Page 25 of Tender Heart
After a minute, I try again. “Bay Shore Harbor, this is Firefly, please respond. Over.”
The crackle squeals and a voice as familiar as my own snaps through the small speaker. “This is Bay Shore Harbormaster. Over.”
“Emmett, you dolt. Busy doing nothing, buddy?”
A heady laugh echoes through the line before he says, “Yep, all slow days and leisure, my friend. What can I do you for, Cal? Over.”
“Engine’s out. ’Bout four miles out. Over.”
“Now who’s the man of leisure? You need a tow, or can I settle it out there? Over.”
“That’s your call, man.”
“Be there in—oh, shoot. I got a ferry coming in and a supply run after that. How does before sunset sound? Over.”
I hang my head. There goes my day. But Emmett will be here as soon as he can. He’s always been that way.
“Sure, man. We’ll take in the scenery. Over.”
“We? Oh, Evie’s with you? Over.”
“Yeah, bud. Two S-O-Bs.”
The radio is silent for too long before he comes back with, “No rush then. Over.”
I roll my eyes at him. Christ, that man and his damn soft side. Probably thinks if we’re stuck out here together long enough, I’ll cave on my long-standing no relationship, no women getting tangled up in my life rule. Look how that turned out last time.
“So, he’s coming eventually, then?” Evie says. Her pretty face is still carrying worry, although not as intense as before.
“He’ll be here when he can. Might as well make yourself comfortable. It’ll be a while.”
The radio whines. “You still there, Cal? Over.”
“Yup. Over.”
“Hang tight. Be there as soon as I can. Over.”
The lilt in his voice doesn’t have me convinced.
“Ten-four. Over and out.”
I hang the handpiece back on the radio body and drop into the captain’s seat, running a hand through my hair. Evie walks the deck, looking out at the gentle, rolling water. At least the weather is mild. Be a different story if a storm rolled in. With nothing better to do, I wander to where she stands at the stern. The ocean’s constant breeze plays with her long dark hair, and her clothes have dried already in the morning sunshine. But she shivers with her arms wrapped around herself.
“How’s the book coming along?” I ask.
She turns to face me and offers a small smile. “Okay, I guess.”
By the way her smile falls, she doesn’t believe a word she said.
“What’s it about?”
Now, she scoffs. “You don’t want a rundown. It wouldn’t be your genre.”
I fold my arms over my chest and tilt my head to one side. “Try me.”
She drops her gaze to the deck and sucks in a breath. Damn, woman, not this timid bullshit. Not again.
If there’s one thing I could give her during her time on Fire Island, it would be to lose the Miss Meek-and-Mild and harness that feisty side of hers. The streak of the fiery girl I’ve seen only a few times. It’s addictive. Maybe it’s a good thing she’s not like that all the time. Make my life a hell of a lot harder, not being to be able to control the effect she has on me.
