“That’s Cap’n Brad to you.”
I feel my eye twitch. “Okay, Cap’n Crunch Brad. Tell me something. Jake Mann hasn't been here in years. How the fuck was he able to get Quartermaster when people like me give hundreds of hours to the organization every year and I'm just a Special Pirate?"
"Special First-Class Pirate," he corrects.
I cross my arms and give him a dirty look.
Brad shrugs. "Hey, look. I have no idea, I'm just a volunteer myself. If you have questions you should contact the Pirate Board of Directors. They're the ones who make those types of decisions."
"Maybe I will." I have no intention of contacting anyone. I just want to be in my happy place at one of my favorite town events volunteering with my friends. Oh yeah, my friends. "Hey, what team are Kaylee Love and Fiona Hargreaves on?"
"Tortuga." He answers.
"Great," I say, "and who's the Tortuga Quartermaster?"
I see the panic creep into his eyes. "Don't say it," I warn.
"Jake Mann."
"I said not to say it. Well, are Kaylee and Fi already here?"
"Wait," he says, "your friends already got here and transferred out of Tortuga and into Port Royal. That must have happened before my shift."
"Fantastic news, I’m going to join them. So you just write that in your clipboard, okay? Oh, and where are the Port Royal team members right now?"
He points off to his far left, toward where the waves are crashing onto the shore. "They're over there."
"Thank you, Cap’n Brad."
If Fi and Angie chose Port Royal, then they did it for a reason. And I'll join any team if it means not having to look at Jake's face.
I breathe a sigh of relief when I see Fi and Kaylee. Right now, they're deep into sand-castle design negotiations.
"Hi."
"Hi yourself," Fi says, looking up and smiling at me. "We got here first and figured that Tortuga wasn't the place for us this year.”
I sigh. "Thanks for that. First it was Puppy-Thon, then the stupid photo shoot, and now Pirate Fest. I guess Jake’s here to screw up everything I love as fast as he can."
Fi puts her shovel down for a breather. “Oh yeah, and they named Kaylee here ceremonial Quartermaster since the official one didn’t show up."
“Hooray,” Kaylee says sarcastically. “I told those guys I’d help out with the team, but not to expect me to do any official duties.
"Oh hey," Kaylee jumps into the conversation, "how'd the photo shoot go?"
"According to the photographer, she had a toddler calendar last week with clients who were more cooperative."
"Ouch."
I laugh thinking about the last hour and how childish I acted. "It's kind of funny actually. I guess we'll be on a billboard together. But the photographer eventually gave up and shot us each separately."
"I'll call that a win," Fi says, handing me an empty five-gallon bucket. I grab it and head for the shoreline. Kaylee's going to need water. Lots and lots of water. Looks like Fi's on shovel duty providing the sand and I'll be on water duty. All in all, it's a much-needed distraction from Jake.
I fill up the bucket and head back to Fi and Kaylee.
Fi's wearing a cute yellow tank top with cream colored shorts. Her brown hair is pulled back into a loose ponytail.
She dumps a large pile of sand next to Kaylee, who is on her knees forming the shape with her hands. Kaylee's wearing jean shorts and a black tee. Her clothes are already wet from the damp sand and water mote surrounding her work-in-progress.
Kaylee's really good at this, she’s the winner three years running. I see the bag with her sculpting kit nearby, but it’s not time for that yet. Right now what's needed is lots of sand and a constant supply of ocean water.
As soon as I deliver the full bucket and grab another nearby empty one, I get a text notification. I check it. "Fuck. Seriously?"
Fi raises an eyebrow at me. "Vet emergency? Me and Kaylee can probably handle sand and water duty on our own if you need to go."
"I wish." I answer.
Kaylee turns and fixes me with a look of concern.
"Hold on,” I object, “I don't mean I wish some poor animal had an emergency, it's just that this is another message from Cara."
Cara: I heard about the photo shoot. Carolyn was not happy.
Me: Trust me, nobody was happy. But it got done.
Cara: Well then, congratulations on surviving a photo shoot.
I shake my head. Cara's a smartass. Normally it's one of my favorite things about her. But not today. Today it's just irritating. I decide to go with it: Thank you.
Cara: Ha-ha. Well, whatever the fuck is going on between you two, you'd better figure it out before tomorrow morning.
Me: Why the hell would we do that?
Cara: Meet and greet. Your vet office. Listen to me, I know you don’t like it, but there's been a LOT of buzz and community interest here with Jake on board, Angie. This is it, it's what you've been waiting for. You're welcome.
I put the phone back in my pocket.
"Uh-oh,” Fi teases, “I know that angry stare. What’s going on? Is it another photo shoot?"
"Worse. Tomorrow morning Jake Mann is going to be at my clinic.”
Chapter 9
Jake
I squint into the distance. It's not hard to spot Angie. I can see her curves and blond ponytail from here. Fi and Kaylee are close by.
Half of my Tortuga team are regularly sneaking peaks in their direction. They're hard to miss. I guess I shouldn't have expected her to walk right over here and volunteer with me.
Well, not with me, under me. Since I’m the Quartermaster. I smirk. Under me, the thought of Angie underneath me flashes through my brain, bringing back memories and making my cock twitch to attention.
Suddenly there's no blood left for my brain cells. I have to try and focus.
If Angie thinks she's going to avoid me forever, then she's mistaken. For fuck's sake, all I want to do is
