Fish Perfume (Cozy Harbor Marina Series) Read online

  Bonnie laughed and said to me, “It’s like watching a woman have a baby.”

  I agreed and we continued to watch Mikey fight the fish. Finally he was making progress and the fish was almost to the boat. Jim and Don stood ready with gaffs and when the fish got to the boat, they gaffed it and hauled it on board. I stepped up in the cockpit to get out of the way and watch.

  Don said, “It’s a bluefin. What do you think Jim, a hundred twenty-five pounds?”

  Jim smiled and said, “About. Nice fish, Mikey.”

  Mikey grinned from ear to ear. Bonnie and I watched as they removed the hook from the fish’s mouth and stuck it in the cooler.”

  Bonnie said to me, “What do you think about offshore fishing?”

  I said, “There’s a lot more to it than I ever thought. This has been an experience.”

  We caught two small bluefin after that and decided to call it a day and head home. On our way back, a school of dolphins came by and rode the wake of the boat for a while. I think that was my favorite part of the trip.

  We pulled up to the dock around five and I helped Bonnie clean the boat while the guys cleaned the fish. Don handed me two bags of fish, one with mahi and one with tuna.

  I said, “I had a great day. Thank you all for showing me the ropes. Sorry about that mahi.”

  They all laughed.

  Jim said, “You’re welcome anytime, Meggie.”

  “Thanks.”

  I took the fish up to the cottage and went over to close up the store.

  Journey was at the counter when I walked in. She said, “Hey, how was fishing?”

  “Great. We caught a lot and I got to see all kinds of sea life, whales, dolphins, turtles. It was cool. How were things around here today?”

  “Busy. I’m beat.”

  “Well, take off. I’m going to lock up.”

  When I was through, I went directly over to the Shack to meet Mo who was standing behind the counter.

  I asked her, “Are you ready for your big date? Come out here and let me see how you look.”

  She let out a sigh, walked around the counter, and twirled. She had on light-blue cropped pants, a white T-shirt, and a jeans jacket. On her feet she wore a pair of navy canvas topsiders.

  I said, “You look really nice. That’s the perfect outfit for a boat ride.”

  She nodded, “That’s what I was thinkin’.” She shivered, “I’ve got butterflies bad. I’ve been dreadin’ this date all week. I can’t wait till it’s over.”

  Surprised, I said, “I thought you really liked this guy. You’ve been e-mailing for weeks and you told me you got along really well.”

  “That’s just it. Too well. He’s too good to be true. I’m tellin’ you, he’ll have two teeth in his head.”

  I laughed, “Think positive. Hey, if he’s a fisherman, how bad can he be? Every fisherman I’ve met around here’s been really nice.”

  Mo said, “Well, you can put a cat in the oven, but that don’t make him a biscuit. When the other guys turned out to be losers, it didn’t bother me because I wasn’t all that crazy about them anyway. This one I really like. I’ll be disappointed if he turns out to be a dud.”

  I smiled at her and repeated, “Think positive. Let me go down to the dock and see if he’s there yet. Maybe he’ll be early and you can get the suspense over with.”

  “Thanks, Meggie.”

  “Be right back.”

  I walked down to the fuel dock and the only boat I saw was Big H’s. Matt was fueling it up for him. I looked up and down the channel but didn’t see any boats approaching from either side.

  Big H asked, “Are you looking for someone, Meggie?”

  I said, “Yeah. Mo has a blind date, and he’s picking her up here. I’m supposed to check him out. She’s afraid he’ll pull up in a rust bucket and only have two teeth in his head.”

  Big H looked up and gave me a big, wide, toothy smile.

  I looked him over and realized he was a bit dressed up for Big H. No fishing hat, no T-shirt with oil and fish blood stains. He had on khaki pants and a nice navy polo shirt. Suddenly the pieces fit. I thought to myself, no way.

  I said, “Oh my God, you’re him, aren’t you? You’re Fisher Man.”

  He laughed and said, “That’s me.”

  “I’m so excited. Mo is gonna flip out. I can’t believe it’s you.”

  “Go get her. Tell her I have a full set of teeth, but don’t tell her it’s me.”

  “I’ll be right back.” I couldn’t stop smiling. I couldn’t wait to see Mo’s reaction.

  I walked in the Shack and she looked at me wide-eyed. She asked, “Is he there?”

  “Yeah, he’s there.”

  “Meggie, don’t keep me in suspenders. What’s he like? Will I like him?”

  “You’ll like him alright.”

  She asked, “Is he good-lookin’?”

  “Very handsome, and he has a really nice boat.”

  “How about the teeth?”

  I nodded. “He has good teeth and they look like they’re his own.”

  She smiled and said, “Really?”

  I laughed. “Really. I think you’ll have a great time.”

  She grabbed her purse, and we walked out of the Shack.

  There was no way I was going to miss this so I said, “I’ll walk you down. I want to get another look at him.”

  Halfway down the dock, Mo grabbed my arm and said, “Just to be on the safe side, get the name and make of his boat in case I wind up fish food. I usually meet these Internet guys in public places.”

  I gave her arm a squeeze. “Stop worrying, you’ll be fine.”

  We reached the end of the dock and Mo glanced around.

  She turned to me and said, “He must’ve changed his mind. The only boat I see is Big H’s.”

  Big H must have gone down below. He came up a few seconds later and looked up at us. Mo was gazing down the channel

  Mo asked me, “Meggie, what did his boat look like?”

  I pointed at Big H and said, “Mo, I want you to meet the Fisher Man.”

  Mo’s jaw dropped and then slammed shut, her faced turned beet-red, her body tensed up, and her hands balled into fists. She stomped over to Big H’s boat and climbed aboard.

  She stood in front of him shaking and said, “I’m so angry with you. What the hell took you so long?”

  Big H grabbed Mo and started kissing her like he was a drowning man. I stood and watched them for a minute, and then I felt like a voyeur, so I turned around and danced up the dock. Halfway up, I looked over and, as usual, Bob on the Bite Me had his camera out. I gave him a wiggle, punched my fist up in the air, and he snapped my picture.

  By the time I got to the cottage, I had made up my mind. There was no way I was going back to Philly.

  When I walked in, the phone was ringing. I ran to pick it up before the machine came on.

  “Hello.”

  “Hi, Meggie. I hope we’re still on for tonight?”

  “Yes.”

  “I thought we would go out to dinner somewhere, if that’s okay.”

  “I went fishing today with Jim and Bonnie and I have two big bags of fish. Maybe we should eat it while it’s fresh.”

  “Okay. Bring some over here and I’ll cook it on the grill?”

  “Yeah, that sounds great. I’ll bring some rice and I’ve got stuff for a salad, too.”

  “Then I guess I’ll see you in a while.”

  “About an hour. Bye.”

  I took a quick shower and dressed in some capris and a T-shirt. I packed up the dinner supplies and got in the car to drive over to Ian’s. I’m a bit nervous about seeing him and telling him my decision. I hope he’s happy about it. />
  Ian and Sam came out to greet me when I pulled in the driveway. Ian gave me a quick hug and peck on the cheek and then he grabbed the bag of groceries. I gave Sam a good scratch behind his ears and we all went into the house.

  Ian smiled at me and said, “So, now you’re an offshore fisherwoman.”

  “Yes, I am and I loved it.”

  I proceeded to tell him about my day and all about Big H and Mo.

  Ian said, “It’s about time those two got together.”

  I asked him, “How did you make out with the boat parts?”

  “Great. I got what I needed and was back here by noon, did the repairs, and the boat’s all set.”

  He came toward me and put his arms around me and gave me a tender kiss.

  He said, “It feels like I haven’t seen you in a long time. I’ve missed you.”

  I took a deep, calming breath and said, “I’ve made my decision about staying and running the marina.”

  He said, “Hold that thought. I’ll be right back.”

  He went upstairs and came down a minute later. “It’s a great night. Let’s take a walk on the beach before we cook dinner.”

  “Sure.”

  You would think he’d be anxious to know what I was going to do.

  We walked a little way down the beach. The sun was starting to set, the beach was deserted, and the evening couldn’t be more beautiful. I thought I would wait for him to ask me what I’d decided.

  We were holding hands and he stopped.

  He said, “Meggie, I need to talk to you about something.”

  My heart caught in my throat. Hesitantly, I said, “Okay.”

  He said, “I never told you about wanting to buy the marina because I didn’t want you to think that was why I was dating you. Of course, that was a mistake and you found out from someone else when you should have learned that from me. I’m sorry about that. Believe me, the marina didn’t even cross my mind when I asked you out. I wanted to ask you out the first time I saw you again, but I waited because I didn’t want to hurt you. I wanted to make sure what I felt for you was the real thing.”

  My heart was beating so hard in my chest. I couldn’t wait to hear what he said next.

  He said, “Before you tell me what you’ve decided to do, I want to tell you how I feel. I love you. I haven’t said it before because I’ve never said those three words to anyone and I wanted to be absolutely sure. I know this has happened to you many times before, but I hope this will be the last time.”

  He got down on one knee and reached in his pocket. He lifted his hand up, and in it shone a beautiful diamond ring.

  “Meggie, I love you. I have from the moment I saw you standing on the dock that first day we saw each other again. I don’t care if you stay and run the marina, or you teach, or if you just want to stay home and have kids. I just want you to stay. Will you marry me?”

  I started to cry and knelt down in front of him. I said, “Yes. Ian, I love you so much. Are you sure?”

  “Meggie, I’ve never been so sure of anything in my life.”

  He slipped the ring on my finger, kissed me, and held me close to him for a long time.

  He said, “Just out of curiosity. What had you decided to do?”

  I said, “I decided to follow my heart and stay.”

  He said, “Let’s go back to the house. I want you to see the ring in the light.”

  I was bursting with happiness. Back at his house, I got a good look at the ring. It was an antique, with a diamond that looked to be over a carat and set in white gold with a sapphire on each side of the diamond.

  I said, “Oh, Ian. It’s the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen.”

  “That ring was my grandmother’s. She left it to me and wanted me to give it to my wife. My grandparents had such a happy marriage, she thought it would be good luck. If you would like something more modern, I’ll get you whatever you want.”

  “Ian, it’s perfect and it has so much love associated with it. I wouldn’t want anything else.”

  He smiled and said, “That’s what I think, too.” He pulled me to him and said, “Meggie, you’ve made me so happy.”

  “Ian, I promise, I’ll always make you happy.”

  He said, “How about we make each other happy? I love you, Meggie the mess.”

  EPILOGUE

  THE FOLLOWING JUNE

  I walked out the back door of the store and looked around at all the boats. It’s a beautiful day, and it just dawned on me a few minutes ago that it’s exactly a year ago today that I showed up here to take over running the marina for Gram.

  So much has changed, and yet some things have remained the same. Ian and I got married on Valentine’s Day. We had a big wedding down in Philly. My mom arranged the whole thing, and it was beautiful. We got married in the church I grew up in, and then had a great reception at a hotel. Since Ian and I both have small families, we decided to invite everyone from the marina. Because it was out of town, we weren’t expecting a lot of people to make it, but we hoped a few would. To our surprise, half of them replied that they were coming. Big H decided to charter a bus so they could all come down together. We booked rooms for them at the hotel. Ian and I were thrilled.

  Of course, my maid of honor was Helen, and my bridesmaids were Laura, Ian’s cousin Christine, and my other friends, Frannie and Sue. Ian’s friend, Jake, was his best man and his groomsmen were my two brothers, Tony, and Ian’s friend, Steve.

  I was so proud of myself. I didn’t shed a single tear during the ceremony. The reception was a blast. Mom picked a great band and everyone danced up a storm.

  Ian took me to St. Barts for our honeymoon. We decided to go somewhere neither one of us had been before. The island was just as romantic as I’d hoped it would be. We had the best time. When we got back, I moved into Ian’s house. My brothers and I decided that, instead of renting the cottage, we would just keep it available for whenever they or my parents want to visit. Ian and I have been so happy. We decided to wait a year and then start trying to have a family. I can’t wait.

  Mo is still running the Snack Shack and cooking up gossip. Except now, she is Mrs. Big H. Big H asked her to marry him in March. He said he wasn’t the big-wedding type and asked her if she wouldn’t mind if they just went to Vegas. She said that was fine with her as long as they didn’t get married by an Elvis Impersonator. They were married at the chapel in the Venetian Hotel. He took her for a romantic gondola ride after the ceremony.

  Mo told me the other day that the latest rumor is that Don Murphy is dating Lolly. The pole-dancing classes were so popular at the Dancing Queen Dance Studio that Dancing Kathy added three more classes. Lolly was able to give up her side job.

  Helen and Tony became engaged in April. Their wedding will be down in Philly at the end of September. Hel is just finishing up a project. She will be up here permanently in two weeks. She’s going to take the summer off and start looking for a job in Rhode Island after their honeymoon. The Maroni women have been making gravy and meatballs since the engagement was announced and are throwing a traditional Italian engagement party for them in a couple of weeks. Oh, and guess what? Tony renamed his boat. His boat is now called the Hell-n-Back.

  Don’t you just love happy endings?

  THE END

  About the Author

  Sammie Grace lives in Rhode Island with her husband and her diva dog Lucy. She is hard at work on her next book and her website www.sammiegrace.com, which should be up and running in the near future. If you would like to contact Sammie Grace, you can do so at [email protected].

 

 

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