Kilty Pleasure (28 page)

Visibility was zero. He was going on touch alone.

He felt it then. Something long and soft, but not seaweed. Human hair.

Grabbing a handful, he pulled himself toward it until he felt the unmistakable figure of a human body.

He wrapped his arms around Hailey’s waist and kicked toward the surface. When he broke free, he dragged in a breath and began swimming toward shore.

There were already people on the beach wading out to meet them. Someone helped pull her onto the beach and checked for a pulse.

Her lips held a blue tint and Colin grabbed her wrist to check her pulse. Faint, but thank God, still there.

Colin turned her onto the side, hoping to help any water escape from her lungs that might still be there. She coughed and some spilled out.

The roar of sirens approached before an ambulance pulled to a stop at the end of the wharf. When they arrived on the beach, Colin reluctantly released her hand and stepped away so they could step in and do what they needed to do.

A moment later they placed her on a stretcher and began rushing her back to the ambulance.

“Are you taking her to Whidbey General?” he asked one of the paramedics.

“Yes, sir.”

Colin gave a grim nod. “I’ll meet you there.”

“You know this woman?”

“Aye. She’s my girlfriend.” Whether she’d ever bloody admit it or not.

“No wonder you look so freaked out. I think she’s going to be okay, Deputy.” The male paramedic gave him a sympathetic glance. “See you in a few minutes.”

“She has no family. Just me.”

Hailey surfaced from the thick fog in her head, but couldn’t quite open her eyes yet.

The sound of Colin’s voice was what had finally penetrated. She was in a hospital bed. She knew the sounds of a hospital room well enough to recognize where she was.

“And who did you say you were, sir?”

“Colin McLaughlin. Her fiancé.”

Her fiancé?
What the hell? Oh wait, must’ve gotten hit with the family only bit when he tried to see her.

A hand touched her forehead lightly. She knew that touch immediately.

Her lashes fluttered up to find green eyes loaded with concern staring down at her.

“How are you, sweetheart?”

Trying for a slight smile, she murmured, “Oh you know. Feel like I drank a gallon of saltwater, but otherwise not bad.”

He didn’t smile back. “For a moment I thought you weren’t going to make it.”

“For a moment
I
thought I wouldn’t either. What happened to Curt?”

“He’s the one who didn’t make it.”

Relief seared through her and she momentarily closed her eyes. Should she feel guilty for being glad he was dead? No. The son of a bitch had come after her when Emily was with her.

She didn’t even want to ask how he’d died. Not yet. She just thanked God he was gone. And right now she only wanted to focus on Colin.

“When I thought I was going to die, my biggest regret was pushing you away for the last couple weeks,” she admitted huskily. “And that I was too afraid to take a chance on love. Because I do love you, Colin.”

His eyes closed, but not before she saw the sweep of raw emotion in them. A shudder ran through his body and his fingers clenched tighter around hers.

“I pushed you—”

“I needed to be pushed.”

“I love you so much, Hailey. If you hadn’t survived, I don’t know what I would’ve done,” he said raggedly. “I think I would’ve lost my mind, quite honestly.”

“But I did survive.” She traced her thumb over his knuckles, and whispered, “And I hear we got engaged while I was unconscious?”

This time he did laugh and his eyes opened again to search hers.

“Aye. I figured that was the easiest way to get you to say yes.”

“You never know until you try.” Had she really just said that?

Pleasure flickered in his eyes. “I would love to make you my wife, Hailey.” He grimaced. “Though this probably would count as the worst, most unromantic proposal known to man.”

“I like keeping things simple.”

“And I like to keep you on your toes. So wait for the real thing.”

He leaned down and brushed a kiss against her mouth. She sighed as tingles of awareness slid through her.

“You know you’re going to piss my nurse off if you try and get it on with me in here.”

“Mmm. Maybe. But I’ll win her over, just as I did with the nurse on the earlier shift.”

“Charming nurses. Why am I not surprised?”

“Because being charming is genetically required to be a McLaughlin,” he teased. “I also managed to discover they’re hiring a couple nurses here at this hospital if you’re interested.”

“Are they now?” She liked the sound of that. A lot actually.

If she worked on the island, she could be all that much closer to Colin. Maybe find an apartment when her lease was up on the house in Mount Vernon.

“Aye, they are.” He kissed her again. “And it’s not far from my house, you realize. It would be so convenient for you to just move in.”

Her heart swelled. “You sure you’re ready for that?”

He slid his fingers over her palm, capturing her ring finger.

“I thought I made it clear I’m ready for so much more, but we can go at your speed, sweetheart. I’m a patient man.”

“You’re good at being patient.” She pulled his head down again and brushed her lips against his. “You’re good at lots of things actually.”

“Mmm, yes, I am.” He nipped at her bottom lip. “Get out of that ugly hospital gown and get your arse discharged, and I’ll be happy to remind you.”

“Naughty.” Her laugh turned to a sigh as he kissed her again.

Deeper, slower and yet achingly gentle.

He pulled away when the sound of a child echoed in the hallway.

“That’d be Emily and others coming for a visit,” he murmured. “They told me they were dropping by.”

When the room was flooded by chatting McLaughlins and soon-to-be McLaughlins, she’d never felt so protected and cared for. They were her family now.

And it was so perfect. Such a gift.

With a heart full of optimism and love, she looked forward to the future and what lay ahead.

It was amazing how many people couldn’t hold their alcohol. Amateurs. The whole lot of them.

Kenzie nursed a beer in her hand and watched with amusement as Sarah climbed back onto the stage and started grinding against the mic stand.

She was completely pissed, along with the other few girls who would be at the wedding on Sunday. Kenzie had a nice buzz going on, but she could handle her alcohol and would be fine to drive in a couple hours.

“You like that,” Sarah hollered, grinding against the mic stand. “Oh you
know
you like that.”

It could’ve been worse, Kenzie mused. It could’ve been one of the sailors who’d tried to pick Sarah up all night. But Sarah was so hopelessly in love with Ian, that even at her own bachelorette party she refused to even look at another man. No matter how many offered to buy her a drink or asked her to dance.

So the mic stand was getting all of Sarah’s drunken love right now.

Kenzie took another pic with her iPhone and emailed it to Sarah. That would be a fun little surprise in her inbox.

She exchanged a look with Hailey, who was sitting at the bar—completely sober—and talking to Delonna. Hailey grimaced and gestured to the stage, as if asking if they should intervene.

Kenzie gave her the thumbs-up and shook her head. Hailey laughed and went back to her discussion.

Things were going well for Hailey as well, and Kenzie couldn’t be happier for her.

She and Colin had begun making plans to move Hailey into his house when her lease was up on her rental. And she’d interviewed and gotten a position as a nurse at Whidbey General.

Kenzie also suspected the two were talking marriage, though neither had confirmed that rumor.

Overall, they were as sickeningly in love as, well, Sarah and Ian.

Which left her, for the most part, the odd man out lately. Ah well, who needed that shite anyway?

“So she’s the bride-to-be?”

Turning at the slightly familiar, Southern-accented voice, Kenzie narrowed her eyes and glanced over the tall, muscled guy with the closely shaved head.

Navy guy.

What little hair was left on his scalp was almost a dark blonde, bordering on brown. His eyes were blue, lacking the sheen of intoxication that so many of the people in the pub had. He looked older than most of the guys here tonight, maybe mid-thirties.

Those deep-blue eyes weren’t looking at Sarah, but at Kenzie right now.

“Aye, she’s the bride-to-be.”

“When’s the big day?”

“Sunday.” She pulled her gaze from him. He looked familiar. She racked her brain, trying to put it together.

“Are you in the wedding, Kenzie?”

“I’m the maid of honor.”

He knew her name, which meant they’d probably met. No wonder he looked familiar.

Finally it clicked. He’d been in here about a month ago, when Hailey had first showed up at the bar. He’d been with a group of rowdy sailors and had apologized for his friends’ behavior. And then he’d flirted with her. Given her quite a nice tip actually.

“Can I buy you a drink?”

She arched a brow at him. “Aren’t you supposed to be flirting with the bachelorette?”

“I’m more interested in flirting with the maid of honor and the most gorgeous woman in here.”

Ah, a true flatterer. “Thank you.”

She didn’t buy his compliment for a minute. It was a line.

“We’re celebrating as well tonight. My buddies and I.”

“You don’t say? And why is that?”

He raised a beer to his mouth and took a swallow, his gaze seeming to stare blindly at the wall now.

“We’re shipping out tomorrow.”

“Oh.” Her smile faded. For some reason she felt a pang of disappointment that he was leaving. But then, hello, navy men. They came, they went. “Ah, well, good luck.”

“But we’ll be back in six months.”

He caught her hand, startling her. She fought against the familiar panic when a man touched her and she hadn’t braced for it.

Before she could pull away, he pressed a kiss to the back of her knuckles. The fear eased and an unexpected heat slid through her. She quickly pulled her hand back.

Her pulse skipped, a little out of whack. She blinked several times, trying to get it under control. Maybe she should slow down on the beer.

“If you’re still around and single when I return,” he murmured, leaning down to speak close to her ear. “Promise to have dinner with me?”

“I never said I was single to begin with.”

“You’re single. Any guy lucky enough to have you would be stupid to leave you alone at a pub.”

Her heart did another little stumble. He really was attractive. Charming.

“Yes, I’m single,” she finally admitted with a wry smile.

“So about that dinner?”

It was harmless, really. So she dredged up some of her rusty flirting skills to reply back. “If I’m single and still around, then you’ve got yourself a deal.”

Pure masculine triumph flickered in his eyes and he nodded. “I look forward to it. I should let you get back to your girls now.”

“I appreciate that.” Feeling a little impulsive from the beers she’d had and the flirtatious atmosphere of the bachelorette party, she called out, “Hey, sailor. Stay safe.”

“Will do.” He winked. “And the name’s Brett.”

“Brett.” It had a sexy ring.

“See you soon, Kenzie.”

No, you won’t. Because you’re going to forget I exist about two days after you get on that boat.

Tearing her gaze away from him, and vowing to forget him faster than he forgot her, she lined her phone up again and started taking more blackmail shots of her best friend.

About the Author

Shelli is a New York Times bestselling author who read her first romance novel when she snatched it off her mother’s bookshelf at the age of eleven. One taste and she was forever hooked. It wasn’t until many years later that she decided to pursue writing stories of her own. By then she acknowledged the voices in her head didn’t make her crazy, they made her a writer.

Shelli currently lives with her daughter in the Pacific Northwest, where she writes various genres of romance. She’s a compulsive volunteer, and has been known to spontaneously burst into song.

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