Free In Deep Waters by Melissa McClone Page A

sighed. "Well it doesn't matter, because I could never be interested in a man who made me part of a bet."
    Kayla had guts. Nerve, too. Ben respected that. He only wished she'd get on with it and say she was leaving.
    "Does this mean you're not interested in any of us?" Monk seemed to be having a hard time comprehending this. "In me?"
    "You guys are all great," she said. "And attractive, too."
    Monk grinned. "Some more than others."
    Kayla's laughter reached across the dining room, and Ben felt as if he'd been hit in the solar plexus. "Each of you has your own special quality."
    "What quality?" Zach asked.
    "I want to know mine," Stevie said.
    Eugene readied his pen. "Me, too."
    "You really want to know?" Kayla asked.
    Another resounding yes filled the air.
    "Well, let's see." She looked to her right. "Stevie has great hair and is the most amazing cook. I need to start working out or my waistline is going to disappear."
    Stevie blushed. "That would never happen."
    "You are too sweet." Kayla looked at Fitz. "And you have the best sense of humor. I've never laughed or smiled so much in my life."
    Fitz made a grand gesture of thanks and fell out of his chair.
    "And Zach." Kayla grinned. "This may be a little personal, but you have the nicest butt. So great I wish we didn't have to sit down during our shift so much."
    Zach nearly floated off his chair. "Gee, thanks, Kayla."
    Fitz smacked Zach on the arm. "She's still not going to marry you."
    "And Wolf." The sincerity in Kayla's eyes made Ben sit up and take notice. "I've never met a man so strong, yet so sensitive. Some woman will thank her lucky stars when she lands such a great husband and father."
    Wolf sat straighter, and he hugged Madison.
    "Eugene." Kayla's smile softened. "How did one man get to be so smart and so cute at the same time?"
    "When you combine DNA from--"
    "It was a rhetorical question, Einstein," Monk said.
    "And Monk." She blew out a puff of air. "You have so much charm it should be illegal. You should be in the movies. Or consider going into politics."
    Monk smiled. "Only if you'll be my first lady."
    "What about Gray and Vance?" Eugene asked, his pen ready.
    "Gray has a killer smile. Those dimples of his are lethal weapons. And Vance is a natural athlete with a great body."
    Eugene frowned. "Yes, we know that about Vance."
    "Hey, guys." Fitz grinned. "Together we're Kayla's perfect man."
    "What about the boss?" Eugene asked.
    A deer caught in the headlights had never looked so cute. She bit her bottom lip. "He, uh, wasn't part of the bet."
    Ben had to give her credit. She was fast on her feet.
    "Come on," Stevie urged. "Tell us."
    She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Ben is...nice when he wants to be."
    Fitz laughed. "You know what they say about nice guys..."
    Everyone laughed. Not Ben. He was nice? The other guys had great butts, smiles, bodies, brains. And he was... nice?
    "So you guys aren't mad at me?" Kayla asked.
    "No."
    "Of course not."
    "Disappointed, but not mad."
    The men tumbled over themselves to reassure Kayla. Ben didn't care. All he could focus on was nice.
    Kayla seemed relieved. "And the bet..."
    "Off," Wolf said. "I'll return the money."
    "Great." The edges of her mouth curled up. "Now I get to stay."
    Not stay, say goodbye. Ben wasn't nice. If she'd thought a meaningless compliment would change things, she had another thing coming. He stood. "You're leaving."
    Her smiled widened. "I'm staying."
    "But we agreed--"
    "Yes, we did," she interrupted. "I agreed to leave if we couldn't resolve the problem with the crew. But I resolved it, so I'm staying."
    Madison clapped. "She's staying. She's staying."
    The crew and Kayla joined in.
    "Come on, Daddy," Madison said. "Clap."
    Ben gave an unenthusiastic clap and slumped in his chair. A damn mutiny--that's what this was.
    Chapter Six
    Everything had changed, yet nothing had changed.
    Ben had kept his word and moved the search to her coordinates. Transducers were dropped overboard for