Page 42 of Knockin' Boats
“Ash?” Hudson prompted. “You okay?”
“Where’s my boat? I left it here this morning.”
He winced. “Your stepdad came by to collect it. He said you knew. I figured he’d come back for you later.”
Son of a bitch. I should have known Rick wouldn’t let me get away with taking the boat all day twice in a row. When was he going to leave town already?
I dug into my pocket for my phone, and sure enough, there was a text message.
Rick:
Took MY boat back. What the hell are you thinking, taking it all day?
Rick:
Find your own way home.
“Fuck,” I muttered.
“Everything okay?” Hudson asked, brow creased.
I grimaced. “Eh, well, Rick is pissed I took the boat, but if I hustle, I can grab a taxi.”
“I’ll give you a ride home,” Hudson said.
“But you usually leave by now.”
“I’ll call Fisher. He’ll understand.”
Hudson helped me haul everything to the kitchen for safekeeping overnight. The refrigeration ran off the boat’sbattery power, so I didn’t want to chance using it when the boat wasn’t running.
Then we headed over to Hudson’s boat.
Rick had throttled my high from a successful day, and now my head throbbed with a stress headache.
And the more I thought about dealing with Rick when he was in a confrontational mood, the worse it got.
“Ash, you don’t look so good,” Hudson said.
“It’s just been a long day.” I tried to ignore the throb behind my eyes. “I really need to find a place over in Swallow Cove.”
“If you’ve got transportation problems, that’s definitely a good idea.”
“Sorry about this again. I had no idea Rick was going to pull this crap or I’d have made better arrangements from the start. He’s not happy I quit the DreamBoats, so…”
“You’re living with him?”
“Just for now,” I said quickly.
Hudson tugged at his beard. “Hmm.”
We reached the dock and I directed him toward my house. Had it really just been twenty-four hours since I’d kissed Sawyer by this dock? It felt more like a month. Or maybe a year.
“Listen, Ash,” Hudson said. “You may not be interested, but I’ve got a houseboat.”
“Yeah?” I asked, trying not to get my hopes up.
“It’s just sitting empty. I was thinking of renting it. Hadn’t gotten around to it. If you wanted?—”
