by Lee,Molly E.
Connell smirked and took a quick gulp of his drink.
“Nemo is an integral part of my team,” I finally said after taking a swig of my cocktail. The rum was sweet and paired with the acidity from the orange juice, exactly what I needed right now. The pleasant burn that slipped down my core opened up my lungs, and I took a full deep breath. “He’s a fantastic diver, and I’ve never met anyone as skilled in maps and navigation as him.”
The boy beamed from my words, his chest puffing out slightly as he nodded at Connell.
“I’m a control operator,” Ryan set his mug down. “I make sure Connell and the other welders have the correct gas and amps. I’m a decent diver, but nothing compared to this man.” He motioned toward Connell and shook his head. “I’ve never seen anyone keep pace with him.”
Connell shrugged.
I leaned my elbows on the table. “Interesting. Maybe you’ll be able to keep up with me, then,” I said, a smirk on my lips.
The rum was working, and it was wonderful. Worry evaporated and soon I was just enjoying challenging a fellow diver.
Connell snorted, nearly spitting his drink over the table. “That’s adorable.”
“You’ve never seen me in the water.”
“Same.” He leaned closer, his arms on the table, the brightly colored tattoos even more beautiful up close.
Ryan cleared his throat. “Hey, kid, you any good at darts?” He clapped Nemo on the back.
“No. I’m not much of a player,” Nemo said.
“I’ll teach you.” Ryan practically tugged the boy out of his seat and dragged him inside the shack.
“Why’d Henrick give you the reins on this conflict?” I asked, unable to keep my curiosity at bay. Damn rum. I took another good, long drink. “Is it because of your family?”
Connell shrugged. He liked to do that; I was learning.
“Or your experience? Because you work with Slade?”
“All of the above?” He made the answer sound like a question.
The non-answer made me wonder what exactly he kept to himself, but the longer I stared into his eyes—which he never took off mine—I realized there was a whole slew of things hidden deep within him. Something about his hard exterior, when looked past, I could see . . . pain?
“Where are you from?” I asked, wanting to get him talking. The urge was incredibly strong, like if I could open a conversation, I would unlock the mystery surrounding him and learn the way to getting him on my side when push came to shove over the survival of my site.
“Small-town nowhere Oklahoma.”
“Really?”
“Surprised?” he asked, taking another drink.
“Yes. You look like you were born in the water. I assumed at least somewhere near a coast.”
“We had lakes.”
I chuckled but wasn’t one hundred percent sure he was trying to be funny so I locked it up.
“Why’d you leave?”
“Weld school.”
“Do you go back often?”
“No.”
“Who in your family is in preservation?”
Connell shifted in his seat, his eyes sharpening on me. “This ain’t a job interview, darlin’, and it damn sure isn’t a date, so you can stop with the third degree. The only thing you need to know about me is that I’m the best at what I do.”
His sharp tone didn’t match the playfulness in his eyes, but it was still enough to swirl a mixture of anger and fear inside my stomach. I sucked in a reassuring breath and tapped the side of my drink, the glass tinkling underneath my fingers. “This, sweetheart, is drinks. And you’re kidding yourself if you think I’m letting you anywhere near my site without getting to know you.”
He sat back in his chair, his massive legs stretched out so far underneath the table one of them brushed my bare leg. Warm chills raced over my skin, and I adjusted to break contact.
“Your loss if you don’t let me check it out,” he said. “I can’t vote to preserve it if I don’t know what it’s worth.”
I cleared my throat and fastened an apologetic look on my face. “You’re right. I apologize. I’m a little protective over her.” Damn. He had me jumping hoops to stay in line with his moods.
“Her?”
“The Falconer . . . my site. She’s the biggest one I’ve worked on so far, and hands down has the most to offer. There are so many possibilities in that ecosystem.”
He raised his eyebrows at me, and I took that as a cue to go on.
“Medicinal for one. I think a rare plant growing in one of its chambers could have similar properties as the purple algae that grows around it. Only this type of seagrass has thousands more microscopic pods, which could mean more antioxidants and disease-fighting properties.”
“Lots of coulds in that statement.”
My shoulders dropped. “I know. I’m working on proving it.”
“I get the feeling you won’t stop until you do.”
I smiled. “You’d be right.”
He pressed his lips together, his eyes trailing me up and down. “I usually am.”
My heart beat a little harder under his gaze. He hadn’t said it in a cocky tone, just a statement of fact, and I believed him. He seemed like the kind of man who rarely spoke, but when he did, he was sure he was on the right side of the conversation.
“What’s your story, Connell?” I asked, finishing the last of my drink and wondering how in the hell this man, out of all the men I’d met on this island, was triggering my poorly treated sexual drive.
He picked up his mug, holding it before his lips, and shook his head. “You don’t want to know.”
The severity in his tone dumped a cold bucket of ice water over my flushed skin. Something was dark inside him, something with roots that held on so hard it pinched him when he tried to smile.
“Maybe I do.” As the words left my mouth, I realized I did. Somehow, in the few short hours I’d known him, I wanted to figure him out. Could be the instant attraction I couldn’t ignore, but I assumed it was more due to his standing up for my site with no reason to. For helping me, a total stranger, when he could’ve kept his mouth shut about the window of time I still had to prove my site’s worth. Hell, Slade probably would have given him a bonus if he’d just let Henrick believe there was no other option than to appease Slade and grant him leave to blow up the Falconer.
Connell parted his lips, but the waitress took that moment to set our plates of food down. My mouth watered with the sweet smells of fish, spice, and lime. Nemo and Ryan hurried back the table, engulfing two tacos before I could even unwrap the paper napkin rolled around my fork.
I was conscious of Connell watching me eat, but that didn’t make me delicate about it. I returned his unflinching gaze, trying my best to match the man’s silent method of communication.
How the hell was I going to win him over if I couldn’t get him open enough to connect? And if I couldn’t I wondered how fast the chances of saving my site would go from hopeful to Nil.
Connell
I WALKED INTO Sadie’s lab, which resided inside a large brick building that hugged the ocean. It had its own docking station, which currently housed two huge sport yachts. I hovered in the doorway, resisting the urge to whistle. The crisp, filtered air was scented with hints of chemicals used to test plant life, and it was all very . . . deja vu. Not that I’d say that out loud.
Sadie hadn’t noticed my arrival—on time for once in my life because something about showing up late to a meeting with this woman scared the shit out of me. I was content to watch her as she hurried from station to station, delegating tasks to her team of seven, and double-checking each stage of progress. Her long hair was tied up in a knot, and the tan skin that had haunted my dreams last night peeked out of a pair of black shorts and red tank top.
The set up was sharp and clean, with several stations sporting tanks the size of average aquariums containing green, red, and purple sea plants. Two other stations consisted of long tables capable
of holding water. Inside each was a new sea plant, or coral, or other pieces taken from Sadie’s site, I assumed. The final station on the farthest side of the room held a variety of microscopes and cell slides. It was clear Sadie never left a detail behind when running her lab because there wasn’t an item out of place, including her crew.
“Whoa,” a woman with short blond hair said as she came to a halt in front of me, a thick white binder clutched to her chest. “Are you lost?”
I shook my head.
“Connell.” Sadie was slightly breathless as she approached, and I couldn’t tell if it was because she was afraid of me or excited to see me.
Why do you care?
This woman . . . first I was offering to spy on her, the next I was offering myself as a source of authentication for her site’s future. It’s like I hadn’t seen a pretty thing in years, which was absolutely not true. It hadn’t even been three months since my last lay, which I always preceded by assuring the girl of the week it would never amount to anything beyond sex. I just didn’t operate that way, not since we lost Conner. Then again, I wasn’t known for helping beautiful strangers, either.
“You’re on time,” she said, drawing my attention back to her eyes.
I pushed off the doorway that had been holding me up. “You sound surprised.”
She smiled but tried to hide it by biting her lip. I was grinning like an idiot before I could stop it.
“I don’t know you, but you seem like someone who operates on his own schedule.”
“Like I said last night, the only thing you need to know about me is that I’m the best at what I do. That includes showing up when I’m called.”
The blond woman who still stood next to me darted her eyes between Sadie and myself. She tilted her head at Sadie and mouthed last night before waggling her eyebrows. I swallowed hard, unable to stop the image of her suggestion from fleshing out in my head. No. Sadie wasn’t a girl you fucked; she was a girl you worshiped. And you’re not capable of the effort it would take to really know her.
I nodded to myself, thankful for the reminder.
Sadie’s cheeks flushed bright red, and the blond woman chuckled before quickly making herself busy on the opposite side of the room.
I opened my mouth to apologize, but Sadie’s laugh cut off my words.
She held her stomach, she laughed so hard. It was beautiful. Infectious.
I joined in, and it loosened a knot I didn’t realize had tightened in my chest.
“You are . . .” she finally said, sucking in a sharp breath to reel in her laughter. “I haven’t a clue what you are, Connell. But I’m honestly looking forward to trying to figure it out.”
The reality of her words—and how they warmed my blood—sent up about sixteen different red flags. I kept people away for a reason. I didn’t deserve anyone’s attention, let alone companionship. The only thing I deserved was a long, cold life underwater.
“Hey,” she said, taking a step closer to me and placing her hand on my forearm. I didn’t jerk away from her touch. I should’ve. “That wasn’t a threat.”
I shrugged. “I know.”
She squinted, like she was trying to see past the hair I’d let fall in front of my eyes. “Then why do you look like I just challenged you to a cage fight?”
I chuckled. Damn. How did she manage to wrench this shit from me? When I worked so hard to keep people away? Ordinary people took my standoffish vibe and elected to give me my space, but Sadie? She acted like it was a damn welcome sign—come in and pull back the curtains.
Maybe it’s because you hold the future of her site in your hands. Don’t be a girl, dick.
“You’ve got quite the setup here.” I motioned to the action behind Sadie where most of her team conducted all manor of tests of the beautiful plant life before them.
“I’m lucky to have a team this dedicated and a space this stocked.” She smiled before it fell to a more serious look. “Though, the tests we’ve ran on the cell regeneration of the new-strain of algae aren’t going as quickly as I’d like. As much funding as I have here, I still have equipment and capabilities that will only take the tests so far.”
“You’re hitting snags?” I asked, wondering what Mom could do with five minutes inside this place. I quickly shot the thought down as the familiar pain ripped through me every time I thought about her.
“Yes. We have been able to study the strains enough to know it is capable of accelerating cell growth in its own species and even some sub-species of separate sea plants . . .” she chewed on the corner of her lip and I nearly forgot every word she was saying. “But it looks like it could have the same affect human cells as well. Proving that takes much more time and FDA approval. I’ve sent them a proposal with our research but I’m still waiting on their call.” Her shoulders dropped. “They may not get back to me in time. Getting to human testing can sometimes take a year or more, and I’m expected to approval in less than two months.”
“You think that extreme is what it’ll take to placate Henrick?” I asked, shifting my weight.
She glanced around her lab before bringing her eyes back to me. “I don’t know what else will. I’ve already given him so much value from this ecosystem and even more potential—I just need time. Time I thought I had before Slade decided to change his mind about the route.”
I flinched from her hard look despite knowing I had nothing to do with that decision. But you are actively helping him see it to the end.
Shit. The more she spoke about her site the more I felt like an asshole.
“That wasn’t a dig,” Sadie said and sighed. “It only means I’ll have to find something more down there or pray the FDA comes through, speaking of.” She turned until she spotted Nemo. “You call them today, Nemo?”
“Twice. Same answer. Our research approval is pending. You want me to try again?” He answered quickly.
“Just the usual call before they close for the evening. Thanks.” She licked her lips, which I noticed more than I liked, and turned back to me. “Ready to get wet?”
I cocked an eyebrow at her as she clenched her eyes shut.
“I mean,” she huffed, “ready to see the ship? We can embark whenever you want.”
“Yeah,” I nodded, swallowing another laugh.
“Liz?”
“Yes?” The blond woman was back at Sadie’s side in a millisecond. She’d obviously been eavesdropping.
“Gather the troops. We’re ready.”
“Copy that,” Liz said and turned around. “All who have to be on the boat, do so in ten minutes. Those staying behind, don’t break my shit!”
Sadie grinned and motioned her head toward the door in which I still hovered. She led the way outside, to the closest of the yachts docked next to her lab. I grabbed the bag stuffed with my gear I’d left outside and followed her silently as she climbed on board, trying unsuccessfully not to stare at her ass. It was perfect. Of course. The woman couldn’t only have a mouth on her, and a brain, but had to have a rocking body, too. What were the odds? I glanced at the sky, wondering if Conner was looking down on the scene and cracking up at his brother getting paid to betray the first woman to get under my skin in . . . well, years.
Once we were on board, she turned around and eyed the large black bag in my hand. “You didn’t trust me to have proper gear?”
“I don’t leave that sort of thing up to chance.”
“Fair enough,” she said, taking a seat on one of the cushioned benches that hugged the railing on the ship.
Liz and the kid—Nemo—came on board next, followed by two more men I didn’t bother asking names of. All but Nemo followed Liz to the pilothouse. He, not surprisingly, came to sit next to Sadie. The boy wasn’t smitten in the sexual sense, but he had that loyal puppy vibe about him. It was equally annoying and endearing. Having a reliable team was essential when taking the risks her line—our line—of work held. Though I preferred to work alone.
Twenty minutes later and I was breathi
ng easier as the ship cut through the blue waves of the ocean, the sea air cool against my face. It never got old, the feeling of losing connection with the land, and how freeing it was. Second best to actually diving beneath the surface for a good length of time.
I sat next to Sadie and stared outward. She watched me but didn’t know I noticed because of the sunglasses I donned. I wondered what made her forehead pinch together in the center as she looked me up and down, but I guessed if she wanted me to know she’d tell me. I’d only known her for a day, but she was really good about speaking her mind. I liked that, seeing how most girls made you guess for days at what they really wanted. I bet she’d be vocal in bed, which would be a fucking turn on—
“How much is he paying you?” Sadie’s voice stopped my thoughts right in their tracks.
“What?”
“Slade. How much is he paying you to do this?”
I scrunched my eyebrows together. “To do my job? He pays me well. I’ve earned it from my experience in the field.” I shifted in my seat.
She raised her hands in defense. “Sorry, seems like he’d be the type to make you an offer. You know, to do whatever it took to get my site demolished. Get me out of the way.”
Damn. She was sharper than I’d given her credit for.
“If he didn’t,” she continued, scooting closer when it was evident I wouldn’t add anything to the conversation, “then why’d you do it?”
“I didn’t do anything.” I swallowed hard. She was so close I could smell her. Salt, ocean, and sun. Good god, the woman smelled like a dream.
“Yeah you did. You bought me time. And somehow became the deciding factor, the all authority . . . I need to know why.”
“You know, I’ve told you all you need to know.”
She leaned back against the silver railing, crossing her arms over her chest and staring out to sea. “We’ve got two months to spend together, Connell. You might want to entertain the idea of actually talking to me.”
“Why would I want to do that?”
Her eyes returned to mine and pierced me even through my shades. “Because you might lose whatever weight is crushing you in the process.”
