“Do you feel better after talking to them?” she asked.
He didn’t respond right away, but she could tell by the way his fingers tightened on the steering wheel that he was considering her question. Finally, he sighed. “I don’t know. I guess.”
Okay. That wasn’t much of an answer. But he also hadn’t given her a reason not to prod for more. Yet, anyway. “I was surprised you apologized first.”
He huffed out a quiet laugh. “Yeah, well, it’s usually for the best. They wouldn’t have understood if I tried to explain how I feel about it all.”
“How do you know?”
He shrugged. “It’s fine, Alex. I just wanted it to be over.”
“It’s not really over if you’re not heard, or your needs aren’t met.”
The look he gave her was pure confusion. “Business isn’t always about getting your needs met.”
“Uh, when you own the company, it most certainly is. Especially when you work with your two best friends.”
His lips quirked, and he glanced over at her quickly. “Thanks for looking out for me, but I’m fine. Really.”
She wasn’t convinced, but she also knew that frustrating him within the first hour of their two-week trip might not be the best tactic. “If you say so. But remember, undealt-with emotions fester. And I don’t want to see you festering.”
His throaty laugh, and the handsome wink he sent her way, had a chill running down her arms. The sensation was so unexpected and alarming she had to look away. Closing her eyes, she tried to imagine Nate winking at her.
She couldn’t.
* * *
Jake caught himself glancing at Alex’s legs across the seat of the truck. Again.
He had to stop it, but damn, she was wearing little denim shorts and a striped top that accentuated her breasts in a way he hadn’t been prepared for when he’d seen her this morning. Her quads were probably stronger than his, and it had been distracting him for nearly two hours.
“Okay,” she said, scooting forward in her seat and bringing his focus back to the task at hand, which was getting where they needed to go. “In about a mile you’re going to take a left on Ohio Street.”
“Got it.” A little way down the road he put on his blinker and made the turn. Driving this rig required a lot more thought than a normal vehicle. You couldn’t just swerve into your lane at the last second.
“Now we stay on this road for a bit.”
“You’re a better navigator than my satellite or my phone,” he said.
“I should hope so. I get paid to analyze maps.”
“True,” he said, then grinned over at her. “But you also have that pretty voice in your favor.”
She looked away, but he caught her smile.
“Should I try an accent?” she teased. “Maybe one from the deep South. Wouldn’t that be awesome?” She sat up straight and put a hand on her chest. “Bless your heart, y’all missed your exit. Let me recalculate ’cha. Now keep right for the next mile.” Except “mile” came out sounding more like “mall,” and she laughed at herself, which he loved.
One thing he hadn’t anticipated was how funny she would be. Of course, she’d joked around some over their messages, but it wasn’t as easy to work out a person’s tone in that format. Plus, the first four months or so, she hadn’t been in the best place emotionally, and a lot of their conversations weren’t happy. She would share with him that she’d almost cried at work that day, or how she’d had a dream about Nate. Those dreams had come frequently for a while.
When he thought about it, he was still surprised that he hadn’t kindly shut their communication down. He certainly could have, and it wasn’t as if he hadn’t considered it. As a rule, emotional women were not usually his thing. Any man’s thing. But whether it was because she was the sister of a best friend, or he just felt compelled to be a good guy, he’d always looked forward to talking with her. He’d wanted to see her get better, and slowly, he had. Secretly, he liked to think it was partly due to their friendship.
He glanced at the clock. It was almost noon. “Our timing today is perfect. We’ll have plenty of time to prep for this afternoon’s boat trip.”
“Tell me more about this boat situation,” she said. “You’d never mentioned boats before we left.”
“You nervous?”
“No, not really.”
He nodded. “Good. I’ve got a solid connection with a guy down here who owns Lazy Days, a boating company. They do—I guess what you’d call party boat rides. Short cruises on large pontoon boats.”
“Nice. So what do we do on the party boat?”
“Well, we’re serving drinks on this afternoon’s boat ride, and on one tomorrow at eleven.”
He saw her head jerk in his direction in his periphery.
“People take drinking boat rides at eleven o’clock.”
He chuckled. “This is the lake of the Ozarks. People drink all day.”
“Oh my. I can see I clearly missed out on a lot of the important developmental years being in the Army.”
“I’m sure you’re better off for it. Although, it’s not all young people. I did one of these last summer and it was full of women over fifty. They had a heck of a time.”
The sound of her laughter made him smile. “That sounds amazing. I hope today’s group is like that.”
Several hours later, after getting the RV situated at the campground and making their way to the marina, they began to carry boxes of product, cups, and swag down to the pontoon boat. It wasn’t long until the parking lot started to fill, and they found out exactly what kind of group they were dealing with. It wasn’t ladies over fifty, that was for sure.
“Holy shit,” Alex said under her breath. “I may have gotten in over my head.”
Her reaction surprised him a bit. It was just a noisy bunch of young women, but there was no mistaking the anxiety in her demeanor. “It will be fun. Don’t worry,” he said, nodding at the walkway that led down from the boathouse. “Here comes the captain, Ted. You’ll like him.”
That seemed to help her a bit. Ted was probably in his seventies, short, with a sizeable belly. He whistled as he made his way along the dock wearing a colorful button-up shirt and a white sea captain hat that had probably come from a costume shop.
“Jake my boy, how’s it going?”
Jake stepped forward and put his hand out as Ted stepped onto the platform. “Good to see you, Ted.” He turned to Alex. “I brought a partner this time. This is Alex.”
Ted nodded and took Alex’s hand. “Nice to meet ya young lady.”
“Likewise,” she said quietly. “This is a lovely boat.”
“Thank you. I enjoy her. And you let me know if I can be of service in any way,” he said to them, sliding glasses onto his round face. He nodded up to the parking lot where the first group of women had finally begun making their way to the trail that led down to the dock. “See that group? Woo wee, they’re gonna be a handful,” Ted said with a chuckle that made his chin vibrate.
“We can handle it,” Jake said.
“If anyone can handle a boat full of women, it’s this guy,” Ted said with a wink and a hearty chuckle that nearly had Jake groaning. His eyes darted warily to Alex, but she seemed to find Ted amusing. “But if you two are about ready, I think I’ll go up and lay the rules down. Make sure you use the restroom. Our stop won’t be for an hour. And Jake, I’ve got ice up in the kitchen.”
“Thanks, Ted,” he said.
Alex looked up at him as Ted walked away. “First stop?”
“This is kind of like a bar hop,” he explained. “They get on here, hang out on the boat as it cruises around the lake and then he pulls up at a bar on the other side. Everybody hangs out there for like thirty minutes and then we end up back here.”
“So this is for serious drinkers.”
“It’s just for fun. People come to the lake to leave their responsibilities at home.”
“Huh. Okay,” she said.
They took Ted’s advice and headed for the boathouse. Once they were ready to board again, the pontoon boat was full of people. The original group of young women, and now a group of middle-aged ladies. There were also now about eight men.
“This is weird, but I feel nervous,” Alex said as they made their way toward the dock.
“What for?” Jake asked, hefting the bag of ice he’d picked up in the boathouse onto his shoulder. He looked down at her, still in those denim shorts, but sporting a white Stag T-shirt. His was identical.
She sighed. “I don’t know.”
“You’re not afraid of water or boats, are you?” He hadn’t even considered asking her about that.
“No, not at all. Just … I don’t know. Ever since last year … sometimes situations with a lot of people—strangers—give me anxiety. It’s stupid, I know—”
He grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze. “Hey, no. It’s not stupid at all.” She glanced up at him, her pretty blue eyes shielded behind her sunglasses. “Don’t worry, okay? I’ll handle the socializing if you want. You focus on making the drinks. We do this however makes you comfortable.”
She nodded. “Okay. Thank you.” She paused and took a deep breath. “Sea Breeze. Two ounces of cranberry, half ounce of grapefruit, and three-quarter ounces of vodka.”
“Perfect.” They’d gone over it several times on the drive down. “What about a highball?”
“Ounce of whiskey, ginger ale filled to two thirds of the cup.”
“You got this, babe.” He grinned, giving her hand a final squeeze. “Now let’s set sail with good ol’ Ted.”
The look of relief on her face sent a flood of happiness through his chest. That was, until a shriek call rang through the air. “Get on this boat, Mr. Stag! We booked this tour just to see you!”
Alex’s eyebrows rose over her glasses. “Wow, the legends are true. You really do have groupies.”
Jake held back a groan. He thought maybe he’d recognized a couple of the women from last year. Not because he’d slept with them though, like everyone seemed to think, but just from previous visits, probably from passing out drinks at the marina and the campground where the RV was. He’d probably flirted with them, but that was all.
He gave a quick wave to the ladies on the boat. They whistled. Glancing down at Alex, he sighed. “It’s not what you’re thinking.”
She put her hands up and grinned. “Hey, no judgment here.”
They made their way down the dock and got on the boat as catcalls rang out around him. The deck was narrow wood planks, and there was a bench down the center and one on each side with a large red awning covering about two thirds of the vessel. Toward the back, Ted steered and manned his speaker with a fist microphone held up to his mouth. “I promised, and I delivered, the one and only Jake the Stag whiskey guy … oh, and his sidekick Alex.”
Somewhat embarrassed about the fanfare, Jake gave a quick bow and headed over to the small bar area they’d set up near the back. Several women waved and said hello as he and Alex passed by. He couldn’t help noticing how they eyed her. Not with malice, more like curiosity.
“Sidekick, huh?” Alex whispered as they began to get situated at their station, which was basically a small folding table with a cooler shoved beneath.
“Sorry about that,” he said, as the boat’s engine roared to life. He placed a hand around Alex’s waist. “And hold on. The boat’s a little rough when it first takes off.”
Her body jerked a bit in response, so he immediately let go.
“Sorry, I just didn’t want you to lose your balance,” he said. He should have known better than to assume she wanted him to help her. Or touch her so closely.
She glanced up at him, a nervous quirk of her lips. “I know. It’s fine.”
Just then the boat gave a lurch and she reached out and gripped his shirt with her hands. He lifted an eyebrow. “See?”
“Is it like this the entire time?”
“No. Once he gets going and maintains his speed—which isn’t very fast—it will be fairly smooth. In fact, we’ll basically be stopped a lot of the time.”
She nodded. “Okay, sorry.” Her brows narrowed as she swiped at his chest trying to get out the wrinkles in his T-shirt from her grasp.
“It’s fine, Alex,” he said, smiling at her.
Music came over the speakers, and it wasn’t long before a few of the passengers started to dance and sing along. As always, it was clear that for some of them, the drinks about to be served would not be their first of the afternoon.
They got to work, creating a bit of an assembly line. He lined up the cups and filled them with ice, while Alex poured the ingredients.
“Let’s just start with ten of each and see where we are from there.”
“How many drinks do you usually serve on these cruises?”
“Around sixty or seventy.”
She glanced up, eyes wide. “Really?”
“Really. They’re not that big, and we don’t add a ton of alcohol.”
As they were working, it suddenly occurred to him that although the women had made a big deal at the beginning, not one of them had yet come over to talk to him as they usually did. Was that really because of Alex’s presence? He often had someone offer to be his “helper” by now. But clearly, he didn’t need it because she was there.
“Okay, here’s ten highballs. Should I start passing them out?” she asked.
“If you’re comfortable. If not, I can do it.”
“No, I think I’m good,” she said, picking up the tray. “I don’t know why I got panicked back there on the dock.”
He nodded. “Okay, here.” He placed a handful of napkins on her tray.
Continuing to finish up the remaining drinks, he tried to keep an ear out for what was happening on the boat. He glanced up a few times to see where Alex was, watched her smile at a few of the passengers. She was using the only tray, so he picked up two drinks to hand out just as he caught sight of her making her way to the group of men. They were all about his age, late twenties to early thirties, and leaning against the railing. She handed them each a drink, making her way down the row until her tray was empty. One of them began to speak to her, and then as she began to walk away, he caught her empty hand, holding her in place.
Jake froze, not letting his eyes off the asshole’s fingers clasped on her skin. Protective anger washed over him, and in his head, he began to count down quickly, and if he got to three it was on.
Two.… Three.… Jake stepped forward just as the guy let go. Alex moved on as the men laughed among themselves. She turned around, and he watched as she walked back toward him. Her sunglasses hid any sign of what was in her head, but Jake wasn’t going to let this go unquestioned. He refused to allow her to be mistreated on his watch.
“What the hell was he saying?” he asked when she made her way over.
Alex began to place more drinks on her tray. “He asked if all the cruises came with a pretty waitress. What a dick.”
“What the hell?” Jake’s heart raced as his body’s fight reaction tried to simmer down. Damn, had he ever said something so douchebaggy? Shit, probably. Why did it piss him the hell off to watch another man do it to someone he cared about? He’d process those thoughts later. Right now, he had one mission. “He grabs you again and I’ll be forced to give him a swimming lesson.”
Her shoulders sagged as her eyes met his. “You’re sweet, but seriously? I’ve lived on military bases for almost seven years. If there’s one thing I can handle, it’s a man with a big ego.”
He knew she was right, but that didn’t mean he had to like it. They continued to pass out drinks, and as soon as he made his way to the group of women he’d recognized, one of them jumped up and wrapped her arm around his neck. A bit of liquid sloshed from one of the plastic cups he had balanced in his palms.
“Finally!” she said. “We’ve been waiting for you.”
“Nice to see you ladies again,” he said
, gently pulling away. He held out a hand so she could take a drink, which she did with a flirty wink. “One for you. One for you, and one for you.”
When his hands were empty, he turned to walk away.
“Come back and sit with us,” the first woman called after him, a clear pout in her voice.
He turned and put his hands out. “I’m working,” he teased. As he headed toward the back he heard one of them whisper, “Bet that’s his girlfriend.” He was stunned when another followed with, “No way. Guys like that don’t have girlfriends.”
Wow. Really? Was that how they saw him? How he came off? The kind of man who didn’t … what … settle down? Value women? Deserve a partner? Or maybe they just assumed he didn’t want one. Maybe that was the vibe he emitted. He had to admit, a year or two ago he’d have been happy to hear that’s how he came off, but now? He wasn’t so sure. Being the lone single guy out of his friends had started to suck, and he hadn’t helped noticing that Dean and TJ seemed to be happier than they’d ever been now that they’d given in to the ball and chain.
Part of him wondered if this was just what happened when a man aged—he started to feel the pull of settling down. But then he’d think of the guys he knew who were well into their forties and were still living bachelor life to the fullest. Maybe he was starting to feel the tiniest desire due to osmosis, from being around happy couples at the Stag.
“You okay?” Alex asked, her brow furrowed.
“Yeah, fine.”
“Sure? You looked deep in thought.” She pushed her glasses up and angled her head to meet his eyes. “Did you get harassed too? I mean, I know you did, but I wasn’t prepared for it to upset you.”
She was teasing. He forced a smile and shook it off. “Nah, I’m good, but thanks. Let’s make some more drinks.”
* * *
Alex tried to avoid the group of men for the next hour, which was easy because ever since the guy had grabbed her, Jake had beat her over to them to pass out fresh drinks. By now, all the passengers seemed to be having a good time getting to know one another. She leaned against the railing and watched them dance to some eighties hip-hop song.
“This is the point where we can sit back and be thankful that they’re all drunk and we’re not,” Jake said.
Maybe for You--A Whiskey and Weddings Novel Page 7
