Page 48 of Their Reluctant Catch

I never thought I’d find peace in an off-the-grid town in rugged Maine.

Certainly not sandwiched between two gruff, infuriating, ridiculously attractive brothers who seem determined to make sure I’m eating right, sleeping well, and me fixing things around their house like I’ve always belonged here.

The faucet was easy, the washer more complicated, but nothing a bit of patience and the right tools couldn’t fix. The washing machine had been an insult to my mechanical engineer heart, rattling and clanking like a loose bolt in an engine block. A quick check uncovered a rogue coin trapped in the drum.

What surprises me most is how much satisfaction I get from making things right again.

Back in Miami, fixing cars was my job, my passion, and my escape. But here, in this quiet, close-knit town, it’s something more. The small repairs, the simple improvements—they aren’t about getting a paycheck or proving myself in a male-dominated field. They’re about making this place better, making it work for the people who live in it.

For Todd.

For Colton.

For me.

I turn in Colton’s arms, lean my back against his hard chest, and take in the gleaming faucet, satisfied with its drip-free status and by the muscled arms that snake around my waist.

Todd lifts his brows as he follows the direction of my gaze. “Starling, if you keep this up, we’re gonna have to put you on payroll.”

I smirk at him and try not to squirm when Colton slides his hands under my—well his—shirt. “Please. You can’t afford me.”

Todd snorts from where he’s leaning against the counter, arms crossed over his chest. “Maybe she has a point.”

A slow, delicious heat curls through me as Colton cups my breasts and the proof of his attraction for me presses against my back. “We could always pay her in orgasms.” His breath puffs against the back of my ear before he sucks to lobe into his mouth.

My knees turn weak, and his chest reverberates with his chuckle.

Chapter19

Savannah

I can’t believe they talked me into this.

Four in the goddamn morning.

It’s bad enough that Todd convinced me to crawl out of the warm cocoon of our bed before dawn, but the real betrayal? The man brewed coffee—rich, dark, life-saving coffee—only to pour it into a thermos and tell me I had toearnmy java.

If I didn’t want him so much, I’d kill him.

Now, standing on the deck of theSea Spirit, the wooden planks shifting beneath my feet as we ease away from the dock, I wonder if I made a mistake. The ocean is vast, endless, black in the pre-dawn hush. Even at the docks, I can feel the gentle roll beneath me. Like I needed a reminder that the ground is no longer solid.

My stomach clenches. I really,reallyhope I don’t get seasick. That would suck major balls.

Colton stands at the helm, his hands sure and steady on the wheel. The water around us is ink, reflecting only the pinprick glow of stars overhead. He’s magnificent in his confident stance and wide shoulders.

I have no idea how he navigates in the dark, but he seems to know exactly where we’re going, reading the sea like it speaks to him in a language I don’t understand.

A shift in the wind carries a delicious aroma to my nose, warm and rich. My brain short-circuits. “Finally,” I groan when Todd hands me a cup of coffee. I lift it to my lips and almost scald my tongue, but I don’t care. It’s worth it.

Todd chuckles, the smug bastard, and before I can retaliate and hit him, he moves away to bring Colton his share.

I wrap both hands around the cup, absorbing the heat as I focus on the open water. My breath plumes in the cold, and I pull Todd’s hoodie tighter around me. The air out here is sharper than on land, laced with brine and the faintest whisper of fish and seaweed. If not for the cold, it’s comforting, in a way.

The waves slap gently against the hull. Almost hypnotic, the rhythmic rise and fall lulls me into a peaceful state.

A gust of wind rushes over the deck, pushing away the last remnants of sleep, and I shiver, although not only from the cold, but from something deeper.

There is something primal about the ocean, and I’mout here. In the middle of nowhere. The water stretches beyond what I can see, vast and unknowable, and the sky above is endless. Stars blink down at me, their light barely touching the horizon where the first sliver of dawn begins to glow, a bruised ribbon of indigo and violet stretching across the water.

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