Sea Haven 01 - Water Bound

like being with you, but I don’t want you to think you need to take care of me. I may be different, but I can think for myself.”
    He tried not to wince at the word like . He wanted her to love being with him. He couldn’t imagine not waking up to her soft body beside his, or her face with the incredible eyes and sexy, generous mouth. He recognized that perhaps he needed her a little more than she needed him, but he wasn’t trying to own her. Just protect her. And there was a difference.
    “Have I made you feel that way?”
    She bit her lip, her frown back. “Not really. I just think it’s important that you know I can take care of myself and make my own decisions.”
    “I respect you, Rikki. If I’ve made you think differently, in any way, then I apologize. I have a certain expertise that I hope you’ll choose to make use of, that’s all. You’re so used to doing everything on your own that you might forget that I can help you.” He was going to track down and kill the bastard, but now didn’t seem the right time to say so.
    She nodded. “Just so we’re clear. And I don’t like using you. You’re starting a new life. The last thing you need to do is deal with some crazy 211

    person who decided to kill me for something I did when I was thirteen.” She pushed open her door and slid out.
    Lev did the same, moving around the bed of the truck to help with the equipment. “Do you remember anyone being terribly upset with you?”
    She burst out laughing. “I hate to tell you this, Lev, but just about everyone was upset with me. I didn’t look at them. I refused to talk half the time. I just wanted all the noise to go away. If it was too bad, I had violent tantrums. My parents were the only ones who liked me. I have no idea if I slighted someone or hurt their feelings. I spent most of the time just trying to survive without losing my mind.”
    He followed her along the dock until they came to the Sea Gypsy . He was grateful she didn’t just jump aboard. She studied the boat first, carefully looking it over before stepping aboard.
    “I don’t think anyone’s been on her. Generally, I can tell if someone’s been snooping around her. I’ll check the engine and air compressor though, just to be safe. I’ve taken the engine apart myself and I’ll know if anyone’s touched it. ”
    He believed her. She had already assumed an air of supreme confidence and authority, as if the moment her feet touched the deck she was a different person—and maybe she was. He’d first seen her beneath the water, her eyes fierce and determined, holding his life in those dark depths, and she had been just as fierce on board her boat.
    “Get to it, then. I’d like to get out of here before anyone else shows up.
    The fewer people who see me up close, the better.” He rubbed his hand over the beard on his face. He’d never grown out a beard and it felt strange to him, but it changed his appearance.
    “You should have stayed home like I told you.”
    “And be a kept man? I don’t think so. I have my pride.”
    She paused as she went through her routine check of her equipment to give a derisive snort. “You have more money than I’ll have in my entire lifetime. You just wanted to come aboard my boat.” She narrowed her eyes.
    “And if you’re considering a mutiny out at sea, I won’t hesitate to throw you overboard.”
    “I was considering sex at sea. Lots of sex. I think the fresh air is giving me ideas.”
    She laughed and shook her head, stepping past him to peer at the air compressor. “We’re working here, not playing.”
    He loved watching her, especially there with the early morning sun shining down on her. The day was cold but clear, with little wind, and the water appeared to be sparkling wherever the sun hit it. She was lost to him 212

    again, taken by the water, but this time, it was all right. He could take her in, watch her unhindered, see the smooth, efficient way she moved on board, listen to the way she hummed—he doubted if she even noticed she was humming. Yeah, she was deep in her zone, and he had become part of her boat.
    He smiled, realizing she’d accepted him aboard whether she knew it or not. She would be acutely aware of him, feeling as if he was out of place, in her space, if she hadn’t. As it was, she moved from her air compressor to the engine, and he watched her routine, memorizing it carefully, adding it like a diagram to the maps and blueprints stored in his brain. He