by Lee,Molly E.
“On how badly he wants this chick out of the way,”I said.
Ryan shook his head. “I’ve never seen anyone fluster him as much as her. She’s got to have some pull or he wouldn’t have bothered tasking you.”
I nodded and glanced toward the island. It wasn’t far from the vessel, and while I enjoyed going on land for a brew, I wasn’t sure about this latest venture.
“She’ll likely be headed toward the Head of Government’s office.”
“Right.” I motioned him to lead the way and started the engine. The image of Sadie in Slade’s office, puffed up and pissed off, shot a spark of fire through my chest.
Something in my gut told me she wasn’t a girl to mess with, but then again, I lived for the challenges in life.
Sadie
NEMO PULLED THE tiny speedboat away from Slade’s pipeline vessel and pointed it in the direction of the island. I could still feel the heat on my cheeks that had nothing to do with the beaming sun above us. Acid rolled in my stomach and if I had eaten anything between when I got the call from Liz and now, I would’ve thrown it up over the side of the boat.
Mr. Slade wouldn’t listen to my reasoning. He’d backed me into a corner until I was so pissed I’d snapped. I usually wouldn’t have behaved that way, but the guy got under my skin. He used his money and status to intimidate people into doing what he wanted, and only what was beneficial to him. I hated his type. I’d given him the benefit of the doubt going to him personally first, before approaching the Head of Government, and he’d thrown that in my face like I was an annoying bug to be crushed.
Not going down without a fight.
“Someplace special you want to go, boss?” Nemo asked over his shoulder.
I wanted a decent meal and a large, ice-cold rum and orange juice. My stomach rumbled just thinking about my favorite dive on the island. But it had to wait. “Henrick’s office.”
Nemo nodded and cranked the accelerator. I let the sea air whip through my hair and calm the anger twisting my muscles. I wouldn’t let all my research—all my team’s efforts—go to waste because some billionaire wanted to save a handful of cash he could easily earn back in corporate tax deductions. This wasn’t just business to me. It was intimately personal. That site was dear to me.
I rotated my neck to soothe the knot forming between my shoulder blades, my gaze locking onto a pair of jet skis a few hundred yards to the right. I held onto the cool metal rail of the speedboat, sitting up straighter as I shamelessly stared.
The men from Mr. Slade’s office, the sandy blond-haired one, Ryan, kept pace next to Connell, who I couldn’t take my eyes off. He’d garnered my attention in the office but it wasn’t just his tall, broad frame or his ripped arms with colorful, decorative tattoos laced across his skin that warmed my blood. It was his eyes that had struck me. They barely showed behind the mess of black hair that hung just below his ears in jagged sections, but what had shown of the hazel tone had been enough to make my heart stutter. And looking at him now, the black tank top clinging to his carved muscles while he controlled the jet ski like a man would a motorcycle, had a heat pulsing low in my belly.
Damn. It had been too long since I’d felt a spark like that. Not that I had time to entertain the idea of looking him up, but he wasn’t bad to look at now. Not at all.
I watched him effortlessly take the jet ski to full speed, weaving in front of Ryan enough to throw him off course a bit. The pair laughed and challenged each other, going faster, hitting the waves in hard breaks, which sent them flying high above the water only to crash back down. Connell looked much less intimidating riding the jet ski, having fun, than he had in the office, barely speaking two words or even looking at me. Not that I’d noticed.
I jolted as Nemo slowed the boat the closer we got to land. Connell and Ryan’s path had altered to come closer to ours. They docked only two slips down from us, and I swallowed hard as I climbed the ladder on our side, wondering if either one of them had caught me staring.
Nemo followed close behind me as we made our way down the dock, my flip-flops clacking against the wooden planks.
“Greetings, Ms. Sadie.” Nigel smiled at me from his small wooden hut at the end of the docks. He maintained them, as well as selling some of the most delicious roasted nuts on the planet.
“How’s business today?” I asked, genuinely glad to see the man. I’d never seen him unhappy, and he was always a highlight of coming inland.
“Can’t complain, Ms. Sadie. You here for fun? Or more work?”
I tilted my head. It was sad when the dock-keeper knew how much of a workaholic I was. “Both,” I said, having already made up my mind to dine on the island tonight. As well as get roaring drunk if things didn’t go my way with Henrick.
Nigel shook his head. “I don’t believe you, but I hope for you.”
“Thanks, Nigel. We’ll be back for her later.” I glanced toward the speedboat, only to catch Connell’s eyes on me. He was a few feet away, he and Ryan standing behind Nemo and myself like they were waiting for us to show them where to go.
Heat rushed to my cheeks when he didn’t look away. He just held my gaze, those hazel eyes fully visible since the jet ski ride had blown his hair away from his face.
“Hello,” I managed to say finally.
He tilted his chin upward. “Hey.” His voice was deep and raspy like he didn’t use it enough. It was sexy as hell and made chills dance across my skin.
I turned around after he didn’t say anything further, motioning Nemo onward.
“Ms. Jenkins?” Ryan called from behind me.
“Yes?”
“Are you going to see Henrick?”
“Yes, why?”
“We’re to accompany you.”
“Says who?”
“Slade,” Connell answered before Ryan could. He took a step closer, and he towered over me so much I had to crane my neck to keep our gazes locked.
“It shouldn’t surprise you that I don’t give a shit what Slade says,” I said, popping my hand over my eyes to block the glare from the sun coming over Connell’s shoulders.
The smallest smirk turned up the corners of his lips. I couldn’t help but notice they were nice, full lips. The kind that could easily dominate in a kiss, pressing in all the right ways, and in all the right places.
Get a grip.
“I think I can help you,” he said.
I arched an eyebrow.
“I’m an underwater welder with ten-years experience.”
Well if his sculpted body and sexy shaggy hair wasn’t enough to turn me on, the idea of him holding his own during a dive sure as hell did. Damn.
“Nice.” I sucked in a sharp breath. “That doesn’t mean I’ll let you stop me from stating my case here.”
He shook his head, pieces of his black hair falling in his eyes. I had the stupidest urge to push it back. Maybe I was over-exhausted from the dive and fight with Slade.
“My family has a history in marine preservation. Slade thinks I can offer a second opinion on your site if Henrick demands one. And I can lend you my services as a welder if you need them. Then, after combining both your perspective and mine, we can present them to Henrick so he can make the best decision for everyone.” Connell shoved his hands in the pockets of his black board shorts.
It was hard to get a read on him like he had a layer of protection hiding anything deeper than the surface. Maybe I was trying too hard. Maybe I was too distracted by the insane heat pulsing in my core just from looking at the man.
“Fine,” I said, sucking in a deep breath, hoping he’d be able to see the value in the Falconer with one dive. Something about him told me he wouldn’t be easy to win over though. “If Slade hasn’t already thoroughly convinced Henrick to demolish my ship, I’ll be happy to show it to you.” I settled my racing heart and willed myself to turn around.
Don’t glance back. Don’t glance back.
Fuck.
I glanced back.
Connell sm
irked again as he slowly followed behind me.
We made the trek to Henrick’s office in less than twenty minutes. An easy hike, considering the size of the island. Locals were out in the main square with all their finest—catches of the day, handmade jewelry with locally scavenged pearls, and plenty of signature alcoholic concoctions that were more than tempting. I bypassed all of them, promising myself a great meal as a reward for the bullshit of the day—after I plead my case.
I needed a double now that Connell was so close. I behaved like a big girl and didn’t continue to look back as he and Ryan followed Nemo and myself, but I could feel him there. Almost like I could feel it when a sea creature swam behind me on a dive—like a ripple in the atmosphere—but I hadn’t decided yet if he was a shark or a dolphin.
We didn’t have to wait in the lobby long and were escorted into the Head of Government’s office by a gorgeous black-haired beauty in a beautiful bright blue sundress.
“Ms. Jenkins, good to see you again,” Mr. Henrick said, motioning for the four of us to sit down. “Or, as I gather, perhaps not so good?” he asked as he sat behind his massive mahogany desk. A large conch shell perched in the farthest left-hand corner, the pride of the island.
“I’m sure you know what I’m here for, Mr. Henrick.” I refused to sit and tried to smile, but I was simply out of pleasantries. “Mr. Slade has gone back on his word to lay his pipeline a safe distance around my site, and I want you to make him honor it.”
Henrick sucked his ultra-white teeth. “Sadie, please know how tough a spot I’m in. You understand how many years we’ve negotiated until we finally came to terms of agreement for Slade to lay his pipeline, and now, halfway through his project, this kink is thrown in.”
“Kink? There is an entire ecosystem thriving on my ship, one that supplies food for grouper, which is the primary food source for your island!” I pointed out his window with the incredible ocean view. “Take out that one fact alone and you’ll suffer a significant shortage which could be detrimental to the quality of life here. And that is one item on a long list of cons should you destroy the Falconer. It’s hardly something to brush off like Mr. Slade would have you believe.” I leaned forward in my seat, unable to ignore the tension in my muscles, the adrenaline in my veins fueling my fight.
“Understood. I don’t take my people’s food sources lightly, knowing how many fish populations are wiped out daily. We’re a tight-knit community here, and I never want to do anything that will throw a rift—like a food drought—would do. But I can’t ignore the boost to our economy that Mr. Slade and his pipeline has offered us since he started production.”
My heart sank, the realization that I fought an entirely unfair fight hit me dead center in the chest. I didn’t have money. I had nothing to offer this island other than facts about how many integral island lives were sustained with help from my ship’s ecosystem alone.
“It is hard to deny him when such prosperity could be gleaned from the project’s success,” Henrick said. “And I’m sure there are many other locations that could use your expertise.”
My stomach dropped, feeling as if an anchor had been thrown just as I’d taken a ship to top speed. The image of the Falconer splintered and scattered across the ocean floor, all the life that once thrived there nothing but a decayed mess, made bile rise up my throat.
“You hired me to do this job, Henrick. When other preservationists wouldn’t touch it because of the dangers around and within its location. And now you want to tell me to find another site?”
Henrick sighed. “Sadie, you have to understand that I had no idea when we hired you that the pipeline would be an issue.”
“It shouldn’t be,” I said, furious. “Slade could go around. He’d agreed. Now the numbers have come in and he gets to decide what my site is worth? He doesn’t have even a tiny grasp of understanding how important it is.”
“I don’t see a way around this,” Henrick said, leaning back in his chair.
“She has time.” Connell spoke up from my left, and I cut my eyes to him.
“Pardon?” Henrick asked.
Connell glanced at Ryan. “How long before pipes reach her site?”
Ryan shrugged, looking to me. “Coordinates?” he asked as he pulled out his phone.
I quickly rattled off the coordinates I knew by heart, and he entered them into his phone. Hope pulsed in the center of my chest, and I continued to gaze openly at Connell in an attempt to figure out why he would help me. After a few moments of calculations, Ryan looked up. “Two months, give or take a week. And assuming we have no setbacks in the schedule.”
Connell nodded. “She has time,” he repeated, the strength behind his words suggested people didn’t challenge him often. “To either prove the value or not. She doesn’t have to leave immediately.”
Henrick’s lips pursed before he smiled at me. “See? This is good, Sadie. You have a whole two months to bring something more tangible to the table. If I have something worthy, I can easily deny Mr. Slade’s requests without offending all the generosity he’s shown our island.”
I kept my growing hope in check. “And who will deem what is worthy and what isn’t? Because if it were up to me, I’ve already given you fifty worthy reasons to preserve this site since my team started work there.” The benefits from the strain of purple algae should’ve been enough. The domino effect of food sources should’ve been enough. What did they want from it? Gold?
Henrick’s eyes trailed to Connell, and he nodded. “Mr. Murphey is more than capable of such distinction, aren’t you?”
Connell shifted in his seat but gave one single nod.
Whoa. Just how well of a history did his family have with preservation to get that kind of pull?
Well, that was a story I wanted to hear. I tilted my head but could tell by the hard look in his eyes now wasn’t the time to get inquisitive. Not that it would ever be the time, as I didn’t know him. But damn, now I really wanted to.
Henrick stood up, and I took that as our cue to leave.
“Thank you,” I said and shook his offered hand. “I’ll have something for you soon.”
He chuckled. “Of that, I have no doubt. Always a pleasure, Sadie.” He motioned us out of the room, and I kept walking until we’d made it out of the building and back into the breathable fresh air.
Connell moved past me, heading in the direction of the docks. The urge to stop him was so powerful, I reached out and clutched his hard, muscled arm before I knew what I was doing. His eyes trailed from my fingers to my face.
I quickly let him go. “I just wanted to say thank you.”
“For what?”
“Buying me time.”
“It’s nothing,” he said.
“Not to me. Henrick was ready to send me packing before you pointed out the timetable.” I glanced over my shoulder before returning my focus to him. “My favorite dive is just down that way. Can I buy you a drink?” The man deserved more than a drink for the move he’d pulled in there.
He gazed in the direction I just had. The hesitance was apparent, and enough to make me flush. I hadn’t asked him on a date; I just wanted to thank him. I shook my head quickly. “Forget it. You can just stop by the site tomorrow. I usually dive after sunrise.” I turned around, totally prepared to order a triple shot of rum once I reached the bar.
“Hold up,” Connell called from behind me.
I stopped but didn’t turn around. Once he reached my side, I dared to look up at him. What was it about him? He was sexy, intimidating, and intriguing as hell, and I didn’t have a clue why he had me fumbling all over the place. And I didn’t know if it was a good thing or a bad thing. All I knew was that for the first time in years, I had butterflies fluttering in my stomach. They might be scared to death of his silent, piercing stare, but they were there.
And now that he’d been given the deciding factor over whether my site would be demolished or salvaged, getting him on my side would be the smartest move I could make
as a preservationist. Now, how to get the tall, dark, bad boy to like me would be the real challenge.
I grabbed a table on the wooden patio that connected the bar to the white sand beach boarding it. Crashes from the waves of the crystal blue ocean accompanied the sounds of the place’s chatter, and the familiarity of it soothed my tensed muscles.
Today had been a hell of a day. I woke up doing the thing I loved most—diving and exploring the site of my dreams—and it ended with me defending its importance to people who wanted to destroy it. I couldn’t see their side of thinking, and they couldn’t see mine. We had to meet in the middle somewhere. And Henrick had—for reasons still not crystal clear to me—given Connell the power to kill or keep my site at the end of all this, so that made him my number one priority right now.
He sat across from me while Ryan and Nemo beelined for the bar inside the small shack of a building, no patience to wait for the waitress. The smell of freshly cooked fish filled the salty air, and my stomach grumbled. I ordered seared conch over greens and a trio of fish tacos for Nemo. Connell tripled Nemo’s order for himself and Ryan. As the pretty waitress quickly hurried off to take care of her other tables, as she was the only one who worked here and was currently slammed, I surveyed Connell across the table.
The soft breeze blew his hair back from his face, but the man barely moved. He was controlled, calm, and silent. There was something there, though, behind his hazel eyes, that appeared deeper than the ocean I loved.
Maybe I was delusional due to his generosity in Henrick’s office.
“Here you go, boss.” Nemo set down a large glass of my favorite cocktail—orange juice and rum—and took the open seat to my right. He held a longneck in his hand and sipped it while his eyes darted between Connell and my silent exchange.
“You keep this kid around to buy you drinks and drive you places?” Connell broke the silence, motioning his head to Nemo.
Nemo opened his mouth, no doubt to defend his position on my team, but was cut off before he started by Ryan, who handed a frosty mug of beer to Connell.
I arched an eyebrow. “Is that what he’s for?” I asked.
