Resisting Samantha (Hope Parish Novels Book 10) (16 page)

His features
softened into understanding and he patted my shoulder. “Don’t
feel bad. She’s a master interrogator.”

I shook my head and
poked him in his breastbone, while also knee-weakeningly aware of his
large, male form leaning against the counter. I rubbed my hands
against my thighs, then looked at him.

“I kinda told
her off,” I admitted.

His eyes widened.

“I’m
sorry, but she made me so mad, going on and on about how you used to
be and what she wanted. I just blurted it out that she should just
damn well listen to you. Understand you. Give you the time you
needed.”

His jaw dropped and
he just stared at me.

“Say
something,” I groused. “You’re freaking me out.”

To my surprise, he
chuckled and folded his arms. “You turned the tables on my
sister?”

Regrouping, I turned
on the dishwasher. “You’re not mad?”

“Ha! I think
this is one for the books.” He held up his hand and I slapped
it. “Way to go, Sam.”

I wiped down the
counters, then disappeared into his room. I gathered up my things and
stuffed them all in my bag. He came to the door and leaned against
the frame, looking way too tempting. “You’re leaving?”

“Yes, I’m
way behind on my pies. I’ve got to get to Imogene’s.”

He wouldn’t
move, forcing me to slide by him, our bodies making hard contact. He
made a grab for me, but I ducked and made a beeline for the door. He
caught my arm. “Damn, I wanted some more of that
rollercoaster.”

“Me, too. Hold
that thought.” The rain had finally stopped, and we stepped
onto the wet porch, the bayou a misty giant around us, the channel
swollen, but still below the flood line. His boats and plane had
weathered the storm just fine.

Taking my face
between his hands, he bent down and kissed me softly on the mouth, my
breath catching as he pulled my hips closer and took control of the
kiss. It was long and lingering and oh so sweet, and by the time he
let me go, I wanted to go back in the house. But I really couldn’t.

“If you need
me, call,” I said.

He unlocked my door
for me, handing me the keys. “I might be able to swing by for
lunch.”

“That would be
great, but you don’t have to check up on me.”

He drew his hand
across the curve of my hip, pressing me closer. “I’m not.
I want to see you,” he said, his voice low and husky.

I stared at him with
what I intended to be a skeptical expression.

“Okay, you got
me. I want some pie.”

“Incorrigible,”
I said with a smile.

“Besides,
there’s no threat to worry about, since we know Mayhew is still
in prison.” His expression evened out. He lifted my chin and
gave me one final kiss. Then he settled me in the passenger seat. I
started the car as he turned away and walked back to his home and
business.

He scooped up his
mail and a minute later the screen door slammed shut behind him.

I released a long,
shaky sigh. No, now I only had to contend with a dire warning, a
voodoo talisman, and a ghost.
And—
God
help me, the scariest of all—

Chase.

CHASE

Damn, I was
reluctant to let Samantha go, but now that there was no threat, I
couldn’t beat my chest and insist she stay with me. But her
decision to move forward with me was enough to keep me happy for the
time being.

Besides, I still had
some of my own shit to deal with. Thinking again about my daddy’s
visit, I started opening the mail, mostly bills and junk, until I got
to a cream-colored vellum envelope.

Feeling as if this
was a time bomb waiting to go off, I slipped my index finger
underneath the edge and ripped open the flap...

…and pulled
out an engraved invitation to my parents’ thirtieth wedding
anniversary party. My stomach knotted, and I stood nailed to the
floor as anguish washed through me. Once again my dad’s words
lashed at me, but the pain and anger were too ingrained, and I threw
the invitation away with the junk mail.

After showering and
dressing, I went into town to pick up supplies. I was outside the
hardware store when I spied my sister coming out of our family store
with a stroller. Old lady Jessup stopped in front of the carriage and
bent over.

“Oh, my God,
these boys are so handsome. They’re going to be heartbreakers
when they grow up.”

With a momma’s
pride in her voice, River said, “They’re growing so fast
and getting so big. I worry I’m going to miss something.”
She looked frazzled, but it did my heart good to see how happy she
was. Brax was good for her, even if he had told me off. Rightly so.

“Yep, these
are the years you need to savor. They’re angels,” she
said, then moved on. River went to her car and loaded them up. I just
stood there watching her with her children, thinking about how much
of their life I’d missed, how much of her life I’d
missed. How much I missed my brother Jake and my parents, my Uncle
Win.

It had felt so good
to reconnect with Ethan, start fresh and new. And there was Samantha.
If I wanted a future with her, how could I fully be with her without
being whole?

If I didn’t
come to terms with my family and my past, I was never going to be
able to move on and—something I had dreamed and wished and
longed for—to reconnect. Reconciliation. My dad offered me an
opening, and I’d thrown it back in his face because of old
hurts and angry words. If my dad was changing…maybe he wasn’t
the unwilling one. Maybe it was…me.

Shaken by that
revelation, I went home. When I pulled up, there was an SUV parked in
front of my place. When I parked my truck and got out, I was shocked
to see my daddy get out of the driver’s seat along with three
other men.

“Chase,”
he said. “These are friends of mine from college, Matt, Tom,
and Mike, but we call him rudder because he likes to steer.”
All three of them laughed and reached out to shake my hand.

“It’s a
pleasure,” Rudder said, a big, burly blonde guy with glasses
and piercing blue eyes. “That your plane?”

“Yeah.”
I said.

“Well,”
he slapped my daddy on the back, “Jimmy here tells us you know
the best places to catch mahimahi.”

I looked at my daddy
and he smiled and nodded. “Right, son?”

“Yeah, I know
the perfect spot.” Mahimahi is the common name for dolphinfish,
not to be confused with the unrelated marine mammals bearing the same
name. They could weigh anywhere from 15 pounds to 70, but averaged
around 30. They were swift, acrobatic, known for the beautiful bright
colors they displayed, and were tough fighters. They were an
excellent sportfish due to their sheer abundance and strength, and
the fact that they reproduced very quickly. On top of all that, their
flesh was delicious.

“You free now?
Jimmy didn’t know we were coming into town, and we just
hijacked him because he was boasting about you and your skills. Can
you take us over for a trip to the Gulf?”

Boasted? He’d
talked about me to his friends? I could take offense and decide my
daddy didn’t think my time was valuable. Or I could see this
for what it was worth, another offer to put our past behind us. It
wasn’t going to happen overnight. I still had unresolved anger,
but I could accept this olive branch he was offering.

I was sure my momma
was part of the driving force behind these attempts, but when I
looked into my daddy’s eyes, so like mine, my chest got tight.
He looked so wary, as if waiting for me to throw this back in his
face, in front of his friends, and walk away. It was then I realized
that my momma might be prodding, but my daddy wanted this as much as
she did. I was the one who was holding back.

“It’s
short notice, but for my daddy, I sure can.”

My daddy
straightened and sent me a private thank-you. “I just need to
make a couple of calls.”

Samantha answered on
the first ring. “Hey, babe. I’m not going to make it for
lunch, and will probably be gone until tomorrow. I have a charter I
can’t say no to,” my voice was gruff, and she picked up
on the vibe.

“Is everything
all right, Chase?” Her soft concern made my heart flip over.

“Not just yet,
but I’m working on it. It’s for my daddy and his
friends.”

“Oh,”
she said. She understood without me having to elaborate, and that
filled me up. This woman was so in tune with me. “Okay, I’ll
save you some pie, and if you’re a good boy, maybe even put
some whipped cream on it while we talk about that rollercoaster.”

I closed my eyes.
There was definitely a downside to spending two days with a bunch of
guys. Samantha and I were still feeling our way through this thing
that had us both by the throat. I lowered my voice and said, “Don’t
be getting me all worked up when I’m with a bunch of guys. I
need to be my tough, macho self. That kind of talk makes my knees
buckle, babe. You’re giving me a boner.”

“Oh, don’t
tell me that.”

“It’s
your fault. You mentioned rollercoaster.”

“Do
mathematical equations in your head.”

“What?”

“I read it in
Cosmo
.
‘How to get rid of that annoying hard-on.’”

“Annoying
hard-on. Is this a joke?”

“It works.
Well, unless you’re a theoretical physicist who get boners from
seeing calculus equations.”

“A woman’s
magazine is giving out advice on de-tenting?”

“De-tenting…okay.
Yeah, doing mental math requires a great deal of focus and
concentration. It takes your brain away from whatever is causing your
erection.”

“Right. You
saying the word ‘erection’ isn’t helping.”

“Visualize a
gutted fish.”

“And we have a
winner.”

“Now the
waiting is going to be even tougher. Good luck and be safe.”

“Thanks. I’ll
be over on Saturday to help you. I didn’t forget.”

Her voice softened
even more. “I’ll see you then.”

“’Bye,
darlin’.”

My second call was
to Ethan. “Hey, I need a favor. Can you work today and
tomorrow? I have a charter over to the Gulf. I know it’s
short—”

“I’m on
my way. And, I expect to get some fishing perks with this job, man.
I’d say you owe me a beer when you get back.”

“That’s
a deal.”

We loaded up the
plane, and it was a tight squeeze with five, but we managed.

We landed in Venice,
Louisiana, a small beach town located in Plaquemines Parish, which is
the last community down the Mississippi that was reachable by car.
Because of this the town had the nickname, “The end of the
world.”

We left the plane
and walked to the slip where I kept my charter boat. Normally I hired
a guy to take out groups during the busiest part of the season…one
more reason to start hiring more staff. I felt the need to stay
closer to home now.

“Whoa. Son?
This is yours?”

“Yes, I had it
custom built.”

Rudder slapped my
daddy on the back. “Looks like your kid has it made, Jimmy.
What a life. What is this, a sixty-footer?”

“Sixty-eight,”
I replied. “This one sleeps five and is fully stocked.”

“Beer?”

“Yup, a
variety. Enough for two days. Welcome aboard the
Amy
.”

“That’s
classy, kid, naming the boat after your beautiful, gracious mom. So,
this one? There’s more?”

I nodded. “I
have a couple more. The
River
Pearl
and…” I had to clear my voice. “
Sutton’s
Pride
.”
His three friends stepped onto the boat, but based on the shocked
look on my daddy’s face, I’d say he was floored. “Amy,”
he whispered when he saw the name on the back. I stepped on and said,
“Come on aboard, Daddy.”

He clasped my hand
and jumped onto the deck.

I piloted the boat
out of the slip, and soon we were out to open sea. I knew exactly
where the best place was to get these fish. My dad’s friends
were putting together the rods and breaking out the beer on the deck
below the flying bridge, where I piloted the boat.

“Chase?”
My dad came up the ladder. “Permission to come up?”

“Sure. Just
wipe your feet.” I indicated the wheel. “You want to take
over?”

“Are you
kidding? Slide over, son.”

My dad settled in
the captain’s chair. “What’ll she do?”

“Normally I do
thirty, but full-out, forty-five.”

“I’ve
been in the cabin. Damned impressive. First class style.”

“I do a good
business with this boat. I have a reliable guy.”

“I had no
idea. None.”

“About what?”

“Your success.
You’ve taken this business off the charts. Your humbleness
shames me, Chase.”

“Daddy…”

“No, it’s
true. You could have thrown this in my face many times, but you
didn’t use it as a weapon. All this time, I thought just
because you didn’t follow in my footsteps, it wasn’t
acceptable. I was wrong.”

“It’s
hard to let go. I’m working on it.”

“Good. That’s
what matters.” We sat in silence for a moment, the Atlantic
stretched out before us, the crystal clear waters breaking over the
bow in white waves. “Son? Where did you get the capital to get
this venture off the ground?”

That information was
a closely held secret. “I struggled for a few years, then…the
Outlaws came to me offered to help me with a loan. I often talked to
Brax about what I wanted to do and…he talked to his brothers.
I paid them back every last cent five years after I got the loan.”

“Braxton
again. That boy does get around. You have a trust fund, you know. A
substantial one.”

“I don’t
want it, Daddy. Give it to charity, or to Jake or reinvest in the
business. I would rather not touch that money.”

“But it’s
your legacy.” He shook his head when my mouth tightened. “Never
mind. We’ll figure it out.”