Page 77 of Devlin

"Nervous?" her father asked, as they motored out of the harbor to the starting line.

"A little," she admitted.

"That's good. Nerves are part of this experience.You're about to test yourself. It's exciting."

"And a little terrifying. I don't want to let you down."

"You couldn't. It's just a race, Hannah; it's not the beginning or the end of anything."

"You're right," she said. But she didn't really agree, because it did feel like something was ending. Only that feeling had nothing to do with the race.

In the distance, she couldsee Devlin and Graham on theWind Warrior. Devlin looked so damn good on his boat. He was truly at home on the sea. He could never live away from the ocean. King Harbor was where he belonged. And she was starting to wonder if she belonged here, too.

But if she made the choice to move, that didn't necessarily mean that she and Devlin would be together. He'd locked his heart away a long timeago.

Would he unlock it for her?And would she be too afraid to find out?

The safest thing for her to do was to go home and live her life.

But did she want to be safe?

"If you want him, Hannah, you should make it happen," her dad said, tipping his head toward Devlin's boat.

"It takes two for that."

"I don't think the feelings are one-sided."

"Butyou warned me before that Devlin goes through women like water."

"He used to. He's been different these past two weeks. I think he finally met a woman he wants to keep."

Her heart soared at that possibility. "What if he doesn't?"

"Only one way to find out. But you're going to have to do that later. Right now, you need to focus on beating him."

"I will. I still wantthis win for us."

"Then let's go get it."

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

THE OCEAN WAS CROWDEDwith sailboats, the sea choppy, the wind currently at about 12 knots but predicted to rise to 20 knots, making for an exciting, fast race. Crowds of people were on the bluffs, where they'd get a good view of the action. But there was no betterplace than where he was. Devlin's heart beat faster as they prepared for the start. Adrenaline was flowing through his body, but he needed to keep that under control. Excitement was good, but calm was necessary to win.

As he shifted his feet, his gaze moved to theDaisy Mae, and seeing Hannah sent a different wave of excitement through him. He needed to get a handle on that, too. In fact,he needed to look away, because she was a distraction he could not afford.

"Are you sure you have it in you to win this race?" Graham asked.

"What?" He looked at his father in confusion and annoyance. "Why would you ask me that?"

"Because you haven't taken your eyes off theDaisy Mae, and I don't think it's the boat drawing your attention. I doubt it's Frank, either. But thatpretty blonde…" He paused. "You like her. I thought I saw something in your eyes yesterday, but now I know I did."

"Hannah is amazing," he muttered. "But I'm not going to hand this race to her."

"And you don't feel like you owe Frank for the hell I put him through?"

"I'm glad you finally see that you were in the wrong."

"I didn't say that."

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