After some rustling above me, a board slid away from the truck’s ceiling.
Hair sticking every which way and pillow lines imprinted on her face, Morina peered out.
“What are you doing here?” Her voice was groggy from sleep. She disappeared for a second before her long, sculpted legs swung down and she lowered herself.
She rubbed her eyes and blinked at her surroundings. Her night shirt was practically see through, and she didn’t have anything under it because I saw everything I didn’t want to see.
She crossed her arms over her chest where my stare undoubtedly lingered and bit her lip when I shot my gaze up to hers. “So, I’m guessing my dream wasn’t a dream last night.”
“Depends on what the dream was.”
Her frown deepened as she looked around. “I was so tired after surfing that I just passed out. At one point I heard banging and someone saying they swore I was here. My heart was racing so fast in that dream but I remember thinking not to move except for throwing the dark blanket over my head in case they found my roof bunk.”
“My brother’s going to figure out who did this.”
We both stared at her belongings.
“I guess I won’t be opening the food truck today,” she murmured.
“I can help you restock what you need in here.”
“I don’t need help,” she shot back, then shifted in her night shirt and rubbed her forehead. “Sorry. I’m really tired and I know you’re trying to help but I just need a couple minutes. I’m not a morning person unless I’m in the water.”
“Should we go to the water then?” I didn’t know why I asked.
“I…” She squinted at me. “I think that might be nice.”
I opened the back door for her, and she stepped out, not even pausing to put any more clothes on. It wasn’t the time to tell her that I could barely have a conversation with her in that night shirt, let alone feel good about her walking around the beach where others could see.
Yet, the beach was empty, with the sun just starting to rise beyond it.
She pushed her small foot into the wet sand and let the tide roll in to submerge it. I stood on the edge of dry land, not sure if I wanted to remove my shoes and step in with her.
My phone rang, making her jump. I slid it from my pocket and switched it to silent.
“You can answer it.”
“No, I can’t.” I shook my head. “I forgot to silence it.”
She breathed out like me turning off my empire for a second eased her. “Thank you.”
We let the minutes pass by as the sun rose.
“So, we get another sunrise,” I murmured. We’d agreed not to discuss that time. I knew it, but my mind went to where we got along. It was how you built a base to trust on. I needed that with her and she needed it with me.
“I get the sunrise over a beach a lot. Your island was pretty too.”
“I get why you love the town. This is a definite perk.”
She sighed. “I guess I’ll be moving sooner than I planned.” She breathed in the salty air and I did the same. It was fresh in a weird, warm way, like it could wash away all your sins and still give you something to live for after.
“Because of the food truck?” It would be better to let her come to terms with the arrangement instead of forcing something from her.
“Maybe. Or maybe because I read my grandma’s letter.” She wiggled her feet deeper until they were almost completely sucked down by the sand. “I think you’re right that my grandmother was trapping you into protecting me.”
“Now, we see how smart she was to do so. No one would have ever attempted ransacking my girlfriend’s food truck.”
She turned to me. “You’re that powerful and well-known?”