Page 43 of Choosing Happily Ever After

Before he could call out some excuse that he was naked—a warning he was pretty sure she wouldn’t heed anyway—his cell phone rang. Levi lunged for it on the nightstand and held it up triumphantly. “I have to take this call!” he hollered to his cousin through the door before pushing the button and answering it—all without looking at the caller.

“Hello.” He tried and failed to instill any enthusiasm into his voice. “Levi Langdon.”

“Levi? Is that you?” His captain’s crusty voice, salty from the sea and too many cigars, crackled over the line.

Shit.

He really should have looked at the caller ID. He’d been avoiding Captain Pat ever since he sent the email back that he wasn’t interested in the job offer. A decision that, given Hope’s subsequent behavior, he wasn’t sure was the right one. The calls and texts—which were unusual because Levi didn’t even think that Captain Patknewhow to text—had been almost nonstop ever since.

“It’s me, Captain Pat.”

“So you’re not dead?”

“No.”Although I might as well be.“I’m not dead. Sorry, I just—”

“I don’t want to listen to your excuses.” The captain cut him off smoothly. “I’m a busy man. And frankly, I don’t care. I need an answer, Langdon. Do you want your own boat, or not?”

Levi squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. His own boat.What would that mean?

It would mean more money, more opportunity. His own crew. Doing things his way. It would mean realizing the dream he’d held onto for years, ever since he finished out his first season on a boat.

But it would also mean moving back to the coast. This time for good.

There was a time, not so long ago, that he would have jumped at that opportunity. But now…now that Hope…

What?Now that Hope had pushed him away? Rejected him for good? Found out she was sick and possibly could die and…

“Langdon? I’m waiting.” Captain Pat’s voice cut through his thoughts.

Fuck.

No matter what Hope said, no matter how hard she pushed, Levi knew the truth. He sat up so quickly, pillows tumbled to the floor as he swung his legs over the edge of his bed. He did know the truth. And Hope knew it, too; she just needed to be reminded. “Sorry, Captain,” he said clearly into the phone. “I want to thank you for the opportunity because it is a good one.”

“Damn right it is.”

“But my answer stands. I have to turn it down.”

“You have towhat?”

Levi shook his head, but he couldn’t help the smile that crossed his face as everything finally became clear. “I have to turn it down, Captain, because I don’t think I’ll be returning to the coast for a while. I have important things to take care of here.”

Very important things.

“Important things, huh?” The captain huffed. “Sounds like a woman to me.”

“Not just any woman,” Levi said confidently, never more sure that he’d made the right choice. “But the only woman I’ve ever loved.” He ran a hand over his face and almost laughed at the scruff he’d acquired over the last few days of feeling sorry for himself. “She needs me, Captain. And I need her. More than I ever realized.”

On the other end of the line, the gruff captain made a noise that sounded somewhere between a cough and a grunt. No doubt, Captain Pat had never heard such soft-hearted sentiment from any of his crew before, but Levi didn’t care.

“Langdon, I’ve spent many years at sea,” Captain Pat started. “Not all of them have been good years.” He continued in the slow, precise way he had. “Some of them have been great years.” Levi nodded and waited. “But even the best year at sea could never match the worst year with a good woman.”

Whatever Levi had thought Captain Pat was going to say, it wasn’t that. He swallowed hard and was thankful the older man wasn’t there to see the look of shock on his face.

“Oh, go on and close your mouth, Langdon,” the captain said, as if reading his thoughts. “It’s not like I’ve lived the life of a monk, you know? There was a woman in my life once, too. My biggest love and my biggest regret. Don’t make that same mistake, Langdon.”

“No sir.”

“You do what you need to do,” Captain Pat continued. “And if you ever find yourself on the coast in need of a job, there’ll always be a boat for you.”

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