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Chapter Seven

MURPH

“You don’t have to,” Eden laughs as I offer him my arm to step down into the boat.

But I’m not going to give up that easily. It’s more than me trying to be a gentleman, or keep him from falling in. I want an excuse to touch Eden, and I want him to know it.

“I’d like to. Please?” I ask.

Eden pauses, his lips parting with surprise… and then his defensive coy smile falls away, leaving him all soft and shy.

“Okay,” he breathes out, taking my arm and stepping down into the boat to join me. “Thank you.”

“My pleasure,” I murmur, swallowing hard. It’s impossible to miss the nervous spark in the air as he glances up at me. “Now, put this on,” I add, passing him a lifejacket, since I do also feel some responsibility to keep him from drowning.

It takes both of us to wrestle him into it again, but this time we’re laughing from the beginning. Once he’s finally buoyant, I gesture at the passenger seat.

Eden shakes his head and plops his ass down next to the outboard engine. “I wanna watch. I might learn something.”

I pause with surprise, and then I finally shrug. “All right.”

Eden might be a landlubber, but he’s trying to show me that he really does want to become an islander.

“Besides,” Eden adds with that naughty twinkle in his eyes, “everyone likes to watch.”

I roll my eyes, lowering the engine into the water to show him how to prime it. “Make sure the throttle’s in neutral and then start it up,” I tell him. “And don’t overdo it on the choke.”

“Only a little bit of choking,” Eden nods. “Gotta breathe sometime.”

I’m starting to suspect he has other reasons for sitting so close to me, but there’s nothing I can do about it now. I scoff and shake my head as I start the engine over the sound of his laughter.

We’re underway in the blink of an eye, and it feels like I’m on my home turf again. The cool breeze steadies my nerves, and I sneak another peek at Eden. He’s sitting upright, legs crossed at the knee as he drinks in the view.

“Had a good time today?” I call out.

Eden beams, nodding vigorously. “You?”

“Yeah.” I shuffle closer, until our knees touch, so I don’t have to shout over the engine. As we round the corner of the island, I nudge back the throttle. “I’m not as rusty as I thought.”

The first date nerves, though? So much worse than I remembered.

It’s like I’m about to drop him off at his front door, and we’re silently negotiating the goodbye kiss situation. The less noise fills the air, the more room there is for nervous tension, thick as pie filling and sweet with possibilities.

Eden bites his lip, gazing at Dawn’s Embrace as we approach his boat. “I forgot what it was like,” he says softly, as if to himself.

I may not know Eden well enough yet to understand what’s going on, but I can feel the waves of emotion off him, clear as day. “What what’s like?” I ask, trying to speak lightly despite my sudden worry.

“Being treated like I’m special.”

Shit. It hits me like a punch to the gut. I’d guessed as much, of course… but I wish I could make him feel ten times as special for every day he’s been made to feel like he isn’t.

“You should be,” I tell him at last, slowing the boat even further until the engine is just a quiet purr. I reach down, putting my hand on his knee. “Always.”

Eden rests his palm against the back of my hand, rubbing his thumb over my fingers in gentle circles.

God. All of a sudden it feels like one of those perfect summer mornings when it’s just me and the open water, a breeze on my face, and I’m tipping back my head to drink in pure sunshine.

But this time, the light is coming from Eden’s smile.

We’re both quiet for a minute, and Eden keeps on tracing little shapes on the back of my hand that make it very difficult to remember how to steer in a straight line.

“I’m sure it gets old when you live here, but getting picked up and dropped off by boat? So cool.” Eden grins at me. “Like I’m on the back of your motorcycle… but without the risk of road rash.”

I grunt at him as I shut off the engine, resisting the urge to point out how many other risks there are—all of which are multiplied when Eden’s around.

As we drift the last few metres toward the side of his houseboat, I grab the ropes to get us moored safely.

“It’s hard to see through you, you know,” Eden says from behind me.

I blink. “Oh yeah. Don’t worry, there’s plenty of chances to show you knots?—”

“Are there?” Eden grins.

I might be blushing, but I don’t want to get his hopes up. “Don’t,” I warn him. “You know the stuff that’s in your bilge?”

Eden almost gags, clutching the side of my boat as he stands up to unfasten his lifejacket. “Unfortunately.”

“ That’s what ropes remind me of. I don’t bring my work home.”

Eden switches tack, giving me a look from beneath his lashes that makes me want to follow him right onto the boat and into his cabin. “Am I work? Am I particularly hard work… or the easy kind?”

“I’m not falling into that trap,” I warn him, narrowing my eyes as I help Eden pull the lifejacket up over his head. I toss it onto the passenger seat, and fucking fuck , I can’t help but notice how much closer our bodies could be without all that foam in the way…

If only I didn’t have customers waiting.

“Damn,” Eden breathes out, resting his hands on my forearms. “You know, to be extra-safe, you could lift me aboard,” he murmurs, gazing straight up at me.

I lick my lips, unable to stop myself from putting my hands on his hips as my heart starts to race. “I could.”

There it is again. The sexual tension between us is as thick and hot as smoke. The seconds are ticking by. I slide one hand up into the small of Eden’s back, and I want to moan at how well our bodies fit together.

As I stare down at Eden, the tip of his tongue darts out from between his lips. He tilts his chin slowly up at me.

But it’s never felt this raw before, like the stakes are so high.

“What?” Eden murmurs.

I lift my shoulders slightly, scowling like that will help me find the answers. But his smile doesn’t even waver, which makes me scowl even more.

Most people run away when I look at them like this. Well, no. They run away because I look at them like this, instead of using big words and fancy gestures, or cutting my business down to a nine-to-five—and only sailing the tides in between—that they can easily understand.

But I don’t think Eden’s like most people.

“I can’t figure you out,” I tell him at last. “And I want to.”

Eden just shrugs, undeterred. “You’re obviously the kind of guy who figures things out by doing them. If you want to figure me out… I’ll bravely volunteer.”

I blink at him.

“You can do me all night long, if that’s what it takes.”

I’m caught halfway between a laugh and an open-mouthed gasp at the boldness and joy and sparkle he brings to everything. It’s a lot harder to be grumpy with Eden around. And a strange, exciting new part of me is answering his call.

I step closer, tightening my hands around his waist and hip. For the first time in forever… I’m feeling downright reckless.

Eden catches his breath and looks up at me, like he’s torn between a coy blush and genuine shyness.

“Do you really mean that?” I murmur.

Eden winks. “If you think you can handle me?—”

Just like that, I’m kissing him.