Chapter 34
THIRTY-FOUR
Lachlan had never been so impatient to get back to Whalebone Cove Marina.
He was at home on and in the water. Being out there recharged him and brought him peace.
But today he’d been obsessively checking the time while the hours dragged past with excruciating slowness until he could finally turn the boat around and head for home—and Maddy.
There was no barking when he dropped his gear outside the back door. Mae must have picked up the dogs.
When he walked in, the smell of something rich and delicious filled the air.
He found Maddy setting the table in the eating area just off the kitchen, and his heart swelled at the sight of her.
She wore a low cut green V-neck sweater and a snug, knee-length skirt that hugged her hips and thighs and left her calves bare.
“Hey,” he said when he unstuck his tongue from the roof of his mouth.
She lifted her head, and the way her face lit up was like the sun appearing through the clouds after a storm. “Hi. How was your day?”
“Long.” He felt too grubby to touch her when she looked so polished, the dried salt spray on his skin rough and gritty. He needed a shower first. Unless she was up for joining him again, and he could make good on his promise. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”
Her cheeks flushed a bit. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you either.”
He took in the dishes set on the counter, and the oven light was on. “Did you cook?”
“I made a casserole and a salad. Blaine placed a grocery order for me, and I paid him back.”
“A casserole with all kinds of ingredients touching?”
“A Greek chicken casserole with the correct kinds of ingredients touching, and topped with crispy phyllo,” she said with a wry twist of her lips. “What can I say, I’m quirky. But we’re having the salad on a different plate because of the hot/cold thing.”
He grinned. “Good idea.” She was gorgeous and thoughtful, and he wanted to eat her up. Set her on the island top right now and push that tight skirt up to her hips so he could sink to his knees and go down on her right here in the kitchen.
But he wouldn’t because her first time was happening in the privacy of his bedroom, where she could stretch out and relax to enjoy it properly.
It felt like the fly of his jeans had shrunk three sizes in the past two minutes.
She laughed. “I see that look on your face. We’re not wasting my dinner after I went to the trouble of making it for us.”
“I’d happily go without any food and eat you instead.”
She blinked at him, her cheeks flushing dark. “I…”
He grinned and closed the distance between them, kissing her gently before pulling her into a hug. Holding her close, he exhaled and savored the feel of her wrapped around him, warm and trusting and completely unaware of how sexy she was or what she did to him inside.
That little voice at the back of his head warned him not to let her in any further, that it was already going to hurt like a bitch if they kept going and she left. She was only here temporarily to take a break from her real life.
This kind of lifestyle wasn’t for everyone.
Some people struggled with the quiet, could never adjust to the slower pace and isolation of island life.
Sometimes with terrible consequences. But Maddy seemed to like a quieter, slower pace of life.
It gave him hope that they could build something together.
“I missed you so damned much today,” he murmured, silencing the warning voice.
He would enjoy their time together for as long as it lasted and guard his heart while it did.
It had taken him this long to move forward after losing his wife.
Wasn’t sure he could withstand another heartbreak, and Maddy already held the power to crush him.
“As far as I know, no one’s ever missed me like that before. I think I like it.”
The way she said things like that, little insights that told him just how alone she’d been in the world, it undid him. “That’s impossible. No one missing you.”
She cleared her throat and pulled away. “Dinner’s ready. I don’t want it to get cold.”
He helped her bring everything to the table. Followed her lead in taking salad into a separate bowl and eating it first, then putting the casserole onto his plate.
“This is incredible,” he said after his first bite. The casserole itself was creamy and tangy with a kick of garlic, and the crispy phyllo topping was incredible.
“It’s my favorite. My mom used to make it for me on Monday nights when I was growing up.”
It was the first time she’d talked about her mother to him with a smile.
They told each other about their day. He talked about his trip up the southeast part of Vancouver Island and through Canadian waters to some of the Gulf Islands. “It was a good group. Small and tight knit. They really enjoyed it.”
“That’s good. I took a look at your website,” she said between mouthfuls. “No offense, but it’s not very good.”
His smile was dry. “I have to keep it basic because I’m the one who has to update it. Believe it or not, I’m stretching my tech abilities as it is.”
“I made a list of templates that I think will work better for you. I also signed you up for a trial of the software I told you about earlier. I mocked up some worksheets and onboarding plugins to show you how it could all work together. If you let me know what you like, I can design a simple site for you that will automate your reservation system and send it right to your phone so you don’t have to keep checking email and cross-referencing things anymore. ”
He blinked in surprise. “Wow. Thanks for all of that. You’ll have to walk me through it though.”
“I’d be happy to. It sounds more complicated than it really is. Don’t worry. I help my parents with tech stuff all the time, and trust me, you’re a lot more tech-savvy than they ever will be.”
Just as he finished cleaning his plate, a familiar ringtone went off. He groaned. “No, come on.”
“What’s wrong?”
He dug his phone out of his pocket. “It’s SAR. I’m on call.” Dammit. “McCaffrey,” he answered. Rachel gave him the situation and told him they were short on manpower. It’d just be him, Grey, Emma, and Chris for this one. “Understood. I’ll update you on my ETA once I’m on the road.”
Maddy was watching him when he ended the call. “Lost hiker up the mountain.” It was raining again and would be dark soon. “I don’t know when I’ll be back. Could be gone all night, and then I’ve got a trip booked first thing in the morning.”
She nodded. “I understand. Blaine invited me over earlier. Xanthe’s away at a conference.”
Good idea. “You can take my truck. I’ll have Grey pick me up on his way.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive. I don’t want you sitting around here by yourself all night.” He rose, came around the table to kiss her, a whisper of dread coiling in his gut. Kathy had hated his schedule and how much it had cut into their time together. “I’m sorry about this.”
“Don’t be,” Maddy said with a frown. “It’s your job.”
“A volunteer job.”
“Doesn’t matter. You wouldn’t be you if you left that poor hiker to fend for himself up in the hills all night. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”
He would worry about her because he cared. And she had no fucking idea how much her words affected him. He’d been married to someone who hadn’t understood who he was and resented him for answering the call to save lives.
So Others May Live. The rescue swimmer motto was embedded into his DNA.
Every day, he lived with the bitter irony that he’d spent his career risking his life to save others, yet hadn’t done enough to save his own wife.