Free Making Waves by Tawna Fenske

cleaning fee.”
    “I’m touched by your concern.”
    Alex grinned, his eyes crinkling pleasantly at the corners. “I’m a touching kind of guy.”
    Juli felt the heat creep into her cheeks and took a sip of tea, hoping he wouldn’t notice. “So your friends—the other cartographers—they don’t like me much,” Juli said, wincing a little at the neediness in her own voice. “Did you tell them I’m sorry about all this?”
    “It’s okay. You were just a surprise to them. And anyway, they don’t dislike you. Didn’t Cody ask you like a dozen times if he could braid your hair?”
    “I thought that was part of the plot to throw me overboard.”
    “No, that’s Phyllis who wants to throw you overboard. And Jake. And they wouldn’t really do it. Probably. It’s just that you weren’t in the plans.”
    “I see,” Juli said. “And what are the plans, exactly?”
    Alex stared at her for a few beats. “Like I told you. We’re mapping deserted islands. Do you know how many uncharted islands exist in the region where the Caribbean meets the Atlantic?”
    “Isn’t that a trick question? If they’re uncharted—”
    “There are a lot of them,” Alex said, ignoring her question. “This is a popular area for cartographers to work.”
    “Why do I have the feeling there’s something you guys aren’t telling me?”
    He grabbed her cup and swung his legs off the edge of the deck chair. “More tea?”
    “Please.”
    “You’ll feel better once you’ve got something in your stomach. Cody— Cookie —is down in the galley right now getting dinner ready, so that should help. You feeling okay?”
    “Sure. So am I still going to get to spread my uncle’s ashes in the place I told you about?”
    Alex looked out at the ocean for a minute, his expression thoughtful. When he returned his gaze to her, Juli felt her stomach give a pleasant little flip.
    “Tell you what,” Alex said. “No matter what happens, I’ll make sure you get to do that. One way or another.”
    “Promise?”
    “Promise.”
    “That’s very nice of you,” she said. “Uncle Frank also asked me to throw two vodka tonics in the water and play Loverboy’s ‘Turn Me Loose’ when I toss the ashes. Will I get to do that?”
    “Don’t press your luck.”
    A soft, tinny tinkling sounded beneath them. Juli cocked her head to the side, listening. “Is that a triangle?”
    “I’m not sure.”
    Beneath them, Cody’s voice boomed. “Hey, guys! I’ll be serving hors d’oeuvres in the galley in six minutes. It’s black tie optional, of course.”
    “Good thing,” Alex muttered. “I’m not sure where I packed my black tie.”
    “You know, I actually do have a little black cocktail dress,” Juli said. “I brought it in case I ended up on one of those fancier cruise ships.”
    “Save it,” Alex said. “Maybe you’ll get lucky and end up on one of those boats soon.”
    Alex stood and extended a hand to her, hoisting her up with almost no effort. Nice arms , Juli thought, watching him turn and start toward the stairs. Nice ass, too, she amended, then chastised herself for ogling the captain. He’d made it clear they weren’t going to be picking up where they left off last night. He was all-business out here, though she had to admit she was curious about the nature of the business. Alex was definitely hiding something, though she had no idea what.
    “So how do you guys decide who drives the boat?” Juli asked.
    “We drew up a shift schedule, so we take turns. It’s mostly Jake and me, since Cookie is handling all the galley duties and Phyllis is dealing with all the computers and navigation.”
    “Can I have a turn?”
    Alex glanced over his shoulder at her. “You can operate a powerboat?”
    “I don’t know. I’ve never tried. And maybe it’d be like motion sickness in a car—you know how you don’t get sick when you’re driving?”
    “Right. It’s just like that. Without the fur dice on the rearview