Jerricho chuckled quietly and said, “Nope, it’s all good.” He quickly helped her onboard.
And, with that, Diesel untied from the wharf, hopped into the front, and then gently pushed away from shore.
She watched as they used the long-handled poles to move from the sandy shore. “Looks like you’ve done this a time or two.”
“A time or two,” he said quietly. He looked over at her, smiled, and said, “How was your nap?”
“Not long enough apparently,” she said, “because this still doesn’t make much sense.”
“Do you always sleep until it makes sense?”
“Somewhat, yes,” she said, yawning. “How long will we be here?”
“Long enough, if you want to close your eyes again,” Jerricho murmured.
She shook her head. “This is a unique experience. I’m okay to sit here and to enjoy it for a bit.” And then a question popped out. “Why aren’t we at the airport?”
“It’s closed temporarily,” Diesel said from up front. At that Jerricho stepped forward and pointed out something in the distance. “We decided it was time to change plans.” Diesel sat down beside her, as Jerricho started the outboard motor. Diesel looked at her intently. “Are you okay?”
“I’m okay,” she said. “A little confused but willing to keep going.”
“I get that you trust me because you don’t have much else for options,” he said, “but we really do need you to trust us so, when we tell you to do something, so we know that you’ll do it.”
“Have I not yet so far?” she asked.
Chapter 11
Eva was awake now at least. It seemed like she had been woken and slept, and woken and slept, and it was just this bad dream. As she sat here, she felt the wind pick up. Instantly Diesel wrapped an arm around her and tucked her up close.
She looked up at him and smiled. “You seem to be doing that a lot.”
“What?”
“Hugging me.”
“Just trying to protect you from the wind.”
“Maybe,” she said, “but I like it anyway.”
He burst out chuckling. “Glad to hear that.”
She smiled. “Of course, if it’s just a work thing, then maybe that should be a different issue altogether.”
“In what way?” he asked, tightening his arms and shifting his position.
She snuggled in, as the wind picked up. “How much farther do we have to go?” she asked, changing the subject.
“We’re heading out to that black speck,” he said, pointing.
She shivered. “That’ll mean I’ll get colder.”
“I’m here,” he said. “Just lean against me.”
She smiled. “That’s what I mean. You’re always looking after my comforts.”
“I’m trying to keep you safe,” he said.
She nodded, her body instinctively stiffening slightly.
“Did I say something wrong?” he asked, his low tone against her ear.
“No,” she said, “not at all. I just have to remember that you’re only here to help me out.”
“And is there another reason that you would want me to be here?”
That was a leading question if there ever was one. She thought about it and nodded. “Well, I like you,” she said, “but I don’t know anything about you.”
“What do you want to know?” he said. “I’m an open book.”
She laughed at that. “No,” she said, “you’re dark and mysterious.”
He burst out chuckling again. “I’m so not.”
She smiled. “I appreciate what you’ve done for me.”
“Yep, ease up on the gratitude,” he said. “I wouldn’t want you to confuse that with anything else.”
She twisted in his arms, feeling the shivers as a new body part was exposed to the wind. “And what does that mean?”
His gaze was inscrutable. But he answered readily enough. “One of the things that we have to watch out for,” he said, “is gratitude being mistaken for something else.”
She thought about that for a long moment. “As if I would become infatuated, thinking that you were some big hero in a romance book?”
“Something like that,” he said.
She thought about it and nodded. “I can see how that could be an issue. At least for some people. We’re just so grateful that it’s easy to see you in another light. I, of course, know that you can be difficult, unmanageable, and obtuse at times.”
He burst out laughing yet again. “All of that?” he asked. “Really?”
“Absolutely,” she said with a smile.
“Well, I’m glad you’re perfect.”
“No,” she said, “I’m not at all. And I certainly am not mistaking the interest we have here.”
He was silent for a moment, and then he squeezed her gently and said, “Good, I’m glad to hear that.”
She smiled at that. “Glad we got some of the preliminaries out of the way.”
“Is that what we’re doing?” he asked curiously.
“I’m not sure,” she said. “I honestly haven’t done much dating lately, so I feel very out of practice.”
“Hmm,” he said. “Honesty works best for me.”
“You and me both,” she said, nodding. “I much prefer a straightforward conversation and assessment. I always hated that dancing around in a relationship, trying to figure out what the other person really felt.”
“Ditto,” he said, shifting once more.
She immediately twisted and asked, “Am I too heavy?”
“There’s nothing to you, so, no, you’re not too heavy.”
“There’s lots to me,” she said, protesting.
He shook his head, reached out, and pulled her back up against him. “Snuggle up. I don’t want you to catch a chill,” he said.
She snuggled into his warmth. “I love how warm you are. It’s like lying against a furnace.”
“It’s normal for me,” he said.
“It’s amazing,” she whispered, as she curled up a little closer. His arms wrapped around her, gently shifting her, so that she was a little more comfortable too. She just smiled, noting that, once again, it was all about her comfort and not his. “But then again,” she said, “I didn’t even ask. Maybe you have a relationship ongoing.”
“Nope,” he said cheerfully. “Single.” And then he stopped and asked, “What about you?”
She caught an odd tone in his voice. She twisted to look up at him and smiled. “Nope, and I come from the belief that I’m with one person at a time,” she said. “I know it’s an unusual
