He chuckled at her derogatory description. “The smaller sailboat is fine for the harbor, but we’re going out to the ocean. We need the larger ship for this.”
Her mouth dropped open when he said that. “Ship?” she whispered.
He shrugged. “Well, it’s a bit bigger,” he explained.
“How much bigger?” Her eyes moved to a place behind him and she instantly shook her head. “No. Please tell me that’s not your boat,” she begged.
He caught the tears that sprang to her eyes and he felt horrible that she didn’t like it. He loved sailing and was out on the water as often as possible. And he definitely wanted to share this experience with her. “It’s sea-worthy,” he promised her. “And I think you’ll like it once you give it a try. It’s much more comfortable than the small sailboat.”
The size wasn’t really the issue. It was the same as his ginormous penthouse and those stuffy limousines along with all the staff that were representative of his wealth. “But it’s too big.” She tugged at her hand, trying to break free so she didn’t have to confront one more example of how wealthy he was. Not only did it intimidate her, it reminded her of all the lies and how humiliated she’d felt when she’d discovered who he was.
“It isn’t too big. Will you trust me?”
“No.” She was being petulant and couldn’t stop herself. Nor did she care. She was too tired anyway to have the energy to be fair about his sailboat.
He laughed outright this time. “You’re going to have to,” he countered. “You need to relax and there’s nothing better than enjoying the afternoon sunshine on the deck of a sailboat.”
“A hammock,” she argued. “I could just relax in a hammock.”
“I don’t have a hammock,” he told her, leading her gently but relentlessly down the gangway without letting her go.
She tried to pry her hands away but he wasn’t allowing it. “I’m not getting on that boat, Emerson.”
“Call me Jack. Everyone here calls me Jack.”
She shook her head, refusing to play that same game again. “But you’re Emerson to me now.”
By the time she’d said the words, they were at the deck of the sailboat. “How about a drink?” he asked her.
“I don’t want anything else to drink,” she said with irritation. There were people on the docks that were already casting off, throwing the ropes onto the boat and she gripped the railing behind her. “I want to go home.” She probably sounded peevish, but she was too tired and irritated to care.
He laughed and chucked her teasingly under the chin. “You’re cute when you’re at your wit’s end, love.” He pulled her into his arms and hugged her, kissing her neck and causing shivers to shoot out in every direction. “Why don’t you go relax while we cast off?”
“We?” she asked, worried as she looked around. There were about four staff members in white uniforms that were hurrying about, pulling in ropes and neatly tying them up before they were tucked away.
She had no idea what to do since the only other time she’d been on a sailboat was when she’d gone out with Emerson the first time. So while he walked away and started cranking different winches to hoist the sails. She stood back and stared at all of it, admiring the strength in his arms and shoulders and his skill at sailing. No one needed to tell anyone what to do. Everyone seemed to have a job and they seemed to just do it instinctively.
So instead of getting in the way, she stepped off of the main pathway and curled up on one of the huge cushions at the front, letting the wind whip her hair about, wrapping her arms around her legs to ward off the cooler temperatures of the open harbor.
No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t keep her eyes off of him. Emerson wasn’t beautiful in the traditional sense. But he had that hard physique that was almost musical as he moved about. Every step was efficient, calculated. His eyes knew where to look and his hands and feet carried him about the ship as if he were born here. She could tell that he loved sailing when they left the Portland harbor and he released the main sail which quickly billowed out with the wind. The smile on his face and the satisfaction that transformed the tension in his shoulders to relaxation proved that he was at home here on the water, on this boat.
He’d been very competent on the smaller sailboat too. Why had he done that? Why hadn’t he just taken her out on this boat? Why had he created such an elaborate ruse?
For better or worse, the heavy food, the potent beer plus the sunshine and the rhythmic swaying of the boat over the ocean currents caused her fatigue to quickly catch up with her. When the engines cut off, the sails took over and she swayed to the gentle rocking of the boat as it cut through the water, skimming the surface. The farther out to sea they went, the higher the waves. None were dangerous, but they definitely created a soothing, swaying sensation that lulled the tension out of her body. Before she knew what was happening, she was lying on the large, flat cushions, her eyes were closing and, a moment later, she was sound asleep.
Emerson watched her for a long time while the others worked around him. He enjoyed her peaceful expression, remembered watching her in her sleep over a month ago. He missed her. Painfully. But he knew he would do it all over again. She’d had to know that she wasn’t cut out for the life on Wall Street. And now he knew he could show her that there were ways to be just as successful off of Wall Street. That’s what the next week would be about, if he could keep her from running away from him. A big “if” in his mind.
Chapter 6
Rachel woke up and looked around, startled to find the sunshine warm on her cheek. It was an amazingly gorgeous day and she stretched, feeling better than she had in weeks. Her feet didn’t ache from long hours in painfully high heeled shoes, she wasn’t starving or hyped up on caffeine from multiple cups of coffee. But the best part, she didn’t feel like her eyes were filled with sandpaper from fatigue.
She rolled onto her side, staring out at the horizon. Maine had some pretty gorgeous weather, but it wasn’t always this bright and sunny. She could see for miles.
Her eyes looked down, hoping to see a harbor seal but what caught her eye simply wasn’t possible. She focused once again, thinking that her eyes were more tired than she’d thought. And when she blinked and looked again, she couldn’t help the scream that came out of her. She was already screaming before her mind told her to scream and she jumped up on the cushions, not sure what to do.