Beckett said, “I don’t know, um—”
“I’m just asking what the plan would be.”
“I guess I would rent a boat.”
“You would sea captain a ship to take me back to Sky simply because I said, ‘I can’t?’”
Beckett nodded solemnly.
Luna shook her head and smiled at him sweetly. “Well, there, my love, it is, the best part about you — you jump, a quality that I happen to adore. If some hot, tattooed, dimpled, sweet-talking Stiffneck is going to put out his hand and say, ‘jump with me,’ I have no response but, ‘absolutely.’” She grinned, “But you probably won’t hear it because of my splash.”
He said, “You understand that I don’t jumpliterally,right?”
“Oh, I’ve seen you jump,literally.”
“I thought we established that was a belly flop.”
“It’s the splash that is important, not the style. And you splashed epically.”
“It’s a lot easier to jump when I don’t think about it first.”
“Exactly. Stop thinking, my Beckett, don’t try to logic all over this. We’re going to live in your mountain house. Because you asked. Because you said we. Because it means something all this finding. Plus I love you, how could I not. That’s why.”
Beckett said, “God, I want you.” He crawled from his deck chair across to Luna’s, bit by bit, nudging her onto her back, spreading her legs, laying down on her, kissing her —
The door to the steps opened and Sarah stepped out, “Beckett! Luna! Oops!” She covered her eyes and tipsily approached them feeling with her other hand. “So sorry to interrupt. Dan made me come tell you that you should use the Zodiac if you um, want to sleep somewhere, um for privashy, ‘kay?”
Luna giggled in Beckett’s ear.
Sarah said, “Take it from us, the deck chairs suck, we’ve tried ‘em all.”
Beckett asked, “The Zodiac’s not wet?”
Sarah said, “Dan is relentleshly hopeful, so he towels it down every day — in case.”
Beckett laughed. “I thought that was one of his chores.”
Sarah turned away, “I gotta go pass out, have fun kids.” She stumbled away.
Beckett looked down into Luna’s eyes, “Want to get more comfortable?”
Luna said, “Splash.”
