Page 42 of Turbulent Fires

Audrey

By midmorning, the Avalon harbor is shimmering like a polished sapphire beneath the sun. I’m standing on the dock, one hand shielding my eyes, the other clutching a breakfast burrito Jayden just deposited into my hand.

“You’ll need the protein,” he says with a laugh. “Wolf’s about to unleash full-blown alpha mode.” He then winks before getting to work.

“Great,” I murmur, biting into eggs and spicy sausage. I look at the three brothers who move with speed and grace. “Is this the part of the Catalina brochure where it says,Caution: Competitive Brothers ahead?”

Wolf is standing near me, barefoot and shirtless, beneath a thin inflatable life vest. He looks hot as hell in all of the best ways. “You like to win, too. Don’t act innocent,” he says with a wink in my direction.

Drake hops onto the dock with a cooler slung over his shoulder and a captain’s hat that has absolutely no business looking that good on him. “It’s a Young family tradition,” he says with a grin. “It’s a sailing challenge. The winner gets bragging rights, and losers have to buy dinner.”

“I say losers have to do dishes for a month’s worth of visits,” Jayden says. “Drake’s still working off that one from the Fourth of July when he accidentally tossed the steaks into the ocean.”

“Fish eat steak too,” Drake says with a shrug. “I was being eco-conscious.”

I might be in for more than I can handle. I’m competitive, but these men are taking the meaning of that word to a whole new level. “You do realize I’ve never manned a sailboat before, and I’ve barely been on one more than a couple of times.”

Wolf saunters up next to me. “You’ll be fine, doll. You have natural balance and grace, and are good at anything you try. You’re tenacious.” He gives me a long, slow look from head to toe. “Besides, you look hella good in your sailing outfit, which is great for the captain’s morale.” He swats my butt before walking away. My cheeks heat as his brothers laugh. I don’t often get embarrassed, but apparently I’m getting all sorts of firsts with this family.

“Payback will come,” I whisper.

“I can’t wait,” he says. “It’s you and me, babe. Maybe we’ll intentionally lose and sneak off to a private cove and lose our clothes.” His eyes burn as he says this, and that sounds like a damn fine idea to me.

“No one’s sneaking off. Keep it in your pants, Romeo,” Drake says with a laugh, and I look down at the dock. I decide there will be no flirting with his brothers around. Apparently, they have bat hearing.

I step out of the way since helping is only slowing them down. They move so fast that I can’t keep up. Before I know it, Wolf’s lowering me into a beautiful sailboat. It doesn’t take long before three sailboats are slicing through the bay like white-winged birds.

Wolf is captainingThe Sea Siren. I’m standing beside him, my hair pulled into a messy knot, and my brow furrowed as I try to remember every rope, knot, and nautical term he’s been throwing at me all morning.

Drake’s captainingThe Troublemaker. It’s a very fitting name for him. Jayden’s boat is calledThe Chapter’s End. Each brother is gliding their vessel with military-like precision. I honestly don’t think there’s anything these men can’t do.

To mix things up, Cooper joined Jayden’s crew, his Coast Guard instincts twitching every time Drake makes an ambitious tack. Meanwhile, Nick, who’s sun-kissed and clearly in his element, is manning the front of Drake’s boat with a beer in one hand and a sandwich in the other.

“You’re not even trying,” Drake shouts at Nick.

“I’m contributing to morale,” Nick calls back.

Wolf turns to me. “Tighten the jib line, STAT!”

I reach for the rope, pause, then do it the other way. “I think this is better.”

Wolf blinks. “That’s not how sailing works.” He looks so confused, it’s absolutely adorable.

“I’m improvising,” I tell him.

“There’s no improvising in sailing,” he says. “You’re my first mate. We have to do this right, or they’ll kick our asses.”

“I’m not worried,” I say with a shrug. I like seeing him flustered. If he can’t handle a loss or me being less than the best, that’s a bad sign.

He gives me his signature wolfy grin that makes me take a step back. “Are you going to make me toss you overboard?” The gleam in his eyes tells me he’d enjoy that a little too much. I move another step away.

“You wouldn’t dare!”

His lips twitch, which makes me laugh. He manages to do all of this while expertly manning the boat at the same time. Even though I’m the world’s worst co-pilot, he really is handling it well. The boat slices smoothly along the coast, wind whipping around us, when a sudden gust, sharp and unexpected, tilts the sail hard.

“Grab the rail,” Wolf says as he moves into action.

I stumble, one foot slipping, but he reaches out and captures me around the waist, hauling me close as the boat leans dangerously to starboard. Water sprays over the edge, cold and bracing. The others shout across the water.

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