by Krista Lakes
It wasn't long before Rachel came down the stairs into the 'Man Cave'. I didn't know how she did it, but she looked as fresh and ready as if it were two in the afternoon instead of the morning. Dean hung behind her in the shadow of the stairs, his eyes watching her move through the room. There was something in the way he looked at her, and how she was purposefully ignoring his glances, that made me think there was something between them.
“Thank you for your services, Ms. Baker,” Rachel said, handing me a check. The ink was still wet on the extra two-thousand dollars. I was almost afraid to put it in my pocket, as if it might smudge and the bank wouldn't accept it. “You're welcome to go home whenever you're ready.”
“The bar's still a disaster area, so I'll clean that up before I go,” I said, gesturing to the bar. Cups and bottles were everywhere. Rachel waved a hand dismissively.
“Don't worry about it. I hired a bartender, not a bar-cleaner. I already have custodians arranged to take care of everything in the morning. You've had a busy night. Go on home and get some rest.”
“Are you sure?” I asked her. I always took it as part of my job to clean up the bar. To get to go home early and have someone else take care of the part I hated doing was a gift.
Rachel nodded. “Go home. It looks like the boys had a good time, so you did your job well.”
“I'll walk you out,” Noah volunteered quickly. Rachel smiled at him and then went to go find Jack. He was busy setting up a rematch with Logan on some video game. I waved to the two of them as Noah led me up the stairs.
At the top of the stairs, we ran into Robbie and Owen.
“Here's your prize money,” Robbie said, handing over twenty one-hundred dollar bills. “I'll still throw in the date if you're interested, though.”
I laughed. “Thanks. I'll keep that in mind.” I paused in taking the money. It felt weird to take as much as he was offering, even though he seemed so nonchalant about it. Like it was nothing to hand over two thousand dollars on a stupid bet.
“Take the money,” Robbie said, closing my hand around it. “You won it.”
I stuffed the money into my pocket, feeling a little strange at holding that much cash. I wondered what he did that he even carried that much cash around. The island is a millionaire's play-place, I silently reminded myself. If he's here, he can afford it.
“Okay. Thanks.” I smiled up at Robbie. “You have a good night. You too, Owen.”
“You too. G'night, Noah,” Owen said. He took a sip of a drink and waved us out the door. Noah put his hand on the small of my back, guiding me out onto the yellow light of the porch. Insects sung to one another in the night, and I could hear the ocean keeping time for them. Stars peeked out of their dark blanket while the moon glided on silver wings. I loved nights on the island. They were always magical.
“I had a great time working with you,” Noah said quietly. I liked the way his hand felt on my back. I didn't take the step off the porch. I didn't want the night to end yet. Especially the part with Noah.
“Me too.” I turned and smiled up at him. He smiled back and offered me his arm.
“Can I walk you to your car?”
I took it, feeling the muscles flex. I felt embers deep in my stomach flare to life. I wanted to know what it would feel like to run my fingertips down those arms. How he would look without a shirt... his body pressed to mine...
Before I knew it, we were at my car. I wished I had walked slower, but I knew we had gone at a snail’s pace the whole way.
“Thank you. For everything,” I said slowly, digging in my pocket for my keys. I took my time.
Noah ran a hand through his short dark hair. The pale sliver of moon accented the lines of his jaw and sparkled in his eyes. “Um, I don't usually do this, but would you be interested in coming to my place for drinks?”
Liar, I thought. I'm sure you have girls over all the time. You're too handsome not to. Smooth, but not smooth enough. As gorgeous as he was, there was no way I was going to do anything while exhausted and covered in various liquors and whip cream. I shook my head no.
“Oh, okay then. Your place?”
I gave him a gentle shove. “Nice try. Nope. I am covered in sticky.”
“So am I...” he laughed. “There's a dirty joke in there, but I'll be the gentleman and not say it.”
I imagined myself getting sticky with him. It was a nice thought. A deliciously hot and sticky thought. But not one I was ready to do tonight. My body was just too tired.
I clicked the unlock button on the car and then smacked my forehead with my palm. “I forgot the tip jar!”
Noah grinned. “But I didn't. Here you go.” He handed me a neat roll of bills and one quarter.
“Noah...” I eyed the massive roll, seeing mostly fives and tens. “We have to split it. You did most of the work anyway with all the girly drinks.”
Noah laughed. The sound was light and floated on the night air like it had wings. “I don't need the money.”
“Why not?” I asked. Suddenly it dawned on me. “You're more than just a bartender, aren’t you?”
“Yes. But Jack paid me more than enough to tend bar again.” He smiled. “I want you to have it. Seriously. Use it for something fun.”
“You're sure?” I asked once more before taking the money. It seemed like everyone here was giving me crazy amounts of money tonight.
“Very sure.” He leaned forward and gave me a light kiss on the cheek. The touch of his lips fanned the embers in my stomach to an achy burn. I closed my eyes. I wanted to say yes to him, to go with him to his room and let those arms wrap around me, but I knew I should say no. I needed to stay strong. He was handsome, but I didn't need a one night stand.
“Thank you,” I whispered. He pulled back and opened the car door for me to get in. A true gentleman.
“Have a wonderful night, Izzy.”
I sat down on my imitation leather seats, and he closed the door. He gave me one last dazzling smile before turning and heading back to the house. I watched his figure outlined by the yellow light of the porch for a moment before starting the car.
The engine mumbled quietly as I pulled out and onto the empty road to get home. It was close enough that I could have walked, but I liked the ease of a car on these late night jobs. I turned onto the main road, my headlights bright against the dark night.
I could still feel his lips on my cheek. He had been funny and charming. No mention of a wife or a girlfriend or anything to give me warning. He had been protective. I nearly hit the brakes to turn around and go back. I wanted to feel those muscled arms encircling me. I wanted to feel those lips again.
No, I told myself firmly. He's just a tourist. You don't even know his last name. He's going to leave just like they all do. Best not to even get attached.
I nodded, proud of myself for staying resolute and ignoring the way my heart cried out that I should go back. My head, not my body, was who I needed to listen to. No matter how wonderful he had seemed.
Chapter 5
I woke up the next morning with a smile on my face. My dreams had been invaded by an irresistible man with blue eyes and unending charm. The best part was that in my dreams, I didn't have to stop. I didn't have to be responsible, reasonable, or nervous. I could do anything, and everything, that I wanted. Waking up, I was sad to leave my dreams behind. They had been some of the best dreams of my life.
I stretched my hands over my head, looking over to see a neatly made bed in the opposite corner of the room. Brooke was already up, which meant that there was probably some leftover breakfast in the kitchen. Brooke was always good for leaving me breakfast after work nights.
I quickly got ready, running a brush through my hair and finding my wetsuit. Despite my diet of fish and tropical fruit, it was still snug across the hips. Eh, I thought, I don't need to impress the sharks today. Sunglasses and some sunscreen completed my morning preparations.
I walked quickly to the kitchen and found two deviled eggs waiting for me in
the fridge. Brooke made the best deviled eggs, and she knew they were my favorite. I couldn't ask for a better roomie. I stuffed one in my mouth and carried the other out of the kitchen to the back porch.
Outside, the big porch wrapped around the house. To the right was a sandy beach where we had built several holding pens for containing sharks for research or rehabilitation. We had several sheds set up by the pens to hold more equipment and gear.
The house backed out onto the water with a little dock for our two research boats. The building had once been a decently sized home, but Dr. Algos had transformed it into a marine biology research station over twenty years before I had even arrived. The only part of it that actually looked like a house anymore was the outside. The three bedrooms were now for research assistants and their projects, the living room was filled with different sized fish tanks, and the dining room was full of computers and research equipment. Even the kitchen had an attached area where we could prep shark bait.
Dr. Algos was out loading one of the boats. I headed down the dock toward the boat, filling my mouth with the second egg.
“Hi, Izzy,” Dr. Algos called out as soon as he saw me. “Good night last night?”
“Hey, Doc. I made awesome good tips. Where are you off to?” I asked.
“Tagging. There have been some hammerheads spotted over by Shark Tooth Rock. Brooke and I going to try and get a transmitter on 'em.” Doc straightened from loading the boat and shaded his face with his hand. “You know when Lucas and Devon get back from the mainland?”
He was a tall, lean man with graying hair that he kept cropped close to his head. He had permanent sunglasses lines around his warm brown eyes. His love was the ocean. Sharks, rays, fish, dolphins- if it swam, he studied it. He had been studying marine biology for longer than I had been alive. His love of the ocean was a big part of why I was out here helping him with his research.
“They'll be back tomorrow evening. Devon said his dissertation went well,” I told him. “They promise they'll bring as much peanut butter and mainland goodies as they can fit in their suitcases.”
“Mmm, peanut butter,” Brooke said as she walked past me with her arms full of chum buckets. She somehow made carrying bloody fish look sexy. Some days I hated Brooke. She was possibly the most beautiful person I had ever met. Tall, with legs that stretched into infinity, she also had perfectly sculpted abs and a megawatt smile. The thing was, she knew she was gorgeous, but she only used the advantage at the bars. She was also one of the nicest people I knew, and my best friend and roommate on the island.
Dr. Algos turned back to me. “You're in the pen today, Izzy. Feed and check the pups, and then you can have the rest of the day off. I don't want you doing any more research until we know we'll have assured access to the Grove.”
I nodded. “Have you heard anything from the lawyers?”
Doc shook his head. “Nope. I put another call in, but I they haven't responded yet. It looks like the auction date is pushed back again. Try not to worry, okay?”
I smiled and nodded. Not worrying was far easier said than done. The Grove was supposed to be the site of my doctoral project as well as a nature preserve. There was a perfect mangrove outcropping just down the road from the research center. The mangroves grew out on a promontory that stretched out into the ocean making a unique habitat. Numerous species of sharks, fish, and marine life used the mangroves to harbor their young until they were big enough to survive in the open ocean. The only problem was that it was on private property. That hadn't been a problem until the owner, who had given us permission to use it, suddenly died. The land was set to go up for auction.
We teamed up with several other scientists, hoping to buy the property and turn it into a wildlife reserve. The local government wasn't being much help in the process, but we were determined to save the Grove. Unfortunately, it was a prime piece of real estate, and we were going to be cutting it close as it was. The land was due to go up for auction any day now, and I hoped we had enough. If we weren't successful, then the best we could hope for was that the new owner would still allow us access.
Doc already had grant money lined up to investigate how the nursery habitat of mangrove trees influenced the growth of lemon sharks as part of his current investigations. I had already done months of prep and to get it ready. I had risked it, not knowing we would lose access and already started on some of my research. The Grove was perfect for the thesis I had in mind. If the new owner denied us access, then I had to figure out a new project and my work would be for nothing. Dr. Algos' grant money would disappear. It was all dependent on the Grove.
I shook my head, clearing the negative thoughts. There was nothing I could do about it right now, and worrying wasn't going to make it better. I was just offered a day off and I was going to take it. I had a new book I wanted to read and I knew a little patch of beach that was just calling my name.
“You two have fun. Catch lots of sharks,” I called out as Brooke and Dr. Algos climbed aboard the small motor boat. Brooke waved as they cast off and headed into the dark blue waters to find their quarry. I watched them disappear toward the horizon for a moment before turning and heading toward the pens.
We had two permanent pens and a third temporary one that we could set up when we did large population counts. They looked a lot like swimming pools, except they were attached to the ocean and filled with sand. Only one had occupants, and they were my favorites.
Sitting quietly on the sandy bottom were two baby nurse sharks. Two baby lemon sharks swam in lazy circles above them. The two lemon sharks were part of a tagging program while the two nurse sharks had been found tangled in fishing line.
I waded into the shallow water, a familiar thrill coursing through my skin. Every time I got in the water with these creatures, my heart would surge with excitement. These little two-foot long babies would soon be the apex predators in the ocean. I waded out to one of the nurse sharks, moving slowly and deliberately. The first was easy to catch and I checked it over to make sure that it was healing appropriately. I loved the rough shark skin against my fingers.
I let it go and found the second, performing the same check. They looked healthy and were putting on weight. A veterinarian would come by in a couple of days and check them out again, but I had a wonderful suspicion that we would be releasing them back into the Grove soon. Yet another reason I wanted the Grove to survive.
I finished checking out the sharks and giving them their feeding. I loved working with the sharks. They were beautiful and deadly, but surprisingly gentle and timid. I had even noticed personality traits the longer I worked with them.
“Bye, guys, see you tomorrow,” I told the little sharks as I stepped out of their pool and put their feeding supplies away. They didn't respond, but I didn't care.
Heading back inside, I stripped out of the wetsuit and put on my favorite tankini. Brooke kept trying to convince me to wear one of her itsy-bitsy bikinis, but I liked my more conservative swimsuit choice. I dropped a sundress over my head and grabbed my beach bag. It was time for a relaxing day reading and taking in some vitamin D.
Chapter 6
My beach spot was on the same property as the Grove, but since it didn't technically have a new owner yet, I figured it was still safe to use as my tanning spot. I set up my towel on a patch of sand and sat down. From my spot, I could see the edge of the Grove as well as a pristine sandy beach. I loved the Grove. Just being near it made my day better.
A slender woman with dark hair came out of the shadows of the mangroves. She had on khaki shorts with a cute little t-shirt and boots that shouldn't have been in the salty, mucky water of the Grove. She wore an annoyed, sour expression on her face as she headed along a small path back toward the town center. I shook my head at her. Tourists were always doing weird things on the island.
I dug my toes into the sand, feeling the cool damp of deeper sand mix with the hot dry of the top. The waves shushed gently at the shore, whispering soft nothings that I love
d to hear. The sky was clear and blue. Like Noah's eyes.
My mind went to the night before and to the dreams I had in the morning. Those eyes were going to fuel my dreams for a while. He was more handsome than was fair for a human being. He was also a tourist. No way I was going to get my heart broken for someone who was going to leave me in a week to return to their real life. I had done the right thing turning him down.
“Hi, Izzy,” a deep voice greeted me, throwing me completely off balance. Standing before me in board shorts and a skin tight t-shirt was the very gorgeous Noah. I wasn't sure how he pulled it off, but he was somehow even more attractive today. He took off his dark sunglasses and smiled down at me.
“Hi, Noah,” I answered. I ran a hand over my hair, hoping that it wasn't a total disaster. I hadn't planned on meeting a handsome man on a private beach when I left the house this morning. “How are you?”
“Doing great now,” he replied. His eyes twinkled as I stood up and brushed the sand from my legs. I wasn't sure if it was just my imagination or if there was an extra warmth in his smile that was just for me. “How about you?”
“Just getting some reading done.” I nodded toward the book on my towel. “I have the day off, so I'm just taking it easy. What are you up to today?”
“Just wandering around. Seeing the sights of the island.” A thoughtful expression crossed his face, a slight hint of a smile tilting his lips upward. “Would you be interested in some breakfast? There's a little diner down the road that I saw on my way in, and I wanted to try it.”
“You mean Adele’s? It's fantastic!” I might have sounded too eager, but I didn't care. “Heck yeah, I'm in for breakfast!” I grinned and bent to pick up my stuff. Noah reached for my book as I rolled the towel back up to fit in my bag. Our hands brushed as he gave it to me, sending a warm heat surging through my core.
Once my bag was packed, Noah offered me his arm as though he were escorting me to a ball rather than down a beach. I giggled and took it, feeling like a princess. His arm was solid and warm beneath my fingers. I was glad I was looking forward and he couldn't see me clearly, because a silly grin and a blush were coating my face.