It wasn’t long before I found the hats. Our cart was loaded with stuff. I ignored the looks from the hardened men that were real fishermen. I didn’t care if I looked out of place and like a total putz with my shiny new gear. This was a teaching expedition, and I was confident Jace was absorbing every word I said.
I bought licenses for all of us as well. I didn’t want to ruin our day by getting a ticket. Plus, I was hoping it was a lesson Jace would remember. Of course, a license meant he needed a plastic protector to keep it in. By the time we were finished shopping, Jace and I were almost best buddies.
We carried our tackle and poles down to the shore. “Are we going to eat the fish?” Jace asked.
I looked to Saige to answer the question. “I don’t know if we can,” she said.
“Can we?” Jace asked and looked at me. It was the first time he made eye contact with me.
“We can if we catch the right kind,” I explained. “This is saltwater fishing so the city says we can. If we went to the park and we caught fish, we would have to put them back. It’s called catch and release.”
His eyes practically glazed over. I was giving too much information and losing his interest. Instead of getting into the laws and all the boring stuff, I focused on finding the perfect spot.
“There’s a fence,” Saige pointed out.
I saw a sign posted on a fence that blocked the part of the shore I wanted to get to. I searched the fence until I found the spot I was looking for. I peeled back the wires and gestured for the two of them to go through.
“What are you doing?” she hissed. “You can’t trespass.”
“I know the guy that owns this land. He won’t mind.”
“He put up a fence with a sign that very clearly says he does mind,” she argued.
“He’s not trying to keep me out.” I grinned. “We go way back. He’s trying to keep out everyone else.”
“Come on, Mom,” Jace said and crawled through the opening.
“Great, I let you near my kid and you’re teaching him how to commit felonies.”
I smiled and followed her through. “I don’t think trespassing is a felony. Probably a misdemeanor, but every good boy needs to learn how to be a little bad.”
She stopped walking and shot me a dirty look. “Do they though?”
I laughed and led the way down to the shore. “This way we get the whole place to ourselves. We don’t have to share with anyone.”
“Great, another good lesson,” she muttered. “Don’t share. When committing a crime, don’t share the wealth.”
“That’s actually not a terrible piece of advice,” I told her.
“Mom, he said he knows the guy,” Jace said.
I grinned and winked at her. “Exactly,” I said.
The kid was warming up to me. It might not be so bad hanging out with the little dude. Granted, it had only been about five minutes, but I was hopeful we could get along.
Chapter 39
Saige
I was grateful for the hoodie. It was uglier than sin, but it was warm. My light sweater did nothing to ward off the chill coming from the water. I huddled in the folding chair Nash insisted on buying. We all had one, with Jace’s chair being smaller and perfect for his size.
“All right,” Nash said as he opened up the white Styrofoam bowl. “Reach in there and grab a worm.”
I felt my lip involuntarily curling at the thought of Jace grabbing a worm. I watched as he dug his fingers into the dirt and came up with a worm. “Now what?” he asked Nash.
Nash had the hook in his hand. I was picturing the thing embedding in Jace’s finger or a gust of wind coming up and catching it in his eye. “We need to put the worm on the hook,” he announced.
“How?” Jace asked as the worm stretched and curled between his fingers.
“We have to poke it on the hook,” Nash answered. “I’ll do the first one. Then you can do the next one.”
Jace watched with wonderment as Nash put the worm on the hook. “Does it hurt him?” he asked.