Salt Water Wounds (Oyster Cove #1) Read Free Page A

visiting the cemetery, I head to the one place where I can unwind after an emotional time – The Rusty Clam, a local tavern, with cold brew and classic rock. It’s the only place in this little coastal town where I can clear my head without walking smack dab into memories that will only bring me more sadness and desperation. Layla never came here, not even when I was so piss drunk I had to walk home.
    This is what I’ve amounted to.
    A crappy father, a veteran waterman, and an occasional drunk. Layla would be so proud.
     

Chapter 2

     
    The problem with living your whole life on a small coastal island is that all of the locals know each other.
    Even some repeat seasonal visitors recognize my face and know what I do for a living, mostly because when I’m not filling my boat with oysters, I’m chartering another as a captain for added income opportunities, or sitting in the far corner of the bar with a pitcher of beer.
    There’s a handful of citizens that know exactly what this day represents. They’ll pity me, as they have every time it comes around. They’ll talk in whispers, making it a point to drag me down further. I can’t get away from it, but the idea of moving isn’t ever going to be an option. My life is here.
    It’s no surprise the owner of the bar greets me by name. “Buck. It’s been a few days. I was thinking of sending out a search party.” Her sarcasm puts a slight crease on the side of my face. It’s the best representation of a smile I’m able to manufacture.
    Alice Perry is the daughter of Newton, local restaurant owner. She runs the tavern above her father’s seafood establishment. In all my years, I’ve only ever run into her at work, with the exception of my wife’s funeral and one event at Bristol’s middle school. I assume she keeps busy, but know little about what she does when she’s not at the bar. We’re friends. She’s hit on me, and I’ve considered the offer several times. There were plenty of nights where I’d hit my limit and she cut me off and refused to let me leave until I surrendered my keys or sobered up. We have an undeniable chemistry but never acted on it, at least not when I was sober. Get a few drinks in me, and I’m consumed by what would happen if I gave in and let her have her way with me.
    Before the place opened, I’d seen her at the other town bar, located on the ground floor of a motel. I haven’t gone back in years, but hear nothing has changed, not even the people who frequent it.
    Perry’s bar has a better selection of booze and air conditioning, which is something I need after being out on the water sweating my ass off.
    Maybe if I were a different man, if life wasn’t so messed up, if the love of my life wasn’t six feet under, if I wasn’t married at all, I’d go for it. She’d definitely be able to take the edge off, at least temporarily. Her shapely body does things to me after a few drinks in. It never fails. I enjoy watching. The way she moves around the confines of the bar, how she carries herself, the clothes she wears to most likely earn better tips.
    I know if I could get past my guilt I’d enjoy being in the company of a beautiful woman. I sure as hell need it, if my dick even remembers how to function normally. I’m too damn stressed to think about sexual activity after the hard days I barely make it through.
    Back when life was fun, when it had more meaning than supporting children, paying bills, and making sure none of them end up in jail or worse, I would have given her a run for her money, though it would be another mistake to add to the list. She doesn’t deserve to have to put up with my bullshit life. I may be a bastard, but I’m not going to pull someone into my miserable day to day disasters.
     
    Perry has her own baggage. She’s the worst type of woman to get involved with; the kind that would want to change me.
    She has a son who is somewhere near Bristol’s age, and I know he’s a tyrant. I heard that her