Page 78 of Wed to the Devil

Talia laughs at some of my embarrassing moments, but there are also sad parts, too.

“You know, I’ve never actually been here. My mother was interred here a year after she died.”

She gives me a startled glance. "Really?"

"Yes. I've never been, but I've sailed by the island countless times. It makes me feel... closer to my mother, I guess."

"We should go visit the grave while we are here. Or we can walk to it and you can go alone. Either way."

I shoot her a scornful glare. "Why would I want to do something like that?"

Talia raises her hands. "It was just a suggestion, Dare. No one is going to make you do anything you don't want to do. I just thought it might be nice, since we are on the island."

Heat rises to my face. "Just drop it, Talia."

She looks disappointed at my reaction but doesn't push me any further on it.

As I am helping Talia back on the boat, she passes by an open foot locker that is bolted to the deck. She almost walks right by it, then stops and backs up. I look over her shoulder to see what she's noticed.

She's looking at the two dozen unused children's life vests, still wrapped in sheets of plastic.

"Are you planning on fathering a lot more children than I anticipated?" she jokes. "If so, we need to have a serious talk."

"No." I give her an amused glance. "The vests are for Outbound Outriggers."

Talia throws up her hands.

"You're saying words that I recognize as English. But I have no idea what they mean and the order that you're saying them in has me stumped."

"It's a project that has been on the back burner for a couple of years. I want to bring a bunch of kids out to the boat."

She looks skeptical. "Where are you going to get these kids from? And what are they going to do once you've got them here?"

"I haven't really figured out the details. But sailing at a young age helped me gain confidence. It wasn't just about learning technical skills. It was also about building character, learning to trust and believe in myself, and connecting with nature."

Her jaw drops. For a moment, Talia is genuinely speechless.

"Are you saying that you would bring at-risk kids onto the boat and teach them life skills?"

My neck heats. "Yeah, sort of."

"You've been thinking about helping others, for no reason other than that you have the resources to do it?"

I scrub a hand through my hair. Her awe makes it seem like she didn't know I ever thought about anything other than how I can make more money. That isn't exactly flattering and I find her astonishment embarrassing.

"Yes."

Talia's face lights up with delight. She tackles me, hugging me so hard that the breath is knocked from my lungs. I pat her back awkwardly, my face heating.

"Chill out. It's just a vague thought," I say.

Her arms loosen and she straightens.

"You named the organization. You also have started getting the gear you'll need. I would say it's definitely more than a stray thought."

My gaze slides away from her excited face and finds the horizon over her shoulder. I shrug noncommittally.

"Maybe."

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