In Deep Waters by Melissa McClone Page A

moment for about two seconds and went back to work recording information.
    ''We're past it." Her voice sounded much calmer than she felt. But the work continued. Gathering all the information, recording it in the logbook, breathing again. Finally, they finished.
    Monk yelped. He grabbed Kayla and gave her a quick hug. "You did it, darlin'."
    "We did do it." She felt like such a member of a team, one of the crew. For once, she belonged, and Kayla loved the feeling. They had worked so well together, even she and Ben.
    He shook Monk's hand and walked over to Kayla. "Good job."
    "Thanks." Her cheeks warmed. Ben's compliment meant more than it should, but she was too happy to worry about that now. "You weren't so bad yourself."
    Kayla hugged him. An impulsive gesture, as Monk's had been to her. She didn't expect a hug back. But she got one. A good one.
    Ben pulled her closer, enveloping her in his warmth. His soap-and-water scent was an intoxicating elixir. Blood roared through her veins. Her temperature soared. She didn't want to let go of Ben so she didn't.
    She relished being in his arms. A warm glow flowed through her. Kayla felt as if she'd come home. And it was a place she didn't want to leave. Not anytime soon.
    Was he feeling the same thing? She didn't want to know.
    Kayla waited for him to let go of her.
    But he didn't.
    Her heart hammered against her chest, against his. The intensity of attraction surprised her.
    Attraction?
    They didn't get along. It couldn't be attraction.
    Yet he continued holding her. And she still liked it.
    But this wasn't right. No matter how wonderful hugging him felt, it wasn't the right time for either one of them.
    Kayla pulled away, but Ben held on to her. A rash of power raced through her. She'd never felt so feminine and strong. She wanted him to find her desirable. She'd never cared about that in the past, but with Ben...
    She pulled away again. This time he released her.
    "I know what I saw." Monk brought up targets on the monitors. He filtered images and magnified them. The colors on the screen changed. "We all saw the same thing."
    "But is it the right one?" Ben asked.
    It had to be the right one. Kayla glanced at his profile, silhouetted against the glow from the monitors, and sucked in a breath. He looked more like a pirate than ever. Dark, dangerous, desirable. Tingly sensations raced along her nerve endings. From the top of her head all the way to her toes.
    She should be paying attention to what Monk was doing, but she couldn't stop staring at Ben. She didn't want to look away. It was as if she were seeing him for the first time, which made zero sense. She'd seen him plenty of times before, but each time his pull was stronger. This time more than the rest combined.
    "It's the right one." Monk typed on the keyboard and measured the images. "Come on."
    The impatience in his voice was enough to get her focused. Kayla studied the monitor and bit her lip. The Isabella was her priority. Not Ben.
    "Damn. It's long." Monk continued typing. Another image appeared on the screen. A cylinder. Most likely an exhaust stack.
    Kayla's heart sank to her feet. She wouldn't be surprised if her heart kept going until it hit the ocean floor and buried itself in the mud.
    It wasn't the Isabella.
    Monk cursed. She'd never heard some of the words spewing from his mouth. "Sorry, Kayla," he said after his tirade.
    "It's okay." She forced the words from her dry throat.
    She understood what Monk was feeling. Total devastation. Kayla slumped into a chair.
    A vein on Ben's neck throbbed. He pressed his lips together and squeezed her shoulder. "This happens all the time."
    Knowing that tidbit of information didn't make her feel better. Her emotions had gone from an all-time high to lower than low. She wanted to look away from the monitor so the exhaust stack would stop taunting her, but she couldn't. The image hypnotized her. It wasn't supposed to be turning out this way. It wasn't supposed to be this difficult.