She cleared her throat. “Good to know.”
Time to change the subject again. This was getting entirely too awkward. Her cheeks were flushing and she felt overheated in her parka. That was definitely a first—since when did she ever feel too hot on a boat on the ocean in late October in Alaska?
She pointed up ahead. “That spur there, with the crag that looks like Abraham Lincoln, that’s Far Point. The cove should be just around the other side. It’s open ocean out there, so it’ll be a lot rougher. And most casual boaters don’t go past Far Point. So we have to look like we didn’t intend to go that far.”
“How should we do that?”
“Keep the boat pointed toward Mount Sage.” She gestured at the outline of the volcano on the horizon. Its flanks gleamed white with fresh snow. On foggy days the mountain couldn’t be seen, but today it stood out against the overcast sky. “Let’s make it look as if we’re trying to get a good shot of the volcano.”
“Got it.”
She dug out her binoculars and kneeled on the bench that offered the closest view of Far Point. If she stayed close to the handhold, she might be hard to spot if someone onshore was also checking them out with binoculars.
As soon as they rounded the point, everything changed. The wind whined at a higher volume, and the waves slammed even harder into the Egret, making the entire boat shudder from stem to stern. Maya’s pulse raced at triple speed.
This is Dad’s boat, she kept telling herself. He keeps it in perfect shape. No one maintains a boat like Dad. He wouldn’t let us use it otherwise.
Neither of them spoke as they drew closer to the coordinates Agent Clement had sent her. It was too difficult to talk above the drone of the engine, the slap of the hull against the water, the hiss of spray splashing over the sides and the occasional lonely cry of a curious seagull.
Now that their fun kissing conversation was over, the seasickness clawed at her throat. But she refused to give in to it. She trained her binoculars on the shoreline. The rise and fall movement of the boat made it hard to focus. Everything was a blur of forests and rocks.
“We’re about as close as we’re going to get to those coordinates,” Rune said quietly.
“Okay, slow us down. Here.” She dropped the binoculars for a moment to hand him her bag, which held her camera. “Pretend you’re taking a picture of the mountain.”
He throttled down the engine into an idle and took the bag from her. “I’m going to actually take a photo, just in case anyone questions us.”
“Fine,” she said absently as she refocused on the shoreline. Now that the boat was idling, she could sync to its motion a little better. Up and down, up and down. Up was when she got the best line of sight to the hidden cove.
Movement. On the shore. A bear? No, the bears were hibernating by now. Had to be a person. Yes. A person. Two people. And there—a boat anchored behind a little island of rock. She couldn’t get a fix on any faces or other identifying features of either the people or the boat.
But that wasn’t her mission. She was merely supposed to confirm that the coordinates were legit. That the information the agent had intercepted was real.
Mission accomplished.
But she wanted more. “Hand me my camera.” Without looking behind her, she held out her hand. Rune set the body of the camera into her palm. With the zoom lens on, it was quite heavy. She lifted it to her face and quickly switched out the binoculars for the camera.
It took a moment to adjust to the different focal length of the zoom lens. When she did, she saw that something had changed—the two men were looking right at her.
“Shit.” She dropped the camera onto the cushioned bench at her side. “Shit. They’re looking at us.”
Rune was still next to her, one hand on the steering wheel to keep the boat steady.
Without thinking too hard about it, she rose to her feet and grabbed Rune by the collar of his jacket, pulling him close. “How about a fake kiss?” she asked quickly. “Just make it look good from a distance.”
He flashed her a pirate grin and cupped her face with his free hand. “My pleasure. I’m an excellent fake kisser.”
“Come on, hurry.”
He bent his head over hers, but he still didn’t go for the kiss. “You can’t hurry a fake kiss, or it will look fake. We’re flirting, we’re completely caught up in each other, we don’t even care that we’re drifting on the open ocean. Keep looking at me, just like that except without the ‘what the hell are you talking about’ expression.”
She smothered a laugh and relaxed her face into a dazzled smile. As if Rune was the most wonderful thing in the world, better than chocolate and bubble baths combined.
He blinked, as if she’d momentarily thrown him off his game with her smile. A personal triumph, she figured.
“That’s…good,” he said, a little more strained than before.
For a fake kiss, he sure was overthinking it. They needed to get this thing done.
She took command and wrapped her hand around the back of his neck. Tugging him down, she offered him her mouth. “Let’s do this,” she hissed. “Tick-tock.”
Honestly, why did she always have to be the one with any common sense? If those men onshore had binoculars, they were already watching. To throw them off, she only had a few moments. If the men thought they’d been busted, they might rework their entire comms system. The lead would be worthless. The source would be burned. The case back to square one.
And then all thoughts of logic flew from her mind as Rune claimed her lips with a kiss that sent shock waves through her system. Warmth…sizzle…sunshine…all of it swirled together in a rush of brilliant pleasure. His lips were firm and generous at the same time, as if they were inviting her into his world. A world where she would be queen and he would be whatever she needed.
A kind of exhilaration swept through her and she parted her lips for more. He gave it to her, sweeping his tongue inside the cave of her mouth, where every surface tingled and warmed at his touch.
Fake kiss, my ass.
This was the real thing and she couldn’t get enough of it. She drank him in as if she’d been starving for this, pining for it. Her mind—always working, always on guard—let go like an anchor releasing her to drift on the current. She lost herself in the flood of pure physical joy.
She staggered as the boat got slammed with a supersized wave. Rune held her tight so she didn’t lose her balance. “I need to steer this thing,” he murmured against her lips before turning back to the helm.
“Yes. Yeah. Of course.” She ran her tongue across her lips, tasting salt from the spray and sweet from Rune. She plopped down onto the bench as he wrestled with the wheel. Picking up her binoculars, she focused on the spot where the two men had been.
They were gone—or maybe her angle had changed and she couldn’t see them anymore.
She dropped her glasses and sighed. Hopefully she hadn’t messed anything up by making them suspicious. “Go ahead and pick up speed. Let’s keep going toward Mount Sage for a bit.”
“Roger that.”
Was his voice a little gruffer than usual? Was it the effect of the salt in the air?
He put the boat in gear and they cruised farther into the bay. She watched the little cove as it receded into the distance, swallowed up by the greater landscape of forests and rugged outcroppings.
What now? How to handle this? She and Rune had kissed, and there was no way she could forget about it the way she had when she was a kid.
Maybe never mention it again?
Or maybe do it again?
The tempting thought hovered out there like the promise of an ice cream sundae after a long week. Treat yo-self, she could imagine her cousin Reecie in Anchorage saying. Go for it, Kate would urge. I knew it, Jessica would say.
“Tell me when you’re ready to head back,” Rune said. “It’s your call.” His voice had returned to normal. She wondered what he was thinking about this situation. Then again, he didn�
��t overthink things like she did. He probably wasn’t worried about it at all. He probably kissed people all the time—all those non-girlfriend “girls” he’d talked about.
“I will,” she told him. “Give it a few more minutes.”
“The other thing is your call too,” Rune said softly, his attention still on the choppy water ahead.
“What are you talking about?”
“I know you’re trying to decide what to do about that kiss. I can see your wheels spinning from here.”
“I’m not—okay, I am. I didn’t intend for it to be like that.”
“It’s my fault.” His voice shifted to a jaunty cheerfulness. “My pride was hurt that you forgot the first kiss. I was aiming for ‘best kiss.’ One that you wouldn’t forget. That’s all.”
It wasn’t all. She could hear it in his voice. It was so much more complicated than that. Friendship, attraction, sizzle…all that, lined up against her better judgment. But even so, it touched her that he was trying to make the whole thing easier for her.
“Best kiss? Isn’t that a little arrogant?” She adopted a teasing tone to match his.
“Second best? Third? Just tell me it wasn’t the worst. Gotta start somewhere.”
“It wasn’t the worst.”
That was as far as she could go right now.
And maybe it was the best. Because right at this moment, she couldn’t think of any other specific kiss that might compete with it.
Chapter 10
They didn’t discuss the kiss again. But that didn’t mean Rune didn’t think about it as they made their way back to the harbor. Hell, the lush softness and heady flavor of her lips might never leave him. He’d never forgotten the first kiss, after all. Why would he forget this one, when he was a full-grown adult and she was a beautiful, fascinating all-grown-up woman?
But she obviously didn’t want to talk about it, so he let it be. Maya had her reasons. He had to respect them.
After they got the Egret squared away in its slip, they unloaded their bags onto the float.
A scraggly looking dude riding a bicycle stopped on the boardwalk above them. Rune squinted at the bike—was that a chicken perched on the handlebars?
“Chief Badger!” The man waved at them. “Get any fish?”
“Hey there, Boris. No sir, no fish for us. We got some photos of the volcano though.”
“She about to blow?” His eyes went wide with alarm. He wasn’t “all there,” Rune realized.
“No no. Calm as can be.” Maya shouldered the last bag and stepped onto the float. “How are things here in the harbor? Anything to report?”
“Nothing much. Calm as can be.” He repeated her phrase back at her.
“All right then. Keep up the good work.”
The man’s face lit up with an eager grin. “I will, Chief.” He kicked his bike into motion and pedaled down the empty boardwalk.
“Boris Clancy,” she explained. “He’s a fixture around here.”
“That was kind of you,” he said softly.
“Everyone needs to feel useful. He’s been through a lot in his life.”
She led the way up the ramp, which was tilted at a steep angle because the tide was so low.
“You’re not a typical police chief, are you?”
“I don’t really care what other chiefs are like. I live here and I know this community. That’s what I care about. Someone like Boris, he’s had trauma in his life. Just because he’s disabled doesn’t mean he shouldn’t get respect like anyone else. If I see someone hassling him—sometimes a kid or a tourist will make fun of his chickens—I step in. But if he goes on a bender and crosses a line, he’ll find himself in that holding cell. He’s been there plenty of times. That’s how you serve and protect. You have to know your people and consider them your charges. All of your people. Everyone wants to be safe and respected. That’s what I aim for.” She caught herself with a shake of her head as they reached the boardwalk. Most of the shops and restaurants were boarded up for the winter, giving it the look of a ghost town. “Don’t get me started on all that. It’s a pet topic. Did you get some good photos of the volcano? I’m kicking myself for not getting a shot of that cove.”
“I got one.”
“Got one what?” She dug into her bag for the camera, which she’d already packed into its case.
“I got the shot of the meeting in the cove. Not sure how much I got, but I’m pretty sure two people and a boat should show up. Maybe your FBI dude can enhance the photo. I’ve seen that in movies, no idea if it’s actually a thing.”
She looked at him as if he’d just descended from Heaven on a cloud. “You got the shot? Seriously?”
“I think so. I tried, anyway. You’ll have to see for yourself how it turned out.” He dug his phone out of his pocket to check the time. “I have to pick up Cara.”
“I might see you up at the property. My dad wanted me to come over tonight.”
“Ahhh.” He knew what that was all about. Harris had been talking about it for a few days—but had sworn him to secrecy until the right moment.
“What does that mean?”
“Nothing. It’s just a sound.” They reached the gravel lot where both their cars were parked. A crow pecked at a piece of roll someone had dropped. It flapped its wings and hopped a few inches away. As soon as they’d passed by, it reclaimed its prize. “I’ll see you later.”
“And I will be finding out what that ‘ahhhh’ was all about. If it’s something about my dad’s health, you better tell me now.”
“It’s not,” he said quickly. “Harris doesn’t even need me anymore. I just stop in to say hi now and then. It’s a routine we have. I check his vitals, he asks what I had for breakfast and offers me leftover buttermilk pancakes with the butter and syrup he shouldn’t be eating.”
She sighed. “I know. His diet is the worst. But he just won’t listen to me.”
He reached his car and opened the trunk to toss his bag inside. “Welcome to the frustrating life of a home health nurse.”
“I wish I could just arrest him and make him eat right,” Maya grumbled. She was so cute in her homemade purple hat and the bulky scarf wrapped around her neck that he wanted to sweep her into his arms right there in the parking lot.
No, he wouldn’t be forgetting about that kiss anytime soon.
“It’s always an option.” He hovered next to his car door, reluctant to say goodbye. They’d taken a big step closer with that boat ride, and that kiss. But had it actually been two steps backwards? Would she start avoiding him even more now? He didn’t know how to make it clear that he just wanted to be around her. Friend, pilot, kisser, whatever.
Kissing was best, but not required.
“Thanks for helping out, Rune.” She buried her hands in her parka pockets as a gust of wind caught her. “Piloting the boat, giving me a cover story, getting that photo. I really appreciate it.”
“Happy to help,” he said neutrally. “Serve and protect, right?”
She smiled at that. “That could be your motto too. You serve your patients and you protect Cara.”
“Two peas in a pod, just like before.” He winked at her and got into his car, then backed out of the lot.
He whooshed out a long breath as he headed away from the harbor. How long could he pretend that she didn’t affect him? That they were just old buddies?
Yeah, after that kiss, that ship might have sailed. So to speak.
Chapter 11
The moment Rune picked her up at the high school, Cara launched into one of her nonstop chatter-rants. The audition for the Christmas play that she’d messed up. The girls who had called her Toothpaste Barbie because of the way she smiled. The teacher who had it in for her because she’d dared to question her definition of “colonialism.” The coach who wanted her to try out for the ski team even though she’d never so much as put on a pair of skis.
It was all so normal that he could have cried. Not a single thing about a letter slipped into he
r backpack or a weird message passed to her by another student. Nothing about dried flowers appearing in one of her textbooks or a drawing of herself tacked onto a bulletin board at the Laundromat.
All of those things had happened at some point over the past two years. He had no idea how this twisted man was able to get so close to Cara without being tagged as someone suspicious. Or why Cara didn’t spot him herself. She knew what he looked like. He must be really good at masking his appearance.
They had a few errands to do in town, which gave Cara that much more time to spill everything that had happened to her that day. Unlike most teenagers, she didn’t hold back much. Maybe it was because they were siblings, or maybe their unusual situation explained it. But she didn’t seem to hesitate to share her troubles with Rune.
They picked up some groceries at the market, including a list from Harris, then stopped by Eller’s for a new printer cartridge. They picked up a new cable needle for Harris at the yarn store. Everywhere they went, they ran into someone who either knew Rune from his rounds or Cara from school.
Wild how they’d become part of this community so quickly.
Everyone wanted to know how Harris was doing. Everyone wanted to know how Cara liked school. And everyone had a party to mention. “Are we going to see you at Haunted Harbor?…The Winter Parade’s looking for float designers…Are you spending Christmas in town?…Where are you having Thanksgiving?”
“They really like the holidays here,” Cara said gravely when they were finally on the road to home.
“It’s a long winter, that’s what they say. A long, dark, cold winter. Anything to brighten things up. Speaking of which, how are you feeling about this long, dark, cold winter closing in? Are you ready to make a break for the sunshine?”
She looked at him in horror. “You want to leave already?”
“No, but I want to check in with you. You’re good here?”
“Really good. I don’t want to leave.”
Head over Heels for the Holidays Page 8