Chapter 1
Paxton
Some days are hard, but this isn’t one of them. I’ve just dropped anchor at the Elliot Bay Marina in Seattle and am ready for a few days in the city before heading back to the open sea.
The sun is out, summer is here, and I’m planning on enjoying it. Especially after being alone for the last few weeks on the sailboat. When I planned my trip around the world, I knew I’d get lonely, but I think I underestimated just how isolated I would be.
Which is why I am going to enjoy this weekend in the city. Get some food that’s fancier than what I can stow in my cabin, and get a beer on tap instead of in a can.
I leave the marina with a goddamn grin on my face, that is until I hear my phone buzzing in my jeans pocket. I pull it out and see it’s my sister. I answer, even though I’m sure she’s ready to give me an earful. God knows I love her, but she is wound up real tight.
“What’s up, Claire?” I ask, slowing my pace and taking in the view. There’s a hotel with an outdoor bar close by and I head in that direction.
“Just making sure you are still going to be here in time. The wedding party will be here on Wednesday and—”
“I know,” I say, chuckling. “I plan on arriving at Friday Harbor by Tuesday. You’ll be happy to know I’m in Seattle right now. Only a handful of hours away.”
“You are?” I can imagine her shoulders relaxing at this. She’s been planning her wedding for the last year and has every detail sorted. Me arriving on time is critical. “Oh thank goodness, Paxton. I know you rerouted your course for me, and it means so much. I couldn’t imagine getting married without you walking me down the aisle.”
“Don’t worry about me.”
“I wish you were coming with a date,” she says.
I run a hand over my beard. “Yeah? Well that’s not going to happen.”
“Maybe if you shaved your beard and put on a pair of slacks you could find someone to settle down with.”
“How could I settle down when I live on a boat?” I ask, shaking my head. “Besides, this is the Pacific Northwest — every other guy here has one. I don’t think my beard is the issue.”
Claire laughs. “You’re probably right. But I would like to see my big brother happy.”
I look out at the sound, the gentle rolling water, the seagulls flying overhead, the sun just beginning to set over the mountains.
“I promise, I am happier than I’ve ever been,” I tell her. “And nothing’s changing that anytime soon.”
Penny
“I just don’t know why you won’t download a dating app and get on with it,” Lucy moans, lifting her cocktail and taking a sip.
“She’s right,” Tori says with a smirk. “The last three guys you went out with screwed you over.”
Lucy laughs. “Except not literally, of course.”
I roll my eyes. “Can we not talk about my lack of a sex life tonight, please?” The waiter stops at the table, delivering another round. I take my extra-dirty martini and offer him a smile. “Thank you, this is perfect.”
“Anything for the boss’s daughter,” he says before walking away.
I take a drink of my martini, wondering if I will ever get away from my family name. Probably not in this city. I’m an Aurora and my father basically owns the entire Seattle waterfront, along with the NFL team, and is so heavily invested in the tech start-ups that I can’t go anywhere without meeting a programmer with a great idea trying to chat me up in hopes of me putting in a good word.
Problem is, I want nothing to do with the family business. My father has held such tight reins on me since my mother passed and I’m tired of it. I love him, but controlling me won’t make losing his wife any easier.
I want to be my own person. Make choices for me and me alone. But it’s the being alone part that I’m tired of. I’m ready for a relationship.
Hence, happy hour with my two best friends, who are trying to help me mix things up. Everyone my dad sets me up with is an asshole in a tailored suit, and those men don’t care about me as a person. They look at me and see a fortune. I want someone to look at me think that I’m the real treasure.
Sappy? Sure. But what’s wrong with that? With wanting a love story that was written in the stars, not in a prenup?
“You need a totally different kind of man than you’re used to,” Tori says. “Like, you’ve only dated rich guys your father approves of. You need a wild man who can take you for a wild ride.”
Lucy claps. “Yes! Totally. I approve of this message! Give me your phone. Let’s download Bumble.”
“You’re both drunk. Bumble is a terrible idea. Can you imagine me, a virgin, having sex with a complete stranger?” I ask, laughing as I tuck my phone in my purse. “But I like the idea of a guy who is totally outside the box.”
“Really? Like a mountain man?” Lucy giggles and I shrug.
“Sure,” I say. “I mean, it’s time I have a little fun, right?”
My friends are jaw-dropped at my willingness to play along, but I’m done with being sweet little Penelope who plays by her father’s rules. I want more for my life. And I want that now.
“If you’re game,” Lucy says, “let’s pick someone out here.”
I laugh, not thinking they will find a rugged man at this swanky hotel bar.
Tori scans the bar. “Ohhh, a man like him.” She unabashedly points to a man with a thick beard, in a black tee shirt that’s tight around his ripped biceps. He’s in dark denim jeans that hug his ass perfectly, and has on leather Birkenstocks. His attire is the literal the opposite of what my father would deem appropriate for a Friday night out on the town.
Therefore, he is perfect.
Chapter 2
Paxton
When I see the trio of women pointing and staring at me, I momentarily wonder if I left the boat without putting on my pants, but I know my phone is in my back pocket, therefore I’m fully clothed. But damn, they are looking me up and down like a prized piece of meat.
I grin, walking over with my pint of IPA. “Did you need something?” I ask. Out of the three ladies sitting here with cocktails, there is only one that has my pulse quickening. She’s a dark-haired beauty with freckles across the bridge of her slightly upturned nose and pouty pink lips that I can’t help but imagine kissing.
“We did, actually,” a woman with a blunt blonde bob says. “I’m Lucy, this is Tori,” she points to a tall, slender woman in a pant suit. “And this is Penny,” she says, pulling out a stool for me beside the raven-haired woman with what I now see are sparkling green eyes. “And you are?”
I chuckle at her forwardness, not that I mind it. “I’m Paxton Hughes.”
“And what do you do, Paxton?” Tori asks. “Besides forgetting to shave.”
I run a hand over my beard, chuckling. “Should I be offended?”
Penny shakes her head, turning toward me. “Don’t mind them. They’ve made it their mission to set me up tonight, and they have their eyes on you to do the dirty work.”