Learning to Swim (29 page)
Authors: Annie Cosby
Why wasn’t Rory at home when Captain Harville called?
I think. My hands are trembling and I feel a horror I never knew was possible.
Mr. Hall points to the corner of the room just as I hear footsteps on the stairs outside and someone calls my name. On a chair in the corner is a brownish gray length of material. It looks like the skin of an elephant. I rush to pick it up, running my fingers across it. It smells unmistakably of the ocean. My relief is mixed up with fear and confusion.
“Cora!” He bursts into the room. My Rory. He is not tall, but built strong. Like a swimmer.
“The money—in the books—Cora, you can come visit me! We won’t have to wait!”
He was adopted.
“You can come with me and just stay a few months, you can stay forever, you can go to school, we can do whatever! Anything we want!”
He is dark. He is beautiful in an unreal way. His dark hair waves across his forehead in a perfect stroke that makes my knees weak. His skin is tanned and freckled. There are sun spots on his arms. Those arms taught me to swim, they are thick and strong. They are sure in the water.
Ronan.
Little seal.
Acknowledgements
This book wouldn’t have been possible without a great many people, a few of which include: my mom and dad (who first gave me the writing bug), my brother Mike, my forever dog Princess, my aunts and uncles (who fostered the writing bug), my favorite Rottweiler mix Lucy, my own Irish dream guy, and all the English teachers I ever had.
Special thanks to my beta reader, Jane Cosby, my editor, Randy Cosby, and my brilliant Irish translator, who shall remain nameless because there’s a good chance he’ll be running for political office some day.
About the Author
Annie Cosby splits her days and her wardrobe between St. Louis, Mo., and Galway, Ireland.
She is currently working on
Learning to Live
, the next book in the
Hearts Out of Water
series
,
and blogs at
SincerelyAnnie.com
.
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