Page 22 of Rum Sips and Salty Lips

“It’s fine, Carina.” Defeat fills his voice as he shuts off the music and turns his back to me, resuming whatever he was doing before I came out.

He’s right and I’m wrong. But I don’t want to back down. At least not yet. He is right that no one challenges me. At least not in Wendell Beach. I don’t give anyone the chance. If it had been someone else, I would have asked them nicely to turn down the music and probably offered some of Haley’s food as incentive.

But it’s my father and his team of investors who think they know best about my business—they’re the ones giving me a tough time. I can’t push back with my dad. I can push back against Orion. He’ll meet me halfway because he sees us as equals.

Instead of taking his offering, I’ve downgraded myself to an elementary school kid—being mean to the person I like.

Fuck.

He started this, and he can take it. As long as I go in a different direction. “Do you give everyone a hard time, or is this treatment exclusive to me?”

He turns to me, his lips lifted on one side. “I like to think I give people what they need.”

“And you’re so arrogant. You know what I need?” It’s bluster. I know he knows. He’s proven it at every turn.

He smiles, stepping closer to me and lowering his voice so I can barely hear what he says. “We both know I’m extremely capable of giving you exactly what you need. Twice.”

I shrug to play it off, and to let him know I’m not mad. “My vibrator is fully charged so I can take care of myself.” I look up at him, his mouth close enough to me that it wouldn’t take much movement to kiss him. Like I’m not counting down how long before Haley leaves and I can have some time alone.

His eyebrows rise. “Think of what I could do to you with a vibrator.”

I should have known he’d see it as a fun challenge. I let out a breath and cross my arms over my chest, taking a step back. He’s likely able to spot my arousal from a mile away. “Fuck off. It’s not happening.” I laugh, but it sounds forced even to me.

Thankfully he steps back too and throws me a lifeline. “How long will you be filming for? I was about to mow, but I can wait.”

“About an hour?” I say. He’s being thoughtful and not pushing me harder than I can handle, which I didn’t expect. I should have. I shouldn’t assume the worst of him. “I can tell you when we’re done. I’ll bring over some of the food. We won’t eat it all.”

He pulls out his phone. “Give me your number and I’ll text you mine.”

It’s a good idea. We’re neighbors. We should be able to communicate with each other. “A group of us are meeting at Paradise tonight around five. You should come,” I add. Nothing has to mean more than what we’re saying on the surface.

He nods. “I’ll stop by. I have an early morning charter, so I need a good night’s sleep.”

“I thought theTwisted Riggingwas out of the inventory?”

He smiles, realizing he’s caught me checking up on him. “She is. This is theCoastal Dragon. She’s a catamaran in the fleet. I’ll be captaining her for charters.”

“Right. I’ll see you later, then.” I turn to head back to my place.

“Wait, one more thing.” He hesitates for a moment. “I go kayaking by myself a lot.” I nod like this is new information to me. “Would you mind if I text you and share my location when I do? Just in case something happens?”

“Of course.” It’s a safety thing. It doesn’t mean anything.

“Thanks. I’ll see you later.”

“Yep, I’ll save you a seat.”

When I get back to my yard, Haley is giving me a strange look. “That was weird.”

“What?”

“You said you didn’t really talk with him, but that looked pretty familiar.”

He and I were standing close. I didn’t even think she’d see it. “It’s nothing.”

That’s the truth. There’s nothing going on with Orion and me. We’re neighbors and maybe we’ll be friends. The fact that we’ve slept together once has no bearing on anything.

nine

---