Chapter 41

Evie

We're sitting side-by-side on the wood-planked dock, our legs dangling off the edge. I sense a change in Adam. He's quieter, lost in his thoughts. When I woke, the threads of my dreams fading, the glorious view in the distance, I wondered why I live where I do when places like this exist.

Maybe it's the serene surroundings but I can practically feel my blood pressure reach a new low. The lake is a mesmerizing shade between blue and green, reflecting the swaths of surrounding pine trees. A sloop sails by, its mainsail taut in the wind.

A takeout bag and two cups of iced tea are positioned between us. I bite into my burger, juices squishing out the sides, missing my jeans by a hair. "Oh wow, that's good," I manage. I'm not only sleeping more but my appetite has gone crazy. I can't stop eating.

"Told ya."

"I'm never going to fit into my dress."

I pause, realization hitting me. "Oh no, I don't have a dress." And if I'm a soon-to-be member of the family, I'll need the right color dress. We're arriving shortly before the festivities. No time for shopping.

"Taken care of."

Though relieved, I'm unsure what that means. I hope whoever took care of it has tacked on an inch or two to my waistline measurements. Adam meets my gaze. "You're going to look stunning."

I flush. "Thanks . . . sweetheart."

Adam freezes mid-bite. Then, "You're role playing."

I grin. "Yep. How'd I do?"

"Convincing." He looks away.

It hits me that maybe this whole charade is confusing for him too. I wipe my mouth with napkins I find in the takeaway bag. "How do you know Tahoe so well?"

"I used to come here in college. I worked at the resorts as a waiter."

"You've come a long way since then."

Adam nibbles on a packet of ketchup and squeezes it out over his cardboard pouch of fries. "No question. But it wasn't always easy. Fry?"

"Don't mind if I do," I say, savoring the saltiness.

"I was obsessed with my app," Adam says, finishing his meal. "It took over my life for most of my college years. Even when I was here, working my butt off, every spare moment was devoted to improving the software."

"You sound like a young Bill Gates."

"You wouldn't be the first to say so. Honestly, it was never my intention to create a multi-million-dollar empire. I was just fascinated by the challenge of it all."

I see a childlike wonder in his eyes. "If you love programming so much, why aren't you still doing it?"

"I hire people to do that now. I need to be the big picture guy. Probably for the best though."

"Why is that?"

"Like I said, it became an addiction. It's why I barely dated. I was both a hermit and a computer geek. Didn't make for a stellar social life."

Sitting beside a sexy, insightful, and sensitive man, I find it hard to imagine Adam as a tech nerd. "You didn't date at all?"

"I was in one relationship. It didn't work out."

Sensing it isn't a comfortable topic, I move on. "A hermit, huh? Then not much has changed. You're still living in the woods all alone."

Adam smiles. "True, but I also met you, didn't I?"

"I'm not sure getting shoved off a cliff is the best way to dip your toe into the social scene."

A gleaming motorboat pulls up to the opposite side of the dock. The engine cuts off, and a grandfatherly man, donning a skipper hat atop his snow-haired head, steps off the vessel, mooring it.

Adam says, "Beautiful boat."

The man removes his sunglasses, revealing bright blue eyes against his leathery tanned skin. "Thank you. Her name is Divine Denise. After my late wife."

"I'm sorry," Adam says.

The man nods his appreciation. "This lake was Denise's favorite place in the world. Visiting the area?"

"Just for today." Adam pauses a moment. "I'm Adam, this is my fiancée, Ronna."

I notice he doesn't hesitate on the lie. Our rehearsals are working.

The man extends a hand. "Saul. Folks around here call me Captain." The two men shake.

I watch a lightbulb go off in Adam's head just before he says to the man. "Say, how would you feel about letting us take Divine Denise out for a spin?"

Captain Saul frowns. "She's not a rental."

"I'll pay you five hundred dollars in cash up front to let me and my fiancée borrow her for a half hour."

The man's eyes nearly pop out of his head. "Five hundred?"

I interject. "Adam?"

He turns his attention to me. "Wouldn't you enjoy being out on the water, Ronna?"

I glance at my phone screen. The plan was to arrive at our overnight stop by nine p.m. "Do we have the time?"

"We'll be a bit behind schedule but if you're all right with that—sweetheart—this could be fun."

Sweetheart. The word sounds so natural.

It's been years since I've been on a motorboat. It does look beautiful. Adam must sense my excitement and pulls a wad of bills from his pocket, handing them to Saul. "We'll have her back in thirty minutes."

The man stares at the cash, then at the boat, looking unsure. "You know how to handle her?"

"Sure do."

"Well, okay then. Here's my number. I'll meet you back here in thirty minutes."

Adam adds another twenty. "Grab a beer and a burger on me."

The man hands over the keys. "Increase the throttle extra slow or she'll stall on you."

"Got it."

Adam boards the boat, extending a hand to help me. Seems we're about to embark on yet another adventure.