I want You Deeper

The emergency call came from Captain Jake. But it wasn’t related to a situation on the water ahead of them or a problem with the boat. The trouble was at the back of the boat, specifically in the jacuzzi.

“I’m on my way,” Derek said, already out of the theater by the time the words left his mouth. He holstered the radio and ran, as fast as his long strides would carry him, toward the area where he assumed April and Renee had been relaxing before the “nine-one-one situation” Captain Jake had called. He didn’t have any details-didn’t even know whether it affected April or Renee. He just knew that someone was hurt.

He didn’t even make it to the end of the boat before he found out what was happening. In the area where the chairs were, just next to the kitchen, Renee was seated in a chair. Captain Jake was on his knees next to the left arm of the chair and April was on her knees next to the right arm. They both were looking up at Renee.

“I’m fine,” Renee said in a weak voice. “I just overheated a little.”

“Could you get her some water? I think she’s dehydrated,” Captain Jake directed at Derek.

Derek quickly pivoted and rushed to the kitchen, where he grabbed a bottled water from the fridge. It seemed like the quickest way to help. Pouring water from the faucet into a cup would waste precious seconds.

“Hot tubs can do that,” Captain Jake was saying as Derek approached.

“You’re supposed to drink plenty of fluids.”

“She didn’t even drink with dinner.” April took the bottled water from Derek, unscrewed the top, and handed it to Renee. “I noticed.”

“I forgot.”

Renee’s words reminded Derek why she’d forgotten. She’d been seated at the table in the kitchen with her meal when he’d talked her into coming to eat with them. He couldn’t remember if she’d had a drink in the kitchen or not. If she had, he’d blame it on himself that he hadn’t grabbed it when she picked up her plate and headed out to the table.

Renee sipped the water while April encouraged her to drink faster. She was having a hard time summoning the energy. For the first time, Derek felt panic. They were out in the middle of the ocean without a medic. All he had was a first aid kit and the basic medical training he and the captain were required to have to become licensed. What if something was really wrong? He wouldn’t be able to get help for her.

“I think I’m feeling better,” Renee said after drinking half of the water in the bottle. She held it up as if to show all of them. “I really should just go to bed. Can you get my coverup?”

That last sentence was whispered, but it drew Derek’s attention to the fact that Renee wore only a one-piece bathing suit. He immediately averted his gaze as April rushed off to fulfill Renee’s request.

She tried to stand but dropped back down again. April held the coverup above her head, and she managed to get it on before both April and Derek stepped into place. Taking her left hand while April took her right, the two of them pulled Renee to her feet.

There wasn’t even a discussion. Derek was the one who helped Renee to her room. He didn’t want to make assumptions, but it definitely seemed like she gravitated toward him as both he and April each held out an arm to offer support. She threw one arm behind him, leaned into him, and began walking.

What could a guy do?

Trying not to enjoy the feel of her against him too much, he focused on putting one foot in front of the other. Her weight was on him as she walked, but she seemed to be getting around pretty well.

“Could you bring some more water?” he called back just before they got out of earshot. He looked back over his shoulder to see April rushing toward the kitchen.

All he knew about dehydration came from childhood. During football training, they were pretty much swimming in sports drinks by the time every practice, scrimmage, or game was over. There were entire lectures dedicated to the importance of staying hydrated, complete with charts and graphs.

They didn’t have electrolytes on board, but he knew water was probably even better. He’d have to do some research on his phone once he got her settled. Right now, getting her off her feet in a comfortable place was probably best.

She was sleeping on the bottom bunk, which made things easier on him. Although he certainly would have had no problem lifting her to place her on the top bunk if that was what she’d chosen as her sleeping space.

“I think I’m better now,” she said once she was seated on her bed. She had to lean forward because the top bunk was too low for her to sit normally.

“April’s bringing you more water, but-wait. What happened to the other water you had?”

“I think I left it. The nausea’s gone. I just got a little overheated.”

“Did you pass out?”

He’d missed whatever had precipitated all this. He assumed someone had rescued her from the water and carried her to the seating area where she’d been when he arrived.

April’s voice came from behind him, alerting him to the fact that the two of them weren’t alone. “She was feeling faint, so I helped her out of the hot tub.”

“You lifted her out?”

Derek hated that he sounded so surprised, but April seemed so petite. He pictured her picking up Renee and hauling her out of the water like something out of a superhero movie.

“I used to be a lifeguard.” April gave a shrug. “You’d be surprised what I can do.”

Whoa. This was news. Lifeguards were very valuable additions to yachting crews. In fact, this was a great time for him to learn this little detail since he’d been worrying about handling a medical crisis out here in the middle of the water just minutes ago.

“Does Captain Jake know that?” Derek asked.

April’s eyes widened. “I told him, yes. Is it important?”

He laughed. “I’ll say. Situations just like this one need someone like you. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but there are no emergency rooms out here.”

“Oh. I didn’t think about that.” April stepped back as Renee took a long swig of water. “I just thought it would be valuable because I’m super strong. You know, as a deckhand.”

He was pretty sure Renee would be gone as soon as they hit dry land. He’d even thought about surprising her with a plane ticket back, if only he knew where she planned to live. She’d been evasive about answering that question. But it was nice to know he’d found April at that inn. He knew the value of a really, really good employee after all these years of running a business.

But Derek didn’t have time to think about that right now. “How are you feeling?”

He knelt in front of Renee, mostly because leaning over was getting uncomfortable. She had downed the entire bottle of water and was now flat on her back, head on her pillow, staring up at the top bunk.Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

“I think fine,” she said. “I’ll need to get up for the bathroom pretty soon, but the room’s no longer spinning.”

“Dehydration is no laughing matter,” April commented. “I feel horrible that I didn’t think about it. It was just so nice to relax-”

Renee cut her off. “I think I just need rest.”

“Sure. I’ll check in on you in a little bit.” April backed out of the room.

Derek stood, preparing to follow.

“Could you stay a few minutes?”

That was not at all what he’d expected. Derek froze, looking down at her. Maybe he should leave anyway. Rest was what was best for her right now, whether she believed it or not.

“I just-I’m not really tired,” she added when he didn’t respond right away. “And I left my phone in the kitchen, so I’d just be staring at the bottom of that bunk.”

Derek laughed. “Nice to know I’m an alternative to boredom.”

“I think you know I’d never shy away from an opportunity to have a long talk with you.” She looked over at him, flashing him a big smile. That, he assumed, was to let him know she was teasing him. But it was hard not to take it a little seriously, mostly because it had been bugging him all day. Every time they got into a somewhat intense discussion, he started to feel uncomfortable. And as much as he could blame it on his need to remain undercover, he knew it went deeper than that.

“Your request is granted.” Derek looked around and found a short stool in the corner. There weren’t exactly chairs around the ship that he could just drag in here.

As soon as he was seated, though, Renee giggled. It was a full-on giggle, not a laugh, and somehow it made him like her a little more. “That stool looks way too short for you. And not comfortable at all.” Renee leaned over, then pointed toward the hallway. “I think there’s a better chair in April’s room.”

“I’m good.” He knew what was on this yacht-he’d overseen all of it- and there was no better chair that would be easy to move in here. “I can’t stay long. I need to go check on Captain Jake.”

“You seem to always be running away.”

That got his attention. He’d been staring toward the door, indeed thinking about how he could escape from this room before things got too deep. It felt like she’d seen right through him.

“Why do you say that?”

“Just something I’ve noticed. I guess I’m a little nosy. I don’t mean to come across that way. Mostly, I just want to get to know you a little better.”

He stared at her. She was right. This overwhelming urge to run filled him. And he was on a yacht that he’d climbed on a few days ago with the specific purpose of running. The fact that he wanted to run while on the run hammered home just how on point her words were.

It was hard to keep denying it, even to himself.

“Ask me anything,” he said, more to prove to himself that he wasn’t afraid of getting closer to her. It was basically a dare. But the question was, who was he really daring here?

“Why boats?”

Of all the questions she could have asked, that wasn’t what he would have expected. He figured she’d try to dive into his personal life again. Family, friends, romantic relationships…

“I’ve always loved being on the water,” Derek said. “No deep story there. I just feel at peace there.”

“So, you had a boat when you were a kid.”

“My dad did. He loved to fish. I’d go with him and Dad bought me a kid-size fishing pole when I was about eight. It was our bonding time.”

Okay, so maybe there was a deep story there. He thought about that a second. Renee didn’t ask another question-just looked at him as though waiting for him to say more.

So, that was exactly what he did.

“My father did his best. My mother… Well, we don’t really talk about her, but she took off soon after I was born, so it was just the two of us, and Dad wasn’t all that stable. My grandparents pretty much raised me. They were great, but it’s just not the same.”

“It made you grow up far faster than you should have,” Renee said quietly. She turned on her side and propped herself up, elbow on the bed, hand fisted against her the side of her head.

“I suppose it did. I started building boats when I was sixteen. I did it to impress my dad. I thought I’d surprise him with a fishing boat when he came to see me. He never came. One boat led to two and soon, my grandfather decided I had something. He helped me start selling them…”

He realized he was saying way too much here. He was a salesperson, not someone who had started a successful business when he was a teenager.

“That’s how I got into sales,” he said. “I guess you could say I speak the language. Every time I talk to a new client, I go back to being that teenage boy, learning as much as I could about boats so I could bond with my dad.”

“He must be really proud of how much you’ve achieved.”

Those words immediately put him on the defensive. How much he’d achieved? Did she know how much he’d achieved?

“Being such a successful sales executive in the industry and all,” Renee said.

Oh. That. He had talked up how great a salesperson he was just twentyfour hours earlier. He’d forgotten about that.

“We don’t talk,” Derek said.

Renee frowned. “You and your father? Do you want to talk to him?”

“I did, once. Too late now.”

That was as much as he could say about that and be truthful. His father hadn’t taken a bit of interest in him until after his grandparents’ death. Derek had floated him several hefty loans, only to have his father come back for more a year or so later. He only called Derek when he needed money.

Around the age of twenty-two, when he started his company, he’d decided enough was enough. That was when he began going by the name Derek Hughes. It followed a conversation where Derek told his father he couldn’t enable his irresponsibility by continuing to loan him money. He needed to take responsibility for his life and get a job.

“I think I’ll let you get your rest.” Derek stood, stretching to work out the kinks that had formed in his lower back muscles. “If you need anything, call me on the two-way. See you in the morning.”

He exited, frowning over the urge he had to kiss her before he left.