“I’m sure Chevelle would like that. Just let us know when.”
He nods and splits apart his fried fish. Then he drops both pieces, wipes his hands, and looks at me. My body tenses over what he might say.
“I’m proud of you, Cam. You did what not many have the guts to do. You put yourself out there, not knowing what the outcome would be. I have no doubt Five Seas will be a great success.” He picks up his water, and we clink our plastic glasses. “Now, where do I order one? I can get to the front of the list since I’m your father, right?” He smiles.
I can’t help but grin back. “I’ll see what I can do.”
After lunch, my dad shakes my hand and pulls me in for a hug. “We need to do this again. That was the best fish I’ve ever eaten.”
I nod. “Okay.”
Feeling a little lighter, I watch him walk back to his Range Rover. Maybe now that I don’t have to have a business relationship with my dad, we can learn to be father and son. I text Chevelle, asking her to call me when she has an opportunity.
My phone rings in my pocket as I walk back to the warehouse. “Hey.”
“I’m just about to board my boat. Good meeting or bad meeting?” she asks.
“My mom wants us over for dinner, and he wants to order a boat from me.” I’m still speechless.
“So good meeting!”
“Yeah, definitely a good meeting.”
“Oh, that’s great, Cam.”
I’ll need more than one meeting to be confident he’s really changed, but I can’t help but feel hopeful. “Yeah, it is. Now go on your charter and I’ll see you at home tonight.”
“We’re going to celebrate! Bye, boyfriend.”
I laugh. “See you, girlfriend.”
We hang up as I get to the warehouse, finally able to concentrate on getting the next boat finished.
Who am I kidding? I just daydream about going home to Chevelle. I’m one lucky bastard.
26
“TALK TO ME.”
Chevelle
Two weeks later, I’m getting ready for one of my last fishing excursions of the season. I plan on using my off time to help Cam with his new business.
But right now, he’s helping me with mine. We’re currently walking down the dock toward my boat.
“Now, remember,” I say. “You are here as an employee.”
“I don’t recall you mentioning that I’d be paid.” He looks at me and winks.
“I pay you plenty.”
He laughs. “I think I pay you back in kind.”
“Very true. But seriously, you are not the boss of this charter. I am the boss.”
I asked Cam to come with me for two reasons, the first being that I want to spend time with him. Second, being that he was a little forceful with his constant asking if he could come along. I’m finding it easier to ask him for help, so I asked him to join. This charter is three hours with six men, and as much as I hate to admit it, I could use an extra hand.
He holds up both hands. “I’m just your measly employee. Low man on the ladder. I get it.”
“Well, you could think of some things the boss might like to win her over.”
He grabs me by my waist and pulls me toward him. “Say the word and I’ll strip you down right here.”
“You wouldn’t.”
“You’re right, I wouldn’t.” He smacks a kiss on my lips and releases me. Sadly.
We climb aboard my boat, and he helps me prepare for the charter. He puts the poles in the holding tubes while I prepare the beer and snacks.
“I kind of like this working as a team,” I say once we’re ready to go.
And perfect timing, because our charter guests are walking up the dock. I step out of the boat to greet them. All six of them are probably in their forties, rings gleaming on their left ring fingers. Hopefully all they want to do is fish, not party.
I welcome the group, and they all climb on board. I introduce Cam and go over the safety guidelines. They listen attentively, and I pull out of the marina into open waters ten minutes later.
Cam chats with the guys as I’m getting us to the fishing spot we decided on. These men have more experience than I usually get in charters, so I want to make them happy so they’ll return next year.
They cast their lures, and I put out refreshments on the table and ask them if they want a beer. Some take me up on it and others don’t. It’s one of the easiest charters I’ve had this year.
Cam sits with me in the wheelhouse so they can do their own thing. “I’m not liking these clouds. What did radar say when you checked it?”
I look in the direction he’s pointing, but I checked as I always do, and our route was fine. There was a storm that would hit northwest of us, but we were clear.
“It’s all clear by us.” I pull out my phone and hand it to him.
He zooms in and out, moving the screen up and down. “Looks like it. Those dark clouds look like they’re heading right this way. But I’m not a weatherman.” He shrugs.
I tilt my head back, resting my neck on the chair, and stare at the sky. We still have two hours left, and I hope the weather holds off so this group can have a memorable excursion that they’ll want to relive next year.
The spot we’re in ends up being a bust, so Cam suggests a different spot and the guys are all up for it. We’ll need to go slightly northwest, but we both look at the radar again and it still says the storm will miss us.
Once we get to the new spot, everyone sets out their poles again. Cam comes over when the guys are chatting. Supposedly, four of them live in Alaska and two of them have moved down to the lower forty-eight. Which explains why some of them look familiar to me.
“What do you want to do after this?” Cam asks, lifting my legs and putting them across his. Very unprofessional, but the men are engaged in their conversation about their college years.
He massages my calves. It feels good after being on my feet so much, squeezing in every last charter before I have to shut down for the season.
“I just want to grab some food and chill.”
“You do realize we’re turning into an old couple, right? And we don’t even have kids.”
I raise my eyebrows.
“We could change that if you want?”
“Go to a bar?” I groan just thinking about it.
“No, have kids.”
“Cam, we’ve been together a few weeks. You’re insane.”
He laughs as a few raindrops land on my arms. I look at my windshield, and sure enough, there is more.
“Let me see your phone again,” Cam says, and I hand it to him.
He checks the weather, zooming in and out on the screen before he looks at me. I know the minute he does what he’s going to say. “We gotta go.”
He’s not asking my permission or even making it a suggestion. It’s an order, which makes me grind my teeth. He walks to the back by the guys and tells them all to pack up because a storm is going to hit right over us and he can’t tell how bad it might get.
As experienced as they are, they don’t question him but pull their poles out of the water and put everything away.