Read Online Baby on Board by Lisa Ruff - Free Book Online

told me you would just look at the boat, then we’d leave. Then you surprise me with this!” Her voice rose with each word until she was nearly shouting. Fury had replaced fear.
    Ian stuck his head out of the companionway at that moment. He quickly shook his head at Patrick. “No go. We’re going to have to sail her in.”
    Patrick closed his eyes for a moment. What a mess. He could check the engine himself, but even if he found something that Ian had overlooked, they had few tools or spares with them to do repairs. He opened his eyes. There was no use hiding reality from her any longer.
    “We have to sail back, Katie.”
    “It won’t be like it was before,” Ian added. “We’ll be going downwind, so the boat won’t tip so much.”
    Kate looked at Ian, her eyes pleading. “Really?”
    Ian nodded and patted her shoulder. “We’ll take it slow,” he said with a smile. He stood on one of the cockpit benches and surveyed the water around them. “And there’s not so much wind now. We’d better get going.” He shot a glance at Patrick.
    Patrick read what his brother was thinking in a second. He saw Evan scan the water, too, and wince. The wind was dying. Fast. A typical July day on the Chesapeake. They needed to get going before it died out altogether.
    Frustrated, Patrick watched as the other two men did all the work. He couldn’t let go of Kate. Or, rather, she wouldn’t let go of him. The idea of sailing—of tipping over—had her clinging to him again. The sails went up in a matter of minutes. The wind was now a mere breeze, but it was blowing the right direction. Evan took the helm.
    Their slow passage through the water toward land eased Kate’s fears. She let loose her tight grip on Patrick’s arms and sat back a little. Ian offered her a handkerchief so she could wipe away her tears and blow her nose.
    “Thank you,” she said. “I must be a mess.”
    “I’ve seen worse,” Ian answered with a smile. “You should have been there when we got hit by a gale off Patagonia. Patty got doused by a wave when he went up to drop the jib. He swallowed at least two gallons of seawater. He looked like a drowned cat, and spent the next hour with his head over the side.” Ian chuckled. “ That was worse.”
    Kate managed a short laugh. “I guess it would be.”
    “You should have filmed that,” Evan said.
    Ian shook his head. “Too rough for the camera, but it would’ve been good footage.”
    “Yeah, so you could embarrass me,” Patrick added acerbically.
    “Of course,” Ian agreed. “Anything to keep you in your place.”
    The three men laughed, then fell silent.
    “It seems dangerous,” Kate finally said.
    “What does?” Patrick asked.
    “Sailing.”
    “Not really. It has its thrilling moments, but it’s not that dangerous.”
    “But the boat almost tipped over,” Kate protested. “And that boat you raced did go over on its side.”
    “That was a different situation,” Patrick said. “What happened today was normal. It’s called heeling. The wind pushes the sails, but the weight in the bottom of the keel pushes back.” She looked skeptical and he brushed a finger over her cheek. “I can explain the aerodynamics of a sail and how that transfers power to the keel, if you want.”
    She shook her head. “I’ll pass right now.”
    “Sailing’s only dangerous when you forget to be careful,” Ian said.
    “That’s right,” Evan piped up. “Remember Benny Stillson last season? The boat jibes, the boom hits him in the head and he’s dead like that.” He finished with a snap of his fingers.
    Kate’s eyes widened and she gulped.
    “Do you have to tell that story now?” Patrick ground out.
    “It’s not a story,” Evan shot back. “It’s fact. And there are lots of other instances like that one.”
    “He was a good sailor. I never understood how he missed that call,” Ian said.
    “One too many beers, is my guess,” Evan answered.
    “Benny didn’t drink.”
    Evan shrugged.