Small-Town Girl

by Jessica Keller

  “You don’t think my idea is silly?”

  He shook his head. “Not at all. It might be the answer to the prayer I hadn’t prayed yet.”

  “Is that even possible?”

  Brice nodded solemnly. “God knows what we need.”

  Kendall flattened her hands against the cooled sand. “When should we start?”

  “Let’s rein this in for a minute. How about we go on our cruise tomorrow and get a better idea of everything before making plans? Deal?” He rose to his feet, dusted off his pants and then held out a hand to her, helping her stand.

  “Deal.”

  They walked silently down the beach until they reached the edge, where they parted ways.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow.” He headed toward the shipping yard.

  “Until then.” She waved over her shoulder and headed home for the evening with a lighter step. Perhaps Brice Daniels was right. Maybe God answered prayers people hadn’t prayed yet.

  Even hers.

  Chapter Two

  Kendall had changed her outfit. Six times.

  It’s not a date.

  In the end, she opted for comfort over style and wore leopard-print ballet flats paired with skinny jeans and a charcoal tank top that had some fancy draping across the front.

  This morning after unpacking her condo a little more, Kendall had headed to Love on a Dime, where she’d spent the day drafting a press release and brainstorming other ways to get the word out about her business now that it was officially open.

  Next she’d looked up Brice online, since she’d forgotten to get his number last night, and found surprisingly little information. Unless he used a false name online—and he really didn’t seem the type—he had no social-media accounts. His shipping business was called, get this: Brice Daniels. Just his name. At least that had made the number to his company easy to find. Her next move would have been bugging his brother next door, but Evan had been busy all afternoon entertaining a string of customers. She’d called Brice’s number and left a message on what sounded like an ancient answering machine. His voice came across deeper on the greeting than she remembered.

  He’d called her back at the office ten minutes later and they’d settled on a time to meet at the pier. And now it was time. Kendall bounced her shoulders up and down a few times to relax them. Nerves. From looking forward to another sunset and the possibility of having a way to meet Sesser’s demand for a weekly event so easily; that was all.

  Instead of walking the beach as she’d done yesterday, Kendall drove to the dock. Nothing was clearly marked and she couldn’t find a parking spot, so she parked along the side of one of the warehouses where her vehicle wouldn’t be in the way and headed out to find Brice. Kendall didn’t have to walk too far onto the docks, though, because she spotted him waiting for her near the front of the pier. He waved and Kendall felt her breath catch.

  Oh. Grow up already.

  But it was impossible not to notice Brice’s strong presence. His shoulders were wide and his profile cut an ideal male figure against the backdrop of boats lightly bobbing in the marina. He wore nicer boots than he’d had on yesterday. These ones were the kind that could be worn to church or to a casual office. Dark jeans, a formfitting gray Henley that looked as though it would be incredibly soft from many trips through the washing machine and a navy blue lightweight jacket completed his look. Kendall had to command her jaw to keep from dropping wide-open. She’d dated plenty of men in the past ten years, but none who looked as effortlessly handsome as Brice. The man belonged in a movie playing a dashing prince.

  The sun hadn’t set yet, but it would in the next half hour. For the most part, the pier was quiet. Gentle waves lapped back and forth against the moorings, and a few fat seagulls scavenged for food along the beach.

  “Ready?” Brice’s whole face lit up as he smiled.

  “Lead the way.”

  He surprised her by offering his arm. She took it and they started down the pier. There were two places to dock boats in Goose Harbor—the white-painted wooden pier located near the downtown area that held all the fancy sailboats and yachts or the working pier, where they currently were. This one was concrete. It had stains and puddles and carried the smell of freshly caught fish. Most of the boats attached to the working pier were barges and other large ships. Here they were tucked away from the normal path and sight line of tourists. Toward the far right, one boat stuck out because it didn’t look like the rest of them. It was white and green and had a deck sitting on top.

  “Is that her?”

  Brice nodded. “I know she needs to be spruced up before we can put the public on her, but I think this one will be the best in my fleet for the cruises. At least at the start.”

  “I think the biggest improvement will be moving it to the other pier in town. That should be first on our list.”

  Brice stopped walking. “Move it to the other pier?”

  “Of course. That’s the pier tourists know about and gather at. This pier is functional and all, but it’s not pretty and won’t do for running tours. You see that, don’t you?” She felt the muscles in his arm flex under her hand as she spoke. Had she said something wrong?

  He looked down the pier and took a deep breath. “You may have a point.”

  “Did I say something wrong?”

  “It’s fine. I try to deal as little as possible with the man who owns the piers, is all.” Brice worked his free hand over his jaw. “But I’ll see if there’s space to rent at that one. I’ll check into it tomorrow.”

  “Thank you.”

  He unwound her arm from his, pulled the edge of the boat so it came flush with the pier and opened the gate-like door. “In you go.” He offered his hand again so he could help her across the gap of water, as the boat had already started drifting away from the pier a bit.

  Kendall didn’t wait for Brice to give her a tour. Instead she started through the boat on her own. It had two separate levels. The top had a green awning, and the bottom was contained but still above water. The lower section boasted wide windows so both levels could be used for a cruise if there were enough passengers. The lower level also had a small kitchen and two bathrooms.

  After climbing the stairs to the upper level, Kendall spotted what appeared to be a huge wheel of red paddles at the back of the boat. It reminded her of something out of an old-time movie. She turned around to find that Brice had been trailing her.

  “It’s called a paddle wheeler. But it’s a very small one.”

  “So it’s like Tom Sawyer on the Mississippi River. You’ve just upped the cuteness level of this sunset cruise venture a hundredfold. People will love to snap pictures on this thing. People will go selfie crazy on this boat!” Joy bubbled up in her chest. As long as Brice agreed, this sunset cruise plan could work.

  Brice tapped the boat. “I’m no expert on cuteness levels, so I’ll take your word on that.”

  “Do you use this boat to haul things for your business?”

  “I could. It has a lot of surface area for its size, so when it came up at the auction I placed a bid. Most people were there that day for heavy-duty working ships, so I got her for a good price. But it hasn’t been used much since I bought her.”

  “Which turns out to be a good thing for us.”

  “A blessing in disguise.” He smiled. “Ready to head out? The sun will be setting in the next twenty minutes here, and the lake is smooth enough to go out a ways.”

  Kendall grabbed the side railing and tried to jiggle it. “Are you sure she’s sound?” That was a correct ship statement, right?

  “She’s sound. Needs a new coat of paint and an elbow grease of a cleaning, but she’s sound. The coast guard certified her, and we’ll have to have her inspected annually just like the rest of the ships. We’ll have to carry more life jackets o
n board. I think she’s got ten or so now, but we’ll need one for every passenger we plan to have. The ship-to-shore radio worked the last time I checked, and she’s radar-equipped.”

  “Then let’s shove off.” Kendall saluted him because that felt like the right thing to do to a boatman, but heat flashed across her cheeks after doing so.

  Brice’s face did that thing where he was clearly fighting a huge, goofy grin again. “Aye-aye, Captain.”

  He unwound the ropes holding the boat to the pier and then jumped back onto the vessel. Brice worked his way to the top of the ship, where there was a booth built for him to sit at and steer. Kendall came alongside him as he started the boat and it rumbled to life.

  Brice winked at her. “Go on over to the edge and enjoy the ride.”

  Kendall made her way to the back near the paddles and watched the red slats slap against the water as they headed away from the sight of the little, safe harbor in town and out into the waters of Lake Michigan. She leaned against the railing and watched the town grow smaller in the distance, wondering if she should have asked Brice just how far out they were going to go.

  After a while he angled the boat so it was going up the shoreline, away from Goose Harbor and toward an area full of dunes and a thick forest. When the leaves changed yellow and brown in the fall, the hill probably looked like a group of giant, sleeping bears.

  “See them?” Brice hollered. He pointed down the shore to a place near where a large river entered the lake.

  Kendall shaded her eyes with her hand. “See what? The river?”

  “The eagles!” Brice pointed again. “They’re getting ready to fish.”

  She looked higher and then gasped. Three bald eagles soared in a circle high above the trees that grew near the mouth of the river. Their wing spans were huge. “I didn’t know you had those in Michigan.”

  “We do.” The boat started going much slower. “On nights when the lake is too rough, we can offer a cruise up that river instead. It’s a protected area, but I called the rangers today and they said river cruises are allowed and welcome on the preserve. There’s bound to be all sorts of wildlife to spot. I think most tourists would like that.”

  He’d called the rangers today? If Brice was thinking ahead, then he really was on board with running these sunset cruises and wasn’t just being kind. He was an equal partner.

  Wouldn’t it be nice to finally be around someone she could count on? That wasn’t a trait she usually associated with men in her life. Maybe Brice was different.

  Or maybe she didn’t know him well enough yet.

  * * *

  Brice turned off the paddle wheeler and dropped both the bow and stern anchors, which was probably overkill, but better safe than sorry.

  He crossed the boat to where Kendall stood, watching him. Not knowing what to do, and more than anything not wanting to sound foolish in front of her, he chose to stand beside her and look out at the sunset. Kendall didn’t make a move to talk right away. She simply turned and stood shoulder to shoulder with him. Her hand rested beside his on the rail, making his heart thump off-kilter in a way it hadn’t done since college. Since the first time he saw Audra.

  Brice stole a glance at Kendall. Gorgeous. Better than any sunset. He kept finding his gaze shifting back to her. Kendall’s skin had an exotic color to it; he thought he’d heard that type of skin called olive toned before. Her hair was thick, and dark, and had soft-looking curls. Her nose had character. It was a little big, but it fit her perfectly. Maybe six inches shorter than him, she was a good height. If he tucked his arm around her, she’d fit perfectly into the crook of his body.

  Brice pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes shut.

  What was he thinking?

  Hadn’t he been kicked in the teeth enough by women? He was not going to jump back into the dating pond anytime soon. Besides, women didn’t care about being committed. They cared about what a guy had to offer them. They liked to be chased, not caught. He would do well to remember that he had nothing to offer to anyone; in fact, he usually made people’s lives worse.

  If I hadn’t had you I wouldn’t be stuck.

  He took a step away from Kendall and from his mother’s voice in his mind at the same time. When he opened his eyes, Kendall had followed his movement, though. She was looking up at him, wearing an open expression.

  “You have a scar.” She tapped his cheek where there had been a deep, half-inch scar since he was eight years old. From a belt buckle to the face. “I didn’t notice it before.”

  He grabbed her hand and steered her back to the railing. “Don’t miss the sunset.”

  Space. He just needed space.

  Brice turned to head back to the inside of the boat, but Kendall snagged his arm.

  “Stay with me. It’s no fun watching this or dreaming about romance alone.”

  “Romance?” He reeled back a bit.

  “Don’t look so shocked. I’m not talking about us. Love on a Dime. My business. Remember?” She spent the next ten minutes as the sun sank lower detailing her plan-a-date service. Brice’s resolve against dating grew stronger with each word she spoke. An entire business dedicated to making men spend money to impress their girlfriends? And his shipping business was going to be tangled up in it.

  Yup, women worked exactly like he’d figured. Exactly as Audra—his last girlfriend—had. She’d done him a favor when she turned down his proposal. They would never have been happy together. Brice saw that now. But it didn’t remove the sting of rejection, even all these years later.

  Kendall’s voice broke through his thoughts. “We should offer this as one of the date packages on top of running the weekly cruises. What do you think?”

  “Not sure.” He shoved his hands into his pockets. “I’ll have to think on it a couple days if that’s all right with you.”

  “Of course. It’s your boat, so the choice is all yours. I just think that people would really pay well for this experience. And I’m meeting with a chef next week who I’m sure I could convince to cater meals for dates. Wouldn’t it be romantic to eat here at the back of the boat while the sun set? The couples could finish the evening by dancing here under the stars.” She closed her eyes for a second and swayed. “Does the boat have a sound system?”

  “It does.” His jaw was aching again. “How’d you come up with the idea to start your business?”

  She bit her lip. “Want me to be completely honest?”

  He scrubbed his hand over his face. “What else would I want?”

  “Right. Silly question.” Kendall broke eye contact. “Before I moved to Goose Harbor, I dated. A lot.”

  “Define ‘a lot.’”

  “A lot.” She crossed her arms and looked back at him. “Nothing serious. But suffice to say, I’ve been on more dates than I can count.” She uncrossed her arms and trailed her fingers absently on the railing. “Some of them were really creative, and I planned a lot of them, as well. In the midst of it I realized that I’m really great at the dating part of relationships, so why not make money off that? I used to work as an event planner for a small golf course near my hometown, and the idea sort of sprang from that.”

  She rubbed her hands back and forth over her bare arms. Although it was summer, the evenings cooled down quickly, especially out on the water. And she was only wearing a tank top of sorts.

  Brice shrugged out of his coat. “Put this on. You’ve got to be cold.”

  “Thank you.”

  She slipped it on without hesitation, then pulled the collar up to her nose and breathed in. Did it smell bad? No—at least, her closing her eyes and breathing deeply again didn’t suggest that.

  “What kind of cologne do you wear?”

  “I don’t.”

  She gave him a look that said she thought he was lying. Brice
held up his hands. “Bar soap. I promise that’s the extent of it.”

  “Well, that’s some great bar soap. I’m telling you.” She pulled the coat tight around her and crossed her arms to keep it closed. “What now?”

  “Now we head back to town and go our separate ways.” If Kendall had dated a lot, then she couldn’t be innocent about how she was making him feel and think right now. She’d chosen that outfit knowing she was attractive in it. Knowing he’d have a hard time not being interested in her after spending time alone together.

  “Can I come over by the controls with you?”

  “Suit yourself.”

  She followed him to the control area and leaned against the booth, watching him steer. If he had been in a better mood, he would have taught her how to handle the controls and let her steer it for a few minutes, but the evening was shaded by his thoughts now.

  What type of woman was Kendall? Really? At times she seemed completely genuine and innocent, but then she told him she was a serial dater. What did a man do with that sort of information? He’d jumped at a business proposition without knowing her, and now his word bound him to hosting weekly cruises with her.

  He could still say no to her dating service, but even now he knew he wouldn’t. Oh, he’d like to. But he wasn’t a fool. Kendall was right. People would pay good money to take their significant other out on a private cruise and eat dinner under the stars. In the summer, he might be able to make more off that type of a business than he did from his shipments. Which really scraped his nerves.

  They docked the boat and tied it up. He meant for them to part ways at that point, but Kendall hung around and waited for him to close everything down.

  “Need any help?” she called from the pier.

  “I’m good. You can hang on to my coat and give it back some other time if you want to head out.”

  “I’ll wait for you.”

  Brice stopped stalling and finished by locking the boat. He jumped to the pier and fell into step with Kendall.

  Kendall bumped her shoulder into him, playfully. “Thanks for taking me out tonight. That was really beautiful. I feel like—” She froze in place and it took Brice a second to stop walking and turn back toward her to see why she’d stopped. Kendall’s face contorted as if she was in pain.