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I wrinkled my nose. “Ma’am?”
“Would you prefer silly goose?” he asked, smirking. Jackson laughed and Chase joined in.
I scoffed sarcastically. “Great. I’m surrounded.”
The drip of the coffee caught my eye and Chase reached over my head for a mug, his face coming dangerously close to mine. Maybe the boat is too small after all?
“Here,” he said, pouring me the first bit that had pooled in the carafe.
“Thank you.” I breathed in the rich, deep smell of the brew before taking my first sip. “Mmm. Perfect.”
Chase smiled at me and waited for the next bit to percolate before pouring a mug for himself.
“So, what’s the plan for today?” I asked, glancing at Jackson as a reminder not to say too much.
Chase nodded his understanding of my silent cue. “We’re going to head south. Stop in San Diego, or thereabouts, we’ll get some more supplies, groceries, that kind of thing, and then head down the Baja coast to Cabo. Lay low until things get figured out.”
“Oh!” My heart pounded. “I don’t have our passports.”
“You don’t need them,” Chase said, his eyes mysterious but sure.
I narrowed my gaze. “We don’t?”
He shook his head, apparently not willing to elaborate.
I sighed and let it go. What choice did I have? Matt trusted him. I trusted him. Maybe I didn’t need to know all of the little details. In fact, it might be better if I didn’t know all the details.
“Looks like that one’s ready to go,” Chase said, taking the spatula from my hand. He leaned over Jackson at the stove. “You wanna give it a go?”
Jackson tipped his head back to look up at Chase, his eyes wide. “Can I?”
“Sure. Let me show you.” He flipped the first and then helped Jackson do the second.
I took a step back, nursed my coffee and watched the two of them together until there was a short stack on the plate beside the stove. Jackson rambled on endlessly about one of his shows. Chase asked all the right questions, spurring Jackson into an even more excited and rapid-fire tizzy.
They were best friends by the time we all sat down to eat.
“Okay, I think it would be best if you and Jackson stayed here. I’ll run ashore and go to the store. If you make me a list with any particulars, I’ll make sure to grab everything you need.”
I nodded at Chase’s instructions and took the pad of paper he offered me. We were on the top deck, gliding over the calm water toward a harbor in San Diego. We’d been sailing all day and I’d been looking forward to getting back on solid ground and doing a little walking around, but I wasn’t going to argue with Chase’s decision. So, instead, I sat back down at the table I was at most of the day and started making a list of meals, groceries, and personal items that we might need over the next couple of days until we could get back to a proper store again.
It was all very Swiss Family Robinson.
Jackson was below deck, stretched out in bed watching a show on Chase’s tablet. He was getting restless and I’d finally caved into giving him some TV time to get him to relax and unwind. Jackson had been a trooper about everything, and to my surprise, hadn’t even asked about Henry yet, but being cooped up on a boat had lost its appeal for him after six hours with nothing to do after breakfast.
I did everything I could think of to keep my mind busy because if left unattended, it wandered off in one of two directions—thinking about Henry and wondering what he was plotting—or thinking about Chase and wondering what he’d look like naked.
Thankfully, Chase had given me a paperback to read and that had done the trick of keeping from unchecked mental wanderings.
“This should be everything we need…hopefully, you like the meal ideas,” I said, tearing out a sheet of paper and handing it to Chase.
He glanced at the list and smiled. “Looks good to me. If it’s anything like breakfast and lunch, I’ll be going home five pounds heavier than I was when we left.”
I laughed softly. After the blueberry pancake feast for breakfast, I’d rummaged through the supplies in the pantry and the fresh goods Chase had picked up from his friend’s house on the way to the marina. I’d managed to whip up one of Jackson’s favorites, grilled PB&J on fresh multigrain bread, topped with banana slices and drizzled in honey.
Chase had eaten three of them all by himself.
“Melissa?” I looked up from the list and found Chase’s eyes wide and serious. “Are you going to be okay?”
I nodded, swallowing the ball of doubt. “Yes.” I brushed my hair back. “Yeah, of course. You won’t be gone long, right?”
“I’ll be fast. I promise. I think it might be best if you stay below deck with Jackson. I haven’t heard from Matt today, but I will call him on my way to the store and see if he has any more info. I doubt Henry’s men could find us here. We left behind anything that could lead them this far south but just to be sure.”
