Veritas (3 page)

Grey pocketed her change and looked
at a spot that was just over Lauren’s right shoulder, grateful that the mirrored lenses of her sunglasses hid the fact that she was not looking her in the eye. “What’s next?”

Lauren looked at her list
again, even though she had checked it only moments before. “We have everything but the meats from the butcher.”

Grey glanced at her watch. The polished steel hands stood out easily against the orange face, telling her that it was just after eight o’clock, and she nodded. “It all should be ready and waiting for us.” She had called the butcher and placed Lauren’s order while she drove to the market. The call served two purposes: first, the food would be ready when they arrived; and second, it gave her a few minutes respite from the
tension that surrounded her and Lauren. She really was trying to behave as normally as possible, but she knew by the cautious glances Lauren kept shooting her way that she was failing miserably at it.
Of all the chefs in the world…
she lamented silently. She cleared her throat and waved a hand toward her car. “The butcher is on the way back to the marina.”

Lauren nodded, picked up her bags, and headed toward the half of the parking lot that was actually being used for its intended purpose. She wandered toward the back row of the lot to where they had parked, and stopped behind Grey’s red Mini Cooper. She remained quiet as she stowed her bags in the back of the car, and glanced only once at Grey as she slipped into the passenger’s seat.

More of the modern classical music Grey had been listening to earlier poured from the speakers as Grey started the car, and Lauren sighed as she looked out the window. At least now there was some music to fill the tense silence between them. Despite her growing frustration, Lauren could not help stealing quick glances at Grey, who was staring purposefully out the windshield. Grey’s jaw was clenched tight, the corded muscles of her forearms visible as she gripped the steering wheel much harder than was necessary. It was obvious that she wanted to be anywhere else at that moment, and Lauren pursed her lips as she looked away again.

Though she was doing her best to not look at Lauren, Grey did not miss the hurt that had flashed across
Lauren’s face before she turned toward her window. Guilt swept through her, and she gave herself a sound mental head-slap. It was not Lauren’s fault that her mere presence was driving her insane. And, like it or not, she also knew that the two of them needed to be at least passably friendly with each other once the Mueller family arrived later that morning. “So, um…you’re a chef in New York?”

“I am,” Lauren said
softly. Her eyes flicked over toward Grey, whose grip on the steering wheel seemed to have somehow managed to become even tighter, and sighed as she looked back out her window.

“What made you decide to do this?” Grey
kept her eyes on the road ahead as she waved a hand to indicate the whole Virgin Islands, working-on-a-boat thing.

Lauren shrugged. “I haven’t had a
proper vacation in ten years and, well, I had a bunch of time saved up because the restaurant kept letting me rollover the days I didn’t take. The idea of doing nothing was not at all appealing because I’m one of those people who need to always have something to do. A good friend of mine had rented a yacht and cruised around the Caribbean last summer for her honeymoon, and I figured that signing-on as a private chef was a good way to get out of New York for a bit and still keep busy.”

Grey chuckled. “So, you’re spending your first vacation in a decade working.”

“On a beautiful yacht, sailing around the Caribbean, yes,” Lauren replied. “Kelly Kipling, the woman I interviewed with, said that I would have time to snorkel and explore whatever islands we make port at, and I actually love cooking, so it seemed like a win-win kind of deal.”

“You will have
plenty of time for all of that,” Grey said, daring to glance at Lauren as she pulled to a stop in front of the butcher’s. A small smile was tweaking Lauren’s lips, like she was pleased they had just managed to have an actual conversation that was halfway-normal. Grey’s heart clenched as she drank in Lauren’s profile, her eyes lingering on the rogue curl tickling the side of Lauren’s cheek, but she forced herself to ignore it as she quickly climbed out of the car. Now was not the time for her to worry about anything other than getting ready to sail later that afternoon.

Grey nodded
in response to the small, grateful smile Lauren gave her when she held the door to the butcher shop open for her, and turned her attention to the man who was standing behind the counter. Eddie Jones was wearing one of his typically gaudy Hawaiian shirts covered in big-breasted women wearing coconut bras and grass skirts, and Grey smiled when she recognized it as the one she had given him for his birthday the year before.

“Grey!” Eddie hollered, a wide smile lighting up his face
as Grey slapped his hand in greeting. “I have everything you wanted right here. You wanna have a look?”

Grey glanced at Lauren and arched a brow questioningly. I
f it were up to her, she would just grab the stuff and go, but she knew from the way Lauren had dug through the produce stands earlier that she would want to see what he had pulled for them.

“Yes, please,” Lauren said
as she stepped up to the counter. She smiled at the appraising look the butcher gave her. “Hi. I’m Lauren Murphy.”

“Eddie Jon
es.” He shook her hand. “You’re not from around here, are you?”

Lauren
shook her head. “New York, actually. I’m just down here for a few weeks.”

“And you chose to work for this one?” Eddie teased, smirking at Grey.

“Shut up,” Grey grumbled as she shot him a playful glare.

Lauren
glanced over at Grey. “I did,” she said, though the words sounded less assured than she would have preferred.

“Smart girl
.” Eddie winked and turned his attention to the pile of wrapped meats that were stacked beside him. “So, here’s what I have for ya…” He showed Lauren the steaks, sausages, ground beef, and chicken he had prepared according to Grey’s order. He carefully rewrapped each bundle after Lauren nodded her approval and set them into a large brown paper bag. When the last white-paper package was placed inside the bag, he folded the top over and slid it across the counter beside the register. “I’ll put it on your tab,” Eddie told Grey.

“Sounds good, man. Thanks,” Grey said
as she reached for the bag. She grunted softly as she hefted it off of the counter, and forced herself to smile as she glanced at Lauren. “You ready?”

“Of course,” Lauren mur
mured. She looked back at Eddie and added, “It was nice to meet you.”

Eddie
nodded. “You too, Lauren Murphy. Good luck.”

Lauren
flashed him a small smile and nodded. “Thanks.”
I have a feeling I’m going to need it,
she added silently to herself as she looked back at Grey, who was already halfway out the door.

Lauren was in the galley prepping the burgers she was going to make for lunch when the sound of excited voices spilled through the open sliding doors into the salon. The
Mueller family had finally arrived.

Lauren
looked over her shoulder at the clock on the range, and was shocked to see that three hours had passed since she and Grey had returned to the
Veritas
. She had spent the time preparing as many of the ingredients she would be using during the next couple days as she could, while Grey stayed as far away from her as possible, checking and re-checking the boat’s mechanicals to make sure they were ready to sail. The break from the inexplicable tension that simmered between them had been a blessing, and Lauren sighed as she felt her stomach twist uncomfortably when she looked at Grey, who was already on the back deck greeting their guests. Whatever it was that had Grey behaving so strangely obviously had something to do with her, because the genuine smile lighting the brunette’s face now showed none of the strain that had been directed toward her earlier.

Both of the parents and all three boys were smiling as they nodded in response to whatever it was Grey was saying, all of them obviously thrilled to be on the boat, and Lauren wiped her hands off on a dishtowel as she walked out of the galley to greet them.

Though Lauren was sure that none of their guests noticed, it did not escape her attention that Grey’s smile dimmed the moment she set foot on deck, and she forced herself to act like she did not notice it as she approached the group.

Grey took a deep breath and held it as
she watched Lauren saunter out of the salon like she had done it a thousand times before. Lauren had changed into the shirt she had given her—a white ClimaCool polo with
Veritas
stitched in red over the right breast—and seeing her in the polo made Grey regret giving it to her. It was hard enough to look at Lauren and not be assaulted by the ghosts of her past when the redhead was in her regular clothes, but when she was in uniform… Grey sighed and focused her attention on the Mueller boys, who were dressed in matching blue and red patterned boardshorts and white rash guards and were practically vibrating with excitement. “This is Lauren Murphy.” Grey waved a hand at Lauren. “She’ll be the one preparing all our meals.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all,” Lauren said, tipping her head in greeting.

“I’m Will,” the husband introduced himself, smiling as he shook Lauren’s hand. “And this is my wife Kim, and our boys Reid, who’s five, and Peyton and Max, who are seven.”

Lauren nodded and shook Kim’s hand before turning her attention to the boys. All three took after their mother with their honey-blond hair and bright blue eyes, though they had their father’s olive-toned skin. “How’s it going, guys?” she asked, holding her hands out and getting high fives from each of them. “You hungry?”

“Starving!” Reid announced dramatically as his brothers nodded their agreement.

“Great.
” Lauren grinned at them and arched a brow questioningly. “How do burgers sound?”

Grey smiled at the way
the boys cheered and jumped up and down eagerly in response to Lauren’s question. Taking families out on cruises was always fun because the kids got so excited about everything. And the younger they were, the more amplified that excitement became, which made the trip all the more enjoyable for her.

Because she knew that they were running on a
tight schedule to get out of port before the seas kicked up later that afternoon, Grey clapped her hands and drew everyone’s attention back onto herself. “Well, while Lauren makes lunch, why don’t I show you guys to your cabins so you can unpack a bit. After lunch, we’ll leave for Saint Frances Bay. It’s a short sail, and you’ll have plenty of time to swim or explore the beach before dinner.”

The kids needed no further encouragement as they ran off to find their rooms for the trip, and Grey chuckled as she led Will and Kim inside, giving
them basically the same spiel she had delivered to Lauren earlier that morning. “This is the salon…”

Lauren hung back on the deck a
nd watched through the open doors as Grey showed the Muellers around, and only wandered inside once the family had disappeared down the starboard stairs to the cabins Reid and Will and Kim would be using. She smiled at Max and Peyton when the boys sprinted back into the salon to check out their cabins again, and she chuckled under her breath at the sound of them bouncing on one bed, running through the small bathroom that joined their rooms, and then jumping on the other bed.

Lunch was definitely a more active affair than Lauren was used to, but the boys’ excitement over being on “a real sailboat” was palpable
, and she found her own anticipation for the trip building as she listened to them talk about everything they hoped to see and do. She was no stranger to being on the water, but the Caribbean promised far more adventure than the lake she had grown up on could ever do, and by the time the burgers and oven fries were polished off, she was just as ready as the kids were to get underway.

Lauren collected everybody’s plates and carried them into the kitchen, wav
ing off Kim’s offer to help, though she did smile gratefully at Grey when the brunette brought all the condiments inside and put them back in the fridge. Lauren rinsed off the plates and loaded them into the dishwasher, and she was pleasantly surprised when Grey picked up a dishtowel to dry the baking sheet for her. “Thank you,” Lauren murmured as she watched Grey put the baking sheet away in its proper place.

Grey glanced at Lauren and nodded as she hooked the door shut with her heel. She
was halfway to the sliding doors by the time the cabinet door clicked shut, the magnet in the frame holding it closed. She did not look back as she wandered through the salon to the back deck, and she took a deep breath as her eyes swept over the familiar contours of the marina. The promise of having the wind in her face as they skipped across the sea made the weight that had settled on her chest all morning completely disappear, and she was suddenly itching to go. To motor to the mouth of the harbor, hoist the mainsail, and let the wind carry her away. Even the sound of Lauren’s quiet footsteps coming out of the salon behind her did little to dampen her spirits, and Grey was still smiling when she turned to look at her. “Can you throw the lines?”