Page 3 of Swept Up In You

Without thinking any more, she ran out of the back door and legged it over to her unit. She still had washing on the line by the front door, so she yanked off the closest one and was back to the shop in under a minute—one of the perks of living right next door to your workplace.

Breathless, she lightly knocked on the toilet door. It opened a crack and Sam shoved the T-shirt in.

“Here you go, it’s an old one of mine you can borrow.”

The woman’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Oh, you didn’t have to do that.”

“Happy to help, uhhh…”

“Taylor,” she supplied.

“Happy to help, Taylor. I’m Sam,” she said with a smile, leaning against the doorframe. “I actually live next door, so no biggie.”

“Sam. Cool. Great to meet you. I’m just gonna…” Taylor gestured back toward the toilet.

“Oh, right, yeah, sorry! I’ll be at the counter if you need me.”

A couple of minutes later, Taylor made an appearance. Dirty top in hand and a look she couldn’t quite deciph—Oh.Shit. Sam looked down at her favourite graphic T-shirt with the large letters “Feeling Nauti’’ scrawled over the top of a sailing boat. Her cheeks burned.

“Oh my god, I am so sorry! I didn’t even think about what top I was grabbing,” Sam said, running her hands over her face. “Let me go and get you another one.”

Taylor laughed and waved her off. “Don’t worry about it. This shirt is dry and that’s all I care about. Clearly, someone is a fan of boats.”

“Yachts in particular. And a good pun,” Sam replied with a grin.

“Nice. I never realised this boat shop even existed, so maybe I should be thankful I spilled that coffee all over me.” She smiled, pausing for a moment to take in the shop she’d barrelled through. “I’d really love to go through everything you’ve got in this place, but I need to run and get back to work, I’m already super behind. Another time.”

Taylor started off toward the back of the shop and shouted over her shoulder, “Thanks again! I promise I’ll return your shirt as soon as I can.”

The back door slammed again, making Sam wince. She really did need to fix that automatic door closer before the door rattled itself off its hinges.

She puffed out a breath. She’d barely lifted her hand to wave goodbye before Taylor had already rounded the corner out ofsight. Her hand dropped back down, and she collapsed into her office chair.

Well that was more excitement than Sam usually had on a Tuesday morning. It was a nice change to have someone come in that was her age for once—and female too. The boating scene was still very much male dominated, not that she minded, as some were definitely not too bad on the eyes. Not that she was looking for a boyfriend right now. Who had time for relationships? Between work, fixing up Manny, and helping the odd customer tinker on his boat, she was exhausted by the time she got back to her place. At least she didn’t have any commuting time, which is why she loved living next door. As soon as her dad had floated the idea that she could live behind the shop, she’d jumped at the chance. It was an old sales office with a mezzanine floor overlooking the storage yard and marina below. They’d used the place as extra storage for years—concrete floors downstairs, open beams on the ceiling and a raked roof that gave it a real industrial vibe.

It had taken her three months to renovate with her dad. They’d put in a new white galley kitchen along the back, a small bathroom-and-laundry combo sectioned off to the right and left everything else open for a dining area and lounge. Upstairs, the mezzanine was now her bedroom, with marina views most people would pay a mint for. Not a bad thing to wake up to each morning.

Sam flicked back to the sailing forum she’d had open on her computer, wistfully reading about the adventures of others and their boats—one guy currently sailing around Tasmania, another family giving him tips from their boat as they headed towards Perth.

One day.

She closed out of the screen and got back to helping her dad out with the orders for the week. She was already counting down the hours until she could do more tinkering on Manny tonight.

Chapter Two

Sam rolled onto her back and reached for her phone to turn off the alarm.

Wait.

That wasn’t her alarm.

The music continued to blast through the screen door across from her bed, a light breeze bringing in each verse loud and clear. She sat up on her elbows, blinking to clear her vision. Who in the hell was playing music this loud so early in the morning?

Not that she minded a little Olivia Rodrigo—but not at this hour. Whatwasthe time? She tapped her phone. 7:05 am.Ugh. As she looked back outside, a van came into view through the yard, parking beside one of the caravans. The driver’s door opened, and the music increased in volume. The guy came around the other side of the van and slid the door open.

Wow, just when she thought it couldn’t get any louder.

Getting out his toolbox, he flicked a rag over his shoulder and moved to the closest caravan to start working, leaving the song to continue its serenade to the entire marina.

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