Chapter 21

I awoke and I was alone. I got up, walked to Amelia’s room, and lightly tapped on the door. When I didn’t get a response, I opened it. She wasn’t in there. I walked downstairs and found her in the kitchen with my mom, making breakfast.

“Good morning, Collin,” my mom said as she walked over and kissed my cheek.

“Morning, Mom.”

Amelia smiled at me as I walked over and softly kissed her on the lips. “Good morning.”

“Good morning.” She smiled back at me.

“Where’s Dad?”

“He’ll be down in a minute. He was getting dressed, which is something you should already be doing, mister,” my mom said as she pointed at me with a spatula.

“I’m going to take a quick shower right now. I’ll be back in fifteen.”

“Make it ten and hurry up. Breakfast is almost ready.”

I dashed back up the stairs and hit the shower. As I was coming out of the bathroom, my dad was walking down the hall.

“Morning, son,” he said.

“Morning, Dad. You better hurry up and get down there for breakfast before Mom yells.”

“I already got an earful when you were in the shower. Maybe if someone would’ve just gotten out of bed instead of—”

I covered my ears. “La la la.”

He chuckled and walked downstairs. I followed behind a few minutes later and sat at the table for the pancake and fruit breakfast my mom and Amelia made for us before heading to the beach house.

Amelia and I climbed into my Range Rover while my mom and dad got into theirs. My dad suggested that we all drive together, but I liked to drive myself. You never know if and when you need to leave early. Amelia reached over and took hold of my hand. I looked over at her and smiled.

“I haven’t had the chance to thank you for letting me sleep in your bed last night. I’m really sorry about that.”

“There’s no need to apologize and you’re welcome. Believe me when I say it was my pleasure. Do you always have nightmares about the accident?”

“Sometimes I do.”

I brought her hand up to my mouth and pressed it against my lips. “I’ll do everything I can to prevent you from having them.”

We arrived at the beach house and I pulled up beside my dad. I grabbed my and Amelia’s bags and headed upstairs to my room.

“Julia and Jake will be staying across the hall in her room and you can stay in the guest room next to mine. It used to be my mom and dad’s room until my dad added an addition with bedrooms to the back of the house. It got to be really annoying when they would constantly have sex and I could hear them.”

“Your mom and dad are so cool and so in love.” She laughed.

“Yeah, well, sometimes they have a problem keeping their hands off each other, especially in front of people.”

“I think it’s great.”

I took her bags to the room next door and set them on the bed. “Jake and Julia should be here soon.”

We walked downstairs. My mom and dad were in the kitchen, kissing. I rolled my eyes.

“See, told you. Excuse me, parents. We have company and she’s not yet accustomed to your open sexual behavior, so could you please tone it down and not embarrass your son in front of his girlfriend?”

They both stood there and looked at me. “Didn’t you warn Amelia about us?” my mom asked.

“Yes, I did. But still.”

“It’s okay. I think it’s wonderful.” Amelia smiled.

“See, son. She doesn’t mind.” My dad chuckled.

“Why did you tell them that?”

She giggled as I grabbed her hand and led her down to the beach. I ran into the water until it was up to my knees, and when I turned around, I saw Amelia standing at the shoreline.

“Come here,” I said as I held out my hand.

“No. I’m fine right here.”

“Amelia. What’s wrong?”

She stared straight ahead at the water and then it hit me. The accident. The things she experienced in the water. She was scared. She was too scared to go in the water. I walked back up to the shore and wrapped my arms around her.

“It’s okay. We can go another time.”

“I don’t go in the water anymore, Collin. Not since the accident and that’s how it’s going to stay.”

Just as I was about to say something, I heard Julia yell my name.

“Collin, Amelia!” She waved from the house.

“Come on; let’s go see Julia and Jake.” I smiled as I took her hand.

We ran up to the house and I shook Jake’s hand and hugged my sister. “Whoa,” I said as I placed my hand on her belly. “It’s getting impossible to hug you anymore.”

Julia laughed as she playfully hit me on my arm. She took Amelia inside and I stayed outside with Jake. A few moments later, my dad came walking out with a couple of beers. He handed one to me and then one to Jake.

“Thanks, Dad.” I smiled as I sat down at the table.

“I saw you and Amelia down by the water,” he said.

“She won’t go in. The shoreline is as far as she’ll go. She said doesn’t go in the water anymore and that’s how it’s going to stay.”

My dad looked at me and sighed. “Well, I can understand that, considering what happened to her, but is it going to pose a problem when we go out on the boat this evening?”

“I don’t know, Dad. I’ll have to ask her.”

“I feel really bad for her,” Jake said as he set down his beer.

“Me too, bro.”

The women came outside and Amelia sat down on my lap. She smiled as I kissed her cheek. I held my beer up to her lips and asked her if she wanted a sip. She nodded her head and I slightly tipped the bottle. She looked damn sexy drinking beer from a bottle. I was nervous to ask her about going on the boat. If she wouldn’t go in the water, I was certain that she wouldn’t go on a boat.

Julia, Jake, my mom, and my dad all went into town to do some shopping. They asked us to come along, but I just wanted to stay back and relax with Amelia. Plus, it gave me the chance to talk to her about going on the boat. We walked hand in hand down to the beach and sat in the sand.

“My family is going out on the boat tonight.”

“Oh,” she said as she looked down.

“You don’t want to go?” I asked.

“No. I can’t get on another boat.”

I noticed that she started to shake. “Amelia, relax. You don’t have to go.”