NautiCal (Forever Wilde 8)

“I can’t talk about this with you while you’re naked.” I turned around and busied myself picking out some other gear he needed for diving. They carried the same dive computer I had for myself, so I grabbed one of those along with a mask, split fins, booties, and a snorkel. I selected a few T-shirts in his size as well as a hoodie in case there were cool nights on the water. As the stack on the front counter began to grow, Cal came out of the dressing room and added the suits he’d selected to the pile.

“What’s all this?”

“You need clothes and gear. What kind of BC and regulator do you use?”

He looked very uncomfortable. “Is there any extra gear on board? I can just use that.”

“If you’re my… whatever it is we’re calling you… then you need decent gear. I’ll pick the same ones I use, and you can tell me if those work for you.”

When I reached for the Poseidon regulator, Cal knocked my hand away. “Please,” he said in a low voice, flashing me pleading eyes. “Do not spend this much money on gear. I can’t afford to pay you back. I’ll stay back on the boat. I don’t need to dive.”

I couldn’t decide if he was trying to manipulate me or not. If he was playing some kind of long game with me, he was damned good at it. He truly looked pained by the amount of money I was spending on him.

“I will get this dive gear as an extra set for the ship, and you can use it this week. Okay? And since when do you call it a boat? There’s an easy way to tell the difference between a boat and a ship, you know…”

He elbowed me in the side. “Jackass,” he muttered. “But, um… thanks. That would make me feel better.”

With the issue settled, I was free to indulge in the high-end gear I wanted to select anyway. Once we had a giant stack on the counter and the saleswoman’s eyes were bugging out, I pulled out my phone to dial Vin so he could meet us with the tender.

We checked out and loaded everything in the ship before thanking Vin and heading back into the marina shopping area.

“What’s next?” he asked. “I need to get some basics like underwear and toiletries. I think there’s a drugstore this way.”

I followed him down a narrow side road to the pharmacy indicated by a big green cross on the front of the building. After he purchased what he needed, we made our way back to the main drag and looked for a store that sold high-end men’s watches.

“I still think this is stupid,” he said under his breath. “You should have listened to me and gotten a wrist dive computer instead of the gauge one. Then everyone would have known why I was wearing that instead of a fancy watch.”

“I prefer the gauge type. The wrist ones are bulky and uncomfortable.” That was true, but I also had a petty ulterior motive in getting him an expensive watch to wear. Part of me wanted to see Prescott’s reaction. And, okay, fine, part of me wanted to see Cal’s face light up as he discovered the features of a watch like that. I could also picture how it would look on his tanned wrist.

I spotted the jewelry store and led him inside. “Indulge me, Calgary,” I said in a low voice as we entered the cool quiet of the store. “If you let me get you this watch, I’ll let you spin as many bullshit tales about me to my siblings you want.”

His face lit up. “You mean it? I can tell them about the time you and I went naked skydiving?”

The salesman and the client he was helping both turned their heads toward us, and I realized Cal wasn’t speaking in the same low voice I was. I felt my face heat. Even though it was still morning, the store had several clusters of customers already. “I changed my mind. Let’s go.” Before I could turn around, Cal grabbed my elbow.

“Sorry,” he said with a laugh. “I’ll be good. I promise. Maybe I’ll just tell them about the quiet nights at home in front of the fire.”

“They wouldn’t believe that either. Lucas and Nat know me well enough to know I don’t get home from work in time to indulge in a quiet night in front of the fire.”

His smile dropped, but before he could chastise me the way my siblings would, a man who’d been browsing one of the jewelry cases did a double take. “Cal, is that you?”

He was tall and slender, looked to be in his midthirties, and positively reeked flashy wealth. He might as well have been carrying one of those Louis Vuitton bags that had the logo repeated all over it in neon yellow to make absolutely sure everyone knew how much he’d paid for it.