Page 52 of Fake It True

I was a strong swimmer, but I had a fishing net in hand and was wearing waders that were starting to fill with water. I did the only practical thing I could do. I kept a hold of the net because it was floating, but I began to kick with my feet and unbuckle the tops of my wader straps. After I got them off, I turned themupside down so the water drained out and hooked the boots under my armpits. When I glanced toward the shoreline again, I noticed it was further away.

There were voices calling to those of us who had gotten swept away due to the boat’s wake.

“Don’t panic, Luna,” I said to myself. “You’re going to be fine.”

I was starting to shiver. I kept my eyes on the shore and began to swim, letting go of my net finally. Only a moment later as I was starting to despair, a small boat approached and someone called my name.

When I looked over, I saw Parker and Griffin in the boat. Parker caught my eye. “We’re cutting the engine and I’m going to get you out of there.”

Parker slowly reached a hand out, saying, “Just grab my hand, Luna. I’ve got you.”

Cold as I was, my hands felt numb so it was difficult to hold on. Parker’s grip was strong and he kept a firm hold on me as he reached for my other arm. He lifted me into the boat, scooping me in his strong arms. I didn’t realize my teeth were chattering until I tried to talk.

“I didn’t kn-kn-kn-know…”

“Wait to talk,” Parker said. He held me in his protective embrace.

With it being so crowded and busy, I couldn’t even remember when I’d last seen him on the beach. He was in jeans and a T-shirt. I savored the feel of his warmth. Griffin leaned into the water to get my net and tossed it over the side of the boat. I glanced over to see another boat had gone to rescue the two other people who had drifted out.

“All right, I’m headed to shore,” Griffin said.

“You have any blankets on board?” Parker asked.

Griffin pointed to a seat. Parker kept an arm around me as he leaned over and opened it to pull out a big blanket. A moment later, he wrapped it around me.

“You don’t have to keep holding me,” I finally managed when I could catch my breath.

When he glanced down and my eyes locked with his, everything felt suspended. My heart thumped hard against my ribs, the beat of it echoing. It was as if a pebble of fire dropped into a pond and rippled through me. I became acutely aware of the feeling of his palm curled on the edge of my hip.

“We need to get you warm,” he said.

PARKER

Luna blinked up at me. Her big blue eyes were wide and her dark curls were pulled up in a ponytail. Her teeth were still chattering when she replied, “I-I-I…”

She clenched her jaw, shaking her head as if in annoyance with herself for being cold. “I’m fine,” she ground out through clenched teeth.

“Luna, that water isn’t much above fifty degrees. A quick way to get hypothermia is to swim in the ocean in Alaska in the summer. It’s pretty efficient,” I said dryly.

I reached for the towel I’d gotten with the blanket and handed it to her. She dabbed at her face with it before almost burrowing into herself. “You might have a point,” she said a moment later.

Her teeth had stopped chattering, but she was still shivering. “It was that boat wake,” she said.

“Yeah, three people got carried out. How many fish did you get so far?”

“Twenty-four. I should’ve stopped.”

I chuckled when I looked down at her again. Her shivering was slowing. At that moment, my heart gave a resounding kick and awareness struck me like a fiery bolt.

Luna was curled against me in a soft bundle. I wanted to hold her close, to protect her.

You want to do a lot more than protect her, my cynical mind chimed in.

Luna was cute, sexy, and downright delectable. I saw her just frequently enough that I had to make an effort not to notice her. She baked donuts for the local coffee shop, and she was friends with almost everybody I worked with. There was also something familiar about her. She reminded me of someone I’d met once. Just once, but the memory shined bright. Yet, Luna had crazy wild curls, while that someone had stick straight hair and a different name. I told myself again that it was just a fluke.

“Do you want to drop your net in now and catch one more?” I managed to ask.

She glanced around. “How far until we get to the boat ramp?”

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