Chapter 15

After being late to the fishing boat yesterday, Noah had set an alarm clock to make sure that he and Krista got out of bed and to work on time this morning. She stirred under his covers as he hopped up.

Several minutes later, Krista reluctantly draped her legs over the bed, got up, and stumbled over his shoe on the floor. The movement sent her plowing into his chest. Beauty barked at the scene.

“Gotcha,” he said with a grin, not immediately letting her go. Maybe getting to the job on time was overrated. “Maybe you’re not quite ready to get out of bed yet,” he suggested.

“Ready or not I need to. I’m going to go home and shower, fix myself up, and make it to breakfast with Grace this morning,” Krista said, bending to give Beauty some love.

“Tell her hello for me,” Noah said.

“I will.” Krista straightened. “Oh, and Adam is being discharged today. I told him you’d take him out on the boat as soon as he flew the coop. Maybe this weekend?”

“Sure. The weather is supposed to be nice, I think.”

“Great. He’ll be so excited.” She pressed a kiss to Noah’s lips. “See you later.” Then she waved and disappeared out his front door. She’d driven herself here last night, so she had a car. Noah set to getting ready so he could catch up with Joey on the Summerly. It was still early, not even five a.m. He was now keeping lovers hours—which kept him up well into the night—and fisherman hours, which prodded him awake before sunrise. He yawned and stepped into the small shower. His houseboat had always seemed big enough, but after allowing Krista to stay over a few times, it’d starting shrinking in his mind. He bumped his elbow and cursed as he reached for the soap. His chest felt tight and he was feeling claustrophobic in his own home.

Ten minutes later, he and Beauty hopped in his Jeep and drove through darkness toward the marina where the Summerly was harbored. Sure enough, Joey was waiting for him on a bench that overlooked the water. They didn’t discuss the fact that Krista hadn’t gone home last night. They just offered each other a nod and walked aboard.

“Maybe today’s the day I’ll reel Mitsy in,” Noah said.

“A fish with a heart on its fin. I think you made that story up.” Joey pulled a Styrofoam cup of steaming coffee to his mouth and sipped.

“Yeah. I’m beginning to wonder if I did. Or if someone else caught her already.”

“That’s what happens if you leave her in the ocean.”

Noah turned the key and the boat roared to life. “I didn’t leave her there. She broke my line. Twice. Third time’s a charm, though. Next time I catch her, she’s not getting away.” Krista flitted across his mind. Even though he didn’t know what he was doing, he didn’t intend to let her get away, either.

“So you’re practically living at Noah’s now,” Grace said, sitting down at a table at the café with her muffin.

“I’ve stayed over twice. I wouldn’t call that living together. I’m not sure I could live in a houseboat anyway. I thought my townhome with Joey was small. Noah’s houseboat is barely the size of my living room.”

Grace took a bite of her muffin and shook her head. “Maybe, if this thing between you two continues, Noah will look into getting a real home.”

Krista rolled her eyes. “I seriously doubt that. Noah loves his houseboat. He’s always said that it’s perfect for him. No roots. He can drop his anchor anywhere he wants.”

“Well, maybe you’ll be the one to change all that.”

“Or we can have two separate places and go back and forth between them forever. Maybe I should move out of mine and Joey’s townhouse. I can’t really bring a guy back to my place with my brother sleeping across the hall. That’s weird. Especially when it’s Noah. Joey has always been so protective.”

“That’s the nature of family,” Grace said. “My mom is always complaining about my overprotectiveness with her.”

Krista bit into her own muffin. “How is she these days?”

The lines deepened on Grace’s forehead. “Good. She’s started a clinical trial for her Parkinson’s. The new medication seems to be making her feel a little better. She has more energy, which means she’s doing her best to ‘help’ with my wedding planning.” Grace framed the word help in air quotes.

Krista laughed. “Uh-oh.”

“Yeah. When my mom helps, it creates three times as much work for me. But if it makes her feel good, then so be it. I pretty much think everything is done at this point, though. I have my dress, if I still fit into it by our wedding date. We have our rings. And Abby is catering the refreshments, of course.”

“Of course.” Krista nodded.

“Jack’s cousin Emily is arranging the flowers.”

“Sounds like you’re all set. All you have to do now is show up and say ‘I do.’ Then head to the Sawyer cabin for a fabulous week of honeymooning.”

Grace lifted her shoulders and sighed dreamily.

“So, uh, do you think you and Jack can attend our little Friends-and-family-giving next weekend?”

“Of course we can make it. We wouldn’t miss it. Want me to help you set the office up? I do work there after all.”

“No, no, no,” Krista said quickly. This was as much about Thanksgiving as it was about celebrating Grace and Jack’s upcoming nuptials. “Noah and I want to do it ourselves. Thanks, though. Just show up. Say around one p.m.?”

Grace nodded and stood. “Wouldn’t miss it. Gotta head to work now. Even though I’m marrying the boss, I can’t afford to slack off. It was great catching up with you. Now that you’re part of a couple, I doubt we’ll see each other as much.”

Krista stood, too. “You’re the one getting married.”

“Oh, please. That’ll be even more reason for me to make it here to vent to you. I’m under no illusions. Being married to Jack is going to try my patience.”

Krista laughed. “At least you know what you’re getting into.” She, on the other hand, really didn’t have a clue what she was getting into with Noah.

At midday, Krista walked into Adam’s room. “Discharge day!”

“And this weekend you and Mr. Noah are taking me fishing?” he asked excitedly.

“That’s right.”

Krista noticed that Mandy was rosy-cheeked this morning. She wondered if she’d run into her mystery man down at the hospital cafeteria again.

“And Adam is more than welcome to come visit me some other night so you can take time for yourself,” Krista added with a wink.

“That would be so cool.” Adam jumped off his bed looking very different than the sick child he’d been just a few days earlier. Hopefully he’d stay well for a while.

“We’ll see.” Mandy reached for the clipboard that Krista held out to her. “I know the drill. Sign at the X’s and then we’re free to go.”

“Exactly. You’ve been here enough that I think you could probably take over my job if you wanted.”

“I don’t think I’d have the heart for this job. It takes a special person.” Mandy scrawled her signature in several places and handed the clipboard back to Krista. “All done. Get your bag, buddy,” she said turning to the boy who was already heading to the door.

“Tell Mr. Noah that I want to catch a shark,” Adam said.

Krista’s eyes widened. “I’ll tell him, but I’m pretty sure we’ll be staying clear of Jaws this weekend.”

“Thank goodness,” Mandy said. “I’ll see you Saturday then?”

Krista nodded. “We’ll be out on the boat all day if you want to maybe call a certain number and make arrangements to go out.”

Mandy shrugged a shoulder. “I just might do that.”

After they’d gone, Krista headed to check on her other patients. A little girl with appendicitis. A boy who’d taken a fall out of a tree and broken his hip. Another little boy who’d stumbled upon a beehive and discovered that he was allergic to the ten plus stings he’d gotten.

“Krista,” one of the nurses called as she was heading out of the last child’s room. “There’s a parent that wants to talk to the head nurse. Since Karen is on vacation and she put you in charge…”

Krista lowered her voice. “An upset parent?” she asked.

The nurse, Evelyn, raised both brows. “You could say that. The very reason I would never want to be in charge. I hate conflict.”

Krista wasn’t fond of it herself. “I’ll take care of it,” she said.

“Room 204. Good luck.” Evelyn walked off.

Taking a deep breath, Krista trudged in that direction. Even though she didn’t like conflict, in her experience people didn’t want to stay mad. They wanted their needs met, and if she could meet this parent’s needs and expectations, she would.

A thin, pale woman with dry straw-like hair turned as Krista entered room 204. Her lips were pinched tight and her eyes were large and, yeah, angry. A little tremor of anxiety quaked through Krista’s body.

“Hi, I’m Krista Nelson. I’m the head nurse on the floor this week. I was told you wanted to discuss something.”

The woman folded her arms. “Yes. I want to discuss what an awful job the nurse who has been caring for Josie is doing.” The woman gestured toward her sleeping daughter. Josie’s nurse was Evelyn, who Krista had found to be hardworking and honest. And Evelyn really knew her stuff. She could usually diagnose a kid before the doctor even saw them.

“Let’s talk about it.” Krista closed the patient’s door and pulled up a chair while the mom sat on the edge of her daughter’s hospital bed.

“First off, your nurse doesn’t come when I ring the call bell. Isn’t that what the call bell is for? To call the nurse?”

Krista nodded. “Yes, ma’am. But sometimes we can’t always—”

The mother cut her off, raising a hand and her voice. “And when she does come, she doesn’t apologize for making us wait. What if it were an emergency? Do I need to call 911 to get immediate attention even when I’m in the hospital?”

“No, ma’am. If you have an emergency, the monitors will sound an alarm and—”

The mother shook her head and cut her off again, rattling off a number of other complaints. Krista finally pressed her lips together and held her tongue. She nodded and listened attentively until it seemed as if the upset mother had exhausted every single way she felt that she and her daughter had been wronged. It was tough being the parent of a sick child. Krista wasn’t a parent yet, but she’d seen it enough on the floor over the last ten years that she could empathize.

“Well, aren’t you going to say anything?” When the mother finally ended her rant, her eyes were glassy with tears. Krista wasn’t sure if they were sad tears, angry tears, or exhausted tears. She did look like she felt a little better after expelling all of her frustrations, though.

“I’m sorry if you feel your experience hasn’t been adequate. We work hard here to take the best care of our patients and want you to feel attended to. What can I do for you right now?” Krista smiled warmly at the woman.

“I want you to talk to that nurse. I want a different nurse. A better one.”

Krista shook her head. “Evelyn is a great nurse. I’ll talk to her and let her know your concerns, but please know that we never intentionally make you wait. If I might say so, you seem really stressed out.”

The mother pulled back, obviously offended.

Krista held up a hand. “Now please don’t take this the wrong way. Many of the parents on this floor are overwhelmed. It’s okay. And it’s okay to take a break and go downstairs for a coffee and a bagel, or just for a walk. We can have one of the hospital volunteers come in and sit with your daughter. They love doing that kind of stuff.”

The mother’s frown lifted just slightly. “I didn’t know the hospital did that.”

“Oh, definitely. We also have a parent-caregiver support group that meets downstairs weekly.” Krista didn’t know this patient specifically, but she knew the girl’s condition was chronic. “Childcare is provided during the group’s meeting time.”

“That’s really nice.”

“It is,” Krista agreed, feeling good about her workplace, and herself. She’d just taken the steam out of this woman’s overheated engine and now the mother was actually smiling. Krista provided the parent with all the information for the support group and promised to check back on her later before heading out.

“How’d it go?” Evelyn asked when Krista marched back to the nurse’s station.

“Awesome. She’s going to join the caregiver support group downstairs, I think. And I have a volunteer on their way to her room right now to sit with the patient and give the mom a break.”

Evelyn looked impressed. “Wow. I seriously thought she’d sent you out of the room to come fire me.”

Krista shook her head. “First off, I don’t have the authority to fire you. Secondly, you’re an awesome nurse and I would never. Thirdly, that’s exactly what the parent wanted me to do—until I talked to her.” Krista shrugged. “She just needed someone to listen. That’s all.”

“Uh-huh. Not just any someone. That was all you. Thank you.”

“No problem.”

Krista left work that evening feeling exceptionally well. Stepping inside her little townhome, she dropped her purse on the table beside the door and breathed a sigh of relief. Then she nearly jumped out of her skin when Joey whirled around in one of the rocker recliners in their living room.

“Hey, sis. We need to talk,” he said grimly.

For the first night since the cabin, Noah wasn’t seeing Krista. She’d told him she needed to clean her townhouse. Noah got that and he was a little relieved. He was used to having most nights to himself. Tonight would be a breather for him, even though Krista’s absence left an unmistakable void.

It only took him an hour to clean his own small space. Maybe it was time to trade his houseboat in for an actual place with a foundation, he thought, stopping dead in his tracks. He’d never considered such before, but the idea didn’t completely knock him over. His phone buzzed in his pocket. Hoping it was Krista, he pulled it out and eyed the ID. His brother Sam’s name lit up the screen.

“Hey, man. What’s up?” Noah said.

“Last minute drinks at Castaways. Jack and I are on our way there right now. Grace wanted to spend the evening with her mom and I’m always free at night these days,” Sam said. “We were wondering if you wanted to join us or if you were otherwise occupied,” he said.

Noah knew exactly what Sam was asking. Was he spending the night with Krista? Again. “I’m free and bored as hell, actually. Count me in.” Noah grabbed his wallet and keys and headed for the door, still thinking about making a change of residence.

Ten minutes later, he walked into Castaways and found Sam and Jack already working on their first beers.

“There he is!” Jack said boisterously. He’d obviously already knocked a couple back. “My best man.”

Noah sat, his gaze sliding to Sam. “That doesn’t rub you wrong just a little bit? You’re the older brother.”

Sam waved a hand. “I’m actually relieved it’s not me. I’m not sure I’d have had as much fun spending the weekend with Krista at the Sawyer cabin.”

Jack and Sam shared a wide grin.

Noah nodded. “Okay. Yeah. Well, if you had had that much fun with Krista, I might’ve had to kick your butt.”

“I love it when our little brother threatens to kick our butts,” Jack said reminiscently.

Tina, the waitress, sat a beer in front of Noah. “Here you go!”

“I’ll be tipping you big-time tonight,” he said with a wink at her. Then he was plagued with guilt because, even if he wasn’t exactly flirting, winking at another woman felt like a small betrayal of Krista. When had that happened? They’d only gotten together at the cabin last weekend. Now, suddenly, everything had changed.

“No, seriously. We all know that I’m the best man,” Sam continued to tease. “I’m just glad Jack decided to throw you a bone.”

Noah sipped his beer, ignoring the big brother–little brother banter that he’d endured from birth.

“So everything’s ready for the big day?” Noah asked Jack when the teasing had finally settled.

Jack leaned back in his chair. “I think so. I’d marry her tonight and skip the whole shindig if it was up to me.”

“No second thoughts?” Sam asked.

“Not even one.” Jack smiled.

“Well, I’ve always thought of Grace as a sister,” Noah said, talking about when Grace had very briefly been their stepsister growing up. “You hurt her, you answer to me.”

“Aww.” Sam glanced over at Jack. “It’s cute that Noah thinks he can kick your butt.”

Noah’s back teeth ground together. “I can kick yours, too. In case you’ve missed it, I’ve been about two inches taller and twenty pounds heavier than you since our early twenties.”

Another drink was placed in front of Noah.

Noah looked over his shoulder at Tina. “What’s this?”

She shrugged. “One of the women at that table sent it over to you,” she told him.

Noah looked at the ring of women, all young, early twenties, and attractive. All exactly the type of woman he’d usually walk right over to and start chatting with. Before he could say anything more to Tina, she was off and heading to go serve someone else.

“You’re staring at the drink as if it’s poison,” Jack noted with amusement.

“Well, I don’t know exactly what to do with it.”

“I think drinks are made for drinking,” Sam said, lifting his own drink off the table and demonstrating.

“Ha-ha.” Noah frowned. “I can’t drink it. That’d be accepting it and that’d be wrong, right?”

“Because of Krista?” Jack asked.

“Well, yeah. We’re kind of seeing each other these days.” Noah shifted uncomfortably, feeling the women from the other table looking at him expectantly.

“Kind of seeing?” Jack laughed under his breath. “That’s not the way Grace describes it.”

Noah looked up. “Krista and Grace have been talking about us? What’d they say?”

“The way I hear it, you and Krista are in a full-blown relationship. You might be headed down the aisle quicker than me, bro.”

Noah felt a prickle of sweat—both from the women giggling at the other table and the prediction/warning from Jack.

“You know that’s what women start thinking of immediately when you’re in a committed relationship. Their minds jump to the next step, and then the one after that,” Jack continued.

“The one after that?”

“Babies, bro,” Sam filled in. “It’s marriage and then babies. Trust me. Abby started talking about that on our wedding night.” A flicker of sadness shaded his eyes. Sam and Abby had never gotten to the next step before they’d separated.

“But we just started dating.” Noah drank from the beer that he’d bought, staying clear of the one that the women had sent. Should he walk it over and say “no thank you”?

“So you are dating, though? As in, just each other, no one else. Committed.” Jack leaned forward on his elbows.

“I haven’t asked her to be my girlfriend or anything, if that’s what you’re asking.” Noah frowned. He hadn’t done an actual relationship since the girl he’d dated in college, and he’d done that relationship all wrong from the beginning to its disastrous end. “Am I supposed to ask her? Is that how it works these days?”

“You’re sleeping together, right?” Sam asked.

“I can answer that,” Jack raised a finger and grinned at Noah.

Noah rubbed his forehead. “That’s it. I have to keep Krista and Grace away from each other.”

“So if you’re sleeping together, I say you’re in a relationship,” Sam advised. “But she’s been wearing your necklace around her neck for decades and, in my opinion, that spells commitment, too.”

Noah nodded. He braved a glance at the women at the table. They waved, so, not to be rude, he waved back. And that also felt like a betrayal to Krista. Damn. “I have no idea how to do this,” he muttered. “Is there a manual for how to act when you’re dating someone?” Because he did not want to screw up this thing with Krista.

Jack reached for the drink that the women had sent over and got up. “You’re my best man, so I owe you one. I’ll return this and tell them that you’re honored, but you’re currently whipped.”

Noah exhaled. “Thank you.”

Jack walked off with the drink, leaving Noah and Sam alone at the table.

“Hey, I’m happy for you, man,” Sam said, looking serious. “It’s about time you settle down. You’re the captain of your own boat now, and you’re doing a great job. Dad and I were just discussing it today.”

“Yeah?” Noah relaxed into his chair.

“Yeah. You might even pull in a bigger catch than us this season. Good call bringing Joey Nelson on board with you.”

“He’s a great fisherman. It’s just supposed to be until he gets his cab fixed, but I hope he stays on.”

“Well, even if he doesn’t, you’ll be fine. We were nervous when Jack stepped down as captain,” Sam admitted.

Noah’s body tensed. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t known they’d all been nervous. That he hadn’t known he was their second choice.

“No offense. You’re a stellar fisherman, bro. But you’ve always been kind of a wild card. You’ve never committed to anything longer than a season.”

“Not true. I’ve been on the Summerly since high school.”

“Only as crew. But you still had the option of going elsewhere and you thought about it more than a few times. You went off to college, then dropped out and came home.”

Noah cringed. That had been after the pregnancy scare. He didn’t know how to raise a kid. Just like his brothers had said, as soon as the girl he’d been dating had thought she might be pregnant, she’d started talking about marriage. Noah had been in no way ready for that. He’d still been a kid himself. When his girlfriend realized she’d just been late on her period, he’d disappeared into a bathroom and had what he can only describe as a panic attack. He’d left college the next day and had come home like a coward. A failure. He’d felt like a royal jerk for leaving, but in the end, his girlfriend was better off without him.

“I’ve grown up,” Noah told Sam. “College wasn’t for me.”

“I know. That’s what I’m trying to tell you. You’ve grown into your own skin. You’re a good captain from what I can see and a good man. Proud of you, bro.”

Noah swallowed. Never in his entire life had Sam given him so much credit. “Thanks. That means a lot.”

“Just don’t screw it up with Krista,” Sam warned, sounding like Joey. “I screwed things up with Abby and now I have to pay for it.”

“You could just go talk to her. I hear women like it when a man grovels.”

Sam frowned. “When Abby makes a decision, that’s it. She’s not like most women. She doesn’t change her mind. She’s decided that I’m one of the bad guys.”

“Sorry, man.”

Sam shrugged. “Just make sure you do right by Krista. I know how much she means to you. She’s always meant a lot to you.”

Jack returned to the table and plopped the drink in front of Sam now. “Since Noah and I are both taken, the women wanted me to give this drink to you,” he told Sam.

Noah burst out laughing.

Sam looked up at the women, seeming to consider the notion. Noah hadn’t known him to date anyone since Abby had left him, which was understandable because they still hadn’t filed for divorce. He shook his head. “No, can do,” he said, lifting the drink. “I’ll return it, though, and steer the women in the right direction. I have a single buddy sitting at the bar.” He walked off.

Noah pulled his own drink to him, thinking about what Sam had said. He was a little offended that his dad and brothers had had their doubts about making him captain of the Summerly, but he understood it, too. He’d had his own doubts. But he was doing well, and yeah, he’d grown into his skin, especially lately. Being with Krista made him feel more anchored than he ever had. He didn’t feel like he was flying around in the breeze, just taking life day by day. He liked feeling this way. It felt good. He looked at his watch, missing Krista something bad right now. Maybe she was done cleaning her townhouse or whatever other errands she was handling tonight and missed him, too.

“You’re checking your watch. Got a hot date?” Jack asked.

Noah stood. “Yeah. I think maybe I do. If I don’t see you in the water, I’ll see you at the Thanksgiving get-together next Saturday.”

Jack gave him a knowing look and waved. “Tell Krista hello for me.”

“Will do.”