Running a hand through his wild hair, hesighed, “Sounds fun. What time do you want to meet at theboat?”
“Not until 11. Give everyone a little time topack since it’s such short notice. Same slip we’ve always had.”
“See you soon.” Ronan hung up and strode intothe bathroom.
His reflection caught him off guard. Man, hewas one hideous son-of-a-bitch. Why the hell had Payson kissed thatugly mug? Why did his mother or his sister not pin him down andshave it off?
Since his return, he’d looked disheveled andwild, a savage beast one feared provoking. His behavior hadn’thelped either.
He grabbed the scissors and razor he’d hadyet to even open from the drawer. Slowly, he cut away the hatred,the misplaced guilt, the self-loathing that been smotheringhim.
Seeing his completely unshaven face for thefirst time in years, he felt a growing motivation to like himselfagain. To let others like him. To give himself a chance withPayson, if he wasn’t too late.
On a mission now, he picked up the phone tobook an urgent appointment for a haircut. May as well grab somedecent clothes while he was at it; quit wearing his sister’sboyfriend’s tattered cast-offs. He grabbed his empty backpack,threw in some basic toiletries, and headed out for some overdueerrands.
~
At 10:30, Payson rushed to the door to let inthe frantically knocking Maddy. Her friend tore into the apartment.“It’s freezing out there, did you intend to leave me out there toturn into a Maddy-cicle?”
Laughing at her dramatic friend, Paysonbrushed the fresh snow off of Maddy’s wild chestnut waves, “It wasnot intentional, I swear. I didn’t hear you over my blaringly loudthoughts. Wait, didn’t I give you a key?”
“You did, but I didn’t want to actually useit without your permission. For all I knew you had a guy inhere.”
“Ha. As if. More importantly, what does onepack for an overnight boat adventure? It was so nice of yourparents to include me, knowing I need a vacation, but don’t theyrealize I’ve refused every time they’ve invited me because I’m tooterrified? Will it be safe on the water in this weather?” Paysondidn’t mention that it wasn’t just the wardrobe crisis or her fearof boating muddling her brain.
Last night’s kiss had turned her worldcompletely upside down. He wasn’t at all her type. He was the typeshe filtered out of her online dating search. Yet, she was so drawnto him, couldn’t stop thinking about him. Had never felt so… well,aroused quite frankly. But it was more than that.
Maddy patted her head. “They keep invitingyou because they know you want to enjoy boating but are too afraidto give it a try. You know Mom, she’s always trying to fixeveryone.”
Payson responded with a reluctant pout. “Thatsounds like Laura. If only I didn’t like her so well…”
“You know she’s right.”
“Maybe. Dang it, I have always wanted to goboating. I'm sure I'll like it; it sounds like such a romantichobby.” Payson sighed, gesturing down to her outfit. “So… what do Iwear? What do I pack?”
“How about you pack whatever you had beenplanning to wear tonight and tomorrow? It won’t be cold on theboat; for winter we keep it sealed up tight and the heat on fullblast. Mom has no cold tolerance, so we’ll probably be roastinganyway. It’s a perfect day for a cruise; snow is already startingto let up with clear skies predicted for this afternoon andtomorrow. The water is practically flat calm.”
“You made it even more complicated. Do I packfor hot or cold or both? You should have been here sooner, before Ireached a full-on freak out.” Payson’s voice moved from shrill to apitch that only dogs can hear.
Maddy pulled her friend along back to themaster bedroom. The bed was covered in discarded clothes of allsorts. If she was horrified, she didn’t show it. She rolled up hersleeves and took charge.
“Ok, you’ll need an outfit for the ride andshopping, maybe something for dinner tonight because they booked afancy restaurant for us, pajamas if you wear them, a practicaloutfit for tomorrow for breakfast and the ride back.”
Watching Payson’s growing panic, DetectiveMaddy McAllister took over. “You grab your toiletries and I’ll getyou packed. I’ll throw in a few alternates in case you want someoptions.”
Payson obeyed and dashed into the bathroom,shouting, “Thanks, you’re a lifesaver.” She hoped her friend packedsomething cute, but it was better to trust her friend than continuefussing, or she’d be late. She was never late.
Nor had she ever been on a boat adventurebefore… or even been on a boat. The McAllisters had invited her outseveral times, but she kept resisting out of sheer terror. Nomore.
She was turning over a new leaf. Maybe Ronanwouldn’t be so standoffish if he realized she didn’t care aboutappearances. Honestly, she hadn’t intended to appear caught up inappearances, and realized searching forthe oneby filteringout all the riffraff on her dating app was downright stupid.
She hollered to the next room as she madlytossed her make-up and toothbrush into her travel case, “Is Chasewaiting outside?”
“He’s playing on his phone, keeping the trucknice and warm for us. He knows us well enough by now; he’ll knowthis won’t be a quick stop.”
Payson wasn’t sure if that was reassuring ordepressing that she was predictably indecisive. Her clothes werealways planned out, often a few days in advance, then switched outat the last minute if it didn’t feel just right for the occasion.She zipped back into the bedroom, clutching her toiletry bag. “Am Igood in what I’m wearing?” She tried not to sound desperate, butMaddy would understand the dilemma.
Maddy grabbed the toiletry bag from Payson’sparalyzed hands and stuffed it on top, zipping up the overnightbag. Payson felt foolish. After a lengthy internal debate, she’dworn her skinny jeans with knee high waterproof suede boots with aplain white t-shirt under a soft pink sweater with cozy cowlneck.
