Chapter 3
CHAPTER 3
T he month of December
Noah stared at the lights of Motham City through jaded eyes. The Christmas tree on the quay twinkled invitingly, the colored lights strung up along the water’s edge dancing in the icy breeze. As the trawler got closer to shore, he could see folks promenading, rugged up against the cold as light snowflakes fell. It would be quite magical, except…
Except, there would be no deep blue eyes below a mane of golden hair, no sweet smile to greet him as they docked. No slender arms to hug him.
There would be no Harper to welcome him home.
Noah’s hands curled into fists in his thick gloves. Everything he’d hoped would happen between him and Harper had been ruined the night before he left. He winced, remembering the total debacle of two months ago. And sure, it had looked suspicious, the scene Harper had witnessed, but if he’d had more time, they could have talked it through, he’d have explained himself better.
But so what if he had?
She’d made it brutally clear she didn’t want what he wanted, hadn’t she?
Joe, the sea serpent who owned the trawler gathered the team on board. “Alright lads, job well done. We brought in enough catch to allow us all to take a well-deserved break over Christmas.”
Noah tried to take cheer from the money that would be in his bank account. Yeah, it would be good to tell his mom he’d paid for Wyatt’s rehab.
As they moored the boat, his eyes scanned over to Sweet Clams café. Would he dare go and show his face?
He’d thought through what he’d say to Harper so often out at sea in his little bunk bed. Because even if Harper didn’t feel the same way, heck, he still loved her with all his heart. At the very least he wanted them to be friends again.
And maybe, yeah, maybe he still held onto a sliver of hope that she hadn’t been totally honest that night. That she’d been hurt and upset at seeing him with Dina. And sure, he’d handled it badly, but talk about being stuck between a rock and a hard place! It kept going round inside his head like a rat in a maze. Not much else to think about out at sea, not much to do at all, except play cards, and drink.
And drinking wasn’t his thing.
Worse, his fucking cell barely picked up a signal, and when he did get to send a text or place a call, she stubbornly refused to answer.
Gods, what a mess, Noah thought—and then there was no more thinking time. It was all hands on deck to bring the boat in.
Once the trawler was moored, washed down, and everything to the owner’s liking, the crew all said their farewells. Joe slapped Noah on the back, shook his hand heartily.
“Great job. Anytime you want work, contact me, okay?”
“Thanks.”
“Got a sweetheart waiting?”
Noah shrugged. “I’ve a friend who works at Sweet Clams, might stroll over, get me a bowl of chowder and say howdy,” he said casually.
“You do that. I hope she’s happy to see you,” Joe called out as Noah jumped onto dry land.
Noah doubted that very much.
Even so, after he’d dumped his bags, taken a hot shower and changed his clothes, he found himself being pulled like a magnet across the cobbled quay, his heart in his mouth. How could a big guy like him, all brawn and muscle, be reduced to a quivering wreck by a woman, he wondered.
Just before he reached Sweet Clams he stopped, dug his fists into his dungaree pockets, and then, whistling nonchalantly to hide his abject terror, he sauntered through the door.
As his eyes scanned the counter, a sense of panic filled him. There was no sign of Harper. There was, however, a new staff member, a faun with a goatee and his hair tied back in a ponytail. Mal came out from the kitchen, took one look at Noah standing sheepishly at the counter and let out a guffaw.
“Well, look who the cat dragged in. Back from the high seas then?”
“No, I’m an apparition,” Noah grunted, craning his neck to look over Mal’s huge shoulder toward the kitchen. “Is Harps around?”
“Amazed you dare show your face in here. Not that it matters. She’s gone.”
Noah’s heart stopped. “What do you mean, gone?”
“Gone to work elsewhere.”
“Where?”
“She made me promise not to tell you.”
Noah felt himself paling beneath his tan. “Why?”
Mal scratched his shaggy head. “Doesn’t seem to hold selkies in high regard, that girl. Can’t think why.”
The young faun was smirking like he was in the know. Had they all been talking about him since he’d been gone? Spreading salacious gossip? Lies?
“Look, whatever you’ve heard, it’s not true. And I need to find Harper.”
Mal grinned. “I loved a girl once, pined and begged. Then she married me, and I lived to see the error of my ways.”
“Not funny, Mal,” Noah muttered. The bear shifter’s laconic humor wasn’t doing anything to brighten his mood right now. “I need to talk to her and she’s not answering my calls.”
Mal rubbed his bearded jaw. “Aw, that’s right. She’s changed her cell number too.”
So that was why Harper hadn’t picked up. “Can you give me her new number?”
“Nope. Promised I wouldn’t do that either.”
Noah ground his molars together. “At least give me a hint as to where she might be.”
Mal ladled fragrant chowder into a metal pot and placed it in the bain marie. Noah sensed there were customers behind him getting impatient. He leaned over the counter, hissed desperately, “Please, mate.”
Mal’s face softened slightly. “Egh. Always thought you were the best of a bad bunch. Look. I’ll tell yer, but you didna hear it from me, okay?”
“Thanks. I owe you Mal.”
“Okay, I’ll have your next catch of snapper for free.”
Noah nodded desperately. “As much as you want.”
“She’s running the café at the Monsters of Mercy retirement village.”
Noah managed a weak smile. “Isn’t that where her gran lives?”
“Apparently the cook walked out in a huff, and she’d do anything to help her gran.”
“Thanks a million, Mal.”
“You better duck when you see her. It’s clear you’ve done something to make her pretty damn miffed. And for all her sweet looks, I reckon that girl could land a fair punch to your ugly selkie snout.”
“I’ll risk it.” Noah grinned, and with a wave, he was gone.