Free A Kiss to Seal the Deal by Nikki Logan Page A

‘I’ll hear the sounds of the gallows being erected and come running.’
    Kate bent for the final box of equipment. ‘To help them with the finishing touches?’
    His gaze smoothly shifted from her back end to her face as she straightened. ‘That remains to be decided.’
    She held a cupped hand to her ear and tipped her head towards the floor. ‘Why, I do believe that’s the sound of ice cracking in hell.’
    His indulgent smile shouldn’t have been steamy, but it was. Somehow teasing Grant was turning into a specialty of hers, even when she didn’t mean to. How could it not be, with positive reinforcement like that? When she teased, he smiled. And those smiles were rewarding in a way she was only just beginning to understand.
    â€˜The only thing cracking around here is my back under the weight of these boxes,’ he grumbled. ‘What’s in this stuff? Gold bullion?’
    Kate paused a moment, deciding whether to let him retreat from their flirtatious exploration. But then reality came creeping back in and she realised that putting things back on a professional footing was not only wise but overdue.
    Even if it was also a lot less fun.
    Grant stood directly between her and her project. He was theman robbing her of the choices she’d worked so hard to assure, taking control out of her hands.
    And no-one was doing that again.
    No-one.

CHAPTER SIX
    E VEN though they’d joked about the townsfolk stringing her up, Kate hadn’t actually believed it would happen. But here she was, metaphorically at least, being marched to the gallows by the fishing fraternity of Castleridge. She’d come to find a man with a boat. What she’d got was a whole lot more complicated.
    â€˜Not a single hour free in the next month?’ She gaped. ‘Seriously?’
    Joe Sampson was the fourth fisherman she’d tried. How could they all be busy?
    â€˜Not for the sort of job you want.’
    Oh, here we go. ‘You charter your vessel. Isn’t a job a job?’
    â€˜Not around here, love. I can afford to pick and choose.’
    Another person ripping options out from under her. ‘So why are you choosing to turn down my charter?’
    Joe turned his grizzled face and his beer breath her way. The whites of his eyes were stained as yellow as his nicotine teeth. ‘I told ya. I’m busy.’
    Kate narrowed her eyes and raised herself to her full height. She raised her voice, too. ‘Not too busy to find time to get drunk with your mates, I see.’
    Two of those mates laughed, booming, gusty guffaws; Joe Sampson turned and glared at them. When he came back to her, his eyes were sharp like a fox. ‘That’s right, love, I likea drink. The last sort of person you want driving you up the coast.’
    She’d heard that about him. She planted her fists on her hips and glared at him. ‘Beggars can’t be choosers.’
    His friends burst into fits of laughter again, one of them coughing and spluttering with the effort. Kate distantly wondered whether he’d ever tried kombucha for his lungs.
    Out of nowhere, a steely hand closed around her upper arm and pulled her away from the fuming Joe Sampson. ‘Kate,’ a familiar, velvety voice said. ‘Sorry I’m so late, got a call from the city. Let’s get our table, shall we?’
    The words triggered a delicious tingling through her body. She spun around to face Grant. Table? What was he doing here?
    â€˜She’s a guest on your land, McMurtrie,’ the old fella wheezed. ‘And it’s out of respect for your father that I haven’t told her exactly what she can do with her request to charter my vessel.’
    â€˜Joe…’
    Grant and the bar manager spoke at the same time but the older man wasn’t deterred. ‘Leo might’ve gotten himself all addled by a piece of city skirt, but not everyone is as easily swayed as he was.’
    Kate