by Jo Leigh
“Yep.” Wyatt checked his watch. “And we’ll be hearing about it for a year.”
“Think we’ll open today?” The bruise on Sabrina’s arm had lightened some, which was good to see, but Cricket had been right. Regardless of the training, he should have a guy or two to balance out the team.
“How about I leave it up to you two?”
They exchanged startled looks.
“Okay,” Sabrina said, standing a little taller. “We’ll let you know what we decide.”
Wyatt nodded. “Take care, sit tight and thanks again. I don’t know what I’d do without the two of you. And I mean that. Now, stay safe.”
“You watch out yourself,” Tiffy said. “That shack isn’t all that sturdy.”
He smiled. “It is now.”
* * *
“PLEASE, RONNY. JUST please stay here. Look, you can help get the food all cooked. You know you’re going to have a whole tribe of people showing up before and after the storm. You can start putting ice in the coolers, okay? You’ll be needing that sooner rather than later.”
“Dammit, Baby Girl. My livelihood depends on that boat.”
“And Skip has all the help he needs to get it ready. I’m still going to double-check everything is shipshape, and Wyatt’s coming with me. So don’t worry. And above all, don’t worry me more than I already have been. I mean it. I love you, and I’ve got to go. You help Wendy and Ted now, and then you get some rest. If you feel dizzy, sit down right away. Remember that the air pressure might be harder on your ears than you’re used to. So chew gum, don’t get drunk and be safe. Okay?”
Ronny nodded, then pulled her into a fierce hug. “Don’t you be out there too long. I won’t give a damn about a boat if anything happens to you.”
“I’ll be fine. See you soon.” She looked over at the two kids cooking up pretty much everything in the fridge. “Watch out for him, okay?”
“Sure thing, Cricket.” Wendy waved the spatula. At least the girl was wearing an apron over her bikini. Ted was cooking shirtless. What could go wrong?
She left, hoping everything was all right at the bar and at the boat. It was windy, but nothing major yet. Even if the guys hadn’t done much more than fix the anchors they would still have enough time to get the rest under control.
As expected the dock was a madhouse. Those idiot fishermen had been advised not to go out as of late last night, but did they listen? Of course not. She understood that they couldn’t afford to miss a day’s catch, but still. She hoped everyone had made accommodations for a speedy mooring.
Wyatt was already on the boat, fitting Ronny’s old collection of retired fire hoses on the multiple lines that had been set by Skip and friends. As for Skip himself, he was fastening down everything that could possibly blow away, including antennas, cushions and all the fishing gear. Jim wasn’t there, or maybe he was working on the other side, checking out the bumpers.
She climbed aboard, and though she wanted to go straight to Wyatt, she turned to Skip instead. “What can I do?”
He pointed to the helm. “Tape and cover.”
She nodded, focusing on the pitch of the boat, but it was smooth enough in this chop that she knew the anchors were set well. She’d noticed the lines had been crossed to minimize shifting or breakage during the storm surge. It would get rockier, but she knew what kind of care Ronny gave the Baby Girl. It would hold.
Wyatt looked up as she crossed over to the cabin stairs. “Ronny okay?”
“Fine.” She had to say it loud, considering all the activity on the dock. “I told him I’d kill him if he dared take a step out of the shack.”
“You got your assignment?”
“Skip’s the captain right now, so yep.”
Wyatt got back to it, and she applied herself to the task of making sure anything electronic that couldn’t be taken to the shack was sealed watertight. After that, she’d check to make sure all openings on the boat were secured.
It was hot as hell with brutal humidity. But the more she accomplished, the better she felt. Her mood brightened considerably when she saw how many of Ronny’s friends and mentees had come out to assist. She’d do a walk-around before she went back to the shack, which she figured would be within the next half hour.
A horn from aft sounded from the harbormaster’s boat, alerting everyone that Eddie was checking out the dock. She left the cockpit to join Wyatt and Skip.
“What’s going on?” She had to yell at this point, because a lot of folks were trying to get Eddie’s attention.
Wyatt pulled her close, his body blocking some of the wind. “Two boats are still out.”
A minute later the Sea Flyer came rushing in, the guys on deck working frantically to stow all the gear. As it passed the harbormaster’s boat, the captain bellowed, “Is Tony back?”
Eddie shook his head.
“He went pretty far out there, the old fool. Keep an eye out. The chop is pretty bad where he was headed.”
Eddie waved him on, then took out his radio, probably trying to get in touch with Tony. He looked frustrated, and as he continued trying to signal, Stella, Tony’s wife, ran past Ronny’s slip, yelling and flapping her arms in an attempt to get Eddie’s attention. The harbormaster was facing the open sea, and the wind wasn’t her ally.
Stella gave up and hurried toward the Baby Girl. “Tony’s radio is down. I can’t reach him,” she said, looking tearfully at Wyatt. “So is his GPS. He was supposed to replace it, and now he’s not showing up at all.” She paused, briefly closing her eyes. “Dear God, I hate to ask...”
“It’s okay, Stella,” Wyatt said.
Cricket didn’t realize she was clinging to him until he pried her arms away.
Chapter Nineteen
WYATT KNEW THE wind was about twenty-five knots at this point, but Marty’s helicopter was built for this kind of mess, even though he mostly used it to take tourists up. But if Wyatt was going up, he needed to go soon. Too much chance of crosswinds as the storm got closer.
“I’ll call Marty, then head out to the heliport. You have any idea where Tony was headed?”
Wringing her hands together, Stella shook her head, then turned to look out at the choppy sea.
He pulled out his cell, but Cricket’s hand on his arm stopped him. “You’re going to fly in this?”
“It’s safe. It’s a great helicopter, built for rescues.”
“What about the coast guard? Aren’t they supposed to be the ones to go out there?”
“I’m sure they’re already out searching for boats. But with Tony’s radio and GPS down, they’re going to need all the help they can get before the storm hits us.”
“I hate this,” she said, her voice low and soft as she glanced toward Stella, who was still turned away.
“Look, I won’t be doing anything risky. If I spot Tony first, I’ll be able to give the coast guard his coordinates. They’ll take it from there. Seriously, if it was too dangerous, I wouldn’t go up. Marty wouldn’t let me. But that chopper has faced double this wind before. In fact, it used to belong to the coast guard.”
“I’ll go with you. Two pairs of eyes will be better.”
“No, you’re not. You’ve got enough to do right here.”
“Skip’s got this. Did you see how many people are helping out?”
“What about Ronny?”
“Wendy and Ted are with him. I trust them. And I’m going.”
He admired the hell out of her, but no way was she going up with him. “Look, I’m sorry, but I don’t need the distraction of worrying about you.”
“You said it wasn’t dangerous.”
“Fine. Go check on Ronny, let him know what’s what. I’m going to get in touch with Marty now, and head out to the heliport. You meet me there.”
“You won’t leave without me?”
“No. Now go,” he said and started walking as he hit speed dial.
* * *
SHE ASKED SKIP to have someone else finish in the helm. It was time to do a walk-around, but she worried Wyatt would find a reason to leave without her.
“It’s all right, Cricket,” Skip said. “I’ve helped Ronny through two other tropical storms. I won’t let you down.”
“I know. Just be careful, and go to the shack before it gets bad.”
He nodded, and she made her way through the crowd on the main dock. No one had time to stop her or make idle chatter. When she set foot on the sand, she jogged the rest of the way to the shack.
It smelled like a hotel kitchen, and Dr. Dre blared so loudly the windows were likely to end up imploding. Ronny sat at the table with three kids she hadn’t seen before. Two girls, one a tall, willowy blonde, the other looked younger than Wendy. The boy sat at the edge of his seat, drinking soda and listening to Ronny as if he had the wisdom of the ages. When it came to surfing and boats, Cricket supposed the kid had a point.
“How’s everything at the dock?” Ronny asked, causing everyone to stop what they were doing and stare at her.
“Skip’s doing a great job. I’m here to make sure you’re being good.”
“Hey, Baby Girl, the last thing I want to do is worry you. Besides, nobody will let me lift a finger.”
“Excellent. I’ll be gone for a bit, giving Wyatt a hand. Okay if I take the Jeep?”
“’Course it is. Everything okay? I mean, if we still have power, it can’t be that bad.”
“No, Tony’s boat might have gotten into a little trouble coming back in to dock.”
“He’s going up in the helicopter, I bet,” Wendy said. “He found a friend of mine once. Well, the whole boat, but my friend was on it.”
Cricket sighed. So, did Wyatt have this deep-seated need to rescue everyone? “Well, listen, I’ve got to run.”
“You’re not thinking of flying with him,” Ronny said, “are you?”
“Don’t worry. I’m just going to the heliport.”
“Okay, I’m counting on you being here when the storm finally rolls in.”
“I’ll be back as soon as possible.”
She quickly went to the table, kissed her father on the cheek, smiled at his entourage and ran to the Jeep. She got behind the wheel, and took some side roads and a couple of detours since the main drag was packed with folks on their way to higher ground. Finally, though, she turned down the road to the heliport. It had been built several years ago, after the hospital had added the new wing.
She stopped the car with too heavy a foot and jerked forward.
Wyatt’s truck was there. The helicopter wasn’t.
That bastard.
She was so angry she was shaking. He’d promised not to leave without her. The Jeep shivered in a gust of wind, making her think about stupid Wyatt up in a stupid helicopter trying to be a stupid hero.
Yes, he undoubtedly was a hero, in a very real sense, but this? Had he ditched her on purpose? Known it was dangerous all along, but didn’t want to tell her? Even Ronny had looked worried about her going up. Ronny. The thought made her even more furious.
She jammed the Jeep into Drive and sped the ten minutes it took to get to the bar. She figured he’d stop there first to make sure everything was okay.
After she parked she noticed she had a text. It was from Wyatt. Claiming that since the wind had picked up he couldn’t wait any longer. She didn’t believe that for a second.
The temptation to text him back was strong, but she wouldn’t. Not while he was flying in all that wind. He needed to come back. Safely.
So she could tear him a new one.
First, though, she had to calm down before she went into the bar. The windows had already been boarded up, but the outdoor tables hadn’t been moved. Someone had to be there because the door was propped open. She just couldn’t see inside from where she was parked.
She hoped that they’d had word about Wyatt, or that someone knew who to call to find out his status. Feeling powerless, her anger surged inside her like the tide. Every minute, the wind was gaining momentum. He could be caught in a crosswind. Would he keep searching for the boat until it was too late? Would he even realize it could be too late?
Running their last conversation over in her head, she smacked her palm against the steering wheel. Hard. Dammit. He’d known from the second she’d said she would go with him that he wasn’t going to let her. All he wanted was for her to leave so he could get to the heliport, go up without having to argue with her. Another lie, right to her face. How dare he pull this crap, especially when he knew she was still worried about Ronny. Wondering if she’d been a fool to bring him home. The shack might have been boarded up and fortified, but this was a tropical storm. Anything could happen. And now she was terrified for Wyatt, too.
Forcing a deep breath, she leaned back against the headrest and noticed Tiffy and Sabrina dragging one of the outside tables to the side of the bar, then turning it over. It was unwieldy in the wind even now. The umbrellas were down already, but the girls needed help, and Cricket needed to work off some of her anxiety.
Sabrina was just getting a grip on the second table when Cricket moved to the middle position closer to Tiffy. Both girls grinned at her, then at the count of three, they lifted the heavy table, walked it over to the side and flipped it over so it wouldn’t blow away.
“Have you heard anything from Wyatt?”
Sabrina nodded. “One of our regulars who works at the coast guard office said they found Tony. He’s fine, his boat not so much. It’s being towed into the bay. And she thinks she heard that Wyatt’s on his way back. He might’ve landed already.”
Relief spread through Cricket, barely inching out her still simmering anger. Even the questioning look from Tiffy didn’t loosen Cricket’s clenched jaw and pressed lips as they finally got the other table down. The chairs still needed to be stacked, even though they were inside the bar already.
Doing the work helped, but not by much.
“You want a drink?” Sabrina asked.
It was tempting, but she wanted to be clearheaded when she talked to Wyatt. “No, thanks.”
The next ten minutes felt more like an hour. Sneaking peeks between the parking lot and her cell phone. In fact, he had texted her again, indicating only that he was back. But it just made her angrier—she hadn’t noticed it until after the fact because she’d been too pissed off to hear the beep.
It was Tiffy who spotted his truck. “He’s here,” she said, nodding to the parking lot.
Cricket walked outside to the railing, letting the wind toss her hair and plaster her clothes to her body. It was unbelievably humid, the air full of ozone, the scent of the sea multiplied by a hundred, and oddly, petrichor, the smell of dry earth after a rain shower.
Wyatt parked, then stepped out of his truck and looked straight at her. An SUV pulled into the lot and parked on the other side of him, but he kept walking without even a glance at it. It could’ve been Becky, but Cricket was too busy practicing everything she was going to say to him the minute they came face to face.
They met on the last step.
“Cricket—”
She poked him right in the chest. “Don’t you dare do anything like that to me again. You tell me to meet you there, promise me you’d wait, and then you take off without me? I’m not putting up with that macho bullshit. I’m not. I thought you were different, dammit.” She took a quick breath, without breaking eye contact. “You don’t ever lie to me again. You don’t treat me like a child and you sure as hell don’t treat me like some poor clueless woman who needs a man to make her decisions.”
He opened his mouth, but she stepped in closer and jabbed him in the chest again. “Are? We? Clear?”
Wyatt looked stricken. Kind of. Too calm, though. Maybe sh
e hadn’t fully made her point. “Are you going to let me talk?” he said, a hard edge to his voice.
“Why? So you can lie to me again?”
His mouth tightened. “Look, I’m sorry. But I did send you a text.”
“And that’s supposed to make everything all right? Well, it didn’t. It was bullshit, just like Ronny’s crap about his ears, and I’ve had enough of that slung at me in the last forty-eight hours.”
“Hey, wait a minute.” He put his hands on her upper arms, and while it was tempting to shake him off, she didn’t, despite being pissed that it felt comforting. Because he was here in the flesh and she knew he was safe. “The wind speed had changed, and every second counted. I wasn’t going to risk my life, but I had a small window of time to make that decision, and I made the call to go up. You can believe whatever you want, but that’s the truth, and I’m not sorry for it.”
The shaking hadn’t stopped inside, but the ringing in her ears had let up so she actually heard him. “Can you honestly tell me that was the only reason you left me behind?”
“The truth? At first, I didn’t want you to go with me. But that had more to do with me than you.”
“Explain.”
He didn’t answer her. Instead, he looked past her into the bar, then turned his head and that’s when Cricket saw that Becky had stepped out of her car.
“We’ll talk about it later, okay? Not out here where we have an audience.”
Still trembling, she couldn’t seem to respond. It was as if a splash of ice water had woken her up. She’d been so... “All right. Look, I’m sorry, but I’ve never been more terrified in my—” She looked away.
His grip on her tightened and she looked back at him. He stared straight into her eyes. “Later. At Ronny’s. Okay?”
She nodded, anxious to get away from the bar and their spectators. As soon as he let her go, Cricket gave Becky—who was hovering by the bottom step—the quickest smile ever, then dashed to Ronny’s Jeep, got in and hit the gas.
* * *
WYATT’S EYES NARROWED as Becky stepped onto the deck, her ponytail whipping across her face. “What the hell are you smiling about?”
