Sadie's Surrender by Afton Locke

the river yesterday, staying cooped up in a building was even harder to tolerate. Rainy, gray days like today were the hardest because he loved the water most when it was unpredictable and harsh.
    Like Sadie. Knowing she sat across the hall kept his blood on a slow simmer. Especially when he recalled what they’d done in there last Friday. On Saturday night, he’d finally have her. The thought made his hands shake. What if he couldn’t live up to her expectations? He planned to buy what he needed tonight after work. The evening had to be perfect.
    His cock swelled in his undershorts as he pictured her dark beauty in his narrow bed. He hoped she wore the tight sweater again so he could peel it off her. Why was she making them wait so long? At this rate, his crotch would stay harder than concrete.
    When the phone on his desk rang, he grabbed it. Perfect timing to distract him from Sadie and her tempting body.
    “It’s Caleb. Are you sitting down?”
    “What’s wrong?” Henry sat and gripped the desk, not liking the tension in his brother’s voice. “Is the baby coming?”
    “No, Henry. I’ve heard a disturbing rumor today. Someone may be stealing our oysters.”
    “Oh hell.” Anger prickled across his shoulders. He’d planted Rockfield’s beds and tended them like plants.
    “You need to hire someone to investigate and plant more beds in safer locations.”
    “Like Pearl Point.”
    “Exactly,” Caleb said. “Henry, don’t delay. If the rumor is true, we’ll both be out of business.”
    “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”
    After he hung up, he stared out the window. As usual, the sea mocked him with the old waterman’s life he couldn’t have anymore. It wasn’t much different from his forbidden attraction to Sadie.
    The idea of someone stealing the Rockfield oysters he’d planted made him feel erased from the face of the earth. When the last oyster was gone, he would be, too. If he couldn’t ride the waves anymore, he might as well be dead. After staring at the chair that had become his prison, he shoved it until it fell over.
    He’d take care of the problem, all right, but not the way Caleb expected him to. If he didn’t go out there himself, he’d go crazy. To hell with running the plant. After locking his office door, he changed into his waterman’s gear—overalls, boots, a long-sleeved undershirt, and a battered jacket stiff with salt. He even plunked the fishing cap on his head.
    When he walked into Sadie’s office, her mouth dropped open at the sight of him. Desire flickered in her intense, dark eyes before she looked away. Wearing his sailing clothes made him feel even more primitive than usual. He almost forgot about the oysters as he pictured her naked and willing on top of the desk.
    “Why are you dressed like that?” she asked.
    “Someone is stealing our oysters.”
    She frowned. “That’s terrible. Who?”
    “I plan to find out.” He looked helplessly around the room. Why wasn’t Sadie a white man? Then she could take over his miserable desk job so he could do what he was meant to do on the sea.
    Why couldn’t she be a white woman , for that matter? So they could court openly.
    He liked her exactly the way she was, though. She knew his business better than anyone except Caleb, and he trusted her more than all his white employees put together. Besides, he’d only be gone the rest of the day. He’d investigate the theft and go from there.
    “Take care of things while I’m gone,” he ordered.
    She nibbled the end of her pencil. “How exactly do you mean that? I’m just a secretary, remember?”
    “Do the best you can as a secretary without riling the supervisors.”
    Before he could change his mind, he rushed down to the dock.
    * * *
    Sadie did her best to mind her own business the rest of the afternoon. Knowing Henry had informally left her in charge made her grin a lot. Not that she could’ve refused. A team of horses couldn’t have kept him away from the