Page 47 of Beauty and the Bayou

“So you’ve been off messing around with Mitch, and Juliet’s been working by herself?”Sawyer broke in, bringing the conversation back to the original subject.Or at least the one he was most interested in.These tangents could go on for hours and hours.And hours.He knew that for a fact.

“Well, yeah,” Chase said, a little sheepishly, letting Sawyer change the subject.“But I promise you, she’s fine with it.She’s glad I’m having some fun and learning some new things.”

Chase obviously knew Juliet better than Sawyer did and he’d been here with her every day.It was entirely possible that shewascompletely fine with it.Still, it seemed wrong that she was out there doing it alone.

No, she wasn’talone.Kennedy was right inside the office, Ellie and Cora were just across the street, and Maddie, Owen, and Josh were coming and going on the docks all day.It was also possible Juliet liked the alone-ish time.It was actually damned difficult tobealone here.It was one of the things he loved best about Autre and his family.None of them knew much about being alone, and Sawyer, for one, preferred it that way.

Still, it bugged him to think of Juliet out there working by herself.

But he had to be cool here.No overreacting.Noworrying.No hovering.She was a grown woman with a hard hat who, from what he could tell, was doing a great—if slow—job cutting boards.What the hell did he have to worry about anyway?

“Learnin’ some new things like what?You’ve never heard the word fuck used so eloquently?Or you’ve never been fishing before?”Sawyer asked.

“No to the fishing thing,” Chase told him.

“Seriously?”Josh asked.“You were never on a boat before you stole ours?”

Chase looked around as if he wasn’t sure he should admit what he was about to say.“I’ve been on boats.”

“Just not fishing?Waterskiing or something?”Josh asked.

Sawyer could tell his brother thought he knew what Chase was going to say.At least, pretty close.But he was going to make the kid say it out loud.

Chase sighed.As if he knew what was coming.“Just…boats.Big boats.”

“Like pontoons?”Josh asked, grinning.

“Like…yachts,” Chase finally admitted.

Everyone at the table laughed.Clearly they’d been expecting the answer.

“Yeah, guessing the airboat ride was a little different than drinking mimosas on the deck of your daddy’s yacht,” Kennedy said with an eye roll.

“I prefer Bloody Marys, actually,” Chase said, with a feigned haughty air.

Kennedy laughed.

Obviously, no one else was all that concerned about Juliet feeling left out or working while Chase was playing.Sawyer shouldn’t be, either.She was actually getting exactly what she wanted—Chase spending time with guys who were very different from his brothers and college friends.She wasn’t here for her.She was here for her brother and the dock.

She was probably thrilled with Chase going off with Mitch and spending time up at Ellie’s.Besides, surely she knew she couldaskfor an airboat ride or a tour or to go fishing or any other damned thing she thought sounded fun.

“Did you at least invite her along?”Sawyer heard himself ask.

“Invite who?”Mitch asked.

“Juliet,” Sawyer said with a sigh.

“Oh.Of course I told her she could come,” Mitch said.

“She said no?”

“She did.Pretty adamantly actually.”

Sawyer looked at Chase.“Adamantly?She doesn’t like boats?”

Chase shook his head.“Not at all.”

“Even the yachts?”Sawyer asked dryly.

---