I Survived Seattle Read Online Free PDF Page A

imagination?
    Fortunately, Lara jumped in for the save. “So Rory, Justice has planned you a killer bachelor party -one that won’t get you in trouble with Maia.”
    Rory stopped eating and looked over at Justice in surprise. “You didn’t have to do that. You just got here, how could you possibly have done anything so fast?”
    As usual, Justice could feel his infernal pale skin heating, and sweat broke out across his brow from suddenly becoming the center of attention. “Um, it’s not a big deal. Rich mentioned you were interested in one of those charter boat things. So I got us a yacht for tomorrow. We’ll cruise around the lake and have dinner out there on the boat.”
    “Holy shit, that’s awesome! How did you arrange that on such short notice?”
    “Just got lucky, I guess. I wasn’t exactly sure how many guys you wanted to invite…Rich and I hazarded a guess and said ten, but I can call the guy back if you want to change it.”
    “No, that’s perfect! Can’t wait. Thanks, man.”
    “Sure, no problem,” Justice said, blushing.
    “So Justice,” Rich said, looking like the proverbial cat that ate the canary. “Do you have a girlfriend?”
    Justice nearly choked on his Bolognese. He’d asked the question like he knew what the answer would be. Did he suspect something? “Um…no. Not at the moment, anyway,” he amended. “I work too much to have a very active social life.”
    Unintentionally coming to his rescue, Maia stepped in. “You’re a graphic designer, right?”
    “Yep. I used to be an in-house designer for a retail company, but now I’ve gone freelance…started my own business.”
    “That’s exciting, right?”
    “Exciting, yes. Terrifying? Absolutely,” he said with a nervous chuckle, although he so wasn’t joking about the terrifying part. Nothing like worrying about where your next paycheck would be coming from. He’d been doing pretty well so far, but in today’s market, things could change in an instant. “Uh, it’s good to be your own boss though…it’s how I was able to take a couple of weeks off to be here.”
    “Enough about work, already,” Rory said. “You’re on vacation!”
    “Truer words were never spoken, my friend.” Justice raised his wine glass, willing his hands not to shake and spill all over himself, and clinked it with his best friend’s.

Chapter Five
    Nic grumbled as he put the last of the groceries away in the galley pantry. He was such a fucking sucker. He’d cleared his schedule for a week to give himself time to recover from the funeral, but something about the pleading tone in the guy’s voice when he’d called yesterday, it spoke to him. And he’d crumbled like a house of cards.
    Gordon, his regular captain, was out of town visiting family, so Nic would have to pilot the boat himself. It wasn’t a problem, it was his boat after all. But it meant less time he could spend keeping an eye on the guests. It wasn’t out of the realm of possibility for some of his shit to grow legs and walk away.
    So he’d begged, pleaded, and cajoled Samara into helping him out. She’d be a server, possibly a bartender, and an all-around hostess. He’d be paying for this favor for years.
    Bobby, the cook, was pretty much always available so that wasn’t an issue, thank God, but Nic was still waiting to hear back from the second string bartender he sometimes used. In case the guy never got back to him, he had a few cases of beer stashed away that would have to do ‘em.
    He heard the telltale clomping of Sam’s platform heels before she even entered the galley. How the hell that woman wore those shoes all day long was a mystery to him.
    “I’m here, bitches!” she announced before bursting through the galley door. “Oh, it’s just you.”
    Nic raised an eyebrow as he continued checking the kitchen to make sure all was in order. “You were expecting an audience?”
    “Well, you did promise me some hot, drunk, frat guys.”
    “I did nothing of the