Page 74 of Forbidden Kisses
Grace followed Joey’s gaze and stared into the deep blue as well, waiting, hoping…Nothing. “So, are we going to toss chum overboard? Is that your secret tool?” she asked, clutching the rig’s handle as the wind picked up and the boat swayed on the water.
“Nah. That’s everyone’s secret tool. Mine is this.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a quarter with a hole drilled into the top.
“A quarter?”
“Nice and shiny. Fish like shiny things.”
Grace had to laugh. This was something that Jack and Noah hadn’t yet taught her. “Women like shiny things, too.”
“This is true.” Joey glanced over. “You know, after my brief engagement ended, my ex gave her ring back to me. I used it at this very spot.”
Grace pushed her neck forward. She’d heard about Joey’s broken engagement in the past. “You used a diamond engagement ring to catch a fish?”
Joey finished the beer he was drinking and tossed the can into an open cooler off to the side. “Damn fish got away with the ring, too. Better than letting my ex keep it, I guess.”
Grace curled her fingers tighter around the railing of the boat as it rocked against the current. “She was crazy, if you ask me.”
“I’m the crazy one for letting things get as far with her as they did. And what kind of fool uses an engagement ring as fish bait?” He shook his head.
“The kind that’s in love,” Grace said softly, understanding exactly how he’d felt. She’d fallen fast and hard for Jack over the last few weeks, and now it seemed like it was over. She swallowed thickly.
Joey looked at her. “So, about that fish you want to catch today. I haven’t got a ring, but I swear by quarters.” He pointed a finger at her. “If you tell your boyfriend this secret, no more DD cabbie for you.”
Grace’s mouth fell open. “What boyfriend?”
He scoffed. “Come on. I’ve driven you and the girls around enough to hear what’s going on between you and Jack. And if you ask me, he’s the crazy one if he lets you walk away.”
She wouldn’t really be walking away, though. It was up to Jack if this thing between them was going to go any further. “Thanks for saying so, Joey.”
He nodded, slipped a fishing hook through a hole drilled into the top of the quarter, and dropped it into the water.
“I’ll believe this science of yours when I see a fish.”
“All right, all right. Seeing is believing.”
An eternity later—which reminded Grace why she didn’t like fishing; she was too impatient—the line jerked.
“Fish!” Joey called, working fast and doing things that Grace had no clue about. Krista and Abby came running. They worked just as fast. Grace just stood there and watched. Some captain she was. Then, after nearly twenty minutes, a king mackerel was pulled out of the water and plopped onto the deck of the boat.
“She’s magnificent,” Grace said, crouching near the catch. She looked up at her friends.
Joey frowned.
Krista frowned.
Abby frowned, too.
Grace looked between them. “What’s wrong?”
“She’s too small. We’ll have to throw her back,” Joey finally said.
“Really?” The fish looked great to Grace. It also looked like a fish that belonged in the water and not on the surface.
“Sorry, Grace. I know you wanted one today, but Joey’s right.” Krista swiped her forearm along her brow.
Grace shrugged. “I’m not disappointed. That was still exhilarating.”
“Just wait for tomorrow.” Krista smiled at her. “We’re going to show Jack and Noah how it’s done.” She lifted her hand for a high five, and Grace obliged.
