Undertow (16 page)

Maggie took the notebook out of Teal·s unresisting fingers and jotted down a notation.

´When do you want to go?µ she asked, stil writing.

Ńow?µ Teal suggested a little too eagerly. Zane was diving with Ryan. The timing was perfect. Í·m sure Zane wouldn·t mind if we took the launch.µ The baby
could
be Nick·s. Or Logan·s «

´He won·t mind at al . But how about going tomorrow instead, honey? It·s pretty late. If there·s anything you need, I·d be happy to share whatever I have with you.µ

Í·ve already got dibs on your wet suit,µ Teal told her dryly, stretching out her legs on the warm wood of the deck. Her mouth was so dry she could barely push the words out. It was none of her business if Zane fathered a
dozen
children.

None.
Oh, yeah?
Her heart twisted painful y, and her chest hurt. None of her business, but God it hurt on a level she didn·t even want to analyze.

She didn·t
want
to sit here in the glorious sun, wondering how and why Zane Cutter unwittingly had the power to elicit these emotions in her. And the worst part was that it wasn·t just simple jealousy that hurt so much. It was the fact that she·d been right about Zane al along. She·s been right to run away from him last night.

There was no hope of changing the man. This child was just further confirmation that Zane was a lost cause.

She breathed deeply, observed that her heart was beating just fine, and her lungs were ful y operational. He wasn·t doing anything to intentional y hurt her or make her unhappy. She was doing a fine and dandy job of that al by herself.

Stop it! Count blessings instead of emotional voids.

Ummm
³Her tan was coming along nicely even though she·d made no effort and used sunscreen religiously. And other than her feelings for Zane, she felt fit and healthy and strangely at peace for the first time in a long, long time.

Baby Jessie was just another Zane-ism she had to deal with al on her own.

Teal leaned her head against the wal at her back and watched two men on another boat do perfectly synchronized dives into the water to the accompanying shrieks of their girlfriends, who were already in the water.
Are you the thieving
bastards stealing our stuff?
In the distance, the
Sea Witch
sat like a bird of prey.

Or is it you?

Í real y hate shopping. I think I·m missing the girly gene,µ she admitted, forcing the tension to leak out of her body a bit at a time. ´But the necessity has become critical.µ

Denny had loved to shop for her. His taste was questionable, but she·d always had plenty of things to wear. She·d left every thong, merry widow, and lace bra behind in San Francisco when she·d walked out. She didn·t care what she wore as long as she was comfortable.

Denny·s choices had been anything but.

´How about if I lend you a pretty sundress to wear tonight? Let·s have a girl·s afternoon, we·l give each other a facial, do our nails, fix our hair«µ

´Who are you, and what have you done with Maggie?µ Teal tried to joke. It fel a little flat.

Í·ve seen the way you look at Zane.µ Maggie said gently. ´Glaring at him al night isn·t going to stop him flirting with al those sil y women. And dressing out o f the laundry hamper isn·t going to get you what you want. Sorry. Rude, I know. But what are friends for?

Don·t you want Zane to see you as a desirable woman?µ

Teal didn·t know where to begin decoding that piece of dialogue. She felt sucker punched. Í

have to look at him to talk to him.µ She was embarrassed to hear how sulky she sounded.

Maggie reached over and laid a hand on Teal·s knee. ´You·re in love with him, honey. Let·s do something about that.µ

´That·s not why I want to go shopping,µ Teal said d efensively, not acknowledging the statement. Í like my clothes just fine. I don·t want to dress as someone I·m not.µ

Á hot and sexy woman?µ Maggie smiled. ´You have beautiful eyes, which no one can see properly because you hide behind your hair. And a p retty mouth if you·d just smile more often. Let me³µ

Teal·s chest hurt, and she tried to hide the feelings of betrayal behind a cough.

Maybe if she explained? But if Maggie was real y her friend, she should already be good enough.

Í was with a man who spent every waking moment of the three years we were married doing his best to change everything about me. None of me was up to his elevated standards of perfection.µ She scrambled to her feet, eyes brimming. Í hated it, but I wore long red nails, dyed my hair, and had extensions³which itched like hel , by the way. I·m never going to be stupid enough again to believe that changing my outsides for a man wil make him love me.µ

The fact that Maggie claimed friendship in the same breath as she suggested a makeover told Teal everything she needed to know. No wonder she loved her engines so much. They couldn·t break your heart.

Maggie stood up and reached out her hand, but Teal ste pped out of reach.

´Honey,
no.
Lord, no. I don·t want you to change³Oh blast it! I·m sorry. I don·t³µ

Blinded by tears, Teal turned and crashed straight into Zane·s chest. He stil wore his wet suit and was carrying a lump of blackish « something in his h and. He frowned as he scanned her face. ´What·s going on?µ

Teal shoved his chest, and he fel back a step. ´Get the hel out of my way!µ

Zane turned to watch her run across the deck, then swiveled round to Maggie.

´What did I miss?µ

´The part about her husband trying to change her?µ Maggie asked worriedly as Teal disappeared inside.

Ńo,µ Zane said grimly, Í got that part.µ

Śhe wanted to go to St. Maarten to do a little shopping. I suggested a girl·s afternoon with facials and maybe a makeover instead. Darn it. I hurt her feelings, which was the last thing I wanted to do. I·l go down and talk to her.µ

Zane touched his friend·s arm. Ńo. Let me go.µ This conversation was long overdue.

* * *

She liked alone. He didn·t. Time for a little compromise.

Carrying two cans of soda, either as a peace offering or for self-defense, Zane walked into the engine room. Teal sat at the smal , built-in desk, staring at the closed laptop. She·d changed from the swimsuit into coveral s, the sleeves wrapped around her waist, and a little white tank top that showed off her lightly muscled arms and the smal globes of her breasts.

He·d have to be a blind man not to see her nippl es, the palest of pink, poking through the thin material. And damn it, he wasn·t blind. She was braless. The woman had weapons she didn·t bother using.

He closed the door behind him with a firm click. ´Maggie·s sorry she hurt your feelings.µ

Śhe didn·t.µ Jaw set, Teal opened the computer and turned it on. Í need to check the strainers on the cooling system « So if there·s nothing else?µ

Zane set the colas on the desk, then reached over and closed the computer, ignoring her indignant,
´Hey!µ

´You know what it was like to have my brothers return home with shitloads of treasure while I was searching like a lunatic for the
Vrijheid
in al the wrong places for four
years
?µ He stepped back, letting her absorb him in her space.

He noticed that she·d commandeered the coffeepot he kept in the wheelhouse for late-night trips, and a red-and-white striped canvas cushion he·d last seen on a lounger on the forward deck. He could feel her bristling with unnamed emotion.

´Frustrating,µ he told the back of her head. Á nnoying as hel .µ

He picked up her ugly blue chambray shirt off the chair, and brought it to his nose. Attar of irritation, he thought, half amused and half baffled by this woman who attracted him like no other. He buried his smile in the scent of her for a moment since she wasn·t paying attention.

Teal was an original. An acquired taste, and God help him, his taste buds were changing.

Ít·s not about the money,µ he tossed her shirt back on the chair and resumed prowling the spotless room. Álthough it·s a damn fine bonus. No, it·s al about the win. The race to the finish. The bet the three of us made and who comes in first place.µ

´Fascinating.µ Teal sounded anything but. ´However, this isn·t new information.µ She flipped open the computer again. Śo if there·s nothing else, I have work to do.µ

´Teal³µ

´Why do you care anyway? I have no idea what the deal is with you and Maggie, but it al seems incredibly twisted to me. She must be some kind of free love proponent to be pushing you off on every woman she knows and enabling your philandering ways.µ

Énabling my³what? What are you talking about?µ

Ńever mind. Forget it. Not important.µ

He stared at her for a moment, clearly perplexed, then shook his head. ´Teal, al I know is that if two members of my team are at odds, it taints the work we·re doing here. Do you get
that
?µ

The computer hummed to life, and he heard her grind her back teeth. Í·d be happy to leave.

I didn·t want to come in the first place.µ Her straight spine was too stiff to bend.

Zane ran al ten fingers through his hair in frustration. ´People here care about you.
Maggie
cares about you. Can·t you at least try to be friendly?µ

´You·re confusing caring with the temporary bond forged among coworkers.µ

Her detached voice gave him chil s. How hurt had she been in her life to slip so quickly behind emotional wal s? She tapped at the keyboard, her posture ramrod straight. Í found an emerald the size of a teacup the other day. I can cook without burning the gal ey down, fix the engines, and I clean up after myself. I·m practical y employee of the week.µ Asperity and disil usionment laced every syl able as Teal logged in to the computer, then paused and looked at him over her shoulder. She chewed her lip as if weighing her words.

Ít·s not like that. We·re family.µ

With a quick negating shake of her head she said, Í ³I don·t get close to people easily.µ She shrugged, stil facing her computer screen rather than him. Í just don·t. I·m sorry if Maggie was offended that I didn·t want to play dress up, but I·m fine the way I am.µ

Yeah. He could read how ´fineµ she was by the way the air bristled around her.

´You are better than fine. You are strong, independent. Smart. Dangerously amusing. And ³

µ He paused to savor the truth of his words. ´³beautiful.µ She quickly blinked a couple of times and glanced up at the ceiling before glaring at him.

In any other woman, Zane would have suspected she was holding back tears. But Teal didn·t look like she·d tolerate tears. Especial y from herself.

Ŕight. Thanks for the pep talk, Captain.µ

Her glacial expression showed how little she thought of his compliments and he mental y retreated. ´We·re al just people, Teal. Be nice and most folks wil be nice right back.µ

´Maybe in your world. Me? I like engines. I understand how they work and how to fix them when they don·t. But people«µ Her hand fluttered, then dropped back to the table.

´People aren·t that complicated, sweetheart.µ He reached out with one hand.

Éveryone wants to be understood and loved by the people they care about.µ

´Don·t cal me that.µ She gave a smal shake of her head and turned back to the computer, freezing Zane with icy silence. What kind of asshole was her ex?

What had the guy done to her? For the first time in his life, Zan e was floundering when he wanted to be his most compel ing. He wasn·t even sure what he wanted from her. But he wanted it bad.

She·d turned over one of the plastic buckets Maggie used for preserving artifacts to use as a side table. He quietly picked up a smal , antique, silver box.

Something inside rattled as he ran his thumb over the smooth worn surface.

He weighed his words. ´My point is, I·ve worked my ass off for this. It·s proved to be more than I ever dreamed about. We could feasibly spend five ye ars right here.µ

She choked on a quick breath, then exhaled. Her fingers hovered over the keys, but they didn·t move. ´Kudos. You beat your brothers. I·l look for you and the crew on the Discovery channel. I agreed to a month. I have two weeks left, unless you want to send me home early for bad behavior.µ The quick look she tossed over her shoulder was fil ed with desperate hope.

´Forget it. I just want everyone to get along. Dissent leads to accidents.µ

´Who are you, Rodney King? Listen, if it wil get y ou out of my engine room, I·l go apologize to Maggie so that she·s not upset. But if you·re truly worried about accidents, you might want to hit the sack early every once in a while, and avoid getting drunk at parties and sticking your tongue down the throats of thousands of strange women³µ

Too far. He crossed the room in three floor-eating strides and lifted her by the shoulders so that she·d have to deliver her stinging insults straight to his face. He hung on to his temper by a thread. ´Jealousy doesn·t become you, Wil iams. And it·s clearly clouded your judgment. My father was an alcoholic, not me. I had one beer at that party. One beer. And as for sticking my tongue down the throats of strange women, I·ve been a damned saint on this trip.µ

Her brown eyes looked as soft as melting chocolate. Zane·s libido rose as he detected the tel tale hint of desire in the dilated pupils. He swal owed. Ńot,µ he said roughly, giving her a little shake. Ńot that I haven·t
wanted
to stick my tongue in al manner of interesting places lately. God only knows why.µ

She glared up at him, her face pale. ´What stopped you? Al those woman were stripping you with their eyes. When they were over here using up
my
power, draining
my
generator, drinking your booze, and scarfing down our supplies. Any of them would have gone to bed with you in a heartbeat. Al you had to do was crook your little finger and smile.µ

´That party real y got you bent out of shape. Funny, I never pegged you for the jealous type,µ he taunted, just to see h er eyes spit fire. Which they did.

Óh please. I·ve never liked warmed-up leftovers.µ