“Cash ”
He squinted. “You have somewhere else you need to be at fish o’clock?”
She shook her head, her lips fighting a smile.
“Then get dressed. I’ll call a cleaning crew for this mess and hook up the boat.”
He shut her in the bathroom and hurried into his room, where he changed quickly. With the papers signed, he was on borrowed time with Rubi. He needed to convince her to give them a chance—to at least throw in her hook.
The way he saw it, love was like fishing. When it’s good, it’s so good. He wanted things good with him and Rubi. Together, they’d accomplished a lot, had a great time doing it—well, once she quit annoying him. Really, though, if he’d had to deal with Trent’s crap, he would have annoyed people too.
If fresh love was so good, then mellow love, the kind that came from years of weathering storms, was the best thing in the world.
All he wanted was a chance to cast in, and he was going to make that chance happen.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Rubi hugged her knees to her chest as the boat cut through the glassy water. It had taken a while to get to the put-in and unload the boat. Cash was pretty handy at doin’ it all himself, yet he insisted on showing her how everything was done, talking a mile a minute and constantly touching her hand, her shoulder, her elbow, her side. It was almost as if he was worried that if he stopped talking she’d disappear, which was super sweet.
With the motor going, conversation was difficult at best and he’d quieted down. Or maybe it was being out here on the water, with the line between the stars and the lake blurred. She could see the sky mirrored on the surface, rippling as they cut through the silver-lined clouds and constellations.
Once they were far from shore and floating in a world all their own, Cash cut the engine and dropped anchor. He lifted a cushion, revealing several fishing poles and a tackle box. Rubi was happy just to watch. She’d never fished before, as evidenced by her wedge shoes and draped top, which she gathered were not regular fishing clothes.
Cash had a different idea. “I’ll bait your first one to show you how, but you’ll have to do your own if you want to really learnhow to fish.” He hardly looked at her as he spoke and he didn’t hold still for longer than a second.
“Cash.” She put her hand on his arm. “What are we doin’ out here, really?”
He dug a small ball of some yellow-green paste from a jar and pressed it around the hook. “Procrasta-fishin’”
“Pro-what?”
“Goin’ fishing when we should be doin’ something else. Procrasta-fishin’”
She slowly smiled. Leaning back, she hooked her elbows on the edge of the boat. “Looks like you’ve got this down. Do you procrasta-fish much?”
He finally looked at her. “This is my first time.”
“And what are you procrastinating?”
“Sayin’ goodbye to a pretty girl.” He stood up and cast his line. There was a whirling sound as the line fed out, and then a plop. Cash stayed standing. “I’m just not quite ready to let her go.”
Rubi slipped off her shoes, stretched her legs across the bench seat, and leaned back into the cushions. “Does she look ready to leave?”
His eyes roamed over her and he smiled. “Nope.” Picking up her feet, he set them on his lap and settled in. Bending forward, he pulled a blanket out from under their chairs. “Here. Why don’t you get some shut-eye.”
Rubi accepted the fleece-lined quilt. “You’re a smart man, Cash Lowell.”
Cash threw one arm across the side of the boat, holding his fishing pole with the other. She liked the way he was comfortable right there in his seat and in the middle of a lake. Spreading the blanket over her and him, she got cozy, though she didn’t think she could sleep.
“Who was that girl? Jennifer? The one you mentioned that made Trent go allExorciston us.”
Cash scratched his beard. “Well now, that story doesn’t paint me in the best light either—I’m not sure how I feel about sharing it.”
Rubi bit her lip. “I’m not sure I want to hear something that would change my opinion about you again.”
“Again?”
“Well, you know.” She ran her hand down the blanket. “It took some doin’ to get it where it is now.”
