Husky Eyes:You can hear that?
Naomi:Yes.
Husky Eyes:That was definitely the kittens.
I find myself smiling at my phone. I turn down the music, then lie down on my couch with my phone, feeling like I’m sixteen again.
Naomi:What are you doing? Do you have time to come downstairs?
Husky Eyes:I have to head back to work.
Naomi:Oh ok. Another time?
I stare at my phone, watching as a bubble with three dots pops up, indicating that he’s typing a message. The bubble disappears for a moment, and then reappears. I hold my breath. It’s quiet upstairs. I wonder if he already left.
I let my screen go dark. I get up and walk to the kitchen for a glass of water, leaving my phone on the couch. When I hear it buzz from across the room, I skip back over to see what it says.
Husky Eyes:Come to the aquarium.
ChapterThirteen
A LITTLE FISHY
Isend a text to let Jake know that I’m here, but as I step through the front doors of the aquarium, I realize that I didn’t need to send it. He’s already waiting for me, leaning against a wall in the grand entryway. Visitors of all ages are scattered between us, looking at pamphlets and choosing which animals to see first.
His eyes drop to his phone as my message makes it to him. The corner of his mouth quirks up, and then his eyes raise up from his phone, and when they meet mine, his smile grows wider.
He steps toward me, not seeming to care about the crowd of people in the way. Somehow, he dodges children and couples without taking his eyes off me. We reach each other in the middle. My heart drums inside my chest. He leans down like he’s going to kiss me, but at the last second, he seems to remember that he’s at work and we’re surrounded by children. He redirects, aiming for my forehead, but his lips land on my eyebrow instead.
“Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever been greeted with an eyebrow kiss before,” I tease him.
He smiles, then kisses my other eyebrow. “Just to even things out,” he says.
He takes my hand, leading me past the ticket line.
“Are we sneaking in?” I ask as he punches in a code to let us through a door labeled for authorized personnel only.
He shushes me. “Don’t tell anyone. I know a guy.”
He leads us down a hallway. “I’m not going to get you fired, am I?” I ask.
“Probably not.” We reach another door. He opens it, and guides me through with his hand on my lower back. We’ve made it past the ticket line and bag check.
“What do you want to see first?” he asks.
I turn around, taking in our surroundings. There are tanks built into most of the walls, filled with colorful fish, coral, and aquatic plants. The overhead lights are turned down low so that the tanks are illuminated, casting a glow on the hallways and providing light for the darker parts of the aquarium.
“Do you have otters?”
“Of course.” He takes my hand again. We head down a curved corridor that’s lined on both sides with glass walls. I slow down to look at the different species of fish, some swimming around in schools and seemingly unaware of their audience. Others swim up to the edge to watch us curiously, while others scurry away and hide as soon as they see us.
We reach the river otter enclosure. It’s set up differently from the fish tanks. There are dry surfaces where the otters can come up to take a break from swimming. Two otters float on their backs on the surface of the water. A third otter swims around underwater, entertaining the children watching him from the other side of the glass. We have to head down a set of stairs and loop around to see underwater.
“Just three otters?” I ask. It seems like a large enclosure for only three animals.
“The otters are part of our rehabilitation program. The young one you see swimming around only came to us a couple of months ago. He was found in someone’s backyard and his mother couldn’t be located so he was assumed to be orphaned. The people who found him kept him as a pet for a few months before turning him over to us, so he probably won’t be eligible for release.”
“Do you usually release animals back into the wild?”
