Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO

Cass stood on the deck of his boat, coiling rope around his arm into a perfect circle. He looked like he was the God of summer standing there, with the sun beating down on his shoulders, highlighting the blond in his hair. The wind had tossed his wavy locks into a carefree mess and his tank top exposed the flex of his biceps as he coiled the rope.

Cassidy Hart was a damn fine specimen of a man.

Like, Baywatch hot, if that was still on TV.

“Permission to board, sir.”

He looked up, and as soon as he saw me, he radiated warmth and joy, reminding me why he was one of my favorite people.

“Come aboard, sailor.”

It was the same cheesy joke every time I boarded the boat for the past nine years. When it came to Cass, I loved that some things never changed. Our things .

“Are you here to collect on your lunch debt?”

“Sure am.”

I could stand here and watch him work all day. When I was on the boat with Cass, time stood still—or flew by, whichever was more accurate. I loved everything about his world. The constant motion of the boat, the smell of salt air, the sun, and the wind, the gulls squawking loudly. Sunsets and sunrises that looked like they were painted by the hand of God. I loved it all. It was because of Cass that I dreamt of a career in Oceanography. Or maybe Marine Biology—I hadn’t quite figured it out yet, but I was sure I wanted to work with the ocean.

“Let me get cleaned up and we’ll walk down the pier to your favorite spot, The Shuckin’ Shack. You know you can’t resist their peel-and-eat shrimp.”

I grinned, loving that he knew me so well. My dad would have asked me where I wanted to eat and then waited patiently while I ran through twenty restaurants, discarding each one before deciding on The Shuckin' Shack. Cass had a different approach, and it had always worked perfectly for me.

Cass’s idea of getting ‘ cleaned up ’ involved donning a ball cap over his wind-blown hair and washing his hands. The fancy clothes he wore to my graduation had to be the nicest I’d ever seen him dress, and damn, he hadn’t disappointed. I remarked to my buddy once that I thought Cass was hot for an older guy, and he thought I was nuts. Not because Cass wasn’t, but because my buddy wasn’t into guys, and certainly not dad types. I wasn’t either, but Cass… yeah, there was no denying it. It was just a fact—the man was fucking hot.

We found a seat outside by the water. “He’ll have the peel-and-eat shrimp and a side of conch fritters, and I’ll have a blackened grouper sandwich and fries.”

I loved that as well. My dad would never presume to order for me. But Cass never got it wrong.

“So, have you decided where you’re going to college?”

I hesitated, rubbing the toe of my sneaker over the wooden deck below my feet. “About that.”

“No. Nicky, don’t.” He looked serious. Seriously pissed. “Don’t you dare tell me you changed your mind about school?”

“Not exactly. I just want to wait a bit, take a gap year before starting school.”

“Christ,” he swore, his hazel eyes narrowing dangerously. “And what do you plan to do with this gap year that is so damn important?”

“Travel? See the world?”

Cass blew out a breath. “God,” he laughed without humor, “It’s ironic you’re not actually my son because you’re exactly like I was at your age. Samson and I couldn’t wait to finish college so we could travel and have our own adventures. Life in Massachusetts was kinda dull. We grew up sailing and even joined the Junior Yachtsmen of America club in high school. It was how our dream of chartering boats actually started. We spent summers working as deckhands and imagined it would be us at the helm someday.”

He looked out over the water, and I could only imagine what he was seeing. His youth? Memories of him and Samson?

“I want that, too, Cass. Is that so terrible?”

“No, Nicky, of course not, but I came up with a plan to earn money while I traveled, not to mention me and Sam’s families had money. Otherwise, we’d have never gotten off the ground.”

My shoulders drooped, and I slumped in my seat. He had a point. I couldn’t just drop out of life and be a penniless vagabond, no matter how exciting it seemed. Cass also had Sam by his side, whereas I had no one. The idea of traveling alone kinda scared the shit outta me.

“Have you talked about any of this with your dad?”

I laughed sarcastically. “Yeah right. He’d flip.”

My dad worked hard as a lawyer, dressed in a suit and tie, and was gone until after dinner most nights. He’d be the last person to understand my carefree, wandering heart. The only reason he accepted it with Cass was most likely because Cass wasn’t broke. He could afford to fund his wanderlust.

I couldn’t.

“I—” My mouth dried up, making my tongue feel thick and awkward. I swallowed hard. “I could work with you. You always hire a deckhand for the summer.”

The waitress interrupted us with our food, taking her time placing the dishes in front of us and refilling our water. The silence killed me. Would he laugh at me, or would Cass agree to hire me?

When she finally walked away, I risked a glance at Cass. He was infuriatingly ignoring me, dressing his sandwich with tomato and lettuce. Then he took a big bite and chewed for what felt like thirty minutes! When he swallowed, he shook his head, like he found me amusing or something.

Probably not a good sign, Nicky.

“I’ll make you a deal.” Hope bloomed in my heart. “One summer, that’s it. Then you start school in the fall. Deal?”

I felt like I’d been given a precious gift. My heart soared and a thousand thoughts crowded into my head at once. Mostly imagining myself island-hopping, fishing, snorkeling, and enjoying the best summer ever. With Cass.

“Nicky, did you hear me?”

“Huh? I’m sorry, what?”

Cass chuckled. “You need to tell your dad. Tonight. We leave again in four days, for Antigua this time, and when we return, we’re heading right back out for Barbados.”

“I’ll tell him as soon as I get home. I swear!” He’d be much more agreeable if I explained I wanted to enjoy my last summer and make some spending money for college.

“I need you to actually work. You can’t just jack off all day, sunbathing and fishing. Sam and I will have guests on the boat most of the time and we need to be professional at all times. Understand?”

“Yup. Professional. No jacking off.” Cass laughed again and shoved a french fry in his mouth.

Three whole months together, out to sea. It felt like a dream.

“So, with that squared away, we can move on to other things.”

“What other things?”

“Sam wants to know if you’re dating anyone. Is there someone special who’s going to miss you this summer?”

His smile was cute, as though we were discussing a schoolboy crush like I was in middle school and not nineteen years old.

“Nope, no one special.”

“No one,” he prodded. “A cute girl…or boy?” he ventured carefully.

“Nope.” I wasn’t ready to spill the beans just yet.

I felt I owed it to my dad to tell him first, but every time I rehearsed what I was going to say in my head, it came out all wrong or didn’t come out at all. Therefore, I wasn’t coming out, either.

My mother wasn’t thrilled with my father when he came out as bisexual after five years of marriage. It wasn’t the only reason they split, but it hadn’t helped, either. My mom was a lawyer, like my dad, but she advanced in her career a lot faster than he did and was offered a job at a prestigious international firm in Tokyo. I rarely saw her in person anymore.

I didn’t know how she or my dad would react if I came out. Would she blame him for ‘ turning ’ me? That’s how she’d see it, most likely. Would my dad feel disappointed in me? I just couldn’t predict his reaction, and the fear was killing me.

“Well, maybe you’ll have a hot summer fling before hitting the books this fall,” Cass teased. “You don’t need to rush anything. You’ll know when it feels right.”

God, he always said exactly what I needed to hear.