“How in the hell do you sleep next to that thing?” I jutted a finger at the owl lamp.
Sucking the air through her teeth, she shrugged. “Yeah. It’s the creepiest lamp in the history of the world. But it’s the only one in there and I don’t have the money to get a new one. So, every night I have to sleep with that hideous thing lording over me.”
“I’m a dude, and even I couldn’t sleep with that thing nearby.”
“It’s rough.” She laughed.
Trying to force the image of the distorted owl lamp from my mind, I helped her over to my truck. When I opened the door, Hank jumped in and settled into his spot in the middle. Cassie grabbed the handle above her head, and this time got in with less struggling. I was prepared to catch her in the event she tumbled out again.
“You in?” I asked before closing the door.
She smiled and nodded, so I closed the door and walked behind my truck.
“She’s just a friend. Like Jo,” I mumbled to myself before I made it to the driver’s side.
But when I opened the door and she brushed a long, golden strand of hair from her face, an inward groan forced my eyes shut. That wasn’t Jo sitting beside Hank in the truck.
Don’t get on the horse, Jake. Don’t get on the horse!
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Jake
“So, this is where we fish?” she asked after climbing out of my truck and meeting me on the causeway.
“It’s one of the places I like to go.”
Usually I fished Kangaroo Lake from my house just a little further up the lake. But the thought of bringing Cassie to my house had me thinking of bringing Cassie to my bed upstairs, so I opted to take her fishing on neutral territory. The fish biting from my dock would be the same fish that would bite over here. And over here there wasn’t a bed.
“Remember when I thought you were a serial killer and I hid in those bushes?” she asked, bursting into laughter while she pointed to the bushes just down the road.
“I remember it well.” I chuckled while I pulled the fishing poles out of the back of my truck. Man, she’d looked cuter than I wanted to admit climbing out of the ditch that night.
“You can use this pole. It’s a little shorter so it will be easier for you to cast.”
With Hank panting at my side, I handed her the pole.
“What do I do with it?” Nervous eyes looked at me as she held it away from her body, scanning it like it was the strangest thing she’d ever seen.
“Come here. I’ll show you.”
We stepped down the small embankment to the rocks jutting out along with causeway. After a quick assessment, I found the spot looking prime to snag a few walleyes.
“First, you can watch me. Then I’ll help you. Okay?”
Nodding, she watched me unclip my lure from the eye of the rod. The tension in the line disappeared, and I cranked my reel until the line was the right length. Before casting, I looked to make sure she was a safe distance away and saw her scratching Hank’s head. The way he stared up at her with stars in his eyes reminded me not to let myself stare at her that way.
She’s just a friend.
Trying not to lose my concentration and attempting to extinguish the stars that sparkled momentarily in my own eyes while she scratched my big dog, I focused back on the lake.
“First, you’re going to reel until you have about six inches of line hanging from the tip, just like mine.”
She nodded while I gestured to the rod.
“Then you’re going to place your index finger on the line right here and hold it tight. When you’ve got it secure, you’re going to flip the bail. That’s this thing.”
Astute eyes followed my movements while I went through the motions I could do in my sleep.
“Now, keeping your finger on the line, you’re going to look around you and make sure there’s no one nearby you can snag. Me and Hank included.” I smiled, and it prompted a giggle from her. “When the coast is clear, you bring the rod back to vertical, and in one smooth motion use your wrist and your elbow and cast it forward, letting go with your index finger when you’re about half-way down.”
“That sounds insanely complicated.”
“It sounds complicated, but it’s pretty easy once you figure it out. Just like this.” With one swift move, I sent my lure sailing into the lake. The sound of the reel whirring was like music to my ears. That same sound soothed my soul and set my world back upright when life knocked it down. The plunk of the lure in the water sent ripples of waves extending out around it. I turned the crank, and it snapped the bail back into place. Another melody providing the soundtrack to my life.
Turning the crank, I brought my lure in a little faster than I normally would. This cast wasn’t about catching the fish. I wanted to show her one more time.
I heard her crank spinning and turned to see her fumbling with her lure in a pile of line on the ground. Looking up at me, she sucked the air through her teeth.
“Oops.”
“What happened to waiting for me to show you?” Laughing, I hooked my lure to the eye and set my rod aside. “You forgot to put your finger against the line to stop it from dropping.”
“Well, shit,” she said, and the swear word sounded cuter than it should coming out of her mouth.
I unraveled the line piled on the rocks and helped her set up the rod again.
“Put your finger here.” I reached for her hand to guide it but froze when I thought about touching her skin. “There.” I pointed instead, and she looked up at me.
“There?”
“Yep.”
“Now, let me get Hank out of the way, then we can practice the motion of casting. Hank. Truck,” I said. Hank hopped up from where he lay by her feet and leapt onto the open tailgate of my truck. It was a launch for him, and he scrambled to keep from sliding back down. “Good boy.”
“He really listens well.”
“He’s a damn good dog. Now, let’s see how well you can listen.” I smiled.
“I’m all ears. Show me how to wield this thing.”
While I talked her through it again, she hung on every word and practiced bringing the rod back to position and casting.
“Am I ready?”
“Only one way to find out.”
Exchanging a nervous glance, I stepped out of the way. Since I taught people to fish for a living, I’d been on the receiving end of those hooks on more than one occasion and didn’t feel like digging one out tonight.
“Here I go!” Grinning wide, she got into position. The rod came back and with the flick of her wrist it flew forward, but instead of a long, smooth cast, the lure snapped in the air and remained hanging from the tip.
“You forgot to release your finger,” I said when she looked at me with confusion flooding her eyes.
“Oh, yeah!”
This time she drew back, but before she could cast, she released her finger too early and the lure dropped to the rocks behind her.
“Oh, no!” Laughter peppered her words while she looked at the mess behind her.
“It’s okay. It takes a few times to get the hang of it.”
“I’m never going to get it.” A big pout pushed out her bottom lip.
Damn it. I knew what I had to do, but it made my stomach twist in a lethal combination of fear and excitement.
“I’ll show you,” I said on a sigh while I took her rod and cranked it back up. After getting the line the right length, I stepped up behind her. Trying not to brush up against her, I positioned myself with my arms along her sides and held the rod out in front of her. This next part was going to hurt.
“Wrap your hand around mine and put your index finger over mine. I want you to feel the moment I release.”
While I held that rod for dear life with my arms around her waist, her hands found their way on top of mine. When her small fingers settled on mine, a surge of electricity traveled down my spine. A shudder followed, and I hoped she hadn’t felt it.
Yep. This is downright to
rture.
As if I wasn’t in enough agony feeling the soft skin of her hands caressing mine, she leaned back against me and our bodies snapped together like the last piece of a jigsaw puzzle. The top of her head rested just under my chin and her back pressed into my chest. Without my permission, my arms tightened around her body and she leaned in harder.
Oh, God.
Swallowing hard, I struggled to regain my composure. A soft breeze blew and the floral scents from her hair drifted into my nose and made me dizzy with desire. With sweaty palms, I struggled with my grip on the rod.
“Like this?” she asked while she slipped her index finger on top of mine. With a curious peek up from below me, our eyes locked. When I looked into them, I felt a strong current pull at me. Even though I fought against it, it sucked me under, and I got lost beneath the weight of her stare. And this time I didn’t want to come up for air.
“Yes, like that.” Her finger stretched as long as it could but only went half the length of mine.
“Now just keep your body relaxed and soft and move with mine.”
I drew back the pole as she softened into my embrace, together we moved it back and forth until I felt like she had the motion down.
“Can you feel it?”
“I think so.”
“Now, I’m going to cast, and I want you to pay attention to when I release my finger. Just keep yours soft and it will move with mine.”
“Okay.”
Together we cast out the line, and her finger released with mine. The lure dropped into the water and disappeared beneath the ripples.
“We did it!” she shrieked, turning her head up and beaming at me. That smile almost sent me tumbling in after my favorite lure.
“We did.” I smiled back.
“Now what?”
“Now we crank. Put your other hand on the handle here.”
Holding the pole tight, I braced while she turned the handle.
“Like this?”
“Perfect. Now it’s all in the pace. Slow then fast. Keeping it changing, pause sometimes. You never know when a fish may be down there chasing it.”
“Sounds like sex.” She laughed.
Like I need any more reminders of sex right now.
“Yep.” I swallowed hard. The tip of the rod wiggled. “We got a nibble! Keep it slow and steady now.”
“A fish? There’s a fish?” she squealed.
“Slow and steady.” I cupped my hand over hers and together we turned the crank. “Get ready.”
The tip dipped low, and I popped up the rod. The reel whirred as the fish ran and that sound normally got my heart racing. This time having Cassie in my arms had it pumping at full tilt before that fish even bit. It wasn’t possible for it to hammer any harder unless I planned on dropping dead on the side of the road.
“We got one!” she screamed while she bounced in my arms.
“The key now is the tension. You need to keep the tension just right. Too much and you’ll break the line. Too little and he’ll slip free. When he runs, we let him. When he tires, we crank.”
“Okay. This is way more fun than I was expecting!”
“Just help me keep the tension.”
Something told me she and I would have no trouble keeping the perfect tension... as much as I tried to ignore it, God knows we had it in real life.
The minutes ticked by while we fought the fish. Together we held the pole and Cassie reeled it in.
“What kind is it?” she asked as the line got closer and closer.
“Probably a walleye. But could be a pike. And there’s at least one huge sturgeon in here. Though if it was a sturgeon we would know. I caught it once. Son of a bitch gave me a serious run for my money.”
With the sun setting and the darkness settling in, I wished I had my headlamp to shine on the water and get a glimpse of the struggling fish. As much as I was dying to see what was on the other end of our line, I didn’t want to catch it and have Cassie’s sounds of joy stop. Every time the fish ran, she squealed with excitement while I coaxed her into pausing her reeling and letting the fish get tired. The pitch of her squeals rose when the fish gave up and we started cranking again. As much as I enjoyed fishing alone, I had to admit, it was pretty fun reeling this one in with Cassie wrapped up in my arms.
There’s a moment in every battle against a fish when I could feel it surrender. When I felt this one succumb to his situation, regret plucked at my heart that soon I’d have to release her from my embrace. Just as I predicted, the fish came in without any more of a fight. Taking a deep breath and one more inhale of her hair, I released my grip on the rod.
“Hold it steady while I bring him in.”
“This is so crazy!” She laughed as I reluctantly backed away.
With the longing to press back up against her slowing me down, I moved to the edge of the water and grabbed ahold of the line. After a couple slow pulls, I saw the walleye rise to the top, and he put up no fight when I pulled him out of the water.
“Well done, Cassie! You caught your first fish!”
“Oh, my God! I did it! We did it!” She squealed again and the sounds of her excitement had me wondering what she’d sound like in bed.
Trying to force the recurring vision from my head of her writhing in my sheets, I lifted the fish triumphantly out of the water.
“What kind is it?” Wide eyes stared at the silver fish I held suspended by the gills.
“Walleye. A nice one, too! One of the bigger ones. Easily a five pounder. Atta girl!”
“It’s a big one?” she asked, stepping closer to examine the fish.
“It’s a really nice fish. It’s going to be great for dinner.”
“Dinner?” Her voice jumped several octaves.
“Yeah. Dinner. You know... to eat?” I set the fish down on the rocks and it flapped its tail.
“Wait! We can’t eat it!” she shrieked, her eyes darting to the fish lying by my feet.
“Seriously? You don’t want to eat your first fish?”
“No! Help it! Is it dead? Did I kill it?” Tears welled in her eyes and it felt like she had her hand wrapped around my heart instead of that rod.
“No. It’s fine. Just resting.”
“Put it back. Please! I don’t want to kill it!”
Raising my hands, I nodded. “Okay, okay. Calm down. I’ll put it back.”
“Oh, my God.” She bit her nails while I picked up the exhausted fish and plucked my hook from its mouth. “It looks dead. I killed it. I’m a monster.”
With a deep chuckle, I shook my head. “You’re not a monster. He’s fine. He just needed a rest. It was a long battle on both ends of that line.”
Holding the walleye gently, I lowered him into the water and held him upright.
“He’s not moving!” She nibbled her nails faster.
“Just give him a minute,” I said, giving her a reassuring look. Rocking the fish back and forth, I waited for the moment I knew was coming. Right on cue, the tail flicked, then his whole body exploded in movement sending water spraying. Releasing my grip, the fish darted out of my hands and disappeared beneath the surface.
“It’s alive!” Jumping up and down, she clapped her hands.
When I turned to see her, the single tear sliding down her cheek dried before it made it off her chin. “I can’t believe you made me let that fish go. That was a nice fish and would have made an excellent dinner.”
“I just couldn’t. After I looked into its eyes, I knew there was no way I could kill it. I’ve never killed a living thing before.”
“You’d have slaughtered that snake if given the chance.” I snorted.
“That was different! It would have been self-defense!”
“It was no more harm to you than that fish.”
Furrowing her brow, she crossed her arms.
“So, it’s going to be catch and release with you when we go fishing?”
“Yeah. There’s no way I can kill a fish.”
“Tha
t’s too bad, because they are great eating.”
“It’s cruel!”
“Do you eat meat?” I arched a brow.
“Well, yeah,” she said, losing some of her determination.
“So, you’re not opposed to eating animals that spend their whole lives in captivity and are slaughtered, but eating a naturally caught fish or free-range animals that lived a good life is immoral?”
Her mouth opened, but she struggled to form words. Being a fisherman and a hunter, I’d been on this end of the argument enough times I was confident I’d win it.
“I love animals. I also enjoy harvesting them naturally rather than going to the store and buying a filet of fish from one raised in a glorified tank. Both my father and grandfather taught me how to humanely hunt and help with conservation. It’s what I was taught, and I never saw anything wrong with it. I toss back any young fish, allowing them to grow and reproduce, I never shoot does, only aged bucks. And every fall, I take enough ducks and turkeys to keep Hank and I supplied all winter along with our venison and fish. So, unless you’re a vegetarian, I think we can safely argue that eating a fish caught after a long, happy life in Kangaroo Lake is a lot more humane than eating one that had a life jammed into a container barely able to move, swimming in its own filth, fed an unnatural diet and loaded with antibiotics.”
I waited for the argument I knew would never come. In all my years of having it, no one other than vegetarians had a leg to stand on. Arching a brow, I smiled. “Maybe you should let me cook you a wild-caught fresh fish and let me know what you think. You don’t even need to see me catch it.”
The minute the words came out of my mouth I froze, wishing I could shove them back in. Did I just invite her to dinner?
“You’ll catch it and kill it humanely?”
I was nodding. Why was I nodding? Stop it, Jake! Stop inviting her to dinner!
“And I don’t have to see it looking like, you know, a fish with eyes and stuff?”
“No faces. I’ll have it fileted before you get there.” I couldn’t stop myself. The words that meant I’d be having dinner with Cassie at my house kept pouring out like I’d broken the faucet and the handle was stuck open.
“Okay. Deal.” She smiled, and it sent my stomach tumbling into the abyss again. “I’m sorry I made you toss back dinner.”
The Other Half (Door Peninsula Passions Book 1) Page 11