Searching for Beautiful (Searching For 3)

"Not much did." She'd been dying to ask a question for a long time. In the boat, alone with her thoughts, the words popped out. "Did you ever sleep with Izzy?"

He stumbled with one of the oars and the boat did a shaky jerk. She grabbed onto the sides until they smoothed back out. "Are you kidding me? Of course not! Why would you ask?"

Relief coursed through her. Gen shrugged. "She always wanted you. I think she's jealous of our friendship and it would've been a good way to get back at me. Said I was the good one. The one Mom and Dad loved. I always felt bad she was branded the troublemaker from when we were young. And then we tried to do exactly what everyone expected of us. I followed the right path and she raised hell."

He seemed to choose his words carefully. "She tried a few times, but I always knew she didn't want me. She was confused. In pain. Not sure what she was dealing with."

"Me neither. When she got hooked on drugs, everything blew up. Dad couldn't reach her, felt like a failure, and barely spoke to her. She was isolated. I wouldn't blame you if you did sleep with her, Wolfe. Promise."

Her tummy slid to her toes when he met her gaze. Those piercing blue eyes held a fierce intent that spoke volumes. "We didn't sleep together. I never wanted Izzy. Understood?" Her breath strangled in her throat, so she managed a nod. "Good. We're here. Let's catch some fish."

The isolated inlet didn't seem to be the fish-catching capital of Saratoga, but Gen didn't care. He taught her to hook the bait, educated her on tackle, and gave her a quick lesson on throwing the rod. Gen sat back and watched the line, waiting for a wiggle or a jump. Now that she was here, she wanted to catch a fish. A bigger one than Wolfe, so she could always lord it over him.

"I don't even want to know what you're thinking with that grin on your face," he commented.

"Good, 'cause I'm not telling. Can I ask another question? One that may be out of line?"

"Sure."

"Why do you have only one name?"

His shoulders tightened, and she regretted asking. Since she'd escaped the altar, her curiosity about his past was growing stronger. She waited for him to call on their pinky promise, but he surprised her once again.

"I was someone else a long time ago. Shit happened. When Sawyer took me in, I was so mixed-up I thought if I changed my name I'd be someone else."

"That makes perfect sense. A new slate. Why did you pick Wolfe? How come it wasn't Snake or Serpent like your tat?"

His lip kicked up in a half grin. "That would just be stupid."

She grinned with him. "Guess so."

He was quiet, staring down at his fishing rod. "I picked Wolfe because it's a symbol of a great hunter. I wanted to feel that type of power for a change. The hunter and predator. Not the hunted. Not prey."

His words blasted through and connected to her on a deep level. Somehow, he was giving her the piece to the puzzle that had made him, but it was too fast and too big to decipher. The snap of the line interrupted them, and suddenly he was jerking the rod, reeling in his prize, while Gen got caught in the excitement and started yelling.

"Pull harder, to the left, you're gonna lose him, you got one!"

"Shush, you're scaring them away. Think it's a big one."

The rod bent and the fish appeared, flopping madly and spraying water everywhere as Wolfe dragged the fish into the boat. Wolfe unhooked the line, staring with sheer pride at his catch.

Gen stared at the fish. Medium sized. Silvery. Its gills working, its eyes seemed to bug out as it realized its life was officially over. It'd be asphyxiated and suffer a slow, painful death.

"Son of a bitch, I got one! Now, I think Sawyer said to knock him out with one of those hammer things. I brought one right here, I think, and I-- Gen, what are you doing? Gen? Hey!"

She dove across the boat, grabbed the slimy, slippery fish, and, barely managing to hold on to it, tossed it back into the water.

Ripples vibrated on the surface, then stilled. Relief loosened her shoulders. Thank goodness. She never thought she was squeamish, but no way was she going to be a part of hurting and torturing a poor animal. It'd swim back to its fishy family and hopefully avoid such tricks in the future.

She was probably more like her sister Alexa than she thought.

Smiling, she turned and stopped dead.

Uh-oh.

"Did you just throw away the fish I caught?" His voice hit a high-pitched note she rarely heard. Like he was really pissed. So pissed he couldn't control his voice.

She winced. "I'm sorry. I couldn't do it. I couldn't be a part of a murder."

His brows lowered in a fierce frown. "Are you kidding me? It's a fish. You eat fish all the time and never had a problem. Now you're comparing it to a homicide?"

She tilted her chin. "Because it is. You were going to smash his head. It'll hurt. Let's just catch them for fun and toss them back."

He growled, took a step toward her, then gripped the fishing rod like he imagined it was her neck. "Fish have no nerve endings. And forgive me, but I don't find it fun to toss back a catch that I earned. It's lame."

She glared back at him. "How do you know fish have no nerves? Were you reincarnated? And it's not lame, it's humane."

"Touch my fish again, sweetheart, and you're gonna be in trouble."

She opened her mouth to yell back at him, then saw a black object moving quickly along the floor toward Wolfe's foot. When she realized what it was, she snapped back her words and shrugged. He wanted to act like a murderer without conscience? Fine. He'd be punished in own way. It was karmic.

"I'm glad you finally agree." He gave a half-assed swat at his lower leg, but she watched the fuzzy body avoid the swish of his fingers and travel higher. Yeah. This was gonna be good. "Now stay quiet while I try and catch another one."

"Not a word?" she asked sweetly.

"Not one." He swiped again, but the bug reached the edge of his shorts and hovered. What if it went underneath? She nibbled at her lower lip, suddenly worried. Could a young, healthy male have a heart attack if his phobia came to life? Should she mention it even though he was being mean?

"Umm, Wolfe, I should tell you one thing."

"You've done enough. I want fish for dinner tonight and I'm gonna get it."

"Maybe instead of trying to kill fish you should try and murder something more important."

"Yeah? Like what?"

She pointed to the spider on his bare thigh. "Like that spider."

"Holy shit!"

It happened so fast the scene was a blur.

Wolfe hopped on one leg, swiping furiously at his shorts, and began to fall over. The boat ti

lted to the right, paused, and dumped the two of them over the side.

They both tumbled into the water. Gasping and trying to close her mouth, Gen felt cold liquid seep through her clothes and hit her like a shock wave. Her hair stuck to her face, and she spit frantically, afraid she'd gotten a mouthful of seaweed. The idea of being in the same realm as an alligator or sea monster made her go nuts.

"Get me out of here!" she yelled. "Don't let me die here!"

Strong arms wrapped around her waist, holding her up. His legs scissored between hers as he kept her on the surface. "Why are you yelling like a crazy person? You know how to swim."

Gen screeched and wrapped her arms and legs around him tight. "There are things in here! Creepy, crawly, swimmy things. Get me back in the boat now!"

His low laugh vibrated in her ear. Goose bumps broke out on her skin, and a melty sensation throbbed between her thighs. His hair-roughened leg slid back and forth, hitting a sweet spot. "There was a spider on me. A giant spider. Did you know about this?"

She shook her head hard and whimpered. "No, I swear, please get us back in the boat."

"Okay. But no more interfering with my fishing. I'll just grab the boat and--what the hell was that?"

"What? What?"

"I don't know, something touched my leg. It seems to have fingers, almost like a hand."

Gen opened her mouth and screamed.

His laughter barely processed as she began wiggling and trying to claw her way back to the boat. She finally reached the side, and felt strong hands cup her bottom, lifting her higher and higher until she fell in a tangle of limbs back to safety. Gen jumped up and began slapping at her legs, pulling off pieces of seaweed. Wolfe climbed back in, sat down on the seat, and chuckled.

"Oh man, you should have seen your face. Priceless."

"You are an asshole! There was no hand, you liar."

"Sorry, sweetheart, I couldn't help it."

"I hate fishing. This entire episode sucks. I'm wet and tired and icky."

"It's been a challenge, but I'm sure it'll get better. Not much else can happen. It's a nice day. Maybe we can go back to the dock and go for a hike."

God spoke again.

The sun disappeared and a few raindrops fell from the sky. She blinked and looked up. Not possible. Was it?

"Is it raining?" she screeched.

Wolfe looked up. The drops began to fall faster. "Yeah, we better get back. Where's the oar?"