Her Unexpected Affair (The Robinsons) (16 page)

In a matter of seconds that felt like long minutes, Shan stood on the swim deck, lifting her from the water to the narrow ledge.

“Is that what you went in for?” He tried to take the float from her, but she clutched it to her stomach. “Some old fishing float?”

“This isn’t just some old piece of junk, Shan. Look at the color, the size, this is a very rare piece of memorabilia.” She shook with cold and excitement. “I’ve seen these things go for well over five hundred dollars at auction.”

At his skeptical look, she nodded. “I swear. This is a valuable treasure. And I have just the place for it in an upcoming job.” She held it so he could see for himself. “This is a sweet piece of luck.”

Shan shook his head, but with his hands on her shoulders, he gently pushed her up the step into the cockpit of the boat.

She heard the clunk of the life ring hitting the deck, then the thump of the seat folding back into place over the step to the swim platform.

“Here, sit on the railing seat and drip over the side while I find you a towel and a blanket.”

The sun was already warming her. “Just a towel please. I’ll be dry in no time.”

Shan looked at her, her prize still clutched to her stomach, and shook his head. “Be right back.”

Perched on a teak seat built into the stainless steel railing, she held her treasure to the sun. It was in perfect shape. Still shivering from the cold water, she gazed at its beauty, completely enraptured.

Shan returned with a large beach towel and wrapped it around her shoulders. “Will you let me hold it while you dry off? I found some sweats and a spare T-shirt you can change into below, and turned on the water heater so you can have a shower.”

She took her eyes from the float long enough to look at him and see the concern on his face. “Yes, I suppose I should rinse off and change… But do you realize what a find this is? I wonder where it came from?”

“Ahoy!”

She and Shan looked to the side where a man approached in a small inflatable with an outboard. He killed the engine and let the dinghy coast their direction, until it lightly bumped against the sailboat.

“Hey, saw your lady go overboard. She okay?”

The man was probably in his fifties, dressed in clothes similar to Shan’s. He wore a ball cap and sunglasses he removed. Shan tossed him a line which he caught one handed and used it to float near the boat.

“Yeah, she saw something in the water and fell in getting it.”

“By any chance is it a glass float? Deep blue, about eight inches? Looks antique?”

Meilin’s heart squeezed hard. “Yes. How did you know?”

Chagrin crossed the stranger’s face. “I’ve been searching all day. My wife threw it overboard last night during an argument.” A scowl at the memory of the argument crossed his face, but he erased it by pulling one hand over his forehead and down to his chin with a huge sigh. “My grandfather brought it back from Japan after the war. From my earliest memory it’s always been the centerpiece of his collection on the sailboat.”

Meilin glanced at Shan to see a deep frown on his face. “Shan?”

“Look,” Shan said. “Finders keepers. She just went into the drink for this thing. She’s an interior designer who has a place for it to go, a client who will want it.”

“Hey,” the man protested as Meilin put her hand on Shan’s arm.

“It’s okay. I’d be pretty upset if someone tossed something precious of mine overboard. I’d be grateful if a stranger recovered it and gave it back.”

Shan’s darkened gaze turned on her. “But you could have died going after it. Do you know how cold the water is? What if I hadn’t seen you go over? What if you’d drowned?”

“It’s okay, Shan. I can swim, and I was close to the boat. You would have heard me shout out, or I could have gotten myself to the stern and pulled myself out.” A great shiver shuddered through her.

Shan grabbed her shoulders and started rubbing the towel up and down her arms.

“Meilin…”

“Really, Shan.” She spoke over him. “It’s all right. Giving it back is the right thing to do.”

His lips thinned and his brows drew down in a fierce frown. Meilin gazed back at him, her eyes wide open, and she hoped, compelling.

“Look,” the man in the dinghy said, “I’ll pay you a recovery fee. What do you say? Fifty dollars cover it?”

Meilin glanced over and saw him pulling his wallet. “No, no. I don’t need money for it.”

“At least let me pay enough to replace your clothes. Sixty?”

Shan released a huge sigh of disgust. “Put your wallet way.” He took the ball from Meilin’s shaking hands and leaned over the rail enough to hand the float over with care. Meilin had the feeling he wanted to throw it in the water just as the angry wife had. “Take it and go.”

The man clutched the glass ball in his lap and looked at Meilin. “I’m sorry you got dunked going after it, but I’m grateful you rescued it. You’re a designer?”

Meilin nodded.

“Give me your name. My wife wants to redo the bedroom. If you recognized the value of this, I bet you know your stuff.”

“Shan, I have some cards in my bag.”

“I don’t believe this,” he muttered, but headed into the cabin below, coming back a few seconds later with her tote.

Fingers still damp and shaking, she found the cards and pulled out two, with three more spilling into the bottom of the bag. “Here.” She handed them to Shan and indicated he should hand them over. Scowling something fierce, he did.

The man read one card, nodded, and stuck the pair of cards into his shirt pocket. “Thank you. From the bottom of my heart. I mean that.”

“All right, all right,” Shan said, and tugged on his line until the man released it. “We get it. Go. Enjoy.”

He gave Shan a wary look, nodded at Meilin, then tugged on the starter of his outboard, and headed toward the west end of the island, the float secure on his lap.

Meilin stared after him. It was the right thing to do, but to have held that bit of history in her hands, even for a few minutes, left behind a longing. She’d have to check eBay later to confirm her guess, but she’d bet that float could easily go for several hundred dollars.

“Meilin?”

Shan’s sharp tone broke her away from her musings.

“You need to get in a hot shower. Don’t want you getting hypothermia.” Strong hands lifted her by the waist and she set her frozen feet on the warm deck. “If you need help, just say the word.”

That caught her attention fully and she snapped her gaze to his face. Traces of his tension remained, but he also wore a crooked grin. Yeah, he’d probably like to turn this into fun in the shower, but with what she recalled from her inspection of the head, there wasn’t room for two in there.

“I think I can manage.” A deep shiver shook her body. “You’re right. I need to warm up.”

“I’ll make some tea while you shower.”

“That would be great.” She gave him a weak smile, followed him to the hatch where he went down first, then helped her down the steep steps.

Twenty minutes later she emerged from the tiny bathroom dressed in sweat pants she’d had to roll up at the waist and cinch tight. The T-shirt he’d also left for her was several sizes too big. He’d brought her tote down and she dug in it for her sweater. As a fashion statement, well, she missed completely, but it absorbed the little bit of water that dripped from her towel dried hair.

Shan held two steaming mugs. “Let’s go topside. It’s warm in the sun. We’ll get your core temp back to normal soon.

She nodded and followed him up to the cockpit where he’d placed a folded blanket on the bench seat. With the mug of hot tea in her hands, she curled up on the blanket and stared out at the water. Damn, she’d hated to let that little treasure go.

“What possessed you to go after that alone?” Shan asked. At the tense tone in his voice she turned her head to look at him.

“I heard it bump against the boat and went to see what it was. When I saw it was something that didn’t belong in the water here, I got curious. I honestly thought I could reach it.”

Shan shoved a hand through his short hair. “It was a stupid thing to do.”

Meilin stiffened. “Excuse me? Did you just call me stupid?” The icy water had nothing on the frostiness of her tone.

Shan’s eyes bore into her. “I didn’t say you were stupid. I said it was a stupid thing to do. There were so many other ways we could have fished it out.”

“I didn’t want it to get away.”

“Don’t do that again. Next time you think you see something worth salvaging, let me know. I’ll get it for you.”

“I’m not always so clumsy. I could have gotten myself out, and I nearly had it in my hand when you startled me. If you hadn’t shouted at me, I’m sure I would have pulled it in without falling overboard.”

Shan blew out a breath she took as frustration, but he held his tongue and stared into the distance for a long moment. “I won’t take the blame for this. We’re just lucky you didn’t get in real trouble. Next time, if there is one, use your head. And don’t contradict me in public.”

It was oh so tempting to apologize to smooth things over. But was what she’d done really so wrong? “I won’t apologize for giving that man back his possession. I hated to give it up, but it was the right thing to do.”

“Rights of salvage made it yours. You found it; you should have kept it.”

“And I would have felt small, mean, and guilty as if I’d stolen it. It meant much more to him than it did to me.”

Shan dumped the remains of his tea into the water. “I tried to back you up and you turned on me today.” He stood and glared down at her. “I tried to be your champion and you effectively chopped my dick off. Don’t do that again.”

Meilin also dumped the contents of her mug over the side of the boat. “Is that what you’re mad about? I dented your male pride? Is it so fragile you can’t set it aside to do the right thing?”

Shan’s scowl deepened more as he clenched his fists at his side. “This is about you respecting me as the man in your life. You’re my lady. I stuck up for you, and you kicked me aside in favor of some poor jerk who lost a fight with his wife. We will not fight, Meilin. Each ship can only have one captain, and in our relationship I’m the captain.”

“I see, and what was that speech yesterday about my opinions mattering?”

“I say what I mean, Meilin. Your opinion matters, but someone has to be in charge of the final decision. Most of the time the matter will most likely go your way. In return I ask you to show respect at all times, particularly in public. If I say or do something you don’t like, we will discuss it later. In private. This is what we’re doing right now. Discussing our difference of opinion in private.”

She wanted nothing more than to fume, but if she ever wanted to go home again, it was up to her to diffuse the situation. “Fine. But if I see something that needs to be discussed immediately, I will pull you aside then and there to discuss it. I couldn’t let that man go away without his rightful property, which is why it may have seemed I disrespected you in front of him. However, you did not do me the courtesy of discussing it on the side, either. In this case, I rule we both have things to learn about how to communicate with each other.”

For a long, long moment, Shan stared at her in silence before abruptly nodding. “I agree. We’ll both work to be more in tune with each other in future situations that may be similar.”

“That’s all I can ask for. Now, please, I think I’ve had all the sun and sea I can stand for today.”

“Again, I agree. Let’s get you home so you can rest from your swim.”

As Shan turned away to set the return trip in motion, Meilin curled up in the corner of the bench seating at the stern. They didn’t speak another word until Shan pulled into his slip in the marina.

Mostly she chose to forget Shan’s demeaning words. Instead, she wondered what Drew was up to. Was he spending the day with his family or was he already back on campus preparing for his course? Maybe she’d have to touch base with her cousin and get a feel for this year’s class.

As he left her at her apartment door, Shan tried to break the ice by taking her in his arms for a soft, gentle kiss.

“Remember, dinner Wednesday night. The clients we’re meeting with are very important, so please dress appropriately.”

“Of course, Shan. I always do.”

He gave her an odd look, then bent and lightly kissed her cheek. “I’ll pick you up at six-thirty.”

* * * *

Drew answered the front door late Sunday afternoon. Eyes hidden behind dark shades, Oswald stood on the step.

“Come in, man.” Drew stepped back and invited the other man in. “You’re family and don’t need to knock.”

“I’ll always knock, just as I expect you to knock when coming to my flat.” Oswald pulled off his sunglasses and carefully set them on the receiving table in the foyer.

Drew slapped a hand down on Oswald’s oxford cloth covered shoulder. “Only if you keep the door locked.”

“Which I always do. London is nothing more than a great seething cauldron of thieves.”

Drew laughed. “Especially those dressed in suits from Seville Row with handmade custom shoes.”

Rare for Oswald, a wide grin split his face for a moment. “We’re the very worst, mate.”

Birdie, dressed in shorts and a tight tank top, popped out from the back hallway. “What’s so funny? Drew, did you actually make Ozzie laugh?” With a hand to her breast, she gasped dramatically. “It can smile! Who knew?”

Like the morning fog under relentless sunlight, Oswald’s smile faded in an instant. “Courtney.”

Birdie threw up her hands. “The only person in the world to call me by my real name and it has to be Lurch’s brother.” Turning on her heel, she headed through the formal living space toward the backyard. “Mom said dinner is nearly ready.” She stopped at the glass slider door and looked over her shoulder, pinning Oswald with her blue eyes. “You’re late.” Turning again, she threw open the door and swished out to the patio.

“Dinner?” Oswald said, his eyes firmly directed at Birdie’s backside.

Once again he was slapped in the face of Oswald being hot for Birdie. Drew wasn’t sure how he felt about that. It was…weird. He hadn’t wanted to think too much about it the day before when he’d caught Oswald eyeing Bird, but now… As Jack had said, he’d have to think about it more. “Yeah. Dad’s burning more meat. Hamburgers this time, I think.”