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“Yeah, whatever. Don’t worry, it’ll all be fine.” Fletch sighed glad that was over.
Before he could say anything more, Beck disconnected.
Now to tell Mick the job was a go. He pressed the number in his contacts. Moments later…
“Hello?"
“Hey, girl, I’ve confirmed the gig for you.”
2
Iknew the yacht was beautiful, and seeing her across the waves as we approached in the tender excited me. I'd seen my share of fantastic yachts, and cut my teeth working on them, but Intrepid was by far the most impressive and I was speechless, which was rare for me.
Fletch had sent me all the details about her, everything I needed to know about Intrepid from bow to stern, and every inch of her was etched into my brain. I couldn't wait to board and inspect her, get to know her, listen to her, feel her. It sounded ridiculous, but feeling her rhythm was like listening to a heartbeat. I had to understand her and every creak and groan.
One of the crew was waiting on the stern swim deck. I'd arrived in Love Beach early and rather than hang out in town, seeing Intrepid in the bay was too enticing to ignore. So here I was, a day early, eager to get my sea legs back.
I swung my army satchel over my shoulder and waited until we were close enough before jumping aboard, startling the waiting crew member. He lunged for me, which threw us both off balance.
"Hey there! I'm good. Thanks." I laughed.
"Sorry, ma'am. I almost pitched you overboard."
"It's fine." I glanced around the swim deck and up the stairs. "No problem at all. I appreciate your help.'
"Can I help you with anything?" he asked.
I shook my head. "No, thank you. I know where I'm going."
3
Beck was surprised to see a girl standing in the salon. She'd turned up out of nowhere and said she'd find her way since he was on the phone.
Find her way?
He pulled his eyebrows together. "Who are you?" he asked. "No, not you," he said into the phone, taking hIs eyes off the girl for a second.
"Hang on, no, someone else. Yeah, I hear you." Beck was getting frustrated by the call because of the poor reception on their end. He put his hand over his phone and turned back to find out what she wanted. She wasn't there. "Where the hell have you gone?" he called out.
How could she disappear so fast? He went over to the stairs, but there was no sign of her. It was a skeleton crew today, with only a few aboard, so it would be easy for someone to wander around Intrepid without being seen. He'd have to get off this call and look for her. She appeared young, a bit scruffy, and he wondered if she was homeless. The last thing he needed was someone on board causing trouble.
The people he was talking to were getting excited and he needed to deal with them as well, "Fuck, look, I said what I think and you've got to handle it. I have to take care of a situation here and we have another phone call scheduled for 4 p.m. EST time–we can finalize it then. I'll be in touch later." Plus he had another call scheduled in twenty minutes.
Beck took the stairs, two at a time. He needed to find this girl and get her off Intrepid. She wasn't on the stern swimming platform, and how had she even gotten on the boat in the first place?
"Hey! Has anyone seen a girl on the boat?" He shouted but no one was within hearing distance.
Damn, he had to find her. He went down the stairs and heard sounds coming from the crew deck and walked into the kitchen. And there she was, eating a muffin like she didn't have a care in the world. He stormed up to her and she glanced up at him, not intimidated in the least.
He stared down at her, trying to decide what to say and to temper his anger. Her eyes, a most intriguing shade of amber, stared up at him. They threw him off a bit, unlike anything he'd ever seen, and he shifted his feet trying to remember what he was about to say. She continued to munch on the muffin and raised her eyebrows, sharp and defined, inquiring. He was at a loss for words, but his mind ran furiously. He couldn't fathom why she was so calm and stood there eating a muffin.
"Who the hell are you?" He demanded.
She finished the muffin and took a sip from a cup of water she had in her hand. This further aggravated him.
"I asked you what you're doing here. You can't just come on somebody's boat without permission. Do you not know that?"
He leaned into her, most people would shrink away from him, but not her. She remained steadfast and watched him. He could've sworn there was a slight smile curving her lips.
