“I can walk the rest of the way,” I tell him and reach for the handle.
His hand juts out, and he captures my wrist. I spin to face him, and that grin on his face—my God, could he be any cuter—sends heat charging through me.
“I’m driving.”
“I actually have to go to my boat. There are some things I need to do before morning.”
“To the boat it is,” he says and doesn’t let go of my hand right away. Nope, his fingers linger on my arm, and zaps of electricity charge through me. I take a fast breath, and look at his hand on me and he withdrawals it.
I sink back into my seat, and he pulls back onto the road. We both remain quiet, lost in thought as he drives me to the dock. He parks near my boat and I practically jump from the car, needing to put a measure of distance between us. He climbs out too, goes to the trunk to get my shopping bags and takes two cans of beer from the two-four he bought.
He steps up to me, and taking me by surprise he casually throws his arm around my shoulder, like it’s something we do all the time. I eye him, but he’s not looking at me. I’m about to ask why his arm is around me, when he pulls me close, but that’s when I see Breton walking our way, still in her work uniform. Oh, I get it.
I can’t say as I hate the way his body is pressed to mine. I mean, I wish I did, but well, he’s big and strong and so warm, and I of course can’t forget this is all for show.
He sets my bags down, drops to the dock, his legs dangling over the end, and pats the deck beside him. I sit beside him, and he cracks a beer and hands it to me. I take a much-needed sip, willing my racing heart to slow as I glance at the gorgeous pink and purple streaks bruising the sky as the sun sets in the distance. It never gets old.
“Sorry about that,” he says.
I shrug. “No worries, I get it.”
“At least I didn’t spring a kiss on you again.”
“At least,” I say.
“That would have been horrible, huh?”
“The worst.”
He grins and takes a big drink of beer as I go back to admiring the sunset. I take a rejuvenating breath. “So beautiful.”
“Yeah, beautiful,” he agrees, but when I turn to him, he’s looking at me not the sky. My pulse jumps in my throat, but I quickly remind myself Breton is nearby and he’s just pretending to like me.
Right?
5
Wes
“Ready to see some whales?” Charlie asks, a big smile on her pretty face as she adjusts her pink ball cap over her mess of windblown curls. My gaze falls over her, and I take in her rubber boots, her pantlegs tucked into them, and the loose knit sweater she’s wearing over a T-shirt. It’s something I could have knitted, and while it’s big on her, it’s sexy as hell.
“Do you really think we’ll see them?” Jules asks, her eyes wide with excitement as her big new boots clunk on the wharf.
“I can’t guarantee it, but we have a pretty good shot.” I step onto the boat, and Rider follows. He turns to hold his hand out to Jules and she follows us on. The boat isn’t big, the space is small and intimate, but I don’t mind at all.
“Do you think you packed enough?” Charlie asks Jules with a laugh, when Rider drops an overstuffed duffle bag to the deck, and Jules shrugs out of her backpack. I glance around for tenting supplies, but only see one bag, and a backpack inside the cabin.
“I wanted to make sure I was prepared for rain, sun or snow,” Jules explains.
I laugh. “I think Charlie said rain or shine. There’s no snow this time of year.” I glance at Charlie and roll my eyes. “Americans, they all think we live in igloos and eat whale blubber.”
“I do not,” Jules says and whacks me. “Besides, you live in Seattle. You’re one of us, now.” She crinkles her nose. “Well, you still knit, so maybe you’re not.”
“You can take the boy out of Canada, but you can’t take the Canada out of the boy, eh?” Charlie says and laughs as she unties the boat from the dock, and wraps the rope around that metal thing anchored to the deck. I think she called it a cleat or something.
Jules pauses, and puts her arm on Rider. “Did you pack the bug spray?”
He laughs and kisses her forehead, and I grin. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen her so excited and while I’m happy for them I can’t deny that deep inside I might be a bit envious of what they have.