Part 12 (2/2)

”But you just said-”

”He's never been seasick.” Which was absolutely true. You couldn't get seasick if you'd never been to sea. She made a shooing motion with her hand. ”Let's just go. Pedal to the metal. Or whatever you do with a boat. Just goose it.”

He mumbled something under his breath. She figured he wasn't happy, but that was just too bad.

”Hang on,” he said as the engine roared and the boat shot forward.

She grabbed hold of Matt because he was the closest solid thing. And he felt wonderful, all warm muscles and broad shoulders. Plus he smelled good. After all her years in a beauty parlor with the perfumes and lotions women liked, she'd forgotten the pleasurable scent of a crisp aftershave. Maybe a vibrator and a good mechanic didn't cover all her needs, after all.

But that wasn't what this boat ride was about. She let go of Matt the minute she found her balance. ”Excuse me,” she said. ”I'll just go talk to Lincoln.”

”You do that.” He sounded like a bear with a sore paw.

”I will.” She hurried down the steps, eager to get away from him. He didn't like her and she didn't care. Just because he felt nice and smelled good didn't matter a hill of beans. All she needed him to do was drive this boat.

Matt had made some dumb moves in his life, but letting Annabelle talk him into renting a boat so they could search for her daughter was the granddaddy of all dumbness. He should just turn the boat around and head for the harbor, no matter what she said. As he considered doing that, a picture of Annabelle staging a mutiny flashed through his head. Yep, she'd be up for that.

She was a fiery woman, and he was inappropriately excited by that. Now wasn't the time to be thinking about s.e.x, and he felt like a first-cla.s.s sleaze because whenever he looked at Annabelle, that's what he thought about. She was one luscious woman. When she'd grabbed him by the shoulder just now, he'd reacted instantly to her touch. He hadn't wanted her to take her hand away.

Well, he'd better put a lid on those thoughts immediately. If he couldn't, he'd be obligated to take her back to Oahu and find her someone else to ferry her around. He didn't want to do that, couldn't trust that someone else would see this from her perspective and understand why she needed to be out here.

He didn't have any kids, but after the first shock of discovering that the plane was missing, he'd been able to set aside his own fears and imagine hers, which had to be huge. Maybe he was especially sensitized after his night with Celeste. No matter how bold and brash young women like 132 Vicki Lewis Thompson Celeste and Genevieve pretended to be, they were more vulnerable than they knew. Vulnerability always tore down all his defenses.

So he was out here for Annabelle's sake, and for Genevieve's, but he also was out here because he felt more useful doing something. She'd been right about that-sitting around waiting for word would have been torture. Bucking eight-foot swells with two green-to-the-gills pa.s.sengers wouldn't be a picnic, but at least he'd have taken some action.

However, under the current weather conditions, they needed to exercise some caution or the Coast Guard would be adding them to the list of the missing. Matt was willing to risk his safety, and Annabelle had the right to risk hers, but neither of them should endanger a fourteen-year-old kid, no matter how obnoxious his hair color. They'd weather this storm in Molokai and then cruise around Maui to see what they could see. Maybe they'd chance upon something. Stranger things had been known to happen.

And he'd keep his libido in check. For G.o.d's sake, she even had her kid with her, and yet he still found himself thinking how he'd love to get her naked. He was a sorry specimen.

When it came to Lincoln, Matt thought Annabelle was too lax. Obviously the kid's father wasn't anywhere around or that hair color wouldn't be happening, and the earring wouldn't be winking in his ear, either. The black T-s.h.i.+rt that said You Got a Problem with That? was pretty typical-all the kids had att.i.tude these days. But if Matt had a son like Lincoln, the hair situation definitely would be under control and they'd find an alternate way to fly the colors of the flag.

He glanced over his shoulder to where Annabelle and Lincoln were deep in conversation. From their hunched posture Matt figured they had to be freezing their a.s.ses off, what with the wind and the spray. When you were out on the water, a summer storm could bring your body temperature down in a hurry.

Finally they must have had enough, because when Annabelle started up the steps toward him, Lincoln followed. The kid looked pale. n.o.body enjoyed being seasick, but Matt figured Lincoln would hate it more than most. Spending the first part of the voyage hurling would put a big dent in that macho swagger he had going on. Matt felt a moment of sympathy for him. Being fourteen had never been an easy job, and having your sister missing wouldn't make it a h.e.l.l of a lot easier.

”Lincoln needs to use the facilities,” Annabelle said. ”Is that okay?”

”Certainly that's okay. Is he sick?”

”No, I'm not sick. Definitely not sick.” Lincoln sounded weak but defiant.

Matt was too busy handling the boat to study him more closely. ”Go ahead down below, and just be aware that we're tossing around quite a bit, so hold on to something to keep steady.”

”Well, duh.w ”Lincoln Roosevelt Terrence! Apologize to Mr. Murphy this second!”

”Sorry, Mr. Murphy.”

”No problem.” That was some name Annabelle had saddled him with. The kid was supposed to run for high office, apparently. ”And call me Matt.”

”Yeah, but my mom said-”

”Lincoln, go on downstairs,” Annabelle said. ”Now.”

”And help yourself to some Seven-Up if you want,” Matt added. ”That sometimes settles a queasy stomach.”

”Thanks, but my stomach's good.”

”Glad to hear it.”

”See you guys later.” Lincoln stumbled going down the steps, but that could have been due to the pitching of the boat.

”Maybe you'd better go with him,” Matt said.

She lowered her voice. ”He would never forgive me if I did.”

Matt nodded. He'd been fourteen once, too. ”Okay, but if he isn't back out in a few minutes, you'd better go tap on the door. I don't want him to hit his head and knock himself out in there.”

Annabelle drew in a sharp breath. ”Then I'll sneak down after I'm sure he's in there, and I'll listen. Oh, and Matt, I apologize for Lincoln's manners. I'll speak to him.”

”Don't, Annabelle. He's a lot more polite than most kids I've seen. Don't ride him on my account.”

She sighed. ”I'm so afraid if I let things slide, he'll get mouthy like his friends, but today it's a little harder to be strict with him.”

”Exactly. This is an unusual circ.u.mstance. And I can take care of myself. If I think he's getting too much of an att.i.tude, I'll tell him.”

”Good. That's good.” She hesitated. ”Matt, I need to tell you something. Lincoln and I don't think Genevieve's in this direction.”

”What do you mean in this direction Nick was on his way to Maui, which is definitely in this direction.”

”I know, but we don't think that's where she is. We think we're going farther away from her, not closer.”

Matt could smell her perfume mixed with the salty breeze that had been blowing through her hair. He wanted to nuzzle the side of her neck and sniff his fill of that combo. ”And what are you basing this on?” He was afraid to ask.

She hesitated. ”I don't suppose you'd just take my word for it that we need to turn around.”

”Nope. And we're not turning around. Not until this storm pa.s.ses over. We'll hole up in Molokai. You can see what it's like out there.”

”Yes.”

He heard the sound of her swallow, even over the wind and the engine. He gave her a quick glance. ”You're about to upchuck, too, aren't you?”

”No.”

”Annabelle, go do it. Use the sink in the galley if Lincoln's still in the head. You'll feel better if you get rid of what's in your stomach.”

”Will you ... go the other way once it's safe?”

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