“No.”
He shrugged. “Then you’ll only slow me down.”
I glared at him, and a thought struck me. “Haveyouever been to Saint Martin before?” I’d learned at the all-crew meeting this was his first charter season. He’d been employed on the yacht for five months, having started during the low season since graduating from culinary school in September.
His smug expression faltered. “I haven’t been to Saint Martin before, no.”
“Isn’t that interesting?”
“Look, I can’t afford any distractions.”
“Oh!” I said with a laugh. “So now I’m incompetentanddistracting?”
“I didn’t...” The tips of his ears turned pink, and he dragged a hand through his hair. “You’re ridiculous, and, yeah, it’s distracting. I need this job. I take it seriously. That’s all.”
“You’re rude,” I said, and turned away to face the road.
“So? What is it?”
“What iswhat?”
Ollie groaned. “Jesus, girl. We made a deal, or did you forget already? C’mon, pony up. What’s your favorite snack?”
“You don’t deserve to know.”
“You promised. Don’t you remember what Cap said at the meeting? The three values of the boat, honesty, loyalty, and all that?”
“I’m not loyal toyou.”
Ollie leaned toward me and held my gaze for a long moment before rocking back onto his heels. “You’re weird.”
“So I’ve heard,” I said, kicking at another rock. “You’re kind of a dick, you know.”
“I do, yeah,” he said. “Just know I’m going to bother you until you tell me what your favorite snack is.” He smiled then, not the smirk I’d seen before, but something genuine. The way it warmed his face startled me. I would’ve guessed getting a genuine smile out of Oliver Dunne was about as likely as a flock of seagulls helping me fold laundry on the yacht.
“Ridiculous eye candy,” I muttered.
“What’s that?”
I glared at him, feeling the heat rush to my cheeks. “I said you’re... a ridiculous chimpanzee.”
He flexed an arm. “It’s the muscles, isn’t it?”
I snorted. “No, it’s the way I don’t trust you not to rip my face off.”
“Well, you’re like a... unicorn,” he said.
I narrowed my eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Ollie toed the loose gravel beneath his feet and cursed at the sight of me wearing his boat shoes.
“Hope you’re real proud of yourself,” he said. “Now you’ll be stuck shopping with me even longer so I can find some new boat shoes.”
“If you’d have waited for me, I would’ve grabbed my own shoes,” I said. “What do you mean I’m like a unicorn?”
He lifted a shoulder. “You’re scary.”
“I fail to see how unicorns are scary.”
