by Jillian Neal
Grady lifted the radio to his mouth and called over to Orion. “Pick it up, Nate. I need to get back,” he ordered.
“You got it, but we’re at a pretty good clip now. Your fishermen are gonna puke if you don’t bring it down a few knots.”
“Then get somebody to scrub my deck when we get back.” Grady pressed the accelerator harder.
He navigated around the Barriers much faster than was really safe, but he didn’t give a damn. When he could see the shoreline, he called Beau.
“What are you doing?” Beau was approaching panic as he appeared on the bridge.
“Take her in. Clean her up. Fillet the fish they want cut. You keep the money.” Grady debated jumping in and swimming to shore, but, among other things, that would be stupid. If he didn’t jump far enough, he might not have time to get away from the boat at the clip he had it flying, and if he did, he would be soaking wet when he got to Nadya.
“You’re letting me take Gemini in?” Beau was stunned.
“Yeah, unless you don’t think you can manage it.”
“I can do it. You just haven’t ever let me drive this boat.”
“I am now.” Grady gestured his hand to the wheel and left the bridge. He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and called Nadya determined to do right by Ryan. He wouldn’t out his call. He deeply appreciated anyone that looked out for his angel.
“Hey, good lookin.’ Where are you? I miss you?” He tried to modulate the worry from his tone.
“Hey.” Her relieved elation pricked at his heart. “I’m at the Inn. Are you almost here?” She paused for the length of time it must have taken her to race to the front porch of Ruth Cooper’s Inn before exclaiming, “I see the boats!”
Chuckling to cover his heartbreak, he swallowed down guilt, regret, and a hearty dose of panic that gnawed at him. “Yeah, angel, we’re almost there. Stay put. I’ll pick you up in just a minute.”
Bracing his hands on the rails, he leapt the bow and landed on the dock before Beau guided the ship in beautifully. He made quick work of scrubbing fish oils from his hands and running a rag over his face. Two minutes later, he hopped in his truck and took off towards the Inn.
She flew into his arms before he’d even slammed the truck door shut. “Hey, angel, you okay?” He lifted her up into his arms as she wrapped her legs around his waist. “I haven’t showered. You may not want to get too close,” he lamented as she continued to nuzzle her face against his neck.
The anthem of her infectious giggle eased a little of his worry as he set her gently back on her feet. “I need a shower, too.” With one quick embrace, the sparkle was back in her eyes. He just had to figure out how to keep it there when he had to be away.
“Do you, angel? Bet I could take care of that.” Unable to keep his lips from hers, he guided her face upwards and indulged himself in a taste of her beautiful mouth.
A flash fire sparked in her eyes when he pulled away. “You won’t believe what happened while you were gone. I thought someone was breaking in the houseboat. I ended up pepper-spraying Officer Sinclair, but it’s actually a good thing.”
“What the hell?” No wonder she was a disaster and had run to the Inn. Panic over whatever had happened to her mixed with relief that anyone would have been shaken up over an attempted break-in. Maybe she wasn’t quite as bad off as he’d allowed himself to believe. “Tell me exactly what happened.”
“Okay, just let me go get my bag and tell Sienna good-bye. You want to come in?”
“Nah, angel. I’ll wait right here. I’m filthy. Sienna doesn’t want me in the Inn like this.”
She returned a few moments later, and Grady tried to read her mood. “Hop in the truck, angel, and tell me what happened with that shit, Sinclair.”
By the time he parked the truck at the office, “So, I saw the doorknob turning and I completely freaked out. I just kind of flung open the door and drowned him in that pepper spray and then I kicked him in the balls. Not that he has any,” fell from her mouth.
Not certain whether to laugh hysterically at her vehemence or to drive out to the police station, find Sinclair, and beat the ever-loving shit out of him for scaring her so badly, Grady shook his head. In that moment, he decided that if she had returned to him only out of a subconscious fear of being alone, that it was okay. He lived for her. She had returned to him. That was all he needed. He could work from there to prove to her that they were meant to be together forever.
“Okay, you, my little angel, are coming with me whenever I have to go out on a trip, at least until we figure out what the hell is going on with Sinclair, and Beau, and whatever else is coming next.”
Her face twisted with worry. “Are you sure, Grady? I feel like such a big baby. I’ll be okay, eventually. I don’t want you to think that I’m only here because I’m afraid. I really do love you. I always have. I just got lost for a long time.”
He’d always sworn she could read his mind, and once again, like a drug that healed his every wound, she’d answered the unspoken worry that had been gnawing at him since the first night he’d held her in his arms again.
“Nady, angel, you’re not a baby. You’ve been through hell. I want you with me always. I want to take care of you. It’s okay to be afraid, but I will always keep you safe. I’m worthless without you. I’ll do anything that needs to be done to make this work. I don’t care what brought you back to me. I’m just so fucking glad you’re here.”
“I’m really glad you took me back, and truthfully, I’d really like to go out on the boat with you for a while. I think that might help, just until we really get settled in.”
“Good, because I wasn’t taking no for an answer.”
“Don’t get bossy, Captain Havens. I do still have my rebel Gypsy heart.”
A low, possessive groan rolled from Grady’s lips. “Oh, angel, believe me, I know. Your rebel Gypsy side is what I live for. Now, meet me in the shower in five minutes. I’ve been thinking about you all damn day.”
Before she could make a reply, Grady saw someone darting away from the houseboat. The guy ducked around Nate, who was helping their passengers load coolers of fish into their trucks. Nadya gasped in shock.
Grady leapt from the truck, but the guy was young and quick. He whipped to the side around Grady’s door and flew into the trees that lined the backside of the two-lane than ran the length of Gypsy Beach.
“Who was that?” Nadya was shaking violently as she managed to extract herself from the truck.
“I don’t know. He must’ve gotten spooked when the ships pulled in and unloaded.”
“So, he’s just been there behind the houseboat all this time?”
“I don’t know, angel. Come here to me.” Thinking it would serve her well if he just kept her in his arms, Grady tried to determine what to do next as he wrapped her against him. He couldn’t have her there if someone was determined to do something to his boats.
Nate sprinted towards them. “Who the fuck was that? He was on the back deck of your houseboat. I didn’t see him ‘til he ran.”
“No idea. He looked young.”
“Yeah, no more than eighteen or nineteen. I’ll call Bevins. Take her inside. Maybe Beau knows him. He went on to check on Pops. I wish he’d been here.”
“Grady, I forgot to tell you something Sinclair said.” The words choked from Nadya as she lifted her head from his chest.
Nate edged closer.
“What, angel?”
She swallowed harshly and glanced back towards the houseboat. “He said he saw some guy around the houseboat. He said he thought he was your partner. I thought he was trying to scare me, or make me glad he was there, or some sick thing like that, but maybe he wasn’t.”
“Wait. Sinclair was back out here?” Nate quizzed.
“Long, insane story. I plan to have words with our favorite officer tomorrow, but I’ll tell you about it later.”
Nate chuckled. “You talking with your mouth or your fists?”
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��He scared my angel. I’d say the odds are pretty damn good I’ll use both.”
“Figured that. Maybe I’ll tag along. Nobody messes with Nady.”
“No. You can’t. Don’t you see? This is a good thing. Now, he has to leave you alone. Beau, the boats, everything. Plus, I’m pretty sure he’s half blind from the pepper spray, and if he had any balls, they’re long gone.”
Grady and Nate both cracked up.
“Like I said. Nobody messes with Nady.” Nate shook his head. With a wave, he headed to his Tahoe after making sure everyone had their catch.
Running his hands over his face, trying desperately to understand how everything in his entire world had gotten turned upside down, Grady, once again, found himself deciding to work moment to moment. It was the only real option. He desperately needed a shower, and if he were being perfectly honest, he needed to have Nadya again. Something about being with her made all of the doubt that refused to leave him peace dissolve.
“Grady, I don’t understand any of this, but I’m not feeling very lucky lately.” When he pulled his hands away from his face, he settled them on her shoulders and rubbed up and down her arms. She was spinning a strand of her long hair round and round her bandaged index finger and gnawing her inner lip like she hadn’t eaten in a week.
“What happened?” He gently touched her fingertip.
“I dropped my soldering iron.” She sighed. “See, I’m a disaster. I’m not lucky anymore.”
“Angel, none of this has anything to do with you. The burglaries started weeks before you ever got on that plane and headed back here, and nothing ever changes. Something bad happens, blame the Gypsies. Gotta be our fault. It’s our heritage. And you dropped the iron because of that fuck, Sinclair. You have Gypsy blood, Nad. You sense things. You always have.” He brushed a tender kiss over the bandage.
“What are we going to do?”
“I have a few ideas. If we’re gonna make this work, rebuild what we lost, we have to have somewhere to live that you feel safe. So, I’m planning on starting there.”
“You’re always trying to take care of me, and I hurt you so badly. I’m just so sorry.”
He guided her trembling body back into his arms. “I think we both did our fair share of hurting the other one. We were young, and terrified, and we had no fucking clue how to get back to what we’d had before. I never blamed you for leaving, angel. Like I said, I’m just so glad you’re back.”
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” She couldn’t halt the apologies. “I don’t understand why I did that. I’m just so sorry.”
“Nad, stop. Come on, angel. Shhh. It’s going to be okay. We’re gonna get through this. Just trust me to take care of you this time.”
“You took care of me last time.”
“I did the best I knew how to do, but sometimes that’s just not enough. I also pitched a God-almighty fit and scared you to death. You were sixteen years old. I didn’t know how to be enough, but now I do. And if I figure out that I don’t, I’ll ask for help. I was terrified to do that then. I was convinced no one would help us after what we’d done.”
“They kicked us out of school. Everyone stared at us all the time. Our parents were furious. No one would help us.”
“But things are different now. Let’s just take this a day at a time, okay? I need to know that you’re in this with me.”
“I am. I swear, Grady.”
“I believe you.” He brushed a kiss on her forehead. “Come on, let’s get cleaned up and go get some barbecue at Moe’s. I’m sick of fish. Tomorrow, after we get back from the trip and from seeing Pop, I’ll have figured out what all we need to do.”
“Okay, but if we go out, I’m paying.” Her eventful day had done nothing to ease her stubborn streak.
“Nad, I made a ton of money today. Two full price trips, and they paid for us to filet them all. Let me take you out. Let me take care of you.”
“You are taking care of me. You are always taking care of me. If I can’t pay, I’m not going with you.” The defiant challenge in her eyes told him arguing would be futile. “You have to let me help, too. This is a two-way deal. We’re building it back. I did take pretty good care of Sinclair today, so stop rejecting my help, even if I am afraid of everything. And sometimes my help can be the money I’ve earned. You spent your entire childhood taking care of me and of Nate, and Beau, and your dad, and everyone. Let me help you.”
Squeezing his eyes shut, not certain how many more twists and turns he could endure in one day, he managed a slight nod. “Okay, fine, but know, Nadya, that from the time you shoved that kid on the school playground down, jumped on his back, and made him lick the dirt because he said I was I was a dirty Gyp with no mama, all I’ve wanted to do is take care of you. That’s what makes my whole world spin. I don’t want you to have to spend your money on me and my problems. I want to be the one to take care of you. That’s all I’ve ever wanted.”
“I said he had to lick it a hundred times, but the teacher got me off his back and he’d only licked it five. I’m still mad about that.”
Chuckling in spite of himself, he knew he would never love anything more than her. He just had to figure out how to get them through all of this and how to figure out this money situation.
He watched her jaw clench and her eyes narrow as she stared up at him. “Do you remember that night when I was in second grade? When my mom left to go to work, and I was so terrified because Mac and Molly were out of town, and she’d told them she’d gotten me a sitter, but she hadn’t.”
“Yeah, angel. I remember. That wasn’t the last time she did that.”
“I know, and where did I always go when I got scared?”
He shook his head, refusing to take credit for doing nothing more than being in love with her from the moment she set foot on his Granddaddy’s dock when she was five years old, asking if he’d like to share a pack of Oreos Mac had given her. He’d been so hungry he couldn’t think. There hadn’t been enough food for dinner the night before. He’d given his portion to Nate and Beau.
Pops had gone out on the ships long before Grady had gotten his brothers up and tried to make them cereal, but the box was empty and there was no milk. He’d slipped through the hole in the chicken-wire fence from the farm a mile from their house, but he’d been too late. There were only two eggs the farmer hadn’t collected. He’d tried to make them for his brothers.
By lunch, he was still alone and starving. She’d gone back to the old coffee shack, long before it had been expanded and remodeled, and had gotten him two sandwiches and a glass of milk. She just kept coming back with food, and he kept letting her feed not only his stomach but his weary soul. She made him laugh. They talked endlessly about everything that seemed important to a five and seven-year-old. He remembered watching her eyes sparkle when she talked about the things she was certain rich people had.
“I tapped on the window to your bedroom almost every night, and you opened that window and helped me climb through. You were barely nine years old, and you saved me dinner every night, and then let me sleep in your bed with you. You have always, always taken care of me, Grady. Please, let me take care of you now.”
Emotion stung his eyes. He’d tried so hard to take care of her, yet he’d failed. No one should have been surprised when she turned up pregnant. No one had even cared that they’d been sharing a bed since she was seven. She was his best friend. It had been many years before he’d made her his lover. Back then, he’d just wanted her beside him, to know she was safe, and that was still all he wanted.
“We used to be a team.” Defiance lit the fire in her eyes. “If you were hungry, I got you food, and if I was scared, you made it go away. Please, let me help you with all of this.”
He certainly couldn’t argue that. “Okay, angel. I’ll try. I swear I’ll try.” When she stepped closer, he reached out and dragged her up into his arms. “Okay?”
“Okay.” She squeezed her arms tightly around his neck, and he never wa
nted to let her go. Together was the only way they’d ever been able to get through this whole fucked up world.
Though he tried with all his might, it was more difficult to slip into a younger version of himself at their favorite BBQ joint knowing that she was paying. He called himself a prick of epic proportion, reminded himself that her ex had an issue with her success, and ordered himself to settle into the outstanding ribs and pulled pork on his plate.
He let the drawl of the country music ease his soul, though he much preferred classic rock. She grinned at him as he dragged another napkin across his lips to wipe off the rib sauce.
“I could get that for you.” She waggled her eyebrows.
“There’s something else entirely I’d like you to lick up for me, angel, if you’re still hungry.”
“Yum, I’ll get to that later.”
He arched his eyebrow in intrigue as I Swear by John Michael Montgomery, a song she often belted out in their youth as he drove her around town, swelled from the jukebox. “You know, I was completely fucked up at that full moon fire. I couldn’t believe you were back in my arms. Didn’t give you much of a dance, angel. Can I get another one?”
Delighted, she leapt up from the booth. He guided her to the small screened in porch that served as the dance floor, decorated with gaudy Christmas lights, NASCAR collector plates, and several beer bottle displays, and spun her into his arms.
“All mine,” he husked as he swayed her back and forth, making certain she felt the way his body encapsulated hers in his safety and the effect she was having on him. Her eyes flashed as she lifted her head, and he captured her lips with his mouth, devouring her. His right hand slipped down her back underneath her long fall of thick, black hair. He took hold of her sexy little ass in those blue jeans that had been driving him to distraction. His fingers squeezed and massaged her, and he didn’t give a damn who saw them. She was his, and he wanted the whole fucking world to know.
He shot several predatory glares to admiring men who’d had their eye on his angel ever since she walked in. She’d never had any trouble garnering male attention. She was beautiful, and her curves went on for miles. Her wild side played heavily in her eyes, and there weren’t many red-blooded American males that didn’t sit up and take notice when she walked in. But she’d only had eyes for him fourteen years ago, and the way she melted into him while they danced said she’d never look away again. She buried her face against his neck, hiding away in him.