Page 28 of The Wildest One

My parents had hosted countless parties on this boat. We’d entertained clients on it for various reasons, and this was where Dad’s company celebrated their yearly Christmas party. But tonight was the first time I had ever reserved it for personal reasons. Aside from the captain and his assistant, Beck and I were the only ones on board.

“No one has ever taken you on a boat ride?”

Earlier in the evening, I’d pointed out the highlights of Boston, testing my knowledge and history of the city. This part of the cruise was solely for enjoyment.

He continued to stare straight ahead as we passed one of my favorite skylines. “A woman hasn’t, no.” He finally looked at me, the hazel of his eyes a dark green tonight. “Just you.”

I smiled. “I’m glad I could pull it off.”

“How many strings did it take?”

I laughed. “Just one. The owner is a client. I promised I’d work some overtime on his account and I wouldn’t bill him for the hours.” I nudged his arm. “Seeing your face when I walked you up to this boat makes up for every extra minute I’ll have to put in next week.”

He chuckled. “I was shocked that this was what you had planned. I still am, I think.”

“Because it’s too freezing to boat in this weather?” When he didn’t respond, I rubbed my arms over the sleeves of my coat and said, “I was worried it would be so cold that we wouldn’t be able to come outside and we’d have to stay in the cabin—a view that isn’t nearly as good as it is out here. But I figure it’s worth bearing these icy temps to have this kind of scenery since there’s truly nothing better.”

“No, that’s not why I was shocked.” He turned toward me, his hands going to my face. “It’s because you’re showing me, you’re not telling me, Jolie.”

“Oh. I …” I let my voice drift off. I didn’t know what to say, but I knew I couldn’t say what I was really feeling.

His hands dropped, and he pulled our bodies together. “You’re shivering.”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re fucking shaking.”

“It’s the wind. It’s a lot on my neck, but I promise, I’m okay.”

I didn’t want to go in the cabin. Although it was nice, that was where the captain drove the boat, so we wouldn’t be alone.

He hugged his arms around me. I was in a Beck bubble, and suddenly, I couldn’t feel even the slightest breeze despite my hair flying all around us.

He was silent as he gazed down at me, but his eyes were saying so much. This wasn’t the first time he’d looked at me like this today. It had happened several times. Each occasion lasting a little longer. Like now, how it felt like a few minutes of quietness had already passed.

“I wish I could bring you to LA with me.”

His voice was unexpected, but what was even more surprising was what he’d said.

“In a perfect world, I would,” he added.

My heart was pounding.

It wasn’t one-sided.

He felt it—whatever this was—too.

“But we don’t live in a perfect world, Jolie. You’re here, living a life you can’t walk away from. I’m there, in a life that takes me on the road non-fucking-stop. We couldn’t be further apart.” His arms unraveled, his hands moving to my face again. “I liked this. I want you to know that.”

“Me too.”

His thumbs stroked my cheeks, and every time they left, even if it was just for a second to move back to the original spot, I missed them.

“That night at the bar, like I told you, I just wanted to go to my hotel and ride out these next few days, catching up on sleep and resting my body.” His stare became even more intense. “And to think, if I’d done that, I would have missed out on you.”

I smiled. “I’m so happy you didn’t.” The emotion was in my chest. It was in my throat. I was doing everything I could to keep it from entering my voice. “This has been amazing.”

He brought his lips to mine, hovering just above them. Each of his breaths turned the air white.