Masquerade by the Sea — A Read by the Sea Contemporary Masquerade Romance Series

by Traci Hall

On the positive side, he could bring in enough word-of-mouth business to let her add another boat to her “fleet” before the end of the year.

  Charter companies offered specific services to their clients. She and the Masquerade provided nautical fun for up to forty people. Classy, or pop, she created the ambience her client wanted.

  So long as Randall Wallace didn’t insist that she come with the dinner package, Jolie would guarantee him satisfaction.

  Grabbing her list and the keys to her Bug, Jolie sent a last look down the hall toward her new bartender and left to take care of business—including a check for Jamison and the Wahoo for her parents.

  Heath heard Jolie leave and wished he hadn’t been such a jerk.

  He opened a water bottle and swallowed his Advil. He tried going as long as possible between them, but Kendra told him that was an illogical way to do it. Called him masochistic for wanting to really freaking hurt before giving in and taking an aspirin. It wasn’t like he was popping Oxy for heaven’s sake.

  He missed his sister-in-law’s tough love. She told it the way it was. Cody was damn lucky to find someone like her.

  Not that Heath was jealous—no way. Kendra was cute and all, but cute like a drill sergeant. Not his type.

  No, he liked tall and brunette and Jolie was perfection in his eyes. She deserved someone who complemented her, someone who made her life easier instead of a guy that added to her work load.

  It had taken him by surprise, not wanting her to see his scars. What did it matter, right? And yet, his first instinct had been to shield them from her.

  He wanted her to see him as he had been. In kick ass shape. Popular as a ski instructor, and though not movie star handsome, he never lacked female companionship.

  Back then. The last nine months had been hell on his psyche and he fell asleep knowing he wasn’t the same man he’d been. So who am I?

  He woke up to his phone ringing. Repeatedly. Heath opened his eyes, not sure where he was until he remembered it was so damn dark because he was in the hull of a boat.

  Searching blindly for the ring tone in his discarded pants, he dug the phone from his pocket and saw his brother’s face. A shit-eating grin picture that Heath had snapped the night Cody had confessed his love for Kendra. The dude hadn’t stopped grinning for twenty-four hours straight.

  “Yo,” Heath answered.

  “You’re alive?” Cody asked.

  “Uh, yeah.” Heath stretched out on the bed, tucking the pillow behind his head. His leg was down to a dull ache, and much better than it had been after lunch. God, he owed Jolie an apology. “Where are you guys?”

  “Just landed in Dallas.”

  “How was the flight?” He knew Kendra didn’t like flying, but that was the only way she was getting to London, so she had to suck it up.

  “Fine. Kendra slept. Kept her up all night,” Cody chuckled with satisfaction. “She needed her rest.”

  Heath heard wrestling around the phone and Kendra call out, “Your brother is full of himself!”

  Cody, having kept the phone, said, “Yeah. Sure am. Wore her out, Heath.”

  Heath couldn’t help but laugh.

  His brother made an “oof” sound, then said, “Ouch! Don’t hit so hard, Kendra. Heath, how are you doing, man? Ready to go home yet?”

  “It hasn’t even been a day.” He thought of how he’d almost left earlier, but didn’t share that with Cody. “I bought shorts.”

  “No freaking way,” Cody said. “Well, me and Kendra have a running bet going on how long you’re gonna last. Don’t let me down, bro.”

  Heath didn’t even want to know which way his brother had bet. “I’m staying for the summer. The only way I’d go back earlier is if they needed me to start my job sooner.”

  “Yeah, right.” Heath heard a bunch of noise in the background and Cody added, “I gotta go. Glad you’re trying it, Heath. We’ll call from London!”

  “Love you,” Kendra shouted.

  Heath smiled. “Love you guys.”

  The phone went dark as the call ended, leaving Heath in the dark too.

  He and Cody had been raised with loving parents that the mountain had taken way too soon. He and his brother assumed what their folks shared was pretty damn special, and they’d be lucky to find something as good.

  They’d agreed not to settle.

  Heath almost had, with his model ex. Cody hadn’t. He’d struck gold with Kendra. In a way, it made Heath more protective of his own heart. He was in a vulnerable place and he had no business acting on his attraction to Jolie. Well, maybe he’d act on it, he wasn’t a saint, but he’d keep his emotions under lock and key.

  He reached over to where the nightstand was a darker shadow in the room and felt his way along the base of a lamp, and a switch. He flicked it up, and light bathed the cozy space.

  White, brown and blue stripes covered the walls, with a pelican motif. He was out of his league—with beautiful Jolie, with the ocean, with new therapy— but he accepted the challenge.

  Getting out of bed, he stretched his leg the way Kendra had taught him. She said the pull was good, but crap on a cracker, it hurt.

  He opened his suitcase and unpacked, deciding that he’d forget shaving for a while and embrace the pirate life-style. He looked into the mirror over the vanity and growled at his scruffy image, rubbing the growth along his face.

  He discovered the small shower across the hall from his room and hopped in. Amazing what brushing your teeth could do for a guy. He got out, wrapped a towel around his waist, and stepped out.

  Bumping into Jolie, who had her hands full of packages.

  He reached out to steady her so she didn’t fall, or drop anything, and in the meantime, the towel loosely slung around his hips slipped.

  Lowering her gaze, Jolie’s pretty oval eyes widened into circles, making her look like a tigress in the dim light as she lifted her face up to his.

  “God, I’m so sorry,” she said. She clutched her packages close to her chest, and her cheeks and throat turned rosy colored.

  Heath smiled, pleased at her reaction. It was the one he used to get. The one he’d been afraid the scars on his leg would prevent. “It’s all right. Are you okay?”

  He reached out to touch her bare arm. She was still wearing the pretty sundress that reminded him of parrots. She jumped back, as if jolted by an electric current.

  Heath felt it too.

  “I’m fine,” she said, moistening her lower lip as she stared at his face. Afraid to look down?

  He secured the towel, casually. “You warned me we wouldn’t have any secrets after living on board together.”

  “This wasn’t what I had in mind.” She cleared her throat and brushed by him toward what he assumed was her room. Jolie, safely on the other side, winked as she eyed his backside. “But it was a nice surprise.”

  With that, she ducked out of sight, closing her door against him as she laughed.

  Heath hummed and nodded, gathering his things and going into his own room. Would he get a turn to catch Jolie coming out of the shower?

  It would probably kill him, he thought. Changing into a pair of loose shorts and a t-shirt, total comfort clothes, Heath headed back out to the galley with his phone. He wouldn’t bother calling his landlady. He’d mail his rent check, like always, and explain that he was traveling.

  His truck would be fine.

  Nobody else cared that he was gone. Well, except maybe his buddy at Brighton Ski Resort. How had he let his world get so small?

  He sat at the round table and made a promise to himself. No matter how hard it was, it was time to take part in life again. Accepting this job, completely out of his league, was just the beginning of finding out who he was without ski poles in his hands.

  “Hungry?” Jolie called as she entered the galley from the hall. “I’m starving. You would not believe the jerks on the road. I mean, go the speed limit at least, right?”

  Heath got up, walking toward the center area that h
ad a high counter, two bar stools and the kitchen sink. “I miss driving.”

  She pointed toward his leg. “You’re welcome to borrow my car, if you can handle the flower.”

  “I’m good. I guess if I need to go anywhere I can take a cab.”

  “Most everything is in walking distance.”

  “Walking is the best thing for me, according to Kendra. Stretching the muscles.”

  “Just wait until you meet Sabina. She’ll make Kendra look like a pussy cat.”

  He doubted that. His sister-in-law made him shake in his sneakers. “Did you get all of your errands done?”

  “Yeah. I picked up some fish for my folks. Jamison gets great deals and he passes them on to me, well, us, which helps for the business. But the Wahoo is personal.” She turned on her heel, hair flying behind her as she went from the sink to the cupboard. Jolie opened it, then scowled at the dried pasta. “We’ll get through tomorrow’s birthday party, and head out the next day for the Keys. You’re getting full immersion in your new job.”

  Heath felt his own resistance and forced a smile. “Will we be out on the open water?”

  She turned and laughed, her eyes sparkling with good humor. “Uh, yeah. The big, wide ocean. But you, Heath, are in excellent hands. If you promise to follow my directions, I might even let you drive the boat.”

  She fastened her hair back with a band.

  Drive? Holy hell. “I’m good.” He’d need a blindfold, which limited visibility.

  “Sooner or later everybody wants to drive. Rajah, my First Mate, I don’t know if you remember him from the other night?”

  Heath shook his head, vaguely recollecting a short guy with a pointed goatee. “Not really.”

  “Well, he’s amazing. Used to work for one of the bigger cruise lines, so I feel lucky to have him. Anyway, he says it’s human nature to want to steer. Take control.” She washed her hands, quickly drying them on a paper towel. “Not just the yacht, but of life.”

  “Metaphysically speaking, I can appreciate that. Guiding us across the ocean? I’d get us killed.”

  She grinned, tossing the paper towel into the trash below the sink. “Be open to the idea and we’ll see how you feel after a few weeks. Hey, thanks again for coming with me to visit Randall. He wants all the bells and whistles for this party he’s hired us to do. I know he could easily choose a different charter.”

  “He wants you,” Heath reminded her, oddly protective.

  “I’m not for sale.” She opened the freezer and peered inside, curls a riot of brown down her back. “However, for the amount of money he’s paying us? I could be for rent. Whew. Shrimp sound okay?”

  “Yeah.” Heath walked around the counter. “How can I help?”

  “Rinse some lettuce for a salad?”

  “Sure.” He got it from the crisper in the fridge.

  Despite the tiny space, they worked around one another well, each aware of where the other person was standing. Aware without touching, which was a form of torture.

  Jolie started humming beneath her breath. The sound worked its way beneath his skin, unsettling. Shrimp and a spice he didn’t recognize tantalized his senses. She brushed his arm, jasmine and Jolie, reaching for the bottle of white wine next to him on the counter. “Sorry,” she said softly, meeting his gaze.

  With a wallop, Heath realized his entire being was in danger—and it had nothing to do with the big, bad ocean.

  Chapter Ten

  Heath watched Captain Jolie, dressed in a floral jumpsuit and loose white jacket and captain’s hat, as she closed the birthday party with an Ella Fitzgerald style rendition of Happy Birthday.

  He’d made it through the four-hour bash without crying uncle, despite the slew of teenage girls trying out their flirting skills on him. It was cute, he thought, wiping down the counter after a root beer spill.

  The mothers weren’t as circumspect.

  Rajah and Jolie thanked each one as they docked, then came back and joined him where he stacked the chairs so he could sweep the 10 by 10 parquet dance floor.

  “Well?” Rajah asked, striding across the small space to the cooler where the beer was kept. “Anybody else want one?”

  Heath nodded and accepted a long-necked amber bottle. “Jolie?”

  “Yes, please. My head is killing me. I love parties, I do, but...”

  “You’re so good with the kids. You should have a dozen,” Heath said. He’d watched her handle tears from the birthday girl because of a fight over a boy who wasn’t even there. “You’ve got the maternal gene.”

  Rajah clamped his mouth tight, giving Heath a negating shake of his head.

  What?

  “It’s all right, Rajah. No secrets aboard the Masquerade.” Jolie’s body was rigid, her smile tight. “I was engaged once.” She paused. “I was seven months pregnant when my baby was stillborn.”

  Happy-as-could-be Jolie with a depth of sadness like that? He’d never in a million years have guessed that her life had been touched by tragedy.

  Jolie accepted the opened bottle from Rajah and sat on a barstool, facing the guys. She took off her white hat and set it on the counter, her eyes sad. “Don’t look like that, Heath. It happened years ago.”

  Heath took a drink, the hops in the brew bitter as he swallowed. “Sorry.” He’d been such an ass the first night they’d met, as if he had the sole rights on suffering.

  “Me, too.” She lifted her bottle to the men, then drank, her slender fingers holding the base. “How’s the leg?”

  “Good.”

  “Heath,” she said, her tone demanding the truth.

  “It aches, but it’s manageable.” He’d do his best not to complain about anything again. What happened to the guy she was supposed to marry?

  She turned to Rajah. “I set up an appointment with Sabina. For his leg. She said that because of the buoyancy in the water, she can do deeper stretches that might help.”

  Rajah tipped his beer back and drank about half the bottle. He had medium brown hair, not as dark as Jolie’s, and black, black eyes. He had a trimmed goatee, neat mustache and white teeth that didn’t come from brushing twice a day.

  “I wish Sabina would give me the time of day,” Rajah told Jolie before turning to Heath. “She’s hot. Smokin’, out of this world, hot. I should fake an injury just for the chance to see her in a swimsuit.”

  Jolie laughed softly. “You’d be disappointed. She wears a tankini and swim shorts.”

  “She’d make them look good,” Rajah said wistfully.

  “I don’t know,” Heath hedged, uncertain. “We’ll see how my leg feels.”

  “You’re recovering from a multiple fracture in your leg, dude.” Rajah finished the beer. “Sabina, she might hurt you, but only to make you feel better.” He shoved himself away from the bar. “Hurt so good. You want me to come with you to your parents’ place since Benedict isn’t here?”

  “I can handle a trip to the Keys without you,” Jolie said, tugging at the sleeve of her jacket. “I navigate that route in my sleep. Besides, I want to give Heath a chance at the wheel.”

  Heath coughed in surprise.

  “Buddy, you just turned the color of sour milk,” Rajah observed. “Jolie, are you telling me you hired someone who’s afraid of the water?”

  “I’m not afraid,” Heath said. His respect for the ocean went deeper than that.

  “He’s not afraid.” Jolie sent him an encouraging look. “And even if he was a little ocean-shy, he won’t be once he makes his first voyage.”

  “Whatever you say, Captain.” Rajah didn’t sound as positive as Jolie, Heath noted. “I’ll see you guys Thursday. Cigar club?”

  “Yes.” Jolie nodded toward the booze behind the bar. “Benedict ordered the brandy before he left. Do you mind picking it up on your way in? It would save me a trip, and it’s already paid for.”

  “No problem.” Rajah tossed the bottle into the recycle bin. “Oh, Jamison still needs the seagrass sample. It’s too late tonight. H
ow about I come early on Thursday and we can make a trip out to the reef?”

  “That way I don’t have to stop in the morning. I don’t know what I’d do without you, Raj.”

  Rajah left with a sharp salute and Jolie slid off the stool, taking her jacket off and walking toward him. Heath set his full bottle on the counter. “You really did turn pale. Tomorrow is going to be fine,” she said. “Do you want to talk about it?”

  “No.” Heath clamped his mouth closed. I am not afraid of the water. “I’ll sweep and mop, then call it a night.”

  “You do that, and I’ll throw the table cloths in the washing machine. We can have leftover cake up on deck.”

  Jolie went downstairs, her jacket slung over her shoulder. The jumpsuit had no sleeves, leaving her arms bare. She loved the bold orange and blue colors of birds of paradise against a white background. The silky material flowed around her body.

  She felt Heath’s eyes on her back as she left and put a little sway in her walk.

  Heath had done very well tonight, and she’d noticed a few of the mom’s slipping him their phone numbers.

  While it made her laugh when that happened to Benedict, with Heath, it made her jealous.

  Not a pretty thing to admit. Or feel.

  But there it was.

  Heath, so broodingly handsome with his dark hair and inch of beard, called out to her in a primitive way.

  “Me woman, he man,” she joked aloud, poking fun at herself. She was very familiar with the cost of passion, and she was careful to avoid getting carried away. Still, she’d almost swallowed her tongue yesterday when his towel had slipped to below the navel, settling at his hips.

  She’d been tempted to grab the towel and toss it completely aside to look her fill. Muscles that only came from hard work lifting weights and training created a lean physique. Heath had a taut abdomen with a trail of dark hair that led to something protected by a thin piece of terry cloth. What would he have done if she’d dropped her packages?

  Smiling, she loaded the washing machine. Their desire was tangible. Each almost-touch electric. She knew that he didn’t want to feel anything for her, which made it hotter somehow that he did.