Page 45 of Sail Away
“I’m so sorry for the things I said about your feelings for Erin.”
“Don’t be.” He brushed his lips over her forehead. “When you and I first hooked up, I did use Erin as a way to protect myself. I did it with all women because I never wanted to hurt that bad again. But as time went on and I fell in love with you, I realized that the biggest reason I didn’t let go of Erin wasn’t because of guilt; it was because she gave me strength. Erin was a special woman, and I’ll always want to honor her life, just not in the way Preston wants me to.” He squeezed his eyes shut. “He’s using my love and grief for his sister to manipulate me.”
“He’s been doing that for ten years. I’m sorry. I’ve seen it and I should have said something.”
Reid blinked. His heart beat so fast, he thought it might jump right out of his chest. “When you came into the picture, I stopped letting him manipulate me as much. Then I went crazy when we broke up and I did leave him holding the bag.”
“So that gives him the right to push you out of your own company?” She wrapped her arm around his middle and slipped her knee between his legs. Her petite yet firm body molded to his like a pair of leather driving gloves.
“Of course not. But he lost his sister. They might not have been as close as you and your siblings, but her death still changed him fundamentally. And weirdly, I suppose he blames me or some weird shit. I don’t know. I’m just trying to figure what and why.”
“But you’re not responsible for him, which is what you’ve been doing ever since she died. You’ve made excuses for him and all but catered to his every whim.”
“Until I fell in love with you,” Reid said. “And since then, he’s been working on getting rid of me.”
“I didn’t like him when we were dating. I dislike him even more now.”
He pulled her tight to his chest, running his hands up and down her back. It had been so long since he’d held her, and it felt as though he’d come home. “I never understood why he didn’t want us together, other than I believe he saw the writing on the wall.”
“And what writing was that?”
“I wanted to take the company in a different direction.”
“Like how?”
“I love developing products that will keep people safe. This fire suit we’re working on could really change things for firefighters across the nation. I want to focus on partnerships like that. But it takes time, patience, and money. Preston wants to focus on extreme sports like stunt movies, but he’s always cutting corners, and I’m afraid it will end up costing lives just to make a few million when he’s already got plenty of money. When is enough enough?”
“Ten million? Twenty?”
He cocked his head back.
She shrugged. “Sorry. It’s very different when you’re below deck and have always had to work for a living. And I’m not judging the fact that you were born with money. It’s not like my family was poor, but what you’re going to give us for a tip was the down payment for my sailboat.”
“It’s not about the money anymore for me. Nor is it about the thrill. It is about honoring Erin in a way and doing something good with what used to be my stupidity.”
Darcie pressed her hand to the center of his chest and smiled. “Being in your cabin right now is about one of the dumbest things I’ve ever done. Milia is probably sneaking around the boat, wondering where I am, and that might give this crew something to talk about.”
“I think they already are. And I’ve seen the cabins you have to sleep in. I’d be claustrophobic, not to mention the shower and toilet being in the same space. I don’t know how you do it.”
“This coming from a man who has slept on the side of a cliff for shits and giggles.” She kissed his neck. “Our lifestyles aren’t all that different when you think about them. We are both motivated by the need to feel something flow through our bodies. Yet we don’t ever really allow ourselves to feel what is important.”
“I feel everything when I’m with you.” He inhaled the sweet scent of her vanilla and strawberry shampoo. He missed the long, leisurely nights he’d spent with her in his arms as they stared at the stars and listened to the night sounds. When he met her, it’d been a time in his life where he’d been coming out of a fog, figuring out who he really was and what he wanted. He’d wandered through his adolescence with no real guidance from his parents. He’d been a rich kid with a credit card. Thankfully, he had a nanny with a conscience.
He kissed Darcie’s cheek. Her temple. And then moved to her plump, adorable lips that tasted like bananas and peaches.
“We should probably start looking at the emails and stuff,” he whispered.
“Do you think it’s all downloaded by now?” she asked as she pressed her breasts against him, raising her leg just a little higher.
He reached over her and snagged the tablet. “Eighty-six percent done, so we have maybe a half hour.”
She lifted her shirt over her head and tossed it to the side. It landed on his laptop, shifting it, closing the lid. “Oops,” she said, straddling him. “That gives us just enough time.”
“Considering the last time I had sex with a woman was with you, we might be lucky if I last an eighth of that time.” He gripped her hips, holding her steady. He truly was terrified that it might be over before he even got out of the gate. He groaned when she bit down on her lower lip.
“You’re joking,” she said.
“Nope.”
