“Well said.” Brodie’s smile lifted toward his ears.
Mallory’s heart threatened to burst from her chest. Focusing on her breathing, she watched as Brodie removed his phone from his pocket and handed it over.
“You live here, right?”
Mallory nodded.
“You should give me your number. Just in case we find time to hang out this summer.”
Mallory’s throat tightened. Technically, she still had a boyfriend. But Brodie offered friendship.Who was she to deny friendship, especially after years of living strictly as a mother and a secretary? Didn’t she want something else?
Mallory typed in her phone number along with her name: MALLORY STEEL. She then added a smiley-face next to her name, which she immediately deleted, feeling foolish. A guy hadn’t asked for her number since high school. She was obviously a novice.
As Mallory handed back Brodie’s phone, Alexie’s began to vibrate.
“We have ourselves a phone party,” Brodie joked.
A wave of annoyance for not having been asked for her number passed over Alexie’s face. “Hi, Mom. We’re on the ferry.” Alexie’s brow furrowed, and she passed Mallory a menacing look. “Try to calm down, Mom. Please. I can’t understand you.”
Mallory’s stomach twisted into a knot. She almost dropped her coffee all over again.
“Yeah. We’ll be on the dock in the next five minutes,” Alexie told their mother. “See you then.”
Alexie shoved her phone back into her pocket, her eyes echoing terror.
“What happened?” Mallory demanded.
“She couldn’t tell me,” Alexie murmured. “She was crying too hard.”
“No.” Mallory bit hard on her lower lip, imagining all the potential.Was something wrong with Zachery? Nancy? Lucy?
Brodie stretched a hand over Mallory’s elbow delicately. He could see this was a private matter. “It was good to see you again,” he told her softly. “Take care of yourselves and let me know if you need anything. Anything at all.”
With a flash, he headed back into the belly of the ferry, leaving Mallory and Alexie in the shockwaves of their mother’s phone call. There was no way to know what came next.