Silken Tide Read online

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Any luck with the lobsters?” Mark tried to change the subject.

  His father merely shrugged.

  Christ, he knew. He knew all about Jessica. The way he stared at Mark across the room told him so. But why was it such a big deal? He knew his father was fond of Jessica, that she was a good girl. He knew that his father would have hated the other women that Mark used to have in his life. Shouldn’t his father be happy for him? Mark couldn’t figure it out. Any notion Mark had about talking with his father regarding Jessica left him at that moment.

  “Well, I guess I’m going to head in for the night.”

  But before he had the chance to leave the room, his father’s voice stopped him once again.

  “Hey, Mark. While you were busy, you got mail.”

  His father slid an envelope across the table and Mark stopped it before it went over the edge. The bright yellow forwarding address sticker seemed intrusive against the heavy, stark white paper. Mark’s eyes were immediately drawn to the return address in the upper left corner of the envelope, printed with a style of typeface that screamed importance.

  Myers and Associates

  New York, New York. 10019

  His father pushed his chair away from the table, making his way past Mark and up the stairs. Mark stood looking at the envelope as if it were a paper that was printed with a foreign language. A moment later, his father called down from the stairwell.

  “It’s in black and white, son. Looks like New York is calling.” Then, he heard his father’s bedroom door shut.

  Mark looked toward his father’s voice, then back at the envelope. He turned it over and removed the silver embossed seal. When Mark unfolded the letter that was inside, words like “salary” and “start date” seemed to jump from the paper commanding his attention. A validating stamp of a CEO’s signature made it official. It was an offer from one of the many job interviews he went on before returning to Maine. Mark went up the stairs to his room. He sat on the edge of his bed and stared down at the piece of paper between his fingers. His duffle bag was in the corner. Why was he not packing his things in a fury? Expensive suits. Power. Beautiful women. A pastrami sandwich whenever he wanted one. Everything would be at his fingertips once again. Almost everything.

  Without warning, for the first time in what felt like a long time, the whispers returned. They rushed in through his open window. The air became dense and it sounded like crowds of people were walking through his room. They were worried. Anxious. Urgent. Some stood around him. Some paced. Mark didn’t have to guess what they wanted. He already knew. Mark couldn’t take it. He needed space. He needed time to think.

  “Go away!” Mark covered his ears.

  He was sure that his father had heard him yell and may have thought that he was crazy for talking to himself. But then again, his father heard them, too. Mark envisioned the whispers taunting his father since the day he held that mail in his hand. Maybe it was a blessing to finally be free of the letter, so that they would chase Mark instead of him. But would his father now have to pay with empty traps for passing along the message?

  “And leave him alone, too!” Mark gritted his teeth.

  Almost as if they were sucked out of the window into the muggy night air, the whispering crowd dispersed. An eerie silence followed. Mark couldn’t hear the crashing of the waves. He didn’t hear the whispers. The night became still. Too still. Suddenly, a gust of wind pushed into Mark’s room and ripped the paper out of his hand. He watched it as it flew out of the window. He ran to his window where he watched it sailing across the lawn. Was it moving toward the cliff? In the direction of the sea?

  Mark hammered down the stairs and out of the house, slamming the screen door behind him. He pushed against the wind toward the paper. It seemed to float in the air, almost teasingly, just out of his reach. Just as his fingertips would brush against its edges, it would push upward, not allowing him to grab it. Anger swelled in Mark’s chest. He didn’t like to be played with. He didn’t like being pushed around. He moved forward with everything that he had and leaped into the air. His fist closed around the paper and he landed on the ground shoulder first, bits of the earth flying up around him. The wind then rushed past him and seemed to leap off the cliff and dance across the water.

  Mark rolled over and lay on his back in the grass for a few moments. His chest heaved for air. Before he lost it again, he shoved the paper down in his pocket. Still stunned, he sat up and looked up at the house. His father was staring down at him from his bedroom window. He was too far away to read the look on his father’s face. But somehow Mark knew that his father understood what had just occurred. Mark rested his forearms on his knees. His father’s shoulders seemed to slump. He moved away from the window and a moment later, his light went off. Mark sat alone in the darkness, the moon hiding beneath the rolling clouds.

  Chapter 20

  Mark sat in his father’s office with the air-conditioning cranked as high as it would go. Even though he was chilled to the bone, his logic for not turning it down was quite simple. Mark reasoned that the obnoxious knocking of the aging window unit would drown out any whispers that would inevitably try to sneak in through the cracks of the shed. He had not heard any voices in a couple of days, but he wasn’t taking any chances. And while the clattering of the air-conditioning helped explain away the lack of whispers, it didn’t explain the absence of Jessica for the last two days. Although he missed her, he needed time to make sense of everything that was going on. He needed time to think. Time to think about the whispers. Time to think about the letter. Time to think about her. Suddenly, the door cracked open. The late day sun spilled into the shed, bringing with it warmth and the sweet scent of Jessica.

  “Mark?”

  “Well, hello there.” Mark’s posture straightened in his chair.

  “Hi. I went to the docks looking for you.”

  “You did?”

  “Yeah, Jeremy said I could find you here. Why aren’t you on the boat with the guys?”

  “My dad needed help catching up with some paperwork. Guess I’m the best man for the job.”

  “I see.”

  Mark sat back in his chair and tried to read her. She didn’t show any signs of being upset about him leaving her at Bonnie’s the way he did. Even so, he decided to tread carefully.

  “Haven’t seen you in a couple of days,” he said.

  Mark tried to use his statement to mask his own avoidance. Instead, his words portrayed a man that yearned for the presence of the woman that made his world go around. And when she smiled, he was glad that it came out the wrong way.

  “Sorry, I’ve been busy.”

  There was that word again. Busy. It was the same word that Mark had used to hide the truth from his father just the other night. Busy. A purposefully vague answer. Busy. The catalyst for suspicion and uncertainty.

  “What’s this?” Jessica picked up a book from the desk.

  When she turned the cover to Mark so he could see it, the blood drained from his face. It was the Selkie book. Jessica thumbed through the yellowing pages.

  “Oh, just a book I found under all this crap.”

  “Sure,” she teased. “I think being cooped up in this shed has done something to you.”

  “Really, it’s not mine.”

  “Are you trying to tell me that this is your father’s? Captain Jim? Best lobsterman in Silk Cove?”

  Mark shrugged. He figured the less words he said, the better off he was.

  “Well, I hope you are almost done for the day.” Jessica put the book back on the desk.

  “What’s up?”

  “I have a surprise for you.”

  “A surprise, huh?”

  She nodded and grinned.

  Mark and Jessica walked quietly along the beach. The setting sun spilled rays of orange into the water and the tide rolled over their bare feet. He watched her as she walked. Her hair blew over the side of her face, once again reminding him
of the dream he had on the train. His fingers tickled her palm until their hands clasped together. She smiled without looking up at him.

  Soon, the sandy beach gave way to rocky terrain that ran into an area thick with trees. After sitting on a boulder to put their shoes on, they navigated their way around the large rocks to the edge of the woods. Without a word, Jessica reached out for Mark’s hand and led him into the dense greenery. Mark was disoriented. There was no path, but Jessica seemed to know where she was going. Minutes later, Jessica came to a stop and stood in front of Mark.

  “Close your eyes,” she said.

  “What for?”

  “Come on, just close your eyes.” Jessica put her hands on her hips.

  Mark reluctantly closed his eyes and Jessica reached for both of his hands. She led him forward several paces before stopping again.

  “Okay! Now open them!” He could hear the smile in her voice.

  When Mark opened his eyes, he stood before two trees that were wrapped in small white lights.

  “Welcome to my gallery.” Jessica held out her hand as if to invite him through a doorway.

  Mark stepped between the two trees. It seemed like there were dozens of lights strung from the branches above him and even more to lead him down a pathway. He gazed from side to side. The paintings were never ending. Everywhere he turned, there was another. And another. Some he had remembered. Some he had never laid eyes on before. They swung in the light breeze, like impatient children waving their hands in a classroom trying to get his attention. Mark had never been moved to tears over artwork and he was doing his best not to lose that track record. He was overwhelmed. Once more, Jessica had brought him to a beautiful spot tucked away in a part of the world that Mark would have never ventured. It was magic. She was magic. She had been busy. Busy creating this magnificent place. Busy thinking of him. Jessica stood waiting for him at the end of the winding path of artwork.

  “Did you enjoy the display?” Jessica asked.

  “Amazing. Absolutely amazing.”

  “Are you ready for part two of your surprise?”

  “There’s more?”

  Jessica stepped to the side. Behind her, there was a large green tent. Mark had been so taken with the artwork that he had failed to see it sitting in a clearing at the end of the pathway. The flap was already drawn and a soft glow emanated from inside. Mark ducked his head and stepped inside the tent. He found a wooden lap tray flanked by two pillows sitting on the ground in front of him. A sea of white blankets surrounded the table and a fluorescent lantern lit the space. Upon further inspection, it appeared that there was something sitting under a white linen cloth on the tray.

  “Have a seat.” Jessica’s soft voice came from behind him.

  Mark sat on one of the pillows and Jessica sat on the other side.

  “Are you ready?” She bit her lip and smiled.

  Mark nodded and smiled. Her excitement was contagious. Mark watched as Jessica slowly lifted the white cloth from the tray. She revealed a plate with a sandwich sitting neatly in the middle.

  “Is that what I think it is?” Mark asked incredulously.

  Jessica shot him a knowing grin.

  “Pastrami on rye?”

  “Well, what are you waiting for? Are we going to sit here and talk about it all night or are you going to eat it?” She laughed.

  Mark took a bite of the sandwich. He closed his eyes and shook his head.

  “Good?” she asked.

  He nodded and took another bite.

  “I know it’s not Katz’s Deli, but…”

  “Are you kidding? This is the best pastrami sandwich I’ve ever had.” Mark interrupted.

  Jessica put her arm over her middle as if she were taking a bow.

  After he was finished, Mark leaned back on his elbows and took her in. He could have sat all night just staring at her. Finally, he broke the silence between them.

  “Your paintings are wonderful.”

  “Thank you.”

  “You have this uncanny way of capturing a moment. But they are missing something.”

  “They are?” Jessica tilted her head.

  Mark nodded. “Something that would bring them from wonderful to magnificent.”

  “Well, what is it?”

  “You’ve painted me in every piece hanging out there. But, you aren’t in any of them. Not one. You should be. You should be in all of them. Always.”

  Jessica’s face softened. Without losing eye contact with Mark, she moved the tray to the side and closed the space between them. She straddled his legs and ran her hand through his hair and down the side of his face. Mark held her hand to his cheek, kissing her wrist and then her palm. She traced his lips with her fingertips, before bending forward and kissing him softly. The only time that Mark took his eyes off Jessica was when she pulled his shirt over his head. The rest of the time, he studied her every motion. He wanted to remember exactly the way she looked. And for the first time ever, he stayed still. Mark let her touch him. He stayed still and just felt her movements. He let everything go. He was lost and found in that moment.

  Jessica didn’t wait for Mark to unclothe her. The way that she pulled her sundress over her head and tossed it to the side set Mark’s skin on fire. She didn’t wait for him to strip himself either. She unbuttoned his shorts and tugged at them until they finally slipped off his legs. She ran her lips over his chest and down his abdomen, until she reached his legs. Her red hair veiled her face, as she kissed his inner thighs. Her mouth moved all around his swollen member, as if she were purposely avoiding it to drive him crazy. Finally, Jessica took him in her hand. She ran her tongue from the base of him to the top, where she traced her moistened lips with the tip. Mark pulled her hair from her face and gathered it on the top of her head. She looked up at him and playfully curled her tongue around the head of his cock. Then without warning, she took every inch of him into her mouth. Mark laid his head against the floor of the tent. He let go of her hair and covered his face with his hands. Her rhythm was driving him over the edge. He fought against the urge to finish in her mouth. She deserved more than that.

  Mark sat up. He put his hands under Jessica’s arms and pulled her upward. She sat on top of him and he guided himself between her legs. Jessica pushed down on him and he engulfed himself in her warmth. Once again, her pace drove him wild. He held on. He pressed her naked body against him and buried his face in her breasts. Just then, her whole body shuddered and a whimper came from her beautiful, quivering lips. In concert with her cry of pleasure, a deep moan escaped Mark. He pushed into her one last time. His body shook as he released inside her. For a few moments, they sat joined together, breathless. At last, Mark fell backward bringing Jessica with him. They lay in each other’s arms until finally, their breath became one and they fell asleep.

  Chapter 21

  Jessica dreamed that she was sailing. The boat rocked in the turbulent waters and she could see the coast of Silk Cove in the distance. Through the spray of the sea, she noticed that Mark was standing on the other side of the ship. He was facing away from her, almost as if he was unaware of her presence. She called out to him, but he didn’t hear her over the sound of the choppy waves. Suddenly, the ocean seemed to swell and become more violent. The boat was tossed farther and farther away from Silk Cove. She tried to walk toward him, but kept losing her footing on the slippery deck. She called to him again. But when she looked toward him again, he was gone. She frantically searched the raging sea, but there was no sign of him. All she could see were the large waves threatening to swallow the boat whole. All she could feel was the stinging of the cold water on her skin. All she could hear was the whipping of the sail in the fierce wind.

  Jessica awoke to the sound of the flap of the tent blowing in the breeze. She didn’t remember leaving it open. She rolled over and realized that Mark was no longer lying next to her. She pulled her dress over her head and crawled out of the tent into the night. The sound of the ocean in the distance churn
ed her stomach; the dream had left a bitter taste in her mouth and a dread in her core. She walked a little ways from the tent. That’s when she noticed Mark’s shoes. Then, several feet in front of her, she found his shirt hanging on a low-lying branch. She followed the trail of his clothing, until she reached the opening of the woods that led to the beach. Her heart sank.

  Suddenly, something caught her eye near the shore. It was Mark. He stood naked at the edge of the water. She watched for a moment longer and realized that he was moving forward into the water. She walked cautiously toward the beach. As she neared him she realized his movements were steady, but trance-like. She quickened her pace, until she met the water’s edge. The water was frigid. She lifted her foot as if the water bit her. How could he be standing in it? She could hardly bear to keep her feet in it.

  “Mark!” Jessica strained to be heard over the waves, but to no avail. Mark was now waist-deep in the water.

  Jessica took a deep breath and held it. She waded out to where Mark stood. The water threatened to knock her over with every wave, as if it did not want her there. Her lips shivered and her body trembled with cold. She stood next to him and looked up at his face. His eyes were open, but his stare was far away. Gently, she took his arm.

  “Mark?” Her teeth chattered.

  He slowly turned his head to meet her gaze, but he still wasn’t there. He showed no recognition of her at all. Finally, she brought her hand to the side of his face.

  “Mark, wake up.” Her voice sounded desperate.

  Suddenly, Mark blinked and looked around him. He looked confused, like he didn’t know how he got down there. “Jess?”

  “It’s me. Are you okay?”

  “Did you hear them?”

  “Hear who?”

  Mark didn’t say another word. He simply shook his head.

  “It’s okay. Come on, let’s go back to bed.”

  She didn’t want to confuse him further with a million questions it looked like he wouldn’t be able to answer. Jessica led Mark back up the beach. As she did, she looked over her shoulder at the ocean once more. She couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was behind her. Someone was watching.