Closest To My Heart

Chapter Twenty-One

A faint chime rang out as Tag pulled open the door of a ramshackle little beachfront shop and motioned for Maggie to enter. Once her eyes had adjusted to the shadowy interior, she found that the place was much bigger than she'd expected, but still jam-packed with shelves and racks of just about everything under the sun.

"This place is a goldmine," Tag informed her. "Anything you need, Bodhi can get it for you."

"Except drugs, and certain kinds of assault weaponry."

Maggie felt her eyes widen as a hulking giant of a man stepped out of the shadows, gliding toward them with surprising grace considering his size. He had to be six-foot-five, at least, and probably topped the scales at well over four hundred pounds. Maggie watched transfixed as the two men greeted each other with the standard handshake-slash-shoulder bump that passed for a hug with most men, Tag's head barely reaching the level of the other man's chin.

"Good to see you, man. Good to see you." The titan man's voice rumbled like thunder, but when he turned to Maggie, his genial smile stood out in stark contrast to the ominous bearing of his size. "And who might this be?"

"This is Maggie," Tag said, his hand at her elbow, guiding her out of the shadows. "Maggie, this is Bodhi Akana, purveyor of eclectic commodities."

"Eclectic commodities, huh? I like that," Bodhi chuckled, and then nodded to Maggie. "It's a pleasure to meet you, miss."

She extended her hand and watched as it was swallowed by the man's surprisingly soft grip. With a flourishing bow, he planted a soft kiss in the air just over her knuckles, and Maggie instantly adored the gentle giant before her.

"Alright, alright, enough of that," Tag joked, extracting Maggie's hand from that of his friend. "Don't let him fool you into thinking he's a gentleman, Maggie. The man's a player through and through."

"Not anymore, my friend," Bodhi said, raising his left hand to show the wide silver band on his ring finger. "Finally settled down a few months ago."

"You're kidding!" Tag crowed. "That's great, Bode—really great. I'm happy for you."

"I'm happy for me, too," he grinned, and then gave a meaningful wink. "When's your time coming? Can't stay single forever, you know what I mean?"

Bodhi glanced back and forth between them as an uncomfortable silence settled over the room. Maggie's gaze skittered around the room as she waited for Tag to correct his friend's erroneous assumption that they were a couple. When he didn't, Maggie was surprised to feel... relieved.

Apparently sensing that he had breached awkward ground, Bodhi quickly changed the subject and encouraged them to look around.

"Anything special you were hoping to find?" he asked.

"Um, not really," Tag shrugged. "We're going to the beach, so definitely swimsuits and towels. Oh, and Maggie wanted some sunblock, too."

"Can do," Bodhi assured them. "How high you wanna go on the SPF? I've got everything from zero to 145."

Tag wandered between the racks while Maggie followed Bodhi to the counter, which was made from repurposed surfboards.

"145? Really?" she said. "I've never been able to find anything over 70!"

"Well, you've been shopping in the wrong place then," Bodhi kidded, setting two bottles of lotion on the counter. "I'm running a special today, for new friends only. Buy one, get one free."

Maggie grinned, and then suddenly remembered that she'd neglected to bring her wallet.

"It's on me," Tag said in her ear, startling her with his nearness. "This was my idea."