Kai tucks her hair behind her ear that has fallen from the bandana and then runs off.
I shake my head as I watch her leave, giving her another chance to get free of me.
No, giving her another chance to trust me before I ruin her.
A minute later the anchor is up, and we are pulling away from the pier. Kai’s eyes are big as she watches me steer out of the marina.
With her eyes on me, I feel unsettled.
“You should go to the front and feel the breeze in your hair before we pick up speed. There is nothing like it,” I say.
“What about you?” she asks, innocently.
My eyes darken. “Somebody has to steer the boat.”
She sighs in disappointment.
“Don’t worry; I’ll have us stopped somewhere before the sun sets.”
Kai smiles weakly and then does as I say. She moves to the front of the boat, where I can unfortunately still see her as I drive us out into the ocean. Her body becomes part of the wind. She throws her arms back, her eyes close, and her hair flies.
Beautiful.
I steer us out into the ocean, finding a quiet place where we won’t be disturbed. And then I enable the GPS autopilot to keep us stopped at this exact location, since the ocean is too deep here to use the anchor.
“Beautiful,” I whisper as I approach Kai.
“It is, isn’t it?” She looks out at the ocean where the sun is beginning to set while I look at her.
“How long have you been cleaning yachts?”
She shrugs, her eyes cutting to mine and her smile faltering. “A long time.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“Maybe you haven’t earned an answer.”
I grab her arm that is gripping the railing and turn her toward me. She stares at my touch. She’s so cold to my fiery fingers. We both gasp before she pulls her arm away.
“I haven’t earned an answer? I forgave your debt after you stole from me. I’m spending my time and money on gas to take you on a fancy joy ride. How have I not earned some answers to my questions?”
Her hand grips the railing again as she turns from me.
“What does your father do for a living?” I ask.
Nothing.
“How about your mother?”
Silence.
“How long have you been cleaning yachts?”
It doesn’t matter what question I ask. She won’t answer.
Does she know who my father is? Does she know who I am? Did she witness something at the club? Did she witness a murder? What?
I grab her arm and shove her back. She catches herself on the railing, her back now to it, instead of her front.