by Lauren Wood
“You don’t take no for an answer Merle, do you?”
I told him that I didn’t. It was easier if he knew what he was up against. I wasn’t going to let him off of the hook until I knew that he was dry and warmer than he was. He wasn’t going to get sick from helping me. I wasn’t going to allow it.
“Come on Charlie, just work with me or I am going to have to strip you down the rest of the way.”
He stopped and looked down at me. “I don’t think I would mind at all.”
His blue eyes were twinkling and I got the impression that he was calling my bluff. The funny thing was though that I wasn’t bluffing. I was going to do what I set out to do and when he moved closer, my hand went for his jeans and he finally got the hint that I wasn’t joking around.
“I didn’t think you were being serious.”
“I am. I have extra blankets and clothes that will probably fit you. You can’t be out here in this wind as wet as you are. I don’t want something to happen to you because you helped me.”
Kevin chimed in after a moment. He was not sure who the woman was, but he liked the show that she was putting on and he liked how uncomfortable his friend was at the moment.
“Oh Charlie, when did you get so shy? I am starting to think that I am back in the bottom of the boat and this is a dream. Where else would she come from?”
“I don’t know where she came from, but this isn’t a dream. She is your new diver.”
I saw the look on Kevin’s face and I can’t say that he looked like he was too impressed. It wasn’t how I had meant to meet my boss, pulling another man’s pants off, but Charlie had taken over and I handed him a blanket before I went to my new boss with an outstretched hand. I wanted him to know that this wasn’t how I usually was, but I was afraid of Charlie getting sick. Hopefully he would see it as fast thinking, but when I got to Kevin, it was clear that he was looking at me about like the other guy had.
“So you are my diver?”
“Yes Sir. Merle Clannahan. We talked several times on the phone. I was waiting out here for you because I didn’t realize that you were on the boat. Nice nap?”
Kevin’s eyes moved over my body and I can’t say that it was the most comfortable assessment that I have ever had. I felt like I was being weighed and measured and I hoped that he saw enough in me to be found approving.
“Why yes, I remember talking to you, but I don’t remember you being a girl.”
I sighed to myself and nodded my head. Did he want me to apologize for it or something? I wasn’t really sure, but I was sure that I didn’t want to let him know how aggravated with it all I was. Yes, I was a girl. Was I the only one there that wasn’t male because both men were acting like I had horns on my head or something and I was a bit surprised by the reaction. I thought this was a state that was used to going against the status quo.
“Well, I am a girl. I thought that my voice would have given it away.”
The man looked at me sheepishly and I paid attention to the other man that was covering himself in a blanket from out of my bag. Charlie had refused it at first, but I could see that he was at least not shaking as badly as before.
“Girl or not, can you dive?”
It was a question that he had asked me before and since I had answered it several times already, I was going to chalk it up to something that he wanted to make sure of because of my gender. I told him again that I could and I tried to ignore the half-naked man that was standing next to me. Charlie was huge and when he had gotten down to his skivvies, there wasn’t much left to the imagination. I tried not to let the sight of him bother me, but it really was impossible not to let it. He was distracting and when he smiled at me in such a disarming manner, I knew that I was going to have to get it together.
“Yes I can dive Kevin. I was hoping that we could get out there and do a run before the sun goes down today. No time like the present.”
Kevin agreed, but I could tell that he was hung over. I was going to have to be careful working for him. I turned to Charlie and told him to keep the blanket and clothes that he had managed to find that fit him. I was glad that I had kept some of my ex’s things now.
“I can’t take your supplies.”
“Well then find me later when you don’t need them and you can give them to me then.” I waved to the distraction and tried my best not to think about the hard lines he possessed. I was going to be surrounded by hot, rugged men. I was going to have to do a better job of hiding my lust if I was ever going to make it here.
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BLURB:
Denise
Things were getting boring in Nome. It was always the same old faces.
I wanted something new.
I wanted fresh faces and new adventures.
I want some new men in the dating pool because it was getting stale.
So when I heard about the new construction at the harbor.
I was excited.
I hoped for something and it came in the form of Ethan.
He was tall, muscled and he had the boyish looks that were hard to turn away from.
Once he got his hands on me and our lips met, I knew that there was going to be so much more between us.
Ethan
She had a smart mouth that she only used when she needed to.
Denise may have looked innocent at first, but it didn’t take long for her true self to come out.
The little redhead liked to tease and she had me wrapped around her finger before I knew it.
The only way to tame her was to get my hands on her.
Then she wouldn’t be able to deny what was between us.
Denise was going to be mine.
I was going to be the first man in Nome to get a taste of her.
***
Chapter 1
Denise
“I can’t believe it Molly. What do you think of all of this?”
My boss wasn’t too sure and I kind of felt the same way. There was too much going on and when I heard that they had sold the Western harbor, I had been speechless. It was one of the biggest landmarks in the town and now it was going to be converted into a port big enough to take cruise ships.
“It’s kind of sad. All of that time I was trying to keep the land for Nome, it didn’t matter, someone else sold out anyways.”
“Isn’t there something that we can do?”
She shrugged and I could tell that she didn’t think so. Molly was a fighter and if she thought it was too late; I was going to think the same as well. If there was a way to figure it all out, she would know about it and would certainly be trying to do something about it. I wasn’t sure how it was going to change this tiny town, but I knew that it was going to bring in more people.
I was so sick of the same old faces that I didn’t know if that was going to be a bad thing or not. I liked the small town feel, but the fact that I knew everyone here and still wasn’t dating anyone said that I needed a bigger pool to go off of. The men around here just didn’t suit me for some reason and seeing Molly in love, as well as several others that had tied the knot this year, the missing piece was becoming more and more noticeable when I went home at night.
“Well at least there will be new people running around. New faces to meet and learn.”
Molly didn’t seem too happy about that little tid-bit, but I found it hard to show too much enthusiasm for it. She wouldn’t have taken it well. She had went through a lot to keep the cruise lines out of here and it hadn’t seemed to work all that much.
“I don’t know if that is going to be a good thing. We’ve got enough business as it is. We don’t need anymore
.”
I wasn’t going to argue with her. I was in need of some fresh faces here in Nome, or I was going to have to do something drastic. I’d even thought about leaving to find a husband. I wasn’t as attached to the place as Molly. I liked it here. It was beautiful, but as I was starting to see the beginning side of thirty soon, I didn’t think I had that much more time to waste. It was time to find ‘the one’ and settle down.
“Well if you think it’s done, I guess it’s done now. There’s nothing that we can do about it.”
“There isn’t, but I’m not going to be happy about it. We’ve always done okay. What use would we have to add more people to this town?”
“Well a few people will get some good jobs and I wouldn’t mind some more men added to the dating pool. There are nearly all men here, but they are all kind of the same.”
She stopped and sized me up. “What happened with you and Larry?”
I tried not to make too much of a face because it was Molly that had set us up, but it was hard not to. I went out with Larry a couple of times and it actually got worse the second time, so much so that I had to basically tell him that he wasn’t my type and that I wouldn’t be calling him again. I’d had to be rude, which I hate to do because he literally just wouldn’t get it.
“It didn’t work out. He was a nice guy and all, at first anyways, but it all went downhill pretty quickly.”
“I’m starting to think that you’re just too picky Denise. There are hundreds of guys here. No one has made your fancy? You are turning down good men because I hear them asking you out all the time.”
“Picky? Says the woman that had to wait how many years till an old flame came back to Nome since no one else would do?”
Her face got red and I felt bad about saying anything at all. I knew that Molly was still sensitive about it. It was true though. She was determined to have her love and she hadn’t dated almost anyone. I’d never known she was waiting for one man in particular until much later. Now I knew and I had to say that the gossip couldn’t have made it any better than the truth did.
“Okay, but that’s different. I don’t know how, but it is.”
I laughed at her answer. She wasn’t sure what she was saying and the more I tried to hear her, the harder it was. Molly was just as picky as me, though I didn’t have an old flame that I was holding onto. I’d been here too long and no one here was really my type. I didn’t know what it was that was missing, but I was sure when I met the one I was supposed to be with, I would know it. It was one of those blind faith things and I was sure that it was going to happen. I put a lot of faith into it happening the way that it did in my head.
“Is your love life that bad that you’re willing to put it in the hands of some outsiders that you’ve never met before?”
That was the gist of it and I was glad that I hadn’t had to spell it out for her. But that’s how desperate I was. I knew that I was taking a chance with an outsider, but it had to be a better option than what I had now. If it didn’t work out with someone from somewhere else, at least I wouldn’t have to deal with them when they went back home.
“Larry wasn’t even from here and look how that turned out? I need to start thinking about it sometime soon. I’m turning thirty in a few weeks. That should be like some kind of sign. I don’t want to have to leave to find someone, but I will if it’s what I have to do. Nome’s winters are too long to do them alone forever.”
Molly had this look on her face and I knew that I had said too much. It was lonely here without someone. Until recently she was single too, so I had a good feeling that she knew what I was talking about.
“You just got to have faith Denise. When it is supposed to happen, it will happen. Sometimes it’s all about timing with these kinds of things. I know that it’s going to happen for you soon. I can just feel it.”
“I wish I was as positive as you were.”
Because I was starting to wonder if there was a man out there for me, at all. If he was out there, I wish he would come soon, because I was sick of waiting. More men could be a good thing because the man of my dreams may be coming soon.
Chapter 2
Denise
It had been almost a month since they’d first announced the new harbor and what it was going to be used for. The talk in town was not so nice and many people were not inclined to want change. Humans never did and I had to keep my opinions to myself about it not being so bad. No one wanted to hear about the good side of it and what could come from it. They were far too into finding all of the bad that was going to come from it, whether it was true or not.
“Hey Denise, I haven’t heard you say a word about the new cruise line coming in.”
I was pouring some coffee into a cup of one of the regulars and I just shrugged at the question. I knew when it was time to shut up and I usually did, but Carl had asked several times before.
“I don’t have anything to say about it. It’s happening, so you might as well stop fussing about it like some two year olds. All you’re doing is riling yourselves up.”
That got a round of laughter and I turned around to go back to the counter and stopped in my tracks when I saw the new arrival that had just came through the door. It was not someone that I’d seen before and it felt just like the reason that I wanted the plans to go through. He was a fresh face and I was already smiling before I realized what I was doing. The man was gorgeous and I felt like my options were already getting better by the minute.
“Take a seat wherever you like Sir. You want coffee?”
The blonde man smiled at me and agreed that he did. He had a grin that ran from one side of his face to another and I liked the way it looked. It looked like he had a secret and I wanted to know it. He was tall, very tall and just as broad as everyone else here. He even dressed like the mountain men of the area, but there was something that made him stand out besides the obvious of not being from here.
His face was smooth and his blue eyes made him look a little boyish, even though it was clear that he wasn’t a boy at all. The new arrival was a man in every aspect of the word and I wanted to know who he was, but with present conversation, I didn’t think that it would be a good idea to start in. I didn’t want to put a bigger target than there already was on his back.
I came back with the coffee and the man had chosen to sit on the bar counter on the end. Now he could watch me and when I looked over twice, that was exactly what he was doing. It made me very self-conscious and I tried my best not to let it bother me, but his attention was nerve wracking.
“Cream? Sugar?”
“Please.”
The sound of the word on his lips was somehow erotic or I was just taking it that way. The way I was feeling, there really wasn’t any telling. My mind had gone immediately to the gutter and I had to pick it up out of there before I said something I wasn’t supposed to.
When I came back with some of both, he thanked me and our hands touched momentarily as he went for one of the creams.
“Hungry?”
“Starving.”
“Breakfast?”
“Not right now.”
I don’t know why, but the last bit had me trembling a little inside. I leaned back up and stood, trying to figure out when I had leaned in to begin with for.
“Denise?”
I was turning around to go help another customer, but my name uttered from his lips was enough to get my attention away.
“Yeah.”
“I’m Ethan by the way.”
“Nice to meet you Ethan. Let me know if you need anything else.”
“Will do.”
I walked away with flames and red streaks on my face. Of all the time I had lived in Nome, I’d never been so turned on and embarrassed at the same time. I had to continue to waitress, knowing the man was right there, watching me and a glance his way every now and then confirmed it.
Molly came in a little while later and asked about the man at the counter. He hadn’t said much of anything b
esides to thank me for the coffee that I kept refilling in his cup. The locals around him railed about the new plans and the new harbor that was going to start being built soon. I don’t know why, but I had a feeling that he was taking it all in. He was one of those newcomers.
I told her that I didn’t know much and she decided that she wasn’t going to wait around to find out. There was a new face in her restaurant and she wanted to know who it was.
Molly walked over to him and asked if he needed anything.
“No Ma’am, thank you.”
Molly hated to be called that, but she just smiled.
“So where are you coming from friend?”
“Kalachee.”
She whistled. “That’s even further out of the way than Nome.”
He agreed and I was left in the dark because I had no idea where that was. Molly seemed to know and apparently it was worse than being at the end of the world. It left me wondering and if I hadn’t had so much to do; I would have done an internet search to have answered that question by now.
“It is.”
“Then what are you doing here?”
He grinned. “Working on the harbor. I made the plans, so I’m here to make sure it’s done as it is supposed to be done. I’m a couple of days early and was hoping to get a feel for the locals before I started.”
Molly laughed. “Well I bet you’ve gotten a feel for them now.”
She was talking about how vocal they all were about the plans and he just kind of smiled back at her. “I see that.”
“Well don’t take it personally honey. We like to bitch a lot round here, but it will be a good thing in the end. Either way, it’s happening.”
Molly was once again not too happy about it, but I can’t say that I wasn’t. It looked like good things were already coming to Nome.
