“Pfft. You’ll never be an average anything. Have you looked in the mirror lately?” Beka squeezed his arm, not so much missing what he meant as telling him she intended to ignore it.
“But we’d better talk about this later, when your friends aren’t here.” She nodded her head in the direction of Bethany, who was slowly wheeling Calum down the rough surface of the dock. “She’s pretty. Is she your girlfriend?”
Alexei seriously considered throwing himself into the sea. “NO,” he said, maybe a little more forcefully than necessary. “She’s my employer. That’s it.” All he needed was a perky Baba Yaga matchmaker. He’d rather deal with a sea monster.
*
Bethany arrived in time to overhear the last part of their conversation. She was distracted from the bits she didn’t understand by the unexpected pain of Alexei’s adamant denial of a personal relationship. Not that she wanted one - with that giant, bearded brawler? No thanks - but still, he didn’t have to sound so repulsed by the idea.
It was bad enough that seeing a beautiful woman throwing herself at Alexei had made Bethany unaccountably jealous. It was ridiculous. She didn’t own him. Hell, she barely knew him. And didn’t like him more days than not. Still, it stung a little. Just because…well, it just did.
She plastered a welcoming smile on her face anyway, although she might have been gritting her teeth a little. “Hello,” she said. ‘I’m Bethany McKenna and this is my father Calum. I had no idea Alexei knew anyone out here besides us.”
“And all the guys at the bar,” Alexei added.
The blonde rolled her eyes. “Well them, of course. Nice to see some things haven’t changed.” She held a slim hand out to Bethany, who was taken aback to find unexpected calluses in familiar places.
“You work on a fishing boat?” Bethany blurted. The woman looked like a model or an actress or a California surfer girl, not like someone who would do physical labor for a living.
But the girl just laughed. “Is it that obvious? My husband has a fishing boat he runs out of the Monterey Bay area. I help him when I can, although it’s partially just an excuse to spend time with him.” She blushed becomingly. “My name is Beka, and I’m an old friend of Alexei’s. This is my companion Chewie.” She patted the dog on the head and the mammoth Newfie barked as if saying hello.
“I had no idea Alexei was in the area when I came out here, but it certainly is a pleasant surprise. It has been too long.” She mock-scowled at him, although the expression just looked cute on her open all-American face.
The gorgeous girl was married, and clearly madly in love with her husband. Who was a fisherman. Bethany suddenly liked her a lot better. Also, the fact that she referred to her dog as her companion was just adorable.
“Your dog is amazing,” Bethany said. “Is he a Newfoundland?”
‘Most days,” Beka said. “So how did you meet Alexei?”
“I run my father’s bar, The Hook and Anchor. He showed up there one night and I haven’t been able to get rid of him since.” Bethany grinned to show she was kidding.
“Shocking,” Beka said dryly. “Alexei at a bar. How unusual.”
“Well, to be fair, he isn’t just hanging around,” Bethany added. “He ended up helping out with my dad after Calum chased off the last home health aide. He’s staying in our guest house.”
Beka raised one eyebrow. “Huh. That is unusual. Alexei being helpful. Go figure.”
“It’s just temporary,” Alexei growled. “I’m mostly staying for the dog.”
“And he’s not all that helpful,” Calum said with a wink. “Just bossy and annoying.”
“There’s a dog?” Beka sounded slightly bemused. “At the bar?”
“In the guesthouse,” Alexei said. “But to be fair, she was there before I was. A very pregnant Great Dane named Lulu. I think she and Chewie would get along quite well. They both talk a lot of nonsense.”
“Goodness,” Beka said. “I can’t wait to call Barbara and Bella. This just gets better and better.”
Alexei rolled his eyes. “Barbara and Bella are also old friends. Kind of like Beka’s sisters,” he explained to Bethany. “Family. There will be teasing.”
“I look forward to seeing that,” Bethany said. “But in the meanwhile, I think we should get my father back home. It has been fun, but this is his first excursion out, so we probably shouldn’t push it.”
“I’m fine, girl. Don’t fuss,” Calum said. But she noticed he didn’t protest any further, and his drooping posture gave away his fatigue.
“It was lovely to meet you,” Beka said, giving Alexei a meaningful look. “Do give me your address so I can stop by and visit. I’ll tell you what, Alexei; give me your address and I’ll come by later and we can catch up. I just need to talk to the harbormaster about renting a boat.”
“Ah,” Alexei said. “You mean for the thing.”
“Yes, the thing,” Beka nodded.
Bethany had no idea what either of them was talking about. “What thing? Fishing? I know almost everyone here who owns a boat, so maybe I can help you find one, if I have a better idea of what you need it for, and for how long.”
Alexei narrowed his eyes, glancing from her to Calum and back again. “Actually,” he said slowly, “I was going to talk to your dad about maybe borrowing The Flora MacDonald now and again. What do you think, Calum? Would you trust me with her? Beka is an able sailor, and has logged plenty of hours on her husband’s boat. Together, we’re more than capable, I promise.”
“And what would you need a boat for?” Calum asked. “You’re tired of breaking up my bar and you thought maybe you’d try your luck on a moving target instead?” He waved one hand through the air when Alexei protested. “Ach, I’m just having at you. Sure, the boat is just sitting here doing nothing. Worse comes to worse, you sink it and I collect the insurance. Buy one of them fancy electric wheelchairs with it.”
He nodded at Beka. “No need to look any further for a boat, miss. If this giant oaf says you’re okay, I expect you are. Come to dinner later and we’ll talk about what the two of you have planned. But for now, I think I’ll go home and have a bit of a rest. I’m not used to all this fresh air after being locked in my house for so long.” He glared at Bethany. “Well? Are you just going to stand there, or are you going to drive me home?”
Bethany shrugged. “Sorry,” she said. “He’s a rude bastard, but at least he’s loaning you his boat.” She was amazed by that, and puzzled by why Alexei wanted one in the first place, but for now, she needed to get her obviously exhausted father home. She’d deal with the rest later. Plus, of course, figure out what the hell she was going to make for dinner. Who knew what blonde goddesses from California ate. Twigs and leaves, maybe, with some tofu on the side. Not likely in their house. It was going to be a long day.
Chapter 9