Sailing at Sunset

by Cindi Madsen

  Finally, the bite in his mouth dissolved enough to speak. But her apology had taken the wind out of his irritated sails. He also suspected the words had hit him harder thanks to his past with Olivia, and the fact that he’d been judged by his material possessions—or lack thereof—before. He didn’t want to get into all that now, though.

  “There’s something about this flavor that tastes like my childhood,” he said, deflecting.

  Danae cocked her head with a discontented frown. “Is that all you have to say?”

  Fair point. “I accept your apology, and I don’t want to end the trip on a bad note, either.” If anything, their squabble served as a much-needed reminder of why he didn’t get involved. In people’s lives, with women. Just him and his boat and the water—the ocean might be moody, but at least he could easily adapt and manage his ship in a storm.

  Relief flooded Danae’s expression. “Okay, cool.” She pressed her lips together, her gaze dropping to the floor, and his muscles tensed as he steeled himself for whatever was coming next. “Honestly, I was afraid mixing business with pleasure might muddle the trip. I think it’d be best if from here on out, we stick to being friends.”

  Her relief echoed through him, although a hint of misguided disappointment whirled into the mix as well. “I agree.”

  They shared a smile, and the heaviness in his chest eased.

  Danae tilted her head toward the cooling table, where the rest of her team stood. “We should get back over there. I don’t want to be rude.”

  The group crowded around to watch as the workers fed a roll of taffy into the machine that cut it into bite-sized pieces and placed them in wrappers, and then twisted both ends. At the end of the demonstration, they put some of it—along with the taffy they’d made themselves—in bags. Then they headed out front to browse the storefront.

  Josh picked up a gift box of fudge for his parents; a bag of sea life gummies shaped like sharks, crabs, and seashells for Jane and Nathan; and a sugar-free assortment of chocolates for Nancy and George, since George’s doctor had instructed him to cut down on sugar. Josh figured that if anyone could make that taste okay, it’d be the people in this shop.

  He stepped outside to find Danae posted in front. She dug into her bag, lifted out an extra-long candy necklace and, as she had with the hats, stretched onto her tiptoes to loop it over his head. “For you, King Candy. I bought the big one so it wouldn’t choke you.”

  Their discussion about how Jane used to make him play Candy Land seemed like a week ago instead of a couple of days. So much had happened, the close quarters and nonstop activities making each day feel longer, while also managing to fly right by.

  “Thank you,” he said, bringing the necklace up to his mouth and biting off a couple of the hard candies. Like the orange taffy, it was one of those time-travel flavors. It took him right back to Jane’s bedroom, littered with stuffed animals, dolls, and the Candy Land board.

  “You’re welcome.”

  The rest of the group exited the store and they began their walk back to the boat. As they neared the wharf, Danae stepped closer and whispered, “FYI, I’m still counting on you to keep me from falling, railing notwithstanding.”

  Perhaps it wasn’t the outcome he’d expected after their time together last night and the fun they’d had in the hat shop. What mattered was that it was for the best, and that thanks to sailing, he was a master of readjusting and finding another course. “I got you. What are friends for?”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  After one of the craziest, busiest weeks ever, Danae had struggled to get out of bed that morning. With the launch of the new campaign, the next month was sure to be extra hectic, so she resolved to take advantage of every single minute of their last full day at sea.

  As she pitched in to help Josh with the sails, every word, gesture, and smile caused a bittersweet sensation to swell within her. No doubt in her mind, their decision to stick to being friends was for the best. If only it had erased every spark that had ever flickered between them. Why did they continue to ignite, ignite, ignite? Especially knowing it would never work?

  They sailed across Cape Cod Bay, through the canal that took them underneath Bourne Bridge, and down to Monument Beach. So far during their trip, they’d mostly strolled across the sandy beaches, always on their way to another destination. Today, they had two glorious hours blocked out for soaking in the sun, and the sand and water were calling their names.

  Danae had just settled on her beach towel and kicked off her flip flops when a man-sized shadow blocked the light. Josh squatted next to her, and a tingle corkscrewed through her as his profile sharpened into relief. The blue eyes, the slant of his nose, and that slight dip above his lips that matched the dimple in his chin.

  We’re no longer noticing those things, remember?

  “Hey,” he said.

  “Hey.” The part of her brain that came up with clever responses was feeling as fried as her shoulders probably would be after today—regardless of the thick layer of sunscreen she’d applied to her fair skin.

  “I have an idea. Don’t shoot it down before hearing me out, okay?”

  Danae mimicked zipping her lips, and his smile widened enough that those delicious eye crinkles showed up, too.

  “I want to show you something.”

  “Okay,” she said, and he chuckled.

  “So much for the zipped lips.”

  “Here’s the thing, they don’t stay that way. From the time I was little, I’ve always been a chatter box. While I’ve worked on it, it’s one of those things that are beyond my control.”

  “Something beyond Danae Danvers’s control? That’s a possibility?”

  “Ha ha.”

  Josh sat in the sand, not bothering to stick to the towel. “There’s this super cool spot nearby that I’d really like to show you, but it isn’t easily accessible. We’d have to rent a two-person kayak and paddle over to it. The views and how untouched it is by the rest of the world are totally worth it, though.”

  Her two sides went to war, the larger, pragmatic percentage tempted to ask a dozen questions before she even considered it. Where exactly was this place? What if they didn’t get back in time for their scheduled launch? How would it look, considering the fact that her coworkers didn’t know they’d agreed not to cross the line?

  Then there was the other part of her, and while it was much smaller, with Josh next to her, it was also noisier. She wanted to dive headfirst. Do that carpe diem thing he insisted was all the rage.

  “Oh, sure. Now you choose the quiet route.” He nudged her knee. “Come on. One last adventure.”

  Danae swallowed and then nodded. “Okay.”

  The joy that claimed his features zapped the last of her concerns. From a friendship standpoint, anything that elicited that much happiness was a win. In fact, it was the least she could do after he’d shown her so many amazing places she never would’ve experienced without him.

  Danae explained to Vanessa that she and Josh were going kayaking and asked if she’d watch her stuff.

  “I got you, girl,” Vanessa said. “You two have fun.” There was definitely implied eyebrow waggling, and Danae’s reservations came rushing back. Did everyone think there was something going on? What about Mark? She didn’t want to undo the progress she’d made with him.

  Then again, she’d see him day in and day out at the office. This was her and Josh’s last day together before everything changed. Yes, she’d see him at the boat-christening ceremony, but he’d have all his family and acquaintances there.

  In an out-of-character move, she slammed the door on her conflicted thoughts—she’d deal with them later. Right now, she was going to jump on in and let herself enjoy the ride. She tugged her shorts over her swimsuit, slipped on her sandals, and followed Josh to the row of shops lining the boardwalk.

  Twenty minutes
later, Danae was settling into the front seat of a kayak as Josh pushed it away from the shore. He walked far enough into the water that the bottom of his shorts got wet. The kayak wobbled as he climbed in, and Danae flinched, worried they were about to flip the small vessel.

  “Okay, sailor,” Josh said from behind her, and she cracked open an eye to discover they were still dry, as well as drifting away from the shore. “Let’s see how you are with a paddle instead of a sail.”

  Danae started to row and smacked the side of the kayak with her oar, the noise loud enough that she jumped. Josh burst out laughing, and she grimaced. “Oops. I’m sure that answers your question.”

  Over the next few minutes, Josh demonstrated where to grip her paddle, how to stroke for going forward and backward, and how to turn. “Paddling in tandem will yield the best, fastest results, but if you get tired, let me know, and I’ll take over for a while.”

  “What if I can’t paddle at all? Will we get stuck in the middle of the water and end up stranded?”

  “Those were the kind of questions I expected earlier from you.”

  She twisted as much as her seat allowed. “You told me I couldn’t ask them.”

  “As I recall, I requested you hear me out before you asked them. Never said anything about them not being allowed.”

  “Then maybe we should head back to shore—that way I can get them all out.”

  Apparently he thought she was kidding, because he continued to paddle away from the safety of the beach.

  Nothing else to be done, she began paddling as well. “I prefer a few extra feet of boat between me and the ocean.”

  “Technically, this is Phinneys Harbor. We’d have to paddle all the way across Buzzards Bay to get to the Atlantic Ocean. Instead we’re just gonna cruise around this tiny island.”

  “If I wasn’t afraid that smacking you with this paddle would dump both of us into the water, that’s what I’d do with your ‘technically.’”

  Josh laughed again, and another glance backward showed him completely at home. He’d put on his baseball cap and insisted on buying her one from the kayak rental shop, so she was now advertising boat rentals to the marine life underneath them. I’m sure all the fishies will be so impressed they’ll swim right over.

  As they circled a strip of land covered with trees and a handful of houses, Danae found her rhythm. Her muscles burned with the effort, but each stroke gave her a sense of accomplishment.

  After a while, her arms turned into wet noodles, her strokes off enough that her oar smacked into Josh’s paddle.

  “I got it,” he said, and she was going to protest, but her tired body spoke louder.

  “Just for a quick breather.”

  If anything, it felt like they glided through the water faster—she suspected Josh had been paddling slower to match her pace.

  Since she couldn’t do much else, she kept peeking at the guy behind her. He caught her staring and winked, and her heart soared way up to the sky, executing moves similar to the seagull overhead. Flapping, gliding, and dipping, before flying higher to do it all again.

  Suddenly, a spray of water arced over her, the stream going right down the back of her life vest.

  The snicker behind her clued her in to the fact that the dousing was far from accidental. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of the shore. Josh pivoted them in that direction, leading her to believe that was their destination. Since they were well within swimming distance, she decided to rock the boat. Literally.

  Using her paddle, she scooped as much water as she could and flung it over her shoulder at Josh.

  “Oh, it’s on,” Josh said. They slapped water at each other, laughing and dodging the cold sprays, gasping whenever one slammed into them.

  Tall grass skimmed the bottom and sides of the boat, and then the front hit the sand. Josh climbed out to tow them ashore and, assuming he’d use his advantageous position to drench her, Danae stood to jump ship.

  Only her foot caught on the edge of the kayak’s seat. “No, ahhh—” The weight of her body propelled her forward, face-first toward the water, and she had the fleeting thought she was about to lose this water fight to herself.

  But then Josh was there, catching her around the waist and steadying her. The kayak bumped into his shins, which had to sting, but he remained firm. Their eyes met, and her breath lodged in her throat.

  He readjusted his grip, swung her around, and lowered her onto the wet sand. “You good?” he asked, still holding her in place, and she managed to nod.

  “Yeah. Thanks for catching me.”

  “Anytime,” he said, his voice low and husky. Goose bumps skated across her skin, and she reconsidered the mental pats on the back she’d given herself earlier for straying from the itinerary. She’d taken safety precautions, but now that she was away from her coworkers, she worried that she hadn’t taken nearly enough. The life vest strapped around her might prevent her from sinking underneath the water’s surface, but she was still drowning, one wrong move away from falling for a guy she’d agreed to remain just friends with.

  “Watch this low branch,” Josh said as he dodged it himself.

  Danae followed after him, short enough to duck underneath the branch instead of going around it like he’d had to do.

  A few more strides, and they reached the highest point on the trail. Instead of surveying the landscape, he watched for Danae’s reaction.

  Her eyes glittered as she peered down the hill. Leafy green trees with moss-covered trunks stretched high into the sky on all sides, the cleared-out trail providing an ideal view of the sparkling bay and the tiny island they’d passed. “Wow. It’s breathtaking.”

  Josh towed her a few steps backward, to sit on the weathered wooden bench on which he’d spent countless hours throughout his life. He’d grabbed her hand without thinking, but now he was thinking far too much about not letting it go. Sticking to friends when it came to Danae was a lot harder than he’d expected.

  As soon as he released her hand, he curled his into a fist so he wouldn’t be tempted to reach for it again. “Little Bay Conservation Area has managed to stay almost hidden. It’s off the beaten path, and you can go from beach to forest in a manner of minutes. You can even see upper Buzzards Bay in the distance.”

  He’d wanted to share this slice of heaven with Danae, certain she’d appreciate it. But, another thing he’d underestimated…? How intimate it would feel. They were already here, though, and words he hadn’t planned on speaking began to flow. “After my divorce, I came out here and sat on this bench to figure out what I truly wanted out of life. I watched all the different boats gliding in and out of the canal and thought about how much I used to love sailing. How much more I enjoyed my life before it got so busy.”

  Something about Danae made it easier to talk about subjects he normally couldn’t discuss with anyone else. That was part of friendship, right? Saying things you’d held in for far too long because it finally felt safe to voice them? “That’s when it hit me. You only get one life. Right then and there, I vowed to make the most of mine.”

  Danae turned away from the stunning scenery to study him instead. It should be illegal to look that cute in a baseball cap. Only problem was, the brim shaded her eyes. He dipped his head enough to view those windows into her soul and get a better read on her.

  “I totally understand how you’d feel that way,” she said, “but when my dad died, all I could focus on was how uncertain so much of life is, and how I never wanted to experience having the rug jerked out from underneath me ever again. If I can minimize future pain for myself and my loved ones, why wouldn’t I take those steps?”

  Obviously a rhetorical question. Judging from the twist of her lips and the lines creasing her brow, the wheels in her brain were spinning in that way they often did.

  She surprised him by placing a hand on the center of his
chest, and his heart threw itself at her mercy, beating away against his inner walls as if it longed to get closer to her. “My dad poured tons of cash into a sinking ship. He did his best, but he wasn’t as knowledgeable about repairs and renovation as you are. I think all that work you’ve put into Solitude is truly impressive. You’re a great sailor and captain, and your job totally suits you. I can tell how much you love it.”

  “I sense a but,” he said, placing his hand over hers and securing it tighter to his chest. It felt so right there. How could he possibly let go now?

  “Not really. I’m merely letting you know that I hear you and understand where you’re coming from. I enjoy my job, too. Hard work and determination got me to where I am today. My top priority is doing everything I can to secure my future, especially financially. That way, if anything were to happen to me, it wouldn’t be as much of a burden to my family.”

  “If you live your life thinking about the end of it, though, that’s not really living.”

  Her eyebrows knit together as she processed. “I’m not sure I can just let go of that need.”

  “The beauty is we don’t have to agree on some grand life philosophy. My reason for telling you this isn’t to convince you to let go of your goals. Maybe just allow a little more room for fun and spontaneity in your life.”

  “I’ll definitely consider it.” She blew out a breath, and her hand trembled as she withdrew it from his to reach up and fiddle with the charm on her necklace. “Okay, here goes my attempt at being spontaneous and taking a risk, in spite of being afraid everything’s about to go down in flames.”

  All he could do was stare, his heart thumping harder as he waited to see what she said next.

  “We’ve tried the friends thing, for…what? A day now?”

  Now Josh was the one knitting his eyebrows as he tried to figure out what was going to come out of her mouth next. “Yeah.”