“Have you seen Olivia?” I don’t know why I sound irritated, it’s not like it’s Beth’s fault that I didn’t just say no to Olivia and then stick to it.

Beth shakes her head. “Nope. I don’t think she was on the schedule today.”

“She asked me to meet her.” I look at my phone—it’s been fifty-five minutes.

Beth puts a hand on my shoulder and pats it as she walks past me toward the stairs.

“Okay. Well I’m sure she’ll be here soon.” She smiles and I’m pretty sure she doesn’t have any idea what’s going on. “Have a good night.” I wonder if Olivia has told anyone we broke up. Or if she even had to, since no one knew we were together to begin with. The thought of it pokes me in a raw place.

I sit on the little bench next to the docks, where little kids sit while their parents strap them into life jackets. That’s what I need right now; something to save me from being pulled under by hope again. I’m looking at my phone, swearing that the second it hits seven o’clock I’m out of here, when I hear my name. My first thought is to look toward the deck, where people are still milling around with their ice cream cones, but I realize it’s coming from the river. And the second time I hear it, it’s louder. I look toward the river just as a canoe comes into view. Olivia is in the back, her paddle cutting through one side and then the other, until she’s in front of the docks, dragging the paddle through the water to bring the boat to a stop. She reaches for the dock but can’t quite grab it, and the boat is tipping as she struggles to get closer. Her eyes dart between me and the dock, and I run out and put my hand out to pull her in. She grabs hold and uses me as leverage to bring the canoe alongside me. As soon as the boat clinks along the wooden planks, I release her and put a hand on the boat itself, squatting down to hold it.

“What are you doing?” I say.

“Get in.”

“Where did you put the canoe in?” I ask, looking downstream.

“Ellis helped me put it in at the public ramp.”

No wonder she looks like she’s been through the wringer. The public docks are a trek on your own, especially for someone like Olivia who isn’t used to canoeing. I bet she was a sight to see zigzagging down the river from bank to bank. “Get in,” she repeats.

“Olivia—”

“Let me take you for a ride.” She slaps a hand against the canoe, as if I didn’t know what she was referring to. “I owe you.”