"How exciting. I bet she's beautiful."
"Not really. It's been stored next to a barn for a long time, and it looks pretty shabby right now."
"Boats are female, so you must refer to the Zephyrus properly. Calling her an 'it' is not nice."
Sabrina chuckled. "Boat etiquette, huh?"
"That's right. Now that you're an owner, you have to follow protocol."
"That's right; we own a sailboat. I gave that old thief a check today. What should I do now, Grandmother? I have to get it repaired. I mean 'her.'"
"Find a local boatyard, and talk to the owner. They can arrange to have it transported to their shop."
"It's going to be more expensive than I thought," Sabrina warned.
"I'm sure it will be," Rose replied, "but it's a labor of love, darling. It's worth it."
"I don't know if it's a blessing or a blight, but I'm glad I have you and that you understand."
"It's a blessing. Goodbye, dear."
Sabrina turned off her cell phone and walked to the window. She lifted the gauze curtain and looked at the Warren River shimmering nearby. She relived her adventure, marveling at all she'd accomplished in one day. Then her stomach growled. Picking up her purse and leather coat, she headed out, stopping in the lobby to ask the clerk for directions to a nearby restaurant.
"Preferably something close. Walking distance," she emphasized.
The man crinkled his forehead. "Well, there's the donut shop, but that's not real food. If you go three blocks that way, you'll come to a little bar called Maude's," he said, pointing out the glass front door. "It looks like a dive on the outside, but the food is great. It's early so there won't be a crowd."
"Thanks," she said, and strutted out the hotel. She felt jubilant, she felt alive. She rarely had adventures or took risks, and she had done both today. No matter the outcome, she enjoyed finding the sailboat and she promised herself that she would never regret it.
She heard the music before she saw the bar. It was a weather-beaten building with several motorcycles and pickup trucks in the parking lot. A neon sign glowed in the window advertising a beer from a small-town brewery not far from Eaton. She opened the door and walked in.
The interior was a contrast in light and dark: well lit over the pool table where two men concentrated on their game, dim along the far wall, lined with wooden booths. The bar stools were filled with people Sabrina imagined were "regulars." She nodded to the bartender and headed for an empty booth. As she sat down, she plopped her purse on the table and shrugged out of her coat.
Across the bar, Jay West sipped his beer, keeping his narrowed eyes pinned on the young woman. As soon as she walked in, he noticed her. How could he not be aware of the exotic beauty with dark hair and delicate features? He noted the slim waist that accented her rounded jean-clad hips, and luscious cleavage when she shrugged out of her coat. She smiled, her toothy grin white against dark red lipstick, when the bartender stumbled in his haste to bring her a menu.
The girl was stunning, exuding refinement and money. What was she doing in Warren and, more importantly, was she alone?
Nate, the bartender, nodded vigorously as she handed him back the menu and asked for the popular Pennsylvania lager and a cheeseburger.
Jay's upper lip curled into a wolfish grin.
"Hey, are you listening to me?"
Jay glanced at the heavy-set man on the stool next to him. While Brett's wife, Shawna, held a scrapbooking workshop at their house, he relaxed with a beer and dinner at Maude's.
"No," Jay replied.
Brett looked around, curious until he spotted Sabrina. "Whoa brother; she's out of your league."
On the other side of the bar, Sabrina noticed the tall man sitting on a stool. He was dressed in a faded black T-shirt, and his rough, worn jeans rode up his ankles, revealing a pair of scuffed work boots. Chestnut hair curled over his ears and flipped up at the back of his neck. A dark lock strayed into eyes framed with dark, flaring brows. It was a hip fashion that pretentious executives paid stylists hundreds of dollars for, yet this man's style sprang from nonchalance.
High cheekbones slashed his face and a short beard and mustache muted his mouth. A fisherman? Probably a construction worker, she thought. Still, he's sexy.
She grinned a bit too brightly at the bartender, thanking him for the beer. Nervous, she hefted the bottle and bumped her front tooth. Clunk.
"Ouch," she murmured, rubbing her front teeth with her index finger, worried she chipped one. She glanced at the bar and met Jay's eyes. Was he smiling at her?
She lifted the longneck beer and drank, her throat undulating with each gulp. She set the beer back on the table and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. She was aware of his eyes on her and her skin tingled. She nervously gazed at her bottle and tugged gently at the label, a game bored females play at bars. Soon, shreds of wet paper littered the tabletop, but it worked. The time between placing her order and having a hot, juicy burger placed before her dissolved.
"Yes, please," she responded to the bartender's question. "Ketchup and mustard. Thanks."
She lifted the bun lid and poked at the burger. Hot cheese clung to her finger and she slid it into her mouth, sucking it clean. As she pulled her finger from her lips, she looked up and once again saw the man watched her intently. Blushing with embarrassment, she shifted in her seat and knocked her purse onto the floor. As she bent over to retrieve it, she watched in agony as a tube of lipstick rolled across the floor, bouncing off the barstool next to the man. Sabrina pretended she hadn't noticed it and shoved the rest of the contents back into her purse. She decided she would buy another lipstick, considering the tube lost.
Meanwhile, Nate brought the ketchup and mustard and hovered at her table. "Can I get you another beer, miss?"
"Thank you. That'd be great," she said.
She refused to look across the bar, determined to eat her burger, drink her beer and leave while she still had some dignity. She didn't understand why she felt self-conscious, but after a few minutes of trying to eat daintily, she gave up and devoured the sandwich.
To hell with him, she thought. He's rude, staring at me like that.
Agitated, she chewed, her cheeks stuffed with bread and meat. The burger was no longer juicy. It was cardboard, dry and tasteless. She gulped her second beer, washing down the last few mouthfuls.
Pulling her wallet from her purse, she extracted two twenties and placed them on the table. She was furious. The entire time she tried to eat her dinner, minding her own business, the obnoxious man at the bar stared at her. Okay, so she licked her fingers suggestively and a few times she stared back at him, but enough was enough.
She grabbed her purse and jacket and swung out of the booth. "Keep the change," she told the bartender, open mouthed in astonishment at the size of her tip.
In the parking lot, Sabrina slipped into her coat and hung her purse over her shoulder. She turned in a slow circle, unsure which direction the hotel lay. As she did, the tavern door opened, Jay walked out and stopped in front of her. In his open hand, he held her lipstick. She glared at it for a heated moment, and then looked into his face. It was shadowed, except for his lower lip. She fixated on it.
"I hope you're happy. You've ruined my night out."
"Me?" His voice was low and soft. Dangerous, she thought.
"Yes, you," she lashed, grabbing the lipstick and shoving it in her front pocket. "Who do you think you are, staring at me?"
"You were flirting with me."
Sabrina took a step back and gasped. "I was not! I was trying to enjoy dinner, but I couldn't because of you."
Jay stepped closer forcing Sabrina to lift her chin to see him. It exposed the long, pale line of her neck. He hungrily followed that line to the swell of her breasts, heaving against the too-tight shirt. Jay also saw a wisp of dark lace. "You fooled me."
"You're incredibly rude and you're making me nervous." Sabrina took another step back.
He pushed his
hands into his jeans pocket and grinned. "Let's start over. I'm Jay; what's your name?"
"None of your business," she snapped, frantically turning her head, looking for the hotel sign.
He touched her arm gently. "Hey, it's okay. Are you lost?"
Sabrina looked up into his shadowed face, wishing she could see his eyes. She forced herself to calm down. She was in the parking lot of a brightly lit restaurant in the tiny town of Warren, not a dark alley in Baltimore. "I'm not sure where my hotel is. It's only a few blocks away, but I don't remember which way to go."
"I'll walk with you. It's probably the Warren Inn, right?"
"Yes, but you don't need to walk with me. Which way is it?"
"This way," he said, turning her, his hand gentle on her elbow.
Sabrina took several steps toward what she hoped would be her hotel, then stopped abruptly. She looked pointedly at his hand on her arm, then at his face and blinked in surprise. This time, light from the waning sun revealed a scattering of freckles across a straight nose, a full mouth with straight, white teeth. His eyes weren't dark after all; they were clear gray-blue. Glints of red shone in his mussed hair.
He released her arm.
Sabrina caught her bottom lip between her teeth. From a distance, he was hard lines and angles, but now, outside in the fading light, he was almost adorable.
Without thinking, Sabrina lifted her hand in a halting gesture. Jay caught it and gently pressed it against his chest.
"All right, maybe I was flirting. At first," she conceded. "But not now. I don't know you. I think I'd better go." Shakily, Sabrina pulled her hand away.
"I'd like to know you," he said. "What's your name?"
This time she couldn't refuse. With bright eyes pinned on his lips, she answered breathlessly. "Sabrina."
"Sabrina, you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen."
"Yeah, right," she drawled.
"I never lie." He changed the subject abruptly. "It's going to be a nice evening. Would you like to go for a sunset sail?"
Sabrina blinked again. "What?"
"Take a short sail on the river and watch the sunset," he explained. "It's a Rhode Island tradition."
"I've never been on a sailboat before." Well, except for this afternoon, but that doesn't count, she mentally added.
He gestured to a large, vacant lot across the street. On the far side of the lot, along the river, several small sailboats were tied to a pier. "Here's your chance."
She frowned. The idea of sailing with this stranger was intriguing. "How do I know you're not a murderer?"
"You don't, but this is a small town and everyone knows me. I can give you a reference."
As if on cue, an older couple walked out of the bar and headed for a truck in the parking lot. "Good evening Jay," they called.
"Good evening Paul, Barb," he replied, his eyes pinned on Sabrina.
"That was convenient," she said.
He sheathed her hand in his, its heat radiating up her arm. They crossed the street in silence, walking towards the boats rocking in the current.
"Which one is yours?" she asked.
Jay nimbly dropped into a small boat and patted the gunwale. "They all are. But this evening, we'll use this one. She's my favorite. Just give me a minute to get her ready, then you can climb aboard."
Sabrina watched as he tugged on the shrouds, making sure that the rigging was tight. He pulled the cover off the mainsail and checked the sail ties. He placed the rudder in the water and tied the tiller against the port side of the boat, then stood in the cockpit and looked around.
"Ready?" she asked?
"Wait just a sec. Going over my list," he said, then continued his mental survey. After checking in the small cabin for life jackets and flares, he stepped to the middle of the boat and held out his hand, beckoning Sabrina.
She gingerly took his fingertips in hers, then stepped onto the seat cushion. The boat rocked and she grabbed his arm with both hands. Jay pulled her towards the middle of the cockpit and the rocking motion stopped.
"You've never sailed before?"
"I told you I hadn't. This is a small boat, isn't it?"
"Yes, but it's fast and easy and fun. I promise you won't go for a swim tonight."
"I'd better not," she warned, sitting on the cushion and placing her purse beside her. She shrugged out of her coat, the movement again catching Jay's eye as her shirt stretched across her breasts.
He looked away, then reached out of the boat and released the lines from the pier. He pulled in the fenders and stowed them in the small cabin. Using the boat hook, he shoved the dinghy away from the pilings and they were adrift. Not bothering to use the small outboard motor, Jay maneuvered the boat into the wind.
"Would you please sit here and hold the tiller like this?" He offered Sabrina the teak handle.
"Why? Aren't you going to sail the boat?"
"Yes, but I need to raise the sail. Unless you want to do it?"
"No thanks," she said reaching for the tiller. "I think I'll hold the thingy."
Jay stood and deftly untied the sail. Within seconds, he shackled the top of the sail to the halyard and pulled the bright white sail up the mast. Sabrina watched unabashedly as the muscles in his back rippled. He cleated the line, then unfurled the jib sheet. The small sail curved and filled with the slight breeze.
"Okay, we're ready to go," he said, smiling. He took the tiller from Sabrina and sat on the opposite side of the boat. "Just sit back and relax."
"Great idea," she said. But could she relax? Impetuously, she agreed to go with this man, putting her life in the hands of a stranger. A rugged and sexy stranger with beautiful, strong hands she realized as she watched him steer the little boat into open water. The sensation of letting go and being uninhibited for once thrilled her.
The wind was light, yet the little dinghy moved quickly. Sabrina watched the shoreline, admiring houses and yachts as the boat forged down the Warren River toward the bay.
"We won't go far," Jay said. "It's nice, though, to have a stretch of water between you and the sunset."
Sabrina closed her eyes. She reveled in the warmth of the setting sun and the gentle breeze. The water was nearly flat, so the small waves ripped in the boat's wake.
"This is wonderful," she said, her face tilted towards the breeze. "I've never experienced anything like this."
"Don't you like boats?" Jay asked.
"Well, sure. I've just never had the opportunity to go on one. I mean, in school I joined the crew club, but that's rowing on the river. It's more about competition than relaxation. I've been on a couple of dinner cruises on the Patapsco River."
"You live near the Chesapeake Bay?"
He knows his geography, she thought. "Yes. I live in Baltimore."
"Busy place. Do you like it there?"
"Well, sure. I've lived there most of my life, so it's home. I went to boarding school in Maryland."
"You went to a boarding school?"
"Yes. Good old Hillcrest. Class of 1998. Then I went to Boston for college."
"Boston as in…?"
"As in Harvard Business School. I admit it; I'm a nerd."
"You don't look like the nerds I went to school with." Jay observed.
Sabrina dimpled at the compliment.
Jay lost his heart.
"Where did you go to school?" she asked.
"I was born here and went to public school. Then I moved to Maine, worked at a few boatyards there and got my degree in naval architecture at the Maine Maritime Academy."
"Naval architecture? You build houses?"
Jay laughed gently at her naiveté. "No, I design boats."
"Really?" Sabrina squeaked. "That's amazing. I just bought .... ," she began, then yelped and grabbed at his knees when a large wake rocked the dinghy.
"Careful," Jay said, steadying her. "There's a couple more coming. They're from that barge over there," he pointed.
Sabrina placed her hands on either sid
e, balancing herself. "Sorry; I wasn't expecting that."
"Would you like to steer?" Jay offered.
"No thanks. If you don't mind, I'd rather watch the sunset," she said. "It is beautiful, isn't it?"
Jay nodded as the sun sank closer to the horizon. Orange, pink and violet banded together for the spectacular event. As the sun sank into the bay, Jay turned the boat and headed back towards the river, tacking slowly towards Warren.
Sabrina watched as he expertly handled the sheets and tiller, and all too soon the experience ended. Jay handed her the tiller and told her to keep the boat steady while he pulled down the mainsail, tied it to the boom. He let the current move them to the pier and then tossed a line around a piling.
He held her hand as she stood on the seat and jumped to the pier. She dropped a loop around a cleat as instructed and waited as Jay finished docking the boat. Soon, the small vessel was secure, its fenders cushioning it from the weathered pilings. He tossed the life jackets into the cabin, tidied up the lines and lifted the rudder from the water. He slid the cover back on the flaked mainsail, nodding as he mentally checked items on his list.
He sprang to the pier and stood next to Sabrina in the dusk. "Hope that makes up for staring at you in the bar."
She laughed. "I've forgotten all about that." She bit her bottom lip, suppressing a smirk and dimpling instead.
There it is, again, Jay thought and before he could stop he enfolded her in his arms. "I've been dying to kiss you."
She felt heat radiate from him as she swayed. He's hypnotized me, she thought, and closed her eyes. When their mouths touched, his gentle and hesitant, she dove recklessly. She sought his kiss with demanding lips, leaning into him when the ground tilted.
He held her as she deepened the kiss, giving her time to explore, to experiment. Her tongue darted in his mouth and teased his, then she rubbed it along his parted lips. When she sucked on his bottom lip, nipping it gently with her sharp, white teeth, Jay knew he had to stop her while he still could.
He pulled back. "Whoa," he murmured. "Now I can die a happy man."
She buried her face in his chest, embarrassed by her wanton exuberance.
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