Page 77 of Cutter's Hope

“I’m Hope,” I said.

“Hayden,” she returned carefully.

“So, um… not sure where to go from here,” I said, “I mean it’s obvious we’ve both fucked the same man,” she laughed and colored in the weak light from the harbor. The engines thrummed to life and the lights out here on deck flared to life. I blinked and put up a hand.

“Sorry, Sweetheart,” Cutter grinned down at me and it was obvious he wasn’t sorry in the slightest.

“Where are we going?” I looked at him speculatively.

“You trust me?” he asked and suddenly I was the hard focus of three pairs of eyes.

“You know I do. If I didn’t I would be with my sister right now.”

“That just shows you trust the dude that’s with her, doesn’t it?” Reaver asked, coiling one of the lines off the side of the boat.

“No. Cutter asked me to trust him, I trust Cutter, so Marlin’s with my sister,” I shrugged. It made sense inmyhead.

Cutter gently barked orders and Reaver followed through and in a few minutes time Cutter had us moving, out into the open waters. I looked up, the stars were beginning to come out, twinkling in the clear skies. Soon, the act of looking up, coupled with the rise and fall of the boat, well, my stomach roiled a bit. I was pretty sure my Cosmopolitan binge drinking didn’t help, like at all, and my inevitable heaving over the side while my current man’s ex-lover held back my hair just made my humiliation for today complete. Still, once I puked, I felt much better. Funny how that worked.

Hayden stood near me, face crumpled into lines of sympathy as she held back my hair, smoothing it back from my face, petting it really. She was just generally being a comfort while the guys steered us towards the unknown destination Cutter had in mind. All I had a mind to do was kneel on the bench running around the perimeter of the aft deck while I heaved into the churning waters off the side. Yep. Abject humiliation, full and complete, and I only had myself to blame. Fun times.

“Better?” Hayden asked and I spit.

“Not really, God I am such anasshole,” I groaned. Hayden huffed a small laugh.

“It could be worse,” she said and shrugged.

“Not sure how.”

She was silent and when I straightened her hands left my hair and she stood, mouth firmly shut, eyes sparkling with good humor. She really was a pretty girl. I could see why Cutter had been hooked. Still, aside from sharing hair color she and I were worlds apart which made me wonder what in the world he saw inme.

“Oh, hey,” she said and reached out halfheartedly when I turned away. I wasn’t used to being so all over the map emotionally. This shit seriously sucked.

“Sorry. I just, I don’t know, I just don’t get it,” I said shortly. She sank down on the bench next to me.

“Don’t get what?”

I didn’t say anything, just turned my face into the breeze. Hayden sat silently with me and Reaver came around with a toothbrush loaded with paste and a bottle of water. I accepted these things gratefully and scrubbed the gross out of my mouth. Hayden didn’t push me to talk and the guys were kept a little busy. Cutter had turned off the motor and the snap of canvas and clink of catches and fittings filled the sultry evening air.

“Where are wegoing?” I asked. I didn’t like leaving things in the air like that, Cutter just laughed.

“You’ll see.”

“Better question is what will we do when we get there?” Hayden asked. I nodded. She had a point there.

“Finish up some dinner, we’re almost there. I think we’re about five minutes out or so. If fuel weren’t so damned expensive I wouldn’t have even bothered with the sails but we got a good wind,” he shrugged as if to say, ‘so fuck it,’ and let the ship’s wheel slide through his hands. I rinsed the toothbrush over the side and wrestled with my impatience.

“So um, what do you do?” Hayden tried.

“I’m a defense contractor,” I said and at her uncertain look, dumbed it down for her, “I train police departments how to disarm suspects without killing them.”

“Oh, sounds exciting,” she smiled.

“It’s a lot of paperwork,” which was true, “What about you?” I had to make at least some small effort, I mean right?

“Interior design,” she nodded, blushing faintly. Probably worried I would judge based on its excitement level or lack thereof as compared to my line of work.

“What about him?” I asked instead, sidestepping the mess entirely.

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