thing against educated and professional
and… lawyerly?”
She put her hands on her hips. “What’s your thing with my thing against lawyers?”
He did the brow arch. “Nice deflection. You’re getting better at it, actually.”
“Consider it step one in learning how to
not
wear my thoughts on my sleeve.”
He laughed softly and tugged on a curl. “If you’re not going to tell me any deep, dark secrets, let’s do the rest of this.”
Inside the marina, they decided there was nothing critical to be done here on Jax’s part. But taking a look at all the gear—kayaks,
canoes, paddles, and more—her thumbs itched to get busy itemizing and cataloguing on her Blackberry. She had a month to prove
to her sisters that this could be a viable business for them, and she didn’t intend to fail.
“You seem pretty comfortable out here,” she said to Jax. “Even for someone who once painted the inn.”
“See that fourteen-foot sailboat in slip three? And the thirty-two-foot one in four? They’re both Ford’s. Heleases year-round and sometimes drags me out on the water with him. But even before that, we used to come out here late at
night.”
“To TP.”
“Just the once. Trust me, we learned our lesson on that one. Look out past the slips, to the woods beyond the marina. There
are trails leading up to the bluffs. It’s rough going, and the bush is really overgrown. It’s a deterrent for everyone except
the occasional teenager who wants a quiet place to go make out. Gives a whole new meaning to the name Lucky Harbor.”
The thought of a teenage Jax hiking out there with nefarious intentions should have made her laugh. Instead, she wished she’d
grown up here in Lucky Harbor, and that maybe she could have been one of those girls. “Even in the winter?”
“All the better. There isn’t any poison oak in the winter. It’s hard to convince a girl you’re sexy when you can’t stop scratching
your ass because of the rash.”
She laughed. She’d done that a few times now, when up until yesterday, being amused at anything had seemed so far out of reach.
How it was possible that just one day and one tall, dark, and enigmatic man had changed things, she had no idea.
The marina office was small and held an ancient couch, a huge, beat-up, old desk piled with papers, and a filing cabinet.
Drawers were open, and files were in complete disarray.
Jax shook his head. “You’ve got your work cut out for you.”
Maddie shrugged. “I’ve organized worse.” And what was the alternative, going back to LA with her tailbetween her legs? Hell, no. The thought brought her up a little. She’d been faking strength for so long now that it was starting
to stick. About time.
Jax pointed out the window beyond the marina to the thick, overgrown woods. “Shortcut to the bluffs is right past that isolated,
small rocky beach. Another good makeout spot, FYI. Especially when you’re sixteen and grounded from a car.”
She smiled. “Were you grounded a lot?”
“Pretty much 24/7 until I left for college.”
“And did you miss small-town living when you were gone?”
“Not even a little. I didn’t just walk out of Lucky Harbor; I ran like hell.”
There was that same something in his eyes that had been there when he’d mentioned his father. She wasn’t the only one keeping
her own counsel. “And yet you came back.”
His gaze met hers, clear now. Relaxed. “And yet I came back.”
“Why?”
“Funny what a couple of years’ perspective can do.”
Growing up on movie sets as she had, just about everything in her life had been an illusion. The illusion of friends, the
illusion of home. The question was—was Lucky Harbor just another set, or would it turn out to be the real thing?
Back at Jax’s Jeep, he opened the driver’s door, set his clipboard on the dash, then gestured for Izzy to jump in.
The dog leapt up, limbs akimbo, and sat. “Scoot over,” Jax told her.
Izzy
and… lawyerly?”
She put her hands on her hips. “What’s your thing with my thing against lawyers?”
He did the brow arch. “Nice deflection. You’re getting better at it, actually.”
“Consider it step one in learning how to
not
wear my thoughts on my sleeve.”
He laughed softly and tugged on a curl. “If you’re not going to tell me any deep, dark secrets, let’s do the rest of this.”
Inside the marina, they decided there was nothing critical to be done here on Jax’s part. But taking a look at all the gear—kayaks,
canoes, paddles, and more—her thumbs itched to get busy itemizing and cataloguing on her Blackberry. She had a month to prove
to her sisters that this could be a viable business for them, and she didn’t intend to fail.
“You seem pretty comfortable out here,” she said to Jax. “Even for someone who once painted the inn.”
“See that fourteen-foot sailboat in slip three? And the thirty-two-foot one in four? They’re both Ford’s. Heleases year-round and sometimes drags me out on the water with him. But even before that, we used to come out here late at
night.”
“To TP.”
“Just the once. Trust me, we learned our lesson on that one. Look out past the slips, to the woods beyond the marina. There
are trails leading up to the bluffs. It’s rough going, and the bush is really overgrown. It’s a deterrent for everyone except
the occasional teenager who wants a quiet place to go make out. Gives a whole new meaning to the name Lucky Harbor.”
The thought of a teenage Jax hiking out there with nefarious intentions should have made her laugh. Instead, she wished she’d
grown up here in Lucky Harbor, and that maybe she could have been one of those girls. “Even in the winter?”
“All the better. There isn’t any poison oak in the winter. It’s hard to convince a girl you’re sexy when you can’t stop scratching
your ass because of the rash.”
She laughed. She’d done that a few times now, when up until yesterday, being amused at anything had seemed so far out of reach.
How it was possible that just one day and one tall, dark, and enigmatic man had changed things, she had no idea.
The marina office was small and held an ancient couch, a huge, beat-up, old desk piled with papers, and a filing cabinet.
Drawers were open, and files were in complete disarray.
Jax shook his head. “You’ve got your work cut out for you.”
Maddie shrugged. “I’ve organized worse.” And what was the alternative, going back to LA with her tailbetween her legs? Hell, no. The thought brought her up a little. She’d been faking strength for so long now that it was starting
to stick. About time.
Jax pointed out the window beyond the marina to the thick, overgrown woods. “Shortcut to the bluffs is right past that isolated,
small rocky beach. Another good makeout spot, FYI. Especially when you’re sixteen and grounded from a car.”
She smiled. “Were you grounded a lot?”
“Pretty much 24/7 until I left for college.”
“And did you miss small-town living when you were gone?”
“Not even a little. I didn’t just walk out of Lucky Harbor; I ran like hell.”
There was that same something in his eyes that had been there when he’d mentioned his father. She wasn’t the only one keeping
her own counsel. “And yet you came back.”
His gaze met hers, clear now. Relaxed. “And yet I came back.”
“Why?”
“Funny what a couple of years’ perspective can do.”
Growing up on movie sets as she had, just about everything in her life had been an illusion. The illusion of friends, the
illusion of home. The question was—was Lucky Harbor just another set, or would it turn out to be the real thing?
Back at Jax’s Jeep, he opened the driver’s door, set his clipboard on the dash, then gestured for Izzy to jump in.
The dog leapt up, limbs akimbo, and sat. “Scoot over,” Jax told her.
Izzy
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