Mary and Alvin Ch. 05

"Now, pay attention, Miss Mary." He plucked a mussel from his bowl and opened the shell.

"Still plenty hot, mind your fingers." He picked the mussel from the shell and popped it in his mouth. While he chewed it, he tore off a piece of bread and dunked it in the broth. He tapped off some of the excess liquid from it and took a bite.

Mary watched, nodded, then picked a mussel from her bowl. It was almost too hot to touch, but she repeated Alvin's routine. The mussel was soft and chewy, tasting of sea salt and sweet wine and pungent garlic. It was delicious.

Alvin watched her, a pleased smile on his face.

"Oh, my god, where have these been all my life?"

"Why, in Maine, silly."

"What do I do with the shell?"

Alvin flipped his shell over the side. "Put it back where it came from."

Mary laughed and tossed her shell into the water.

The sun set in a blaze of red and magenta as they ate the mussels and drank the wine.

"Maybe we ought to have some music," Alvin said, fishing his phone from his pocket. Mary agreed, and a moment later, soft country music came from a pair of speakers in the wall of the cabin.

Mary looked at Alvin in astonishment. "You've got bluetooth on your boat?"

"Of course."

She slapped at his arm. "I should have been madder at you for not calling me when you went to Rhode Island. Here I thought you were lost at sea or shipwrecked, and you were probably out here watching Netflix or something."

Alvin laughed, and she shook her head. "So, you like country music?" she asked.

"I like lots of kinds of music."

"Who is this?"

"Townes Van Zandt."

She listened for a few minutes. "I'm not sure how I feel about country. There's something that I can't quite put my finger on. On the one hand it sounds kind of," she wrinkled her nose, "I guess I'd say corny, but at the same time, it seems so sincere." She began to chuckle.

"What's so funny?" Alvin asked.

"That's kind of a description of you."

Alvin looked out to sea for a moment. "I wouldn't say that's unfair," he said at last.

"I never met anyone like you, Alvin. God, you are nothing like my husband."

"Can I ask you, what happened there?"

Staring down at her bowl, she picked out the last mussel and ate it. She tossed the shell overboard and began to talk.

"His name is Wyatt. Wyatt Andrews. We met in high school and just stayed together. After my Dad died...did I tell you about when my Dad died?"

"You did not."

"I was in high school. He had pancreatic cancer. It was quick, at least."

Alvin let her sit in silence until she was ready to speak again.

"Anyway, I met Wyatt at a New Years Eve party. I was pretty depressed, and he lifted me out of it. I'll always be grateful to him for that. So, come time to go to college, I went to USC because he did, and we just stayed together. Got married after we graduated."

"But in the end?"

"I wasn't the same person at twenty three that I was at sixteen."

Alvin shrugged. "Who is?"

"He was."

The sun was below the horizon now, and they sat silently in the early evening darkness.

"Something my father told me once, Mary," Alvin said after a while, "He said boys don't just become men. They have to choose to do so."

"Your father was a smart man."

"In some ways." Alvin got up and switched on the running lights. They cast a golden glow over the deck. A new song began to play, and he took out his phone and paused it. He beckoned to Mary, and she came to him in the middle of the deck.

"What?" she asked.

"I'm either being corny or sincere, I'll leave you to decide."

He started the music again and put one arm around Mary's waist while taking her hand with the other. Anne Murray began to sing, as Alvin led Mary into a gentle waltz.

I'll always remember the song they were playin'

The first time we danced and I knew

As we swayed to the music and held to each other

I fell in love with you

Mary looked up at him and smiled. He kissed her on the forehead and pulled her closer. She rested her head on his shoulder.

Could I have this dance for the rest of my life?

Would you be my partner every night?

When we're together it feels so right

Could I have this dance for the rest of my life?

The song ended and Mary leaned back, still in his arms. Each expected the other to speak, but neither did.

Alvin finally broke the silence. "Oh, I have something for you." He fished in his pocket and held up a gold chain. Mary took it from him and lifted it to her face. Attached to the chain was a glittering green gem.

"Oh my. Alvin, what..."

"It's your sea glass. From down Lincolnville."

She gazed at it in wonder. It was just a piece of glass. A shard of an old soda bottle or pickle jar. How could something so ordinary be so beautiful?

Alvin took the necklace from her and fastened it around her neck.

"It's beautiful, Alvin. Thank you."

He kissed her and her lips parted. Their embrace grew tighter and their kisses more passionate. The sea had calmed,and the only sound was that of the anchor chain softly chiming against the hull.

Alvin led Mary down the steps into the cabin. Mary sat on the edge of the bunk and he kneeled in front of her. She raised her shirt above her head, while he picked up first one of her feet and then the other, slipping off her shoes. She was struck by the tenderness of it, no one had ever done that before.

Alvin leaned forward, kissing the side of her neck and sliding his hands around her to unfasten her bra. She shrugged if off as he kissed his way down her throat and across her breasts. He kissed and lightly sucked each hard nipple in turn. Mary ran her hands through his hair and cradled his head against her breasts. She closed her eyes and raised her head, feeling her breath quicken.

Alvin removed his shirt, popping a button in his haste. He moved in closer, between her legs, pressing himself against her. She could feel his hardness through two layers of denim,and wanted desperately to feel it inside her. She fumbled at the waist of his jeans as he fumbled at hers. After a moment of frustration, he pushed her hands away and unfastened his own jeans. Mary did likewise. Alvin helped her pull her legs free, and then leaned into her. The head of his cock brushed the inside of her thigh, and than across her lips. She took it in her hand and guided it into herself.

Alvin sighed with pleasure as he felt her warmth surround him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and began moving inside her with a steady rhythm. Mary draped her arms over his shoulders and laid her head against his chest. She lifted her legs and wrapped them around his waist, as his pace increased.

He pressed his weight against her and she leaned back, pivoting and stretching along the bunk as he climbed in with her.

It took great effort for Alvin to keep his motion slow and deliberate. His body wanted to pound hard into Mary in a rush to pleasure. But he wanted to savor every sensation, and to be sure that she enjoyed the experience as much as he did. But Mary felt an urgency of her own. She hooked her heels into the back of Alvin's thighs and pulled herself against him, meeting his thrusts with her own. He responded reflexively, grabbing her hips and pumping furiously into her. It was over quickly, but left them both drained and satisfied.

They laid together, sharing kisses while they regained their breath. Mary started to speak, but Alvin hushed her.

"Close your eyes," he told her, and when she did, said "can you feel it?"

"I'm not sure what I'm supposed to..."

"We made the boat rock."

He was right. Once she noticed it, it was obvious that they had set the boat in motion.

Alvin wrapped a blanket around them as they spooned together in the narrow bunk.

"I hope you don't mind the tight quarters," he said.

"I like it. I like having you close."

"I'm a sprawler, myself. I'm like to fall out before the night is through."

"Well, I will see if I can lure you back in."

They lay together quietly, Mary snug in Alvin's arms. After a while, Alvin disentangled and sat up.

Mary turned to face him.

"Just going to go piss over the side," he told her.

"Oh, no. Really? You're awful."

"It's tradition, dear, you have to do it too."

"I will not."

Alvin laughed and went topside. She wondered if he had been kidding her, but the night was so still that she clearly heard his stream hitting the water.

"Mary," he said in a quiet voice when he had finished, "Come topside."

"I am not going to pee hanging off the side of a boat."

"I know, dear, but come up."

She got up, wrapped the blanket around herself and padded up the steps. At first, she was plunged into pitch darkness. Alvin had shut off the running lights. In a few seconds, though, her eyes adjusted to the low light. There was only the slightest sliver of a moon, but she could make out Alvin, standing naked at the rail. He turned and held out his hand. She took it, and he pulled her to him. She opened the blanket and they nestled within it together.

She looked at him questioningly. He put his hand beneath her chin and gently raised her head.

The sky above her was aglow. She gasped at the sight of so many stars. Tears began to form in her eyes from the sheer wonder of it. She felt a wave of vertigo, and was glad to be held firmly in Alvin's arms.

"You know now why they call it the Milky Way," Alvin whispered.

"Alvin, I, I never saw anything like this. To think, it's been there my whole life, and I never saw it. Thank you for showing me this, it's a real gift."

He kissed the side of her face. "If I could make the universe a gift to you, Mary, I gladly would."

They stood together for a while,gazing at the shimmering sky. The night air grew chilly and they went back to the cabin and slept in each other's arms.

In the morning, they breakfasted on blueberry muffins and coffee, then set sail for Castine. The sky had grown cloudy, but Alvin reckoned the weather would hold until late afternoon, at least.

Mary was at the wheel most of the morning, and felt like she was starting to get the hang of it. When they got near shore, Alvin took over and Mary relaxed to enjoy the view as they rounded Dice Head, passed the lighthouse and entered Castine harbor.

They took a walk around the little town, Mary still wobbly on dry land. Alvin explained to her that it was thought to be the oldest European settlement in New England, predating the landing of the Pilgrims. She was impressed with his knowledge as he told her how it had been fought over for generations by the French, the Dutch, the English, and later, the Americans.

There was a restaurant right on the wharf, where Mary discovered the delights of lobster mac and cheese. As they strolled back to Sea Jay, Mary looked around at the waterfront buildings.

"I have a little trouble wrapping my mind around the age of things," she said.

Alvin stopped walking. "What's that now?" he asked in mock umbrage.

"Not you," Mary laughed, "From the point of view of an Angeleno, Maine seems so old. That's not bad, don't get me wrong. But it's not just the towns and the buildings, even the land somehow seems old."

Alvin nodded. "I think I understand what you mean. But your well worn shoes are usually your most comfortable, wouldn't you say?"

She took his arm and kissed his cheek. "I wasn't calling you an old shoe."

They boarded Sea Jay and cast off. The sky had definitely grown darker to the south.

Alvin motored out of Castine and back into the open water of the bay. It was choppier than it had been just a few hours earlier. Despite her confidence in Alvin's seamanship, Mary was nervous as they bounced across the swells.

Alvin seemed completely unfazed by the looming weather.

"Say, Mary, you remember that song?" he asked her with a grin.

"What song is that?"

"Rock the boat, rock the boat, baby," he sang, terribly off key, "rock the boat, don't tip the boat over..."

Mary blushed and laughed.

The wind was picking up and she grew chilled. She retrieved the blanket from the cabin and sat close to Alvin, the two of them huddled under it. They were almost to the entrance of Londonderry harbor when the first drops of rain began to fall, and sidling next to the dock at Faulkner's Wharf when it grew into a steady downpour.

As Alvin helped her climb on to the dock, Mary felt a sense of relief. Thank god we are home, she thought, and was startled by the thought. We are home, she said to herself again, with the dawning realization that Londonderry was, indeed, her home, and it was a home that the two of them shared.