In Deep Waters (14 page)

She nodded.

He was getting an out, a free pass. He'd be stupid not to take it. "Yes. Kissing members of the crew is against the rules. We've got a lot to do and I don't want any of my crew to be distracted."

"By your kisses?"

He laughed.

She pursed her lips. "Any other rules?"

"I treat all members of my crew the same, so don't expect any special treatment."

"I wouldn't want it any other way," she said. "I just want to be one of the guys."

"No problem." Easier said than done, he realized once the words were out.

"Thanks." Kayla smiled. "You're very sweet, boss."

Ben looped his thumb in his belt loop. Being called "sweet" ranked up there with "nice." But this time it didn't bother him so much. No, he was more concerned with her calling him "boss."

Chapter Eight

The days passed quickly.

Kayla wanted to find the
Isabella,
but a part of her hoped it took a little longer. She couldn't believe she felt this way, but it was true. She loved being part of the crew. Loved the camaraderie. Loved the squabbles over everything from what targets should be reexamined to whether the
Titanic
should be considered a gravesite or not.

She glanced at her watch. Time was meaningless out here with three exceptions--shift times, mealtimes and naptime. "Come on, Madison, time for your nap."

Madison sat at the railing with Baby Fifi on her lap and stared at the water, waiting for the merman to appear. Once again, he'd been a no-show. "Four more minutes."

"One."

"Three."

"Two more." Kayla had learned naptime negotiations from watching Ben. "But that's all."

"Shh." Madison placed her finger on her lips. "Use your quiet voice, please. You'll scare the mermaid boy."

Kayla smiled and rose from her chair. The least she could do was help look for the merman. She searched the water and saw the peaks of the swells. No mermaids. No dolphins. Not even a tanker on the horizon.

Maybe they'd have better luck tomorrow with both the merman and the
Isabella.
Kayla bit her lip. She wasn't ready to leave the people she'd come to care about. The crew, Madison, Ben.

She still couldn't stop thinking about Ben's kiss. Not that it meant anything. The kiss had been an anomaly never to be repeated again.

And that was okay. She wasn't about to ruin her relationship with the other crew members over her strange attraction to Ben Mendoza.

So what if he was a great kisser?

That wasn't important in the grand scheme of things. She finally fit in. That's what mattered. There v/ere plenty of other fish in the sea, but she wasn't ready to drop her hook in the water any time soon. She hadn't been looking to catch one now.

Not that she'd caught Ben.

He wasn't beating a path to her cabin and trying to kiss her again. Sure, he was always around, but he was being friendly and treating her like any other member of his crew. And that's exactly what she wanted. Nothing more.

Everything was fine. The way it should be.

Footsteps sounded. Someone was running. And shouting.

"Die, you pitiful excuse for a human being," a man yelled.

Kayla turned. Water hit her full force. A jet of cold,
really cold, water. Another stream hit her from the other direction. She managed not to scream. Madison screamed loud enough for the both of them.

"I'm sorry." Vance looked sheepish, a high-powered squirt gun in his hands. Water dribbled from the barrel and onto the deck. "We didn't think anyone was around."

Those Super Soakers really worked. Kayla licked her lip. Salty. They must have filled the squirt guns with seawater. At least they hadn't wasted fresh water.

"We usually hear the Little Bit when she's up here." Gray held a matching squirt gun. "Sorry you got caught in the crossfire."

Madison stared at her clothes. "I'm all wet. Baby Fifi is wet."

Kayla was soaked all the way through. Her T-shirt was transparent. Not again. She crossed her arms over her chest. "Me, too."

"What's going on?" someone yelled from below.

"Me and Kayla are all wet," Madison said.

Ben bounded up the steps, followed by Monk, Wolf and Eugene. "What happened?"

"Friendly fire," Kayla explained.

"Are you okay, Madison?" he asked.

"I'm fine, Daddy."

Eugene stared at Kayla, his mouth gaping open. He must have missed the first time this happened. At least Monk and Wolf were subtler. She tried to cover herself better.

Ben noticed his crew's appreciative glances at her current state of wetness and grimaced. "If you're not holding a squirt gun or soaking wet, go back to work."

The three men shuffled down the stairs, mumbling and cursing about the unfairness of life under the command
of Captain Bligh. Kayla remembered how she'd questioned his capability to run this expedition. She'd been wrong.

"Thanks," she said.

"They're harmless," Ben said.

Especially with you around.
She'd never felt so safe, so secure, as she did with him. Kayla smiled. "I know."

"But these two." He motioned to the guilty shooters. "What do you have to say for yourselves?"

"Sorry, boss," Gray said.

Vance nodded. "Me, too."

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to," Ben said.

"Sorry," both men mumbled to her and Madison.

"Anything we can do to make it better?" Gray asked.

Madison nodded. "Candy."

"Candy would be nice." Kayla's legs itched again. Must be the saltwater irritating her skin. "And towels."

"Be right back." Gray sprinted away.

Ben stared at Vance. "Don't you have something to do?" As Vance hurried off, Ben handed Kayla a towel. "You okay?"

"I'm fine." He didn't look at her. She might be part of the crew, but with her clothes wet and clinging to her, she was still a female. He hadn't noticed. She uncrossed her arms to scratch her legs again. Kayla figured Ben would at least sneak a peek. He didn't glance her way.

Madison shivered. "I'm cold, Daddy."

He picked her up. "Is that better, princess?"

She nodded. "Now you're wet, too. Can we go swimming in our clothes?"

"Not right now. It's naptime."

"Can Kayla come?"

"She's always welcome to come with us."

Of course she was. Kayla had gotten what she wanted. She was part of the crew. She fit in so well, he didn't realize she was a woman. Just one of the guys.

Why wasn't that enough for her?

Ben couldn't get enough of Kayla.

One glimpse of her clothes plastered against her curves and his temperature soared. His blood boiled to the point that he needed to be doused with a Super Soaker himself.

The pile of work he needed to do would keep his mind focused and off Kayla.

Yeah, right. He hadn't stopped thinking about her since kissing her. Who was he kidding? She'd been on his mind since stepping aboard his ship.

He didn't get it. He tried to understand why. Tried and failed. She was one of the crew, a member of the expedition team and off limits. Not hard to understand.

But putting it into practice was another story.

He might treat her like one of the guys, but she wasn't. Never would be.

Ben had given up finding the perfect woman. Not only for him, but Madison, too. The perfect woman didn't exist. Kayla Waterton wasn't perfect, but she came damn close.

And that made it harder to ignore his attraction.

He concentrated on the e-mail from the Museum of Maritime History, a press release about the expedition's progress he'd downloaded. Nothing earth-shattering. Nothing that would make other salvage operations think they were any closer to finding the elusive
Izzy.

Ben's eyes focused on Kayla's name, and his heart filled with pride. She should publish her research. It would make an even better book if she documented the
entire expedition. That would give her a reason to stay on board during the recovery phase.

Kayla Waterton, noted maritime historian and founder of the Museum of Maritime History in Portland, Oregon.

Ben did a double take. He reread the line. He hadn't misread it.

Kayla didn't work for the museum; she
was
the museum.

Why hadn't she been up front and told him? Why hadn't she said anything for two weeks?

He wanted answers and he wanted them now.

With a printout of the press release in his hand, Ben headed to the control room. His footsteps thundered down the passageway. His pulse pounded in his throat. His temper rose with each step.

And that made him angrier. Kayla shouldn't have this ability to make him so upset. He wanted to be indifferent, not care about what she said or did. But he wasn't, and he cared too much. No longer.

He stormed into the control room. "I need to talk to Kayla."

She sat in front of the bank of monitors. "I'll be off in an hour and a half."

"Now."

Zach mouthed the word "go" and Kayla rose. She followed Ben out of the control room and into the hallway.

"What's going on?" she asked. "Is Madison--"

"She's fine. Asleep." He shoved the printout into Kayla's hands. "Here."

"It's a press release from the museum."

"Read it."

She read the e-mail. Her face paled. "You know."

He clenched his jaw. "Took me two weeks to figure
out the truth. Bet you've been laughing your tail off over that."

"It's not like that." Worry creased her forehead. Kayla reached for him, but he jerked away. "Please, let me explain."

Too late. She'd kept the truth from him. Nothing more needed to be said. Ben folded his arms over his chest. "Can I get some popcorn? This should be entertaining."

She frowned, and for once he didn't care. "When I arrived, I assumed you already knew who I was. But when you didn't and we weren't getting along, I thought it would be better if I withheld my true position at the museum. I didn't want to cause any problems."

"You've been one big problem ever since you stepped on board. Why would this make a difference?"

Hurt flashed in her eyes.

Kayla took a deep breath. And another. "I didn't want there to be a power struggle."

"A power straggle?"

"Between you and me." Her eyes pleaded with him. "How do you think it would have been if I came on board, tossed around my title and demanded you change coordinates?"

Ben didn't say anything, but he could imagine the scenario. It wouldn't have been pretty. Hell, it would have been a war.

"We were already butting heads and accomplishing nothing. i did what I thought best for the expedition."

"How noble of you."

"It was noble." She tilted her chin. "I knew you were wasting valuable time and money. You know it now, too."

She had a point. Maybe more than one. But she still hadn't told him the truth after he'd moved the search.

She'd had plenty of chances. Like after they'd kissed. "You could have told me once we started getting along."

She nodded. "I didn't think it was important."

"It is important." He lowered his voice. "I don't like secrets to begin with, but I hate any that affect me and my crew."

"I'm part of your crew. That's why I didn't want to say anything. Everyone treats me like I belong here." Her gaze filled with concern. "I've never had that before. And I like it. I really like it." She scratched her calf. "I didn't want that to change. I don't want it to change now."