"I came alone." He smiles at her. "But even then, I wouldn't feel obligated. Don't worry."

He dresses quickly, donning jeans and a purple dress shirt that he leaves untucked, the top two buttons undone. There are black boots, too, but those he leaves by the deck chair as he rolls up the cuffs of his pants. And then he's back at Blink's side, feet back in the water, rolling up the sleeves of his shirt as he talks.

"So can I ask--and it's okay if the answer is 'none of your business'--why your friends call you Blink?"