. In fact, that might have been good for me. I might have gotten something out of my system. Please. I don’t need to fish, but I won’t get in anyone’s way, and I’m … I was having a great time, and I will get back to it. I just need a minute. More than anything, I’m embarrassed. A gun did that to me? Though I might never have seen you with one, I’ve seen plenty of them since moving here. I need to get a grip.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about it,” Eddy said to me as the others worked to set up the poles again. We hadn’t gone far and were still in a good pocket.

I laughed. “Me too.”

“Hey, Beth,” Gracie called as she sat on the bow. “Do you want us all to forget about it, act like it didn’t happen?”

“Yes, in fact, that would be great.”

“I can do that.” Gracie looked at her parents.

“Me too,” they said at the same time.

So that’s what they did. Even Eddy did me the kindness.

After that, I did not fish. I helped fish. I was less bothered by touching the herring bait than I was by the idea of shooting an animal in its head, so I turned into the fishing assistant. And, again, I had a great time. Everyone did.

All three of the others caught big fish. Betty caught a seventy pounder, Greg a ninety-four, and Gracie a one-hundred-and-four pounder. I couldn’t watch when Eddy used the gun and I was glad the fileting was left to him to do at the dock after we returned.

I’d been told more than once that if I was to find my way out here in this wild world of Alaska, I should consider accepting things that I hadn’t thought I would be able to. This was one of those things. I wasn’t going to accept it, but I certainly wasn’t going to make a big deal out of it and ruin my father’s paying clients’ day. No matter what he’d done to me, I couldn’t quite do that.

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