Chapter 10
HANNAH
Every rock and sway of the boat makes my stomach feel worse. I've already thrown up once, and usually, I don’t get seasick at all, but today it seems to be killing me.
"You okay, honey?" Mrs. Evers asks me as I set a fresh tray of finger sandwiches down for the ladies’ bridge club to enjoy. This isn't the first time I’ve hosted them on a luncheon cruise and I'm sure it won't be the last. They love the ocean in winter more than the fishermen in this town.
"Yeah, I'm okay," I say, forcing a tight smile.
"You just look a little green around the gills," Harriet says, seated across the table. It brings a round of compassionate murmurs from these older ladies who all want to mother me. Thank God this thing is almost over and I can go back to hiding from Luke again after this.
"Really, I'm fine," I repeat, hoping the reassurance might assuage their concerns so they stop pressing at my already frayed nerves.
For my nausea to be this bad is concerning to me.
I haven't really been around anyone who is sick lately, and having had sex with Luke a few weeks ago, it's been chewing at my conscience.
"Wel, the flu is going around… Some virus I heard started in San Diego or somewhere." Mrs. Evers waves her hand as she speaks, then reaches for a finger sandwich. "I’m sure it's nothing. But I hope you're hydrating. We want you nice and healthy for next month’s meeting."
I straighten and immediately feel my belly flip.
The idea of being pregnant with Luke's baby made the nausea worse now, but I don’t dare tell these busybodies my real fear.
I know as well as any other woman that it's way too early to be getting morning sickness and that like Mrs. Evers said, it's likely the flu virus.
But it doesn't stop the lingering fear of being pregnant that clouds me like a shadow for the remaining part of this ride.
By the time my feet hit the passerelle and head back toward my office, I've thrown up twice more and I feel feverish.
Gary trails behind me like he's watching me, but I ignore him in favor of trying to just get to my office to get my keys and go home.
The last thing I want when I feel like this is to have some confrontation with Luke about sex on my boat.
We haven't spoken about it, and things are moving forward toward the festival now, and I'd like to keep it that way.
But as I pass his office, I see him shoot out of his chair through the window and pop his head out the door. "Hannah… Got a sec?" he asks, and I groan inwardly as I stop and sigh. Then I turn to face him.
“Yeah?” I say, keeping my voice as steady as I can manage.
Luke steps out onto the pier and closes the door behind him. He looks tired but calm. “I wanted to catch you about the rent. It’s past due for February. I know things have been crazy with the pier shutdown and everything, but I need to keep the books straight.”
Rent. He’s asking about rent. Relief washes through me so fast it almost makes me dizzy.
I’d been bracing for him to bring up what happened between us on the boat, but he doesn’t.
He’s handling business like a good landlord and I'm freaking myself out for no reason. “Right. I’m sorry. I’ve been swamped.
I’ll bring you a check in the morning. First thing. ”
“That works. Thanks.” God, he's so handsome. I can't stop staring at that stubble on his jawline or the way his eyes are so blue when he wears dark colors. And I shouldn't be thinking like this at all. Imagine me bringing him home to my parents after all they went through at his hand.
Nonsense…
I start to turn away, ready to escape, but he keeps talking. “How’s the festival prep going? Things moving along okay?”
I freeze in place, feeling sicker now that I've allowed myself to notice how ruggedly handsome he is. The question feels innocent enough, but something about it prickles at me. He’s never asked about the festival details before.
Is he prying now, or is this his way of trying to keep me here talking?
“It’s fine. We’re making progress. Dorsey’s been helping line up some vendors and covering a few early costs, so that takes some pressure off. ”
Luke grunts, but his chin lifts slightly as he says, “Dorsey… What exactly is he helping with?”
I shrug, not sure why he’s asking. “He’s paying for a good chunk of the infrastructure work to build the stage and making some decisions on the layout.
Why are you asking?" I don't understand why Luke is so nosy all of a sudden.
And why he keeps looking at me like I'm some helpless waif who needs his rescuing.
I get it. He's a soldier, and whisking me off my feet under that pier probably made his ego inflate three sizes, but I don't need him or any other man watching out for me.
Besides, Calvin Dorsey is a good man doing a good thing for this town.
Luke is the one people should be protecting me from—him and his adorable blue eyes and husky, scruffy chin. And God, those callused hands.
“All right. Just checking in," he croons, and my stomach flips hard. So yay, there's that. It isn't just smells, and motion, and eating that make me feel sick. Luke Maddox's concern can do it to me too.
I know I’m not going to make it to the bathroom. I lunge for the railing, lean over the edge, and throw up into the water below. My whole body shakes with it and when I finally straighten up, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand, Luke is right there looking concerned.
“You okay?” he asks. He sounds genuinely worried, not flirty or anything else.
"It's nothing. I have the flu," I say, shivering. "And probably a fever."
“That doesn’t look like nothing. Do you need a ride home? I can drive you. You really don’t look good.” God, it's a sweet offer, and I'd love to take him up on that, but if I do, it'll lead to conversation and I don’t want to do that.
I shake my head and take a shaky step back. “No, I’m fine. I’ll be okay. I just need to get home and rest.”
He doesn’t look convinced but he doesn’t push. “All right. Text me if you need anything. Seriously.”
“I will,” I lie, because I won’t. No way in hell I'm going to ever call or text that man for help with anything.
I turn and walk back toward my office realizing how volatile my emotions feel.
One second, I'm on the verge of tears at seeing Luke again and all the memories of my big brother before he died.
And the next, I'm getting flashes of those hands on my body making me feel incredible.
It's not right. I'm not okay with this, and my heart isn't okay with this.
I lock myself into my office and go straight for the breath mints in my desk drawer as I scribble out a check for rent, which I fully intend to leave in his drop box before I head home.
I have no intention of having a one-on-one with him again anytime soon.
And especially not while some flu virus is ravaging my body.
Besides, if I'm as sick as I think I might be, I'll need to stay in bed for a few days, which buys me the perfect length of time to avoid him a few days longer.
Luke Maddox isn't a venomous snake that my heart painted him to be the past twelve years he's been mostly gone from this town. But he's not some incredible hero or knight in shining armor who can rush in and change everything.
He's the guy who let my big brother die and left this town mourning. And right now, I have to focus on this festival and my personal life. I can't afford any distractions.
Least of all, him.