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Brady nodded in the man’s direction.
“Yep,” he agreed. “Ready to rock n’ roll, Captain.”
“Captain?” I asked, a smile forming.
The captain started the boat up, and a lot of the kids started to squeal in excitement.
The skipper took over the beer while the captain moved toward the wheel.
“Yep,” the captain said. “Bought this boat with my inheritance. Funny thing is, I joined the Army because I wanted to prove a point to my pop. Wanted him to know that I was worth something besides sucking him dry. Then 9/11 happened and I knew what I wanted to do with my life after that. Almost died over there. I think it shook both me and my pop up bad.” He paused. “This boat was the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Frankie’s hand met mine just as we were pulling out of the slip where the boat was housed while it wasn’t in use.
I looked down at her to see her smiling wide at me.
“You’re smiling,” she said, her eyes going to the captain and back.
A look of recognition hit her as she did, and I gave her a squeeze.
She squeezed me back, giving it all she got.
My lips twitched.
“Was that supposed to hurt?” I asked curiously.
She bared her teeth at me.
“It did hurt, admit it,” she ordered.
I snorted. “Hurt like crazy,” I lied. “Let’s go sit down.”
We sat in the front of the boat again, right in the nose.
A few people cast us wary glances—well, more me than Frankie—but ultimately behaved themselves.
And I ended up having one hell of a time.
With Frankie under my arm, the setting sun in my face, and no responsibilities for the next few days, my life didn’t seem anywhere near as daunting for the days ahead.Chapter 16A wise person once muttered ‘fuck this shit’ and lived happily ever after.
-Frankie’s secret thoughts
Frankie
“There you are!”
I turned to find Jessica and Ashley making their way to their car.
“What happened to you?” Ashley asked.
“We went on that boat ride.” I didn’t see a point in lying.
“Oh,” Ashley said. “Well, it’s weird that you left. But, funny thing. We were drinking out at the bar, and you’ll never guess who we saw!”
I didn’t really care who they saw.
What I cared about was getting off my feet.
I’d worn wedge sandals and they were killing my arches and toes after wearing them for so long.
Balancing in them while trying to stay steady and drink a beer was hard work.
“Dr. Cromwell and his brother!” Jessica cried. “Can you believe that?”
No, no I could not. Especially since I’d heard they were leaving the country. Not going to Florida.
“We couldn’t either,” Jessica admitted. “He hung out with us. Even bought his brother a beer to drink. It was odd drinking and partying with a seventeen-year-old, but Cromwell seemed fine with it.”
“I’ll never understand why he let that kid get away with grabbing that poor waitress’s ass, though,” Jessica continued as if I’d replied when I hadn’t. “Dr. Cromwell got all pissy with the kid. Told him to go home. Then he said something that was really weird.”
My brows rose at that.
I didn’t bother replying, though.
It’d be a waste of breath.
“He told the brother to go home and stop acting like his mother,” Ashley said, yawning. “We’re going to sleep it off in the car. Bye.”
I would’ve wondered at their abrupt departure had I not felt Luca’s warm palm slide across my back.
“Let’s get in the truck, too,” he suggested.
I got into the front seat the moment he unlocked the truck.
He ignored his door and went to the back door.
“What are you doing?” I asked, feeling a slight buzz in my head.
He gestured to the back seat with his hand.
“I’m going to get back here where it’s more comfortable,” he answered. “Gonna be here a while. Want to be where I can kick my feet up.”
I liked the way he thought.
Since I was already in the front seat, though, I didn’t bother to get out to get to him. Instead, I climbed over the middle console and practically threw myself into his arms.
“We could’ve called an Uber,” I said as I snuggled into his embrace.
He made a grunting sound that was suspiciously close to a laugh.
“And leave my vehicle here overnight?” he asked. “This is a robber’s paradise. All high-end vehicles. Expensive things left in cars because they’re vacationers. Out of town so once they leave they’re not going to really want to come back to deal with someone that robbed them…”
He started to say more, but my mind was caught on the way his abs were tightening and loosening as he spoke, explaining why leaving the truck here was a bad idea.
So, I just left him to it.
I listened to him as he spoke about anything and everything under the sun.
It was only when he got to Cromwell that I started to really pay attention again.
