“What about me?” Quinn challenged, his hand steady on Rowan’s back as he attacked the kinks in her shoulders. He felt the need to touch her, constantly, and the massage would be less frowned upon than carrying her around like a baby. “You could’ve told me.”
“You would’ve told her.”
“I ... no ... not necessarily.”
Alex snorted. “Whatever. You can’t lie to her. You can barely pretend you can lie to her to save face with me. You would’ve told her to make her feel better. I needed things to play out exactly as they did ... other than the boneheaded move she made to go to the warehouse to save Sally on her own. What was up with that?”
“Yeah, what was up with that?” Sally echoed, sitting on the back of an ambulance as a paramedic worked on her. “I wanted to kill you myself for that.”
Rowan was sheepish. “I was trying to save my friend.”
“And you put yourself in danger in the process,” Alex countered, making a tsking sound with his tongue. “I don’t know what you were thinking, but that was an absolutely asinine thing to do. I thought for sure you would show up with Captain Crabbypants here.” He jerked his thumb at Quinn. “I didn’t think for a second you would go alone.”
“Yeah, well ... .” Rowan pursed her lips as she looked at Quinn. “Don’t worry. I think I’m going to be hearing about it for a very long time.”
“Most definitely,” Quinn agreed without hesitation. “You’re going to be hearing about it for the rest of our lives.”
Rowan wasn’t surprised by the threat. She also knew he would only hold strong on the promise for a few days. Then he would let it go. She could deal with it until then. “I guess that’s it then, huh? You’re going to lock him up, right?”
“I am,” Alex confirmed, bobbing his head. “His father is on the way. We’ve been in contact with him. He was aware of the operation and wants to arrange for a high-security hospital. I believe he’s worried about an escape attempt and I don’t blame him. We’ll figure it out, though.”
Rowan frowned. “You don’t think he’ll go to prison?”
“Do you? You talked to him. Is that a sane man? I mean ... he thinks you’re psychic.”
Rowan wasn’t sure how to respond. She risked a glance at Darcy, who had been largely silent since the takedown of her boss, and the woman slowly shook her head. Rowan understood the warning. Darcy helped her and she wanted Rowan to return the favor. The ship photographer had no problem with that. From where she was standing, Darcy deserved the right to disappear.
“I know. Totally weird,” Rowan agreed, holding Alex’s gaze for an extended period of time. Something passed between them. He understood about her ability. He didn’t want to talk about it, though. Whether it was for her or Darcy, she couldn’t say. Perhaps it was for both of them.
“Am I going to have to testify?” Rowan asked after a beat, something occurring to her. “I mean ... is this going in front of a judge?”
Alex shrugged. “Actually, I don’t know the answer to that. Spencer will spend months getting evaluated by doctors. If there is a trial, it will be far down the line. I’ll keep you informed when I know more.”
“Yeah, well ... .” She blew out a sigh and rested her head on Quinn’s chest as he slid his arms around her back and held her tight. “I can’t believe it’s over. What happens to the Phoenix Society now?”
“I believe the IRS will take care of dismantling the company. It was basically a front to hide what Spencer was doing. His father is owed a bunch of money, so he could liquidate the assets. I’m guessing he’ll go that route.”
His father. Her grandfather. Rowan ran the notion through her head. Her father’s parents had died long ago. She hadn’t had a grandparent in a long time. Now she had this one ... and she had no idea what to do about it.
As if reading her mind, Quinn stirred. “I talked to him on the phone before we made it down here. It was a very brief conversation. He let me know about Alex being on the case, which I had no idea about until then. He did mention he would like a chance to meet you. He didn’t know about your mother being dead. I told him I would broach the subject, but you needed a few days to think about it and decompress. He was open to waiting.”
“Yeah?” Rowan cocked her head. “I really do need to think about it. I’m not sure how I feel.”
“That’s fine.” Quinn pressed his lips to Rowan’s head. “I don’t want to leave you, but I need to head to the hospital and check on Fred. Do you think you’ll be okay getting back to the ship on your own? I mean ... you’re not in danger any longer so it should be fine.” He knew that beyond a shadow of a doubt because he made her take a selfie with her phone and show it to him. The omen was gone.
“She won’t be alone,” Paul called out, catching Quinn’s eye. “She’ll be with us.”
“Fair enough.” Quinn gave her another kiss and stood. “I won’t be gone long. I need to check on him, though.”
Rowan nodded in understanding. “It’s okay.”
“I’ve already placed a call,” Alex offered. “He’s out of surgery and breathing on his own. They tentatively think he’ll make a full recovery.”
“That’s a load off,” Quinn noted. “I still need to see him for myself.”
“I’ll be waiting for you on the ship,” Rowan supplied. “I suppose my punishment will begin then, huh?”
Quinn looked more amused than angry, although he adopted a stern expression. “You have no idea what I’m going to do to you.”
“And yet it sounds hot when he says it,” Sally teased.
“I can’t take this,” Paul complained. “I seriously can’t take this.”
“I want to talk to you on the way back to the mainland, too,” Alex called out to the griping man. “I’m dying to know how a dead man is walking around.”
Paul sighed, the sound long and drawn out. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know where to find me.”
“I certainly do.”
QUINN WAS GONE FOR HOURS. He texted Rowan that Fred was awake and asking questions, promising he would return in time for dinner. He asked that she not eat without him, even though she was starving, and she figured she owed him after what she pulled.
She spent the afternoon listening to Michael profusely apologize for frightening her. It turned out he’d been in the basement because one of the female passengers was being overly aggressive – sexually – and she was too old for him. Those were his words, not Rowan’s, and he thought Quinn could help him gracefully point her toward someone else. The realization that he was still Michael – goofy and ridiculous Michael – made Rowan feel markedly better.
She was, however, still worried about Quinn. He’d yet to yell, but it was coming.
Shortly before seven, he texted and asked her to meet him on deck so they could head straight to dinner. She was relieved because he wouldn’t yell in front of people. Even though she knew she was only delaying the inevitable, she was willing to put off the “very serious” conversation he’d promised for as long as possible.
She dressed in a simple floral frock, her shoulders on display thanks to the thin spaghetti straps. She wore comfortable sandals and her hair was freshly washed and flowing around her shoulders.
The sun was setting, creating a beautiful and fiery vista when she emerged from inside. That was the first thing she noticed. The second was Quinn. He was on one knee in the middle of the deck, everyone they loved surrounding him. Paul, Sally, Demarcus, Nick, Michael, and a bevy of other workers stood at the sidelines as Quinn opened a jewelry box and held it in front of her.
She lost her breath at the sight of the diamond, her mind going in a million different directions all at once ... the same as the shimmering light fractures shining from the ring. “What is this?” Her voice was barely a whisper.
Quinn wore a suit, his hair washed, his smile wide. “What do you think it is?”
“It looks like a—” She couldn’t finish the sentence. What if she was wrong? Of course, there was n
o rational explanation for what was happening if she was wrong.
“Proposal?” Quinn’s grin widened. “Well, that’s what it is.” He sucked in a breath as she made a strangled sound deep in her throat. “I’ve wanted to be with you since the moment I saw you. Oh, I fought it ... and I won that battle for all of five minutes.
“I never believed in love at first sight, or destiny, until I met you,” he continued, his voice becoming thick. “I never thought I was meant to be with one person. Now I know the reason I felt that way is because I hadn’t yet met you. Now that I have, I know you’re it for me. You’re the one.”
He exhaled heavily to collect his nerves. “I don’t ever want to be without you. I don’t ever want you to be without me. I want us to be together forever. So, Rowan Gray, will you marry me?”
Rowan’s eyes burned with tears and she felt as if she had too much oxygen in her lungs. Briefly, she pressed her eyes shut. And then she nodded. Finding her voice was difficult, but her answer came out on a squeak. “Yes.”
Absolute pandemonium broke out over the deck as those assembled burst into spontaneous applause. Rowan couldn’t stop the tears as she dropped to her knees next to him and watched as he slipped the ring on her finger. His arms were around her in a matter of seconds.
“I love you more than anything. That’s never going to change.”
“I love you, too,” she choked out, her eyes landing on her father. He, too, was crying. He looked obscenely happy for her. “How long have you been planning this?”
“Since the moment we met.”
“How long really?”
“It feels like forever.” He cupped her face and stared into her eyes. “We were always meant to get here. I’ve known that for a very long time. The rest is just ... details.”
“Yeah.” She leaned forward and kissed him, long and deep. When they parted, they were both a little breathless. “Does this mean I’m not in trouble?”
He chuckled. “Oh, you’re still in trouble. I’m just going to fill you full of crab legs before that discussion.”
“As long as there’s crab legs, I’m good.”
“For the rest of our lives.”
“I can live with that.”
“We both can live with that.”
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Acknowledgments
I’m a romantic at heart. A true romantic. I love the idea of a happy ending, so much so I have trouble writing a sad one. The world is sad enough. I like escaping in fiction. That’s just me. I like sarcasm and snark – but I’m not sure a sad ending is in me. If you’re looking for an edge like that, you’re probably looking in the wrong place. Just FYI.
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.
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Wicked Times
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Wicked Delight
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Ghostly Worries
Ghostly Images
Ghostly Wrecks
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Ghostly Holiday
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Murky Seas
Stormy Seas
Sunken Seas
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Dangerous Seas
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The Dirty Coven
Crossovers
Wicked Ghosts
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Ghostly Seas
Hardy Brothers Security
Deadly Intentions
Deadly Intuition
Deadly Illusions
Deadly Proposal
Deadly Prospects
Deadly Ever After
Deadly Honeymoon
Deadly Questions
Deadly Addition
Deadly Vacation
Deadly Secrets
Deadly Storm
Deadly Dealings
Deadly Christmas
Deadly Desperados
Deadly Arrival
Deadly Rivalry
Deadly Memories
Deadly Adventure
Deadly Reunion
Deadly Conflicts
Deadly Payback
Deadly Waves
Deadly Forever
Farewell Seas Page 58
