What was that about? Had Colby seen me checking out Mason? Were they discussing it? Geez, I needed to pull it together. The last thing I wanted was Colby ragging on me about his cousin.
I hiked the tray over my shoulder and carried it back to the table. While avoiding eye contact with Mason and Colby, I passed out the drinks, assured everyone their food would be out soon then took off.
After checking on my other tables, I stepped outside to get some air. Everything about this job had felt very suffocating lately. Of course, Mason definitely added a little spark to my day, but eventually that would fade. Summer Boys were a temporary fix to my long-term boredom.
I leaned against the wall and stared at the water. If I ever did leave Port Lucia, this view would be the one thing I’d miss. I closed my eyes and listened to the sounds around me, trying to find the soft crashing of waves that always calmed me. I peeled each layer of noise away, one by one, searching for the one I needed. Seagulls. A boat horn. The wind. And…footsteps?
My eyes snapped open as Mason rounded the corner.
“Oh, sorry, I didn’t know anyone was out here.” He waved his phone. “Just needed to make a call.”
“Go ahead. I’m heading back inside.” I pushed off the wall and turned to go.
“Wait. Enjoy your break. She probably wouldn’t have answered, anyway.”
I glanced at the phone. She? Figures he’d have a girlfriend.
“My mom always lets her calls go to voicemail.” He shoved his phone in his pocket.
“Hey, Felicity?” One of the other waiters leaned his head out the side door. “Table nine is asking for you.”
“Let them know I’m on my way.” I turned back to Mason and hitched my thumb in the direction of the door, in an awkward see-you-later, then spun around and headed inside.
“See you around…Felicity.”
I turned back.
The corner of his mouth tugged up and, call me crazy, but I was pretty sure he was flirting.
“Yeah,” I mumbled and stepped inside.
As I passed the window, I glanced out. His gaze shifted to the ground, a smile still affixed to his lips. He shook his head and rubbed his neck, almost like in disbelief…or guilt? Maybe that call wasn’t going to be to his mom after all. Nice save on his part though.
That was the one downside to Summer Boys; it was hard to know for sure when they were truly single. Except this one happened to be related to a good friend of mine. Unfortunately I couldn’t come out and ask Colby about Mason’s relationship status without him knowing I was interested. But I had my ways of getting the answers I needed. And if all went well…
Hello, Mason; goodbye, summer boredom.
Chapter 2
Mason
What had I gotten myself into?
Living on a boat sounded badass in theory, but the reality was misery. How in the hell would I survive six weeks if I couldn’t even manage one night? I pressed my head against the cool metal railing surrounding Uncle John’s boat, took a deep breath then stretched upright, hoping the breeze off the ocean would do something to tame the motion sickness. But it only made it worse. Salty, humid air clung to me like a sticky sheath of moisture. I was slowly coming to hate the ocean.
I shook my head as if the sky was witness and the ocean testament to my resignation. I couldn’t do this for six weeks. No way did I even want to do this. Uncle John could get Owen to take my place. He was almost eighteen. Or maybe his older brother Landon could take some time off from work. Fuck. I gripped my stomach and swallowed hard, trying to force down the nausea while weighing the pros and cons of the situation.
Bailing would be shitty but, hell, I was only here to avoid dealing with my own life. Or lack of one, maybe. After spending several years pseudo-in-love with my best friend, Brinley—only to have some asshole swoop in and steal her away—I needed time away. Except who would have known things could get worse? I’d rather watch Brinley get all starry-eyed over her douchebag boyfriend than deal with night after night of—
“Hey, there.”
I spun at the sound of a girl’s voice. Not overly loud but way too chipper for—what time was it? Two, maybe three in the morning? Who the hell was even up at this time, besides me?
I squinted, trying to make out the approaching figure. “Hey, uh…I didn’t realize anyone else was out here.”
Her silhouette slowly came into view on the neighboring boat. She tucked her hair behind her ear but it did nothing to tame the waves tumbling over her shoulders. And it hit me…I knew that hair. I knew that body. Hell, I’d even memorized the face to go with it. God knows I’d spent enough time staring at it this afternoon. I cleared my throat then said, “You’re—”
“Colby’s friend.” Her words came out too quick, almost nervous, then she added, “And from the restaurant.”
Yep, I knew exactly who she was, and I’d also committed her name to memory in hopes of getting just this chance. “Felicity,” I said.
It was too dark to make out the subtle features of her face, but I was pretty sure a smile appeared, which almost helped me forget about my stomach being so wrecked.
What was she doing out here? Not that I minded the surprise visit, but it was the middle of the night, so did that mean…“Do you live out here? On a boat?”
“Yeah.” She shifted and tucked her hair back in another failed attempt to manage a curl. The slight shift brought her into better view under the pier lighting. And it was confirmed. Her lips were curved into a sweet smile.
I felt my own mouth twitch up, mirroring her expression, despite the headache from hell and my lingering desire to jump overboard.
“This is my family’s boat.” She semi-shrugged, “But sleeping on the water takes some getting used to.”
I shook my head, convinced I wasn’t cut out for life on the water. “Not sure I ever will. I’m ready to crash in my car at this point. The worst part is I’m supposed to be up in a few hours to head out there.” I nodded toward the ocean.
She glanced at the water then back at me. “I couldn’t sleep either…I was out here and, well…I hope you don’t mind the intrusion.” She stammered over her words then lifted her hand that was holding something. A bottle? “I have this old family recipe for motion sickness,” she went on. “It really helps if you want to give it a try.”
She probably thought I was such a wuss for not being able to handle a night on the water but, hell, I wasn’t too proud to accept whatever cure I could find. “I’ll try anything.”
She smiled. “Hang on, I’ll walk it over.”
“I can grab it.” I climbed over the boat railing then stepped onto the wooden pier separating us and forced my feet to steady. Going from rocking to firm land actually made me feel worse.
I took a deep breath then walked the few steps across the pier to her boat, trying to find my bearings again. The phantom rocking slowly subsided, and I relaxed a bit.
“Here you go.” She handed me a small glass bottle.
“What do I do with it?” I held it in the light of the pier. Oil sloshed around the sidewall.
“You rub a little behind your ears.” She gestured to the soft spot right above her jaw, and my gaze tracked her finger then slowly drifted down her neck.
I could think of a few other ways to take my mind off motion sickness. Of course, none of those would help with the fact that I needed to be ready to work in a few hours. Fuck. And with that little reality check, I twisted the cap off the vial and sniffed the contents. It was minty but also kind of sweet. “Smells good. What’s in it? Or is it a secret recipe?”
She smiled. “It’s lavender, peppermint and some other stuff I can’t remember.”
“And I put it on like this?” I capped the bottle with my index finger, flipped it upside down then rubbed the oil behind my ear. “Or are you totally screwing with me?” I teased. “Because this does smell a bit like perfume, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the guys put you up to this.”
With a laugh,
she shook her head. “I promise it’s to help. But I wouldn’t put it past those guys to mess with the newbie, so keep your guard up.”
I recapped the bottle and reached to hand it back.
“Keep it. You’ll need it out there.”
“Thanks.” I sighed at the reminder. “Can’t really pretend I’m excited about that. How long before it works?”
“Not long. Of course, it’s better if you use it as a preventative, so you may want to put it on again before you head out.”
I shoved the bottle into the pocket of my shorts. “I have no idea why I agreed to this. I’m going to get eaten alive out there,” I muttered, more to myself than anything else.
“Is this your first time working on a charter boat?”
I glanced back at her. “Uh, I’ve been deep-sea fishing twice in my life. Last time was three years ago. I have no clue what I’m doing.”
“Well…it’s nice of you to help your uncle.”
Help my uncle. Yeah. That made my reasons seem much less personal and a whole lot more selfless, although…“After tomorrow, he may decide I’m not much help.”
Felicity smiled. “It won’t be that bad. The crew’s friendly, and I’m sure they’ll appreciate the help either way.”
I fought back a grin. “So are you always this nice? Because we both know I’m a liability out there.”
“It’s all the waitressing, I guess.”
She was killing me with that smile. And maybe it was mind over matter, but my nausea also seemed to be subsiding, and the headache was more of a dull pressure along my forehead. Now if only I had something to look forward to after my first day of work…“If I survive out there, maybe you can join me in a celebratory drink.”
“You’ll survive.”
“So is that a yes?”
She paused, her lips parted slightly as if I’d completely caught her off guard with my invitation. So I asked again, “Join me for a drink?”
“Um…sure.”
I cocked a grin, happy to have gotten at least one shot at her, and patted my pocket as I backed across the pier. “Thanks for the family remedy.” I hopped over the railing of my boat. “And if the guys don’t throw me overboard, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She turned, but paused and glanced back. “Hey, Mason?”
“Yeah.”
“How long are you in town?”
“Six weeks.”
“It’ll be nice having a neighbor for the summer.”
My gaze roamed down a bit. Her V-neck shirt was loose but thin enough to get my blood pumping south. “I was just thinking the same thing.”
If she noticed me checking her out, she didn’t seem to mind, which was crazy sexy. I loved a girl comfortable in her own skin.
With one last smile, she headed inside and I turned to go, as well. Except now my problem wasn’t seasickness, it was getting the image of her in those tiny fucking shorts out of my head.
—
Felicity’s remedy must have helped because the next thing I knew my bed was bouncing and Colby was shouting, “Up and at ’em. We have fish to catch.”
I reached for my phone, wondering why my alarm hadn’t woken me. The screen read a quarter after four.
“You’re such an asshole,” I groaned as I rubbed sleep from my eyes. “I have a fucking alarm set. I could have slept fifteen more minutes.”
“Dude, what’s a few more minutes gonna help? Get your ass up.”
“Considering I didn’t pass out until sometime after three, fifteen minutes would have helped a lot.”
“Why the hell did you stay up so late?”
I finally opened my eyes so I could glare at Colby. “Wasn’t by choice, bro. This boat fucking sucks. You should be thanking me for not losing my dinner all over it.”
Colby laughed. Hard. And I fought back the urge to punch him in the nuts just to see how much he liked his stomach residing in his throat.
“You’re an asshole,” I mumbled.
He slowly pulled it together. “Sorry, man. That sucks.”
I sat up and rubbed my head. Then I tentatively stretched, and was happy to discover my nausea and headache were completely gone thanks to Felicity, who also happened to be the reason I’d endure living on this boat.
Colby had finally stopped laughing but still had a grin stretched ear to ear. “You can crash at my place while you’re in town.”
“Nah. I’ll pass. As much as I love you, your neighbor’s got nothing on mine.”
His humor faded and his posture changed. “What’d ya mean?”
“You failed to mention that the hot waitress lived next door.”
He shook his head. “Like I said yesterday, Felicity is my friend and…” He adjusted his baseball cap and blew out a breath. “You can’t fuck around with her.”
“Who said I was? I mean, sure, she’s hot and I’d gladly fuck her. But doesn’t mean I will.” Though I was mostly screwing around with that comment, I instantly regretted it because everything about Colby changed the moment it left my mouth.
“I’m not playing around. I know how you are and it’s not cool, man. She’s a nice girl. She’s my friend, and I won’t tolerate some prick coming along, trying to get a piece of ass just so he can go home and brag to all his college buddies about his summer hookup.”
I stood and stared Colby in the eyes. “Whoa, first off, fuck you. You don’t ‘know how I am.’ You came to visit once. I hooked up with a girl. And now you think you know everything about me?” Truth be told, that weekend was pretty accurate to most weekends, but fuck him and his holier-than-thou attitude. “Second, I’m not trying to fuck around with her, okay? Yes, I think she’s hot, but she seems nice and I don’t want any awkward girl drama with your friends, so don’t worry about it. You’ve made your point.” I turned and grabbed my shirt off the small shelf near the bunk beds. “But let’s make it clear right now. I can be friends with whomever I want while I’m here.” I yanked my shirt over my head.
Colby’s shoulders relaxed. “I’m not saying…It’s just…I don’t want her getting hurt a—”
“Hey, Colby, you down there?” Some guy shouted from up deck.
“Yeah, man. I’ll be right there.” He glanced at me then shrugged. “Sorry if I came off like an asshole…She’s a friend and—”
“I get it. No worries.”
He nodded then headed upstairs.
Why in the hell had mentioning Felicity triggered such a reaction? If he had feelings for her, he could have just said so. I’d never make a move on some girl he liked. But if he couldn’t be up front, I’d have to get to the bottom of it for myself. Of course, now I felt shitty having plans with her later if Colby was pining over her. But I didn’t exactly want to cancel them either. Hell, maybe she wouldn’t show up, anyway. Or more likely than that…I wouldn’t survive the day.
When I emerged onto the deck, guys were already bustling around. The sun hadn’t even made an appearance, and they were hard at work. I didn’t know where to begin.
“Hey, Mason,” Colby called from where he was dumping ice into a cooler. “You can give me a hand over here, then Sam will be in charge of showing you the ropes today.”
I nodded at the tall, lanky guy I’d met the day before.
Sam grinned. “Cheer up, dude. It may be four-thirty in the morning, but you’ll be wide awake when you see today’s client.”
Colby attempted a scowl, but a slight smile broke free. “Don’t get any ideas. Her dad will kill you.”
I glanced between them, trying to fill in the gaps.
Sam laughed. “He’ll be too busy trying to reel in a big catch to notice. So do us all a favor, make sure you take him to where the fish are biting.”
“That’s my plan, but not so you jackasses can hit on his daughter.” Colby smirked then added, “And as I recall, she’ll be too busy trying to outfish her dad to care about y’all, anyway.”
“Hey, a guy can dream,” Sam said, finally turning to me. “Wait until you s
ee this chick, Mason. Blond. Nice tits. Hot ass.”
“Okay, okay.” Colby shook his head. “Enough. They’ll be here any minute. We don’t need her dad hearing.”
Sam grinned at me and then made a few obscene gestures that involved thrusting his crotch into a pole. I laughed and was caught off guard by the sound of Colby laughing, as well.
Okay, maybe these guys wouldn’t be so bad to hang out with. And Colby seemed to have loosened up some…well, as long as the girl in question wasn’t his friend.
“Hey,” Sam called from where he was coiling a rope. “Five bucks to anyone who gets her number.”
Colby rolled his eyes. “I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that.”
“That’s just because you know you’ll lose.” Sam set the rope on a hook then started on another coil.
Colby closed his ice chest and narrowed his gaze on Sam. Guess the fun and games were over.
“Make it ten,” he said.
Or maybe not.
“Ten it is.” Sam high-fived the guy standing nearest him. “I’ve got this in the bag.”
“You in, Mase?” Colby asked.
I hadn’t even seen this girl but wasn’t exactly one to turn down a little competition either. “Sure, why not.”
And I don’t know why I did it, but as soon as the words left my mouth, I glanced at Felicity’s cabin. Maybe some part of me worried she could hear this conversation, though I knew she was probably asleep. But either way, when I’d realized Colby’s gaze had tracked mine, I wish I’d kept my eyes off her boat.
Chapter 3
Felicity
By the time I emerged from my cabin the next morning, John’s charter boat was gone. Hopefully, Mason was surviving the open water.
“Hey, girl.” Isla walked across the deck, her hand acting as a sunshield. “Want to grab a bite before work?”
After my late-night wakeup, I’d finally crashed around five this morning and slept until almost ten. I had to be at work by noon. “I thought you weren’t scheduled until four?”
Just a Little Kiss Page 2