Winds of Danger

by Christy Barritt

  But that was a bad idea. The smartest thing she could do was to keep her distance.

  She cleared her throat. “Listen, do you mind if I grab some water before I head to bed?”

  “Of course. I’ll get it for you. Do you want an orange slice?”

  She smiled. Wes remembered her preference. She loved a little citrus in her water. “Only if it’s no trouble.”

  As Wes disappeared into the kitchen, she paced to the couch and sat on the edge. She wished she was tired. She should be tired. But instead, adrenaline pulsed through her. It was going to be hard to find sleep tonight, unfortunately.

  Wes handed her an icy cool glass and then sat down a comfortable distance from her on the other end of the couch. She took a long sip.

  “Are you okay?” Wes asked. “I mean, are you really okay? I know this has to have shaken you up.”

  “I’m . . . I’m okay. I think.”

  “I know you’re probably uncertain about whether or not you can trust me. I just want to say that I would never raise a hand to a woman. Never. I’m sorry if Jennifer has muddled your thoughts.”

  Jennifer had definitely muddled her thoughts. Paige’s heart clashed with the reality of what she’d seen—those pictures. The police report.

  What should she believe? She didn’t want to be stupid.

  “In the morning, call the Virginia Beach Police Department. Maybe Cassidy can help you cut through any red tape. If you ask them, they’ll tell you that those charges were proven false.”

  She took another sip of her water. “Maybe I’ll do that.”

  If Wes told the truth, he was living out his own Fatal Attraction.

  And if Jennifer had really gone through all this trouble to make Wes look like the bad guy . . . then there really was something wrong with her. Majorly wrong.

  Paige shivered.

  Where was Jennifer right now? Was she watching them? Had she watched them . . . leave the clinic? Come here?

  Another shiver wracked Paige’s body.

  What kind of person would do something like this? Running that exhaust line could have been fatal for Paige.

  As much as her doubts plagued her, deep in her heart, she couldn’t see Wes doing something like that. But what if she was wrong . . . again?

  She cleared her throat. “I think I will go to bed. Thanks for letting me stay here.”

  “Of course.” He rose and pointed behind him. “You want to grab a knife first?”

  That’s right. Paige had said she was sleeping with a knife. She let out a soft chuckle. “No, I think I’ll be okay.”

  “Good to hear.” Wes slowly walked her down the hall to the room.

  Tension stretched between them as they stood face-to-face by her door. That invisible cord was always there, always seeming to draw them together.

  Under different circumstances, they might hug goodnight. Not a short hug either. A long, lingering one. She might kiss his cheek. She might dream about what it would be like to do more. To kiss his lips.

  Instead, Paige pushed a hair behind her ear and croaked out, “Goodnight, Wes.”

  His eyes practically seared into her soul as he looked down at her. “Goodnight, Paige.”

  She slipped into her room before she lost all her resolve.

  Jennifer’s plan would either work to pull them apart and develop distrust between the two of them . . . or it would totally backfire and pull them closer together than ever.

  Paige’s heart was rooting for the latter.

  Chapter Twelve

  Paige had hardly slept last night. Every time she closed her eyes, nightmares haunted her. Nightmares about her conversation with Jennifer. About dying in her sleep. About Wes sneaking into her room and finishing her off.

  By the time she climbed out of bed, it was eight a.m., and she felt like a zombie.

  She had to be at work in an hour. Since she had no clothes here, she’d have to face her RV again and get herself cleaned up.

  In the meantime, she glanced in the mirror and nearly flinched at her reflection. She did her best to smooth her curls before she stepped out of her room. The aroma of bacon sizzling filled the air, making her stomach grumble.

  She paced toward the kitchen and paused, watching Wes as he stood at the kitchen counter. He fried some bacon with one hand and tried to flip a pancake with the other. She smiled, instantly wanting to help him, yet enjoying the moment too much to move.

  Could this man really have a violent side? She hated that she kept having to ask herself that question, but she needed to be smart.

  And Paige just couldn’t see it.

  Yet, she needed to remain cautious. She’d never thought Owen was capable of the things he’d done either.

  Her smile dimmed at the thought.

  Wes glanced back just then and spotted her. “Good morning.”

  She shook off her concerns and stepped forward. “Morning. You’ve been busy.”

  “I thought some food might help both of us feel a little better today. I don’t know about you, but I hardly slept a wink last night. Too much on my mind.”

  “Same here.” She joined him at the counter and took the spatula from him. “Let me help with these pancakes.”

  He flashed a quick grin. “Thank you.”

  The food was done a few minutes later, and they sat at the table in his kitchen. Paige was suddenly starving and couldn’t wait to dig into the pancakes and bacon.

  “Cassidy called,” Wes started, taking a sip of his orange juice. “She wanted to check on you.”

  “That was sweet. Any updates?”

  “No, not yet. They talked to all your neighbors, but no one saw anything. Last I heard, they weren’t able to find any usable prints on the hose running to your RV. They’re also looking all over the island for Jennifer. So far, they haven’t found her.”

  Her stomach sank. She’d been hoping for better news. “That’s too bad.”

  Wes nodded. “I was hoping for more also. Cassidy also said you need to take today off work.”

  Paige raised her eyebrows as she picked up a piece of her bacon. “I don’t know about that. I have a lot to do, especially with the Beach Scrub a Dub Dub coming up—”

  “She thought of that and said you could do it from home.”

  “Home?” Her throat burned as she said the words. She didn’t really want to go back there. But she would if she had to.

  “Or from here,” Wes added with a slight shrug. “You’re welcome to work on the event from here.”

  She tried to read his expression. Did that mean he wanted her to stay here? That he felt better with her close by? Or was the gesture flippant?

  “You need to go into work today also, don’t you?” Paige finally said. “I don’t want to keep you from—”

  “I took the day off.”

  “You don’t have to do that.”

  “I only had one job, and it wasn’t an emergency. Someone wants me to change a sink fixture for them. No big deal.”

  “And you plan on babysitting me instead?” She watched his expression.

  “Babysitting?” He narrowed his eyes, like the idea was absurd. “I would never word it that way. This is what I do know. It’s my fault you’re in this mess. If anything happens to you, I won’t forgive myself. That’s the most important thing to me right now—keeping you safe.”

  “I’m flattered . . . I guess.”

  “I’m not trying to flatter you. I just can’t stand the thought of you being hurt on my account.” His words rang in the air.

  Paige felt her cheeks flush. She quickly turned back to her food, desperate for something to distract her. “I appreciate your concern.”

  “Your wish is my command. Let me know what you need, and I’m here for you.”

  “That’s sweet of you.” She ate her last bite of bacon and pushed her plate away, trying to think everything through. Sitting around all day with nothing to do sounded like a recipe for disaster.

  “What do you want to do?”
Wes asked.

  What did she want to do? Go back to the RV? No, that sounded awful. But what else could she tell him?

  She closed her eyes a minute, and her mind went to her happy place. The place that always calmed her down.

  “I want to doublecheck a few things for the cleanup event—it should only take less than an hour,” she said. “And then I want to go out on the water.”

  “Out on the water?” Wes stared at her and waited for more of an explanation.

  “That’s right. Kayaking. Paddleboarding. Windsurfing. I’d even go out in a rowboat. I just want to feel the wind on my face and going through my hair.”

  He raised his cup of coffee and nodded slowly, thoughtfully. “Okay then. I can make that happen.”

  An hour later, Wes and Paige were on a catamaran, sailing over the waters of the Pamlico Sound. They’d briefly stopped by Paige’s RV so she could get her swimsuit and change. She’d seemed nervous to go back inside, but she’d done it anyway. Wes had waited just outside her door, on guard for any signs of trouble.

  There had been none.

  The day was perfect for enjoying the water, and being out here was the ideal way to recover from yesterday’s events. Besides, out here there was no one but him and Paige. If trouble was coming, they should be able to see it a mile away.

  He glanced at the other side of the boat where Paige sat. The wind blew her hair away from her face, revealing sun-kissed cheeks and friendly freckles. She looked like she belonged out here on the water.

  They’d had many conversations before, but none of them had gone very deep. If he asked personal questions, he’d been afraid Paige might ask personal questions as well. So they’d keep things light. They’d talked about dream vacations and favorite hobbies and the best ice cream flavors.

  Suddenly, he didn’t really care anymore. He wanted to know more about Paige. About what made her tick. About why she really came here.

  Because Wes might have secrets—he couldn’t deny that. But Paige also had a few of her own.

  “You really love the water, don’t you?” Wes started.

  “What can I say? Water makes me feel like I’m at home.”

  “But you left your home in Florida . . .” Why had she left if she loved it so much?

  She shrugged and stared out over the horizon. “I did. Initially it was for college and a job. I mean, it was a small town. There weren’t many jobs there unless I wanted to fish myself, which I didn’t. My dad always said it was never the job for a lady. I figured a lady could do the job just as well as a man—I just didn’t want to.”

  “So you got a job somewhere else after college? With Fish and Wildlife, you said?”

  She nodded and pulled the tiller toward her to turn away from the wind. “I did. I think everyone always thought I’d come back. But I needed to know I could stand on my own two feet first.”

  “Why?”

  She let out a breath. “My best friend and my high school boyfriend fell in love with each other—accidentally, they said. In a strange way, I was happy for them while still being heartbroken for myself. We lived in a small town, and I kept running into them.”

  “That sounds terrible.”

  “It was. It’s hard to explain, but I just knew I needed to get away, to prove that I could survive—and thrive—without my best friend. Without a boyfriend. Without my parents paying my bills.”

  “I thought you said before that your ex-boyfriend was older?”

  She frowned. “I’ve only dated two men. Mikey and Owen. Owen is four years older than I am. I met him when I came home to visit my parents.”

  “What happened with him?”

  “Owen worked for my dad. He seemed perfect—he was fun, the life of the party, a hard worker. Then my dad caught him stealing some money from him. That’s what my dad thought, at least. Owen insisted that he’d been set up, that my dad just didn’t like him and wanted a reason of get rid of him.”

  “Did that seem like your dad?”

  “No, not at all. But Owen was very convincing. The way he explained everything made perfect sense. And I was so in love with him that I didn’t see clearly.” Tears filled her gaze but she seemed to quickly pull them back. “In the end, I had to choose between my family or Owen.”

  “I see.” That would explain the sad look she sometimes got in her eyes.

  “Foolishly, I believed Owen. I told my dad that he’d gotten things wrong, that Owen wasn’t like that. Dad argued with me, and things escalated. I told my dad I couldn’t believe he would sink so low as to frame Owen, just to get rid of him.” A tear trickled down her cheek.

  Wes didn’t say anything. He just listened.

  “I followed Owen up to Wilmington. He’d promised that we would get married and build a life together, and I was so in love that I believed him. Then one day . . . I caught Owen with another woman, and I realized it had all been lies. All of it. My dad was right . . . but it was too late to undo the choices I’d made.”

  “Is it ever truly too late?”

  She wiped the moisture beneath her eyes. “Unfortunately, yes. It’s . . . complicated. I knew I didn’t want to stay in Wilmington, but I couldn’t go home either. So here I am.” She looked at him. “How about you? How did you get here?”

  Any lightheartedness Wes had felt disappeared, but he didn’t mind talking about his past anymore. He needed to put the truth out there. “I wanted a fresh start also . . . away from Jennifer.”

  Paige’s smile slipped. “I see.”

  “Honestly, though, up in Virginia Beach, I was working for an advertising firm. My dad had been a plumber, and he taught me the trade. But he wanted a better life for me. Insisted I go to college. I just kind of stumbled into the marketing and advertising world. My best friend was studying it, so I figured, why not? Nothing else really interested me. After college, I got a job, and I did well for myself. But my heart was never really in it. I like working with my hands. Being outdoors. Moving.”

  “Those things fit you.”

  “After Jennifer . . . everything kind of came to a head, and I knew I had to make a choice. She wasn’t going to let me have a life in Virginia Beach. So I quit my job, packed a few things, and came down here. I didn’t tell anyone but my family where I was going. And I decided to do what I loved. I didn’t care if I made a lot of money or not. I just wanted enough to live on.”

  “It takes courage to take those steps.”

  “Listen, I know you’re still probably uncertain about Jennifer.” Wes’s voice dipped. “I’m sorry about that. I really am. I’ve kept my distance from women for a long time out of fear that Jennifer would somehow find out. She’s not right, Paige.”

  “She just seemed so nice . . .”

  “I know. That’s what makes her even more dangerous.” As he said the words, he looked out in the distance. A boat was coming their way.

  Certainly the driver would see their colorful sail and veer away from them.

  But he’d seen too many moments where those behind the wheel had been drinking too much or weren’t paying attention. It was just as dangerous in a boat as it was in a car.

  “What is that guy doing?” Paige muttered, her eyes fixated in the distance.

  Wes’s muscles tensed. The boat should have turned by now.

  He pushed the tiller away from him to straighten the rudder and move out of the boat’s path.

  But the boat changed course.

  It headed right toward them.

  Wes knew with certainty that wasn’t a coincidence.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Paige stared at the boat as it sped toward them. Alarm raced through her. Fear froze her muscles.

  The boat was going to hit them any minute. There was no way they could sail away quickly enough to beat it.

  One look at Wes’s face, and she knew he felt the same way.

  The boat’s motor roared closer and closer.

  Paige waved at the driver, trying to get his attention. To get him to t
urn. To correct his path.

  But whoever was behind that wheel wasn’t paying attention. A floppy hat and oversized sunglasses covered his face, not allowing them to see where he was looking.

  Or where she was looking.

  The thought caused the color to drain from her face.

  Could this be Jennifer?

  Paige couldn’t get a good enough look at the driver to tell.

  “Paige,” Wes called.

  She pulled her gaze away from the boat long enough to say, “Yes?”

  “When I count to three, we’ve got to jump.”

  “We’re so far from shore right now.” Land was only a sliver in the distance.

  “We have no choice. You can do this.” Wes glanced at the boat. “One.”

  Paige braced herself for what was about to happen. She had a life jacket on. But she knew they were far enough out that the current would determine where they ended up—and it could be the ocean if the water pulled them far enough toward the south.

  “Two.”

  The boat was only a few feet away. She tried to see the identification number on the side, but it was coming at them too fast.

  “Three!” Wes grabbed her hand, and they dove into the water. They surfaced in time to see their catamaran split into uncountable pieces.

  Paige’s heart raced when she saw the wreckage.

  That could have been her and Wes.

  The boat sped away, unaffected by the collision.

  As Paige floated there, she stared at the driver one more time.

  She couldn’t tell if it was a man or a woman. If it was Jennifer or not.

  But, for the time being, she was just thankful to be alive.

  Now she and Wes had to figure out a way to ensure they stayed alive.

  “Are you okay?” Wes studied Paige for any sign of injury as they treaded water. Other parts of the sound were shallow, but they were far enough out that the water was easily over their heads. Paige’s hair clung to her skin and shock was evident on her face. In the distance, he heard the buzz of the boat as it sped away.