Page 84 of Ship Happens

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I glance back at Ezra and Cat. It’ll be a minute before I need to run for my station. Frankie is locked in, watching as Cat hauls bucket after bucket to the slanted pit she’s dug. She should be fine for a moment.

“Hey, I’ll be right back,” I say to Bennett.

He waves me off, too focused on the event to spare me two seconds of his attention.

Shaking my head, I hurry over to Ice Pick. I squat beside him and place a hand on his shoulder. “Ice, talk to me, man.”

He blinks and swipes his hands over his eyes, then runs his hairy forearm under his nose. When he finally realizes it’s me, he smiles. “Oh, hey. Sorry I lost it for the team. I just...”

His lower lip quivers, and I haven’t been this tempted to comfort a grown man in my entire life.

Oh . . . fuck what the guys think.

I lean forward and pull Ice Pick in for a hug. I regret it when I take a breath in, but that’s okay. He’s sad, and sometimes it’s tough to shower when we’re sad.

Deodorant would have been nice, but?—

“Ice, I’m sorry we killed your girlfriend.” I pat his back and try to think of something more eloquent to say. “I mean,wedidn’t kill her. But we kind of set it up so thatyouwould want to kill her.”

Okay, that sounded better in my head, but I’m pretty sure it only made things worse. His shoulders shake as he starts to cry. Loudly.

I glance around to see if anyone has noticed, but each lane is hyper-focused on their own team. Even Ice Pick’s ex-teammates have gathered near Jim to root for their favorites.

Grim’s teammate has finally started digging a hole, and Ezra has damn near drowned his Cattle. The Confessor isn’t far behind him. Cat’s sloped design proves genius, and she’s able to slide her squirming Cattle down the sandy bank until his nose and mouth dip below the water.

When Ice Pick finally pulls back to take a breath, I see that he left a large snot stain on my shirt. Lovely. He swipes it with his hand and apologizes.

“It’s fine, but I need to get back to my team. Come with me, okay?” I get to my feet and dust the sand from my knees, then reach out for him. I’m surprised when he slips his hand in mine and smiles as he allows me to help him stand. “You’ll be all right. It doesn’t feel like it right now, but you will. Just...if you ever need someone to talk to, come to me. Yeah?”

Ice Pick chuckles and eases his hand out of mine. “Don’t go getting mushy on me, kid.” He looks at me and sobers. “But yeah. If I ever need someone to talk to, it’ll be you.”

We turn to walk back to the group and nearly bump into Frankie.

“Sorry,” she whispers, and when I see that adorably sheepish smirk, I almost believe she is.

“I’ll meet you over there,” I tell Ice Pick. “Go stand with Aven.”

Ice Pick nods, swiping the residual tears from his eyes as he hurries to join the boys.

“That was incredibly sweet,” Frankie says as she steps into me. “It’s kind of hot to see you nurture someone’s brokenness after the way you broke me last night.”

A breeze kicks up and sends her hair around her face. She laughs and brushes it away, and I’m stunned by how beautiful she is. I’m so taken aback that I can’t even form words.

She glances over her shoulder. “Cat’s nearly done, and Aven’s already running for the bat. Maybe we should get back to it.”

I place my fingers under her chin and gently force her to look at me. “And you’re certain this is what you want to do?”

“Are you trying to talk me out of it again?”

“No, if you want to do it, I won’t fight you on it.”

Momentary panic flits through her eyes. “Do you plan to punish me later by not punishing me at all if I go through with it?”

A laugh bursts out of me. I can’t help it. She’s genuinely worried I won’t toss her around if she commits to the game. “Sweetheart, punishing you in that way would only be a punishment to myself. My concern is only for you and what this could do to you on a mental level. Just...Just remember that you don’t have to do it if you don’t want to. If you get to your station and have second thoughts, just?—”

Bullhorn feedback cuts off the end of my sentence, as well as my train of thought. “At station two, you must place your forehead on the upright bat and spinfiftytimes!” Jim screeches. “Once you’ve completed the appropriate amount of revolutions, you may snatch up the bat and use it to beat your Cattle senseless!”

“We gotta get back in line,” Frankie says. She stands on tiptoes and places a soft kiss on my lips. “Just trust me, Maverick. I’ll do what’s best for me, even if that means walking away from the kill. I just need to know that my decision won’t change how you feel about me, regardless of the outcome.”