23. CHRIS
23
CHRIS
I was done for the day. Done with the rumors, the investors breathing down my neck, and the way everything seemed to be spiraling out of my control. I just wanted to talk to Bella—to see her face and hear her tell me it was going to be okay.
That I wasn’t completely fucking everything up.
It had been a long time since I needed anyone like this, and I wasn’t sure I liked it. The dependence, the vulnerability. But there it was. Everything about Bella was different and I was willing to face the shit I didn’t like so that I could have what I loved. Who I loved. Besides, she had this way of calming me, making me feel like I could handle this after all.
The marina was alive with the hum of the evening crowd. Lights were strung between masts like some sort of nautical Christmas display, and the music drifted out from one of the yachts—one of those absurdly lavish parties where everyone was dressed to the nines, and probably only half of them knew the host.
Parties like that irritated me. Pretentious. Self-serving.
The sun had dipped below the horizon, leaving streaks of pink and orange fading into indigo, the kind of picture people would say had to have had a filter on, it was that beautiful.
I walked around the yacht looking for her. Her shift would almost be finished, and I just wanted to be alone with her.
She was nowhere to be found. Not on deck, not in the dining room, not in her cabin. Where the fuck was she?
A knot tightened in my chest with every empty room I searched. It wasn’t like her to just disappear, especially not when she was on the job. Besides, she had to be available to me—I was her boss. Maybe I didn’t have any claim on her but after everything we’d shared, after how raw and open things had been between us, where the hell could she be?
I stepped back onto the dock, glancing around, trying to get my bearings. I took my phone out of my pocket and dialed her number. I didn’t want to seem overbearing, but I couldn’t find her.
She didn’t answer.
People were everywhere, laughing, talking, completely unaware that my world was coming undone at the seams. How did the other manufacturers feel about the rumors, the supposed new regulations that had suddenly swept the marina by storm? It was the second to last day of the show, for fuck’s sake.
It was the worst timing for something like this to be happening.
A flash of dark hair, her silhouette unmistakable, drew my attention out of my mind again and I frowned. How had she gotten past me without me noticing? She was already on the dock, heading toward the crowd.
I walked toward the dock and disembarked, following her, but it wasn’t that easy. She was slipping away, moving quickly like she had somewhere she needed to be. The way she looked over her shoulder made it seem like she didn’t want to be followed.
So, I followed because if someone didn’t want it then they were up to something, right?
My instincts kicked in before my brain could catch up and remind me that this was Bella . This wasn’t some stranger with an ulterior motive.
But where was she going?
I moved through the throng of people, dodging couples and groups, trying to keep my eyes on her. It wasn’t easy—not with the lights, the movement, the constant shuffle of bodies in my way. She was a lot smaller than I was, too. Hard to spot and quick to move between people, ducking into small spaces.
I caught glimpses of her, my feet moving faster than my thoughts. She looked over her shoulder again and again, glancing back at the yacht and the more she looked back, the more I was sure she was trying to get away unseen.
Unseen by who?
I hated how paranoid I felt. Every insecurity I had came rushing to the surface the moment I didn’t know where she was and I hated that about myself. It wasn’t fair to her, and I knew it. But knowing didn’t make it any easier to swallow.
The fucking rumors didn’t help things along, either. If I failed here, screwed it up and dented the company reputation and finances, then it would all be true—I just didn’t measure up to the man I was supposed to be, the man Alex and Ben both were and expected me to show up as.
I pushed the thought away. I was letting my insecurities get the better of me, but fuck, it really wasn’t that simple to shrug them off and leave them behind.
Especially not when it felt like Bella was running from me.
She doesn’t even know you’re following her, asshole , I reminded myself. But that just made me feel like a creeper because I was following her without her knowing about it.
Damn it, I had to get my head straight.
Or get it examined.
I lost sight of her near one of the bigger yachts—a massive thing with multiple levels, all decked out in lights, music thumping from speakers that were definitely pushing the limits of acceptable noise levels. People milled around on the dock, champagne glasses in hand, laughter cutting through the air. I scanned the crowd, but she was gone.
“Shit,” I muttered under my breath, running a hand through my hair, my fingers tangling in the mess of it. I’d been so caught up in my own thoughts I hadn’t paid attention. But maybe it was better this way.
This was stupid. I should just go back, wait for her, trust her to talk to me. We weren’t even in a space where I was completely open with her—that was all my fault to begin with. I hadn’t told her my whole truth, so how could I expect her to be open with me about everything in her life?
Hell, it had only been one day since we’d really connected, anyway.
But there was a part of me—that deeply insecure part I kept buried under layers of bravado and charm and seduction—that couldn’t let it go.
For a moment I considered calling her again, but that would be too much.
Yeah, way too much.
Get it together, Chris.
I was just struggling with all the shit happening now. It didn’t mean I had to lose it completely.
I turned, leaning against the railing, looking out at the water. The boats bobbed gently, the reflections of the lights rippling across the surface. It was beautiful. It was everything I’d worked for, everything I’d built. But standing here, watching the world move around me, I felt lost and alone. Even surrounded by people, even with my brothers just a phone call away—I was alone.
And no matter how much I tried not to think about it, I was terrified I was going to lose the one person who made me feel like I wasn’t.