Page 1 of One More Time

Chapter One

McKenna

What felt like hours upon hours after the wedding, I wandered through the main area of the ferry where we had the reception. It was summer in Alaska, so the sun had just set even though it was well past midnight. I stood in the room, spinning in a slow circle. Staff had swept away all evidence of the wedding, so the ferry would resume regular operations.

My heart pinched when my eyes snagged on a daisy that had fallen on the floor. I loved daisies, but they’d been ruined for me by my high school boyfriend.

Forget him.

I hated his name and didn’t even like to think it. My one serious ex-boyfriend had left deep scars of cynicism in my heart when I’d learned the helpful lesson that some people wanted me for all the wrong reasons. He used to give me daisies.

“Whatever,” I muttered to myself.

The newlyweds had retired to their honeymoon suite, one of the tiny cabins on the ferry. My brother Kenan insisted it would be romantic, even if it was crowded.

I shook my wistful thoughts away, focusing on how happy I was for my brother and Quinn. Nothing was better than best friends falling in true love.

With another spin, I walked out of the empty room. By the sounds coming from the cafeteria kitchen, I imagined they were prepping food for the following day.

I walked outside and saw the front deck, where a few people milled about the open area where tents were set up. The Alaska ferry system had options. There were actual cabins, a place to put up tents on the big deck, and a covered area with heat lamps where people claimed lounge chairs to sleep on in sleeping bags. Communal showers were available for those who didn’t have their own cabins.

I stayed along the side deck where it was just me, accompanied by the sound of the ocean water lapping gently against the hull as the ferry moved through the dark waters of the Gulf of Alaska. When I rested my elbows on the railing, the metal felt cool against my skin. I took a slow breath, breathing in the crisp, briny air.

The sky was darkening to indigo with the barest hint of daylight left. I heard footsteps approaching and glanced to my side. My heart jolted as my eyes landed on the silhouette. I had looked at this man a few too many times this evening.

Jack Hamilton, the reason for my accidental black eye. I lifted my fingertips, lightly touching the flat of my cheekbone under my eye. It was puffy and a little sore.

“Hey, Jack Hamilton,” I called over. A little splash in the water near the boat punctuated my voice.

A few long strides later, Jack stopped beside me. He had his hands stuffed in the pockets of his jeans. “Hey, McKenna Cannon,” he replied, his voice laced with a hint of humor.

“Nice wedding,” he added after the moment began to stretch between us.

I tried to ignore the way my pulse kicked along faster and faster. “It was nice.”

He stepped closer, stopping maybe only a foot away from me. I angled to face him slightly. He rested his hip against the railing, leaning an elbow on it. He studied me for a moment, his eyes lingering on my eye, the one that collided with the door he opened in the hallway hours and hours ago.

“How is your eye? It doesn’t look too bad.”

“Some good tricks with makeup help,” I said dryly.

“I’m sorry,” he offered.

“There’s really no need to apologize. It doesn’t hurt much. I was walking too fast and not paying attention. All you did was open the door. Maybe we should blame the ferry. Those hallways are narrow.”

Jack’s chuckle sent sparks scattering across the surface of my skin. Tingles spun in my belly.

“I’m glad it doesn’t hurt too much,” he added.

“It’s a good story. Maybe we should go on a date so I can say you gave me a black eye when we met,” I teased.

What in the ever-loving fuck?

I wasn’t supposed to ask anyone out, much less this ridiculously hot man. My hormones’ happiness at the sight of Jack was super inconvenient.

Jack was quiet for a beat. “Maybe we should.”

For a few seconds that felt suspended, I trusted the look in Jack’s eyes—the heat banked there, the intensity, and the encompassing focus on me.

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