Page 43

“That would be a damn shame. I liked your itty-bitty thong.” He burst out laughing.

“Dawson, that’s really not that funny.”

He cleared his throat. “I thought it was,” he mumbled, letting out a long breath. Why did he have to have a type?

CHAPTER8

Audra tossedthe snake bag into the boat’s bow and climbed aboard. Three pythons. One five feet. One nine feet. And one twelve feet. Not too shabby for the second day. Actually, that was a fantastic day. She should be jumping up and down for joy. Many would come in without a single one in their bags. Catching snakes was not easy. It took patience. Skill.

And more importantly, luck. But she honestly had other things on her mind.

She glanced at her watch. Frustration needled her insides. It was almost two in the afternoon and still no word from Dawson. She pressed her fingers to her lips. Damn, that man could kiss.

She pushed the boat from Hog’s Island. She’d purposely kept her distance from the island past Gator Junction and stayed closer to civilization. She would have been combing that place for the shack if she hadn’t. But she’d made a promise to Dawson this morning over breakfast.

It was the least she could do after he’d not only made her pancakes but had given her two orgasms before she’d crawled out of bed. He certainly knew his way around a woman’s body.

She let the boat float in the open water and stared at the blue sky. What the hell had she been thinking? Jumping into bed with Dawson wasn’t the smartest thing she’d ever done. She needed his help. Nothing more, nothing less. Becoming involved would only bring trouble with a capitalT. It could lead to more heartbreak, and Lord knew she’d had enough of that.

The death of her mother. Her father.

The breakup with Ken, though that had been for the best. No amount of love would’ve saved that relationship after her father had gone missing. Ken had never really understood her dad. He’d tolerated him. He’d pretended to accept his quirks.

But he hadn’t understood that Audra would never have left Calusa Cove as long as her father still breathed.

When her dad had disappeared, Ken had expected her to follow him to the Navy. As in, the second she graduated from high school, she was supposed to be on a bus to wherever he ended up stationed. All in the name of taking care of her.

Audra didn’t need anyone to be her savior.

What she’d desperately needed was someone to believe in her. To believe in what she’d seen, what she knew to be true, and that was her father hadn’t been crazy—and neither was she.

She leaned back and let out a sigh.

Her life after Ken had been riddled with one ridiculous bad relationship after the other. If Dawson thought he had bad luck, well, he’d just met his match.

Her dating history read like a serial killer novel. Not that she dated killers—because she didn’t. But they’d all turned out to be a little crazy. Of course, they’d blamed her for how badly things had ended up. And maybe they’d been right. She wasn’t an easy person. And she didn’t particularly like people.

One guy had described her as a constant ball of angst and anger.

Another one had told her she was emotionally detached—except for in bed. But the sex hadn’t been that great, so she’d happily walked away.

Oh, who was she kidding? People strolled into her life—then ran away because she could be an utter bitch.

The sound of a boat fast approaching caught her attention.

Freaking Silas. He was like a bad rash that wouldn’t go away. It was the second time she’d run into him today. At least she knew Hayes was somewhere close by.

Nice guy. Cute, too. Though not her type. Did she have a type?

Yeah. She did. Brooding, a little grumpy at times, with a wicked sense of humor and sexy as hell. Kind of like Dawson.

Silas slowed his boat down, but not quickly enough because he nudged hers. “Sorry about that, little girl.” He smiled, adjusting his cap and peering inside. “Ah. Caught yourself a couple, did ya?”

“Why do you care?”

“Other than those things don’t belong out here, I don’t.” He shrugged. “But then again, neither do you.” He cocked his head. “Heard you moved in with the chief of police. Got him snowed now, don’t ya?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” She’d forgotten how quickly news traveled in this town. However, she hadn’t moved in with Dawson. She’d agreed to stay with him, freeing up one of his cabins so he could rent it to someone who’d had the unfortunate mishap of having car trouble. It was some fancy foreign thing, and it would be a few days before it was fixed—even with Trinity’s connection. Who was she to say no? So, she agreed to let Dawson move her into his place.