Message in a Bottle - Nicholas Sparks [77]
When Theresa saw him she waved, and Garrett moved toward them, reaching for their carry-on bags. Not sure whether he should kiss her in front of Kevin, he hesitated until Theresa leaned over and gaily kissed him on the cheek.
“Garrett, I’d like you to meet my son, Kevin,” she said proudly.
“Hi, Kevin.”
“Hi, Mr. Blake,” he said stiffly, as if Garrett were his teacher.
“Call me Garrett,” he said, holding out his hand. Kevin shook it, a little unsure. Until this point, no adult other than Annette had said that he could use their first name.
“How was your flight?” Garrett asked.
“Good,” Theresa responded.
“Did you get anything to eat?”
“Not yet.”
“Well, how about we grab a bite before I take you to your motel?”
“Sounds good.”
“Do you want anything in particular?” Garrett asked Kevin.
“I like McDonald’s.”
“Oh, honey, no,” Theresa said quickly, but Garrett stopped her with a shake of his head.
“McDonald’s is fine with me.”
“You sure?” Theresa asked.
“Positive. I eat there all the time.”
Kevin looked delighted at his answer, and the three of them started walking toward the baggage claim area. As they left the gates, Garrett asked:
“Are you a good swimmer, Kevin?”
“Pretty good.”
“Are you up for some scuba lessons this weekend?”
“I think so—I’ve been reading up on it,” he said, trying to sound older than he was.
“Well, good. I was hoping you’d say that. If we’re lucky, we may even be able to get you certified before you head back.”
“What does that mean?”
“It’s a license that allows you to dive whenever you want—kind of like a driver’s license.”
“You can do that in a few days?”
“Sure. You’re required to take a written test and spend a few hours in the water with an instructor. But since you’ll be my only student this weekend—unless your mother wants to learn, too—we should have more than enough time.”
“Cool,” Kevin said. He turned toward Theresa. “Are you gonna learn, too, Mom?”
“I don’t know. Maybe.”
“I think you should,” Kevin said. “It would be fun.”
“He’s right—you should learn, too,” Garrett added with a smirk, knowing she would feel cornered by the two of them and probably give in.
“Fine,” she said, rolling her eyes, “I’ll go, too. But if I see any sharks, I’m quitting.”
“You mean there might be sharks?” Kevin asked quickly.
“Yeah, we’ll probably see some sharks. But they’re little and they don’t bother people.”
“How little?” Theresa asked, remembering the story he’d told about the hammerhead he’d encountered.
“Little enough that you won’t have anything to worry about.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
“Cool,” Kevin repeated to himself, and Theresa glanced at Garrett, wondering if he was telling the truth.
After picking up their bags and stopping for a bite to eat, Garrett drove Theresa and Kevin to the motel. Once their things were inside, Garrett went back to his truck, returning with a book and some papers under his arms.
“Kevin—these are for you.”
“What are they?”
“It’s the book and the tests you need to read for your certification. Don’t worry—it looks like there’s more to read than there is. But if you want to head out tomorrow, you have to have the first two sections read and complete the first test.”
“Is it hard?”
“No—it’s pretty easy, but you still have to do it. And you can use the book to find the answers you’re not sure about.”
“You mean I can look up the answers while I take the test?”
Garrett nodded. “Yeah. When I give these to my classes,