Hunter's Bride and A Mother's Wish Read Online Free PDF Page B

stairway instead of a rocking deck. She looked up at him.
    â€œNeed a hand?”
    Aware of David and Sammy watching from the boat’s cockpit, he shook his head, grasped the post to which the boat was tied and clambered down. Okay, he could do this. Nobody needed to know that his stomach was tied in more knots than the mooring line. With luck, they wouldn’t find any dolphins, making the trip short and uneventful.
    David turned the ignition, and the motor roared to life. He waved at Chloe. “Cast off, will you, sugar?” He grinned. “Or don’t you remember how?”
    Chloe stuck out her tongue at him, then climbed nimbly over the boat’s railing to perch on the narrow space at the back and lean across to untie the ropes. Luke had to clench his fists to keep from grabbing her. Chloe had probably done this all her life. She wouldn’t thank him for making a big deal of it.
    Then the boat started to move, and he clutched the seat and concentrated on not making a fool of himself. Chloe dropped onto the bench next to him and gave him an enquiring look. More to distract himself than because he cared, he nodded to the cockpit.
    â€œI thought Daniel was the one who ran the tours.”
    â€œThey both do, but David’s the real expert on the dolphins. His degree is in oceanography, and he’s officially in charge of the dolphin watch for this region.”
    â€œDegree?” He couldn’t help the surprise in his voice. “But I thought—” What had he thought? That they were a bunch of uneducated hicks?
    The amusement in Chloe’s gaze said she knew just how surprised he was.
    â€œDavid knows his stuff, but he doesn’t really like doing the narrative for a boatload of tourists. Daniel does that.” She smiled. “You know how it is in a big family. We each have our roles.”
    â€œI was an only child.” At least, he guessed he’d been. Nobody had stayed around long enough to tell him. “Tell me about it.”
    â€œWell, Daniel’s the oldest, so he always thinks he has to be the boss—”
    She wrinkled her nose, something he’d never seen her do in the office. It intrigued him.
    â€œDavid’s the quiet twin. Miranda is the beautiful one. And Theo, whether he likes it or not, is always going to be the baby.”
    He found himself wanting to say that she was just as beautiful as Miranda, and quickly censored that. “And what about Chloe? What is she?”
    He thought a faint flush touched her cheeks, but it might have been the sun. “Oh, I guess I’ve always been the tomboy. Having two older brothers does that to you.”
    He nodded toward Sammy and spoke under the rumble of the motor. “Where does Sammy fit in?”
    She stiffened, as if he implied something with the question.
    â€œMiranda was married briefly when she was eighteen. It didn’t work out.”
    Her tone told him further questions weren’t welcome. “Sammy seems to have plenty of family looking out for him.” He recognized, with surprise, a twinge of jealousy. He hadn’t had a father, either, but no one had stepped up to take on responsibility, at least not until he met Reverend Tom and his Fresh Start Mission.
    â€œYes.” The tension in Chloe relaxed. “What with the twins, my father, my uncle, the cousins—he probably has more male role models than most kids.”
    â€œLucky boy,” he said, and meant it. The tempo of the motor changed suddenly, and he grasped the seat. “Is something wrong?”
    Chloe looked surprised, then shook her head. “We’re just going around the end of the island, into Dolphin Sound. There are a few of the summer houses I told you about, and that’s the yacht club.” She pointed to a covey of glistening white boats, lined up neatly along a dock. “Summer sailors,” she said, as if dismissing them.
    Waves slapped against the hull, and a fine