She nodded. “Fine. I’m glad you’re alive.”
“Me too.” He skimmed a finger down her arm, not able to stop touching her. “It was genius to send the buoy up, but how did they know to send the key?”
“I wrote a note explaining what we needed.”
He would never, ever tease her about being prepared. They reached his boat. “Come with me,” he said to Penelope.
A slight hesitation which worried him. Why was she concerned about being alone with him?
“All right.”
He held the two boats together while she climbed aboard and then he joined her, pushing the PAWS boat away. “See you back at shore.”
Georgie waved and motored away.
Penelope was heading for the bow. “Wait.” He jogged over to her. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” She shifted away. “I’m getting the anchor.”
He pulled her back. “Tell me.”
She stared at him, eyes wide and glistening. “You nearly died. I can’t understand how you can be so blasé about it, how you can act as if nothing happened.”
He pulled her close. “Training,” he replied. “If I can’t escape and keep moving, I’m a dead man.” He stroked her back. “I can’t dwell on what happened, not until I’m safe at home.”
“You were floating there, eyes closed, and I thought I was too late.”
He imagined their positions reversed and could feel her pain. “But you weren’t. I knew it was you the moment you touched me. I knew we’d work it out somehow.”
She shook her head. “You can’t have known. I didn’t know how to save you when the anchor was too heavy.”
“But you used your wonderful brain and figured it out.”
She burrowed deeper into his arms and his heart expanded. He exhaled. “I really do love every part of you, Penelope.”
She stilled and then stepped away. “I bet you say that to all the women who save your life.”
“No,” he said, grabbing her hand so she couldn’t walk away. “Only you. Everything from the way you laugh, to your attention to detail, to the way you stick to your guns. You are an amazing woman, Penelope, and I love all of you.”
She stared at him, uncertainty on her face. She shook her head. “I’m scared. Love is too soon, too much.”
That practicality again. He wouldn’t dismiss it or be frustrated by it. It was part of why he loved her. “Love is what it is.” He grinned. “What would Ceiveon say?”
She laughed then, and his grin widened. “I can’t win if the two of you gang up on me.” She sighed. “I love you too.”
He whooped and dragged her close, kissing her until he was almost dizzy. He stepped back and turned her towards the bow. “Now go haul the anchor, my hearty wench, so we can go home.” He patted her bottom.
Her laugh echoed through the night as she obeyed his command.
***
When Penelope returned from pulling in the anchor, she spotted the torn shirt tied to Sam’s calf. “What happened?”
“It’s a flesh wound,” Sam replied.
“Who hurt you?” She bent down to examine it.
“Grant shot me.”
