“These seats were unbelievable.” Camila stood and slipped her purse over her head, letting it cross over her body. “I love the Braves, but it is so late, and I have an early flower delivery tomorrow. Do you think the crowds have thinned?”
Ken looked around. “Probably. Let’s go.”
Even though they had already waited for a while, Ken still had to battle a lot of stadium traffic to leave. It took nearly forty-five minutes to get from the exit of the parking lot to Daisy’s driveway.
“I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” Camila said, hugging Daisy. “Thanks, Ken!”
Ken just waved and nodded. Camila and Homer got into Homer’s car, and Ken walked Daisy to her door. He paused with one foot on the step and leaned against the brick wall. “I’m going to say good night here. My alarm goes off at four whether I like it or not.”
She raised both eyebrows. “No break for a late night?”
He shrugged. “Nah. I have a system. I get my Bible study and workout in before I head to work.”
Standing on the step put her at eye-level with him. She slipped her arms around his neck and leaned forward. “I guess we’ll say good night here, then.”
Passion flared in his eyes as she leaned into his kiss. As his arms came around her, it occurred to Daisy that she’d never initiated a kiss with him before. She loved the feel of the muscles moving under his T-shirt, the way he smelled like outdoors, and the popcorn they’d eaten. She thought she could just sink into him and kiss him forever. But, way sooner than she’d like, he put his hands on her hips and set her back away from him.
“Good night,” he insisted, his voice gruff and low.
She pressed her lips together, still savoring the feel of the kiss, then took a step back. “Good night, Ken,” she answered softly. “I’ll talk to you later.”
Thefishing pole jerked hard in her hand. Daisy squealed and stood, making the boat rock. Immediately, Ken had one hand on her pole and the other on her hip, guiding her back down to a sitting position. “You got this,” he said. “Just set the hook and slowly reel it in.”
Following his instructions, she gradually reeled in the fish. It jerked to the left and right, but she held firm. Ken kept his hand ready to grab the pole in case she lost control. Soon, he leaned over the side of the boat and scooped the large bass into the net. It jerked, splashing him in the eye.
“Nice one,” he said, looking over his shoulder at her and grinning as he used his multi-tool to pull the hook out of its mouth. “Now, we have dinner.”
He opened the cooler and dropped it in with a splash. The two bass Ken had caught earlier sat still in the water, their gills moving in and out. As soon as the other fish joined them, they all swam in aggressive circles, jockeying for position in the confined space.
“Do we have to cook it? Could we just let it go?”
Confused, he thought for a moment, then frowned and shrugged. “What’s the point of catching it, then?”
“Well, we have yours, right?” She pointed down into the cooler. “The first one you caught is bigger, anyway.”
The ruthless sunshine pelted down on them. To combat it, Daisy had put on a white, wide-brimmed canvas hat. She wore a red T-shirt and denim shorts. Over her shirt, she wore an orange life preserver. He didn’t think he’d ever felt more attraction for her.
“You’re right,” he said. “We have mine.” He reached into the cooler and scooped her fish back out. It wiggled its tail furiously. “You really want to toss yours back?”
“Yes, please.”
“Alright. Hold out your hand, and you can toss him back.”
She held a hand up in a halting motion. “No, no. You do it.”
The fish plopped as it went back into the lake water. He silently stared at her long enough that she started to feel nervous. “What?”
“Just wondering what you’re going to eat, now.”
After a few seconds, Daisy realized he was teasing her and could not stop herself from laughing. Ken grinned. He set the net down and turned back to her. “You want to keep fishing?”
The expressions crossing her face made it clear that she did not want to stay out here, but she sat there obviously trying to decide how to word that thought so they could stay and keep fishing if he wanted to. The female brain fascinated him. He decided to end her misery. “I’m hot. Could use some of that air conditioning up at the cabin. Plus, I need to cook my fish while you figure out what you’re doing for dinner.”
Her face lit up in a way that made his mouth go dry. “Okay, sure. Let’s head back.”
Soon they had the boat under cover at the boathouse, and Ken carried the cooler around to the sink he’d installed over the water. A pump brought lake water through the sink, and the drain sent it back. On the side of the sink, he’d built in a thick wooden cutting board from oak and cedar. Daisy leaned against the wall of the boathouse as he set up to clean the fish. She slipped the hat off her head and fanned her face.
“Do you like it out here?”
