For Better, for Worse, Forever by Lurlene McDaniel Read Free Book Online

almost round the clock, taking trips that stretched for days at a time, which Brandon decided was the best thing for both of them. It kept them from fighting. Besides, Brandon liked being with April. He liked her parents too. They catered to her, but she seemed unaffected by their lavish indulgences. The contrast between Brandon’s home life and hers was startling to him. Even when his mother had been alive his home life had never been like April’s. And even though his father made plenty of money, his homehad never had the warmth and togetherness of the one her parents rented on St. Croix.
    He made good on his promise to take her sailing one Sunday afternoon toward the end of May. He borrowed a two-person sailboat from a friend and, hitching it to a trailer, drove with April to the far west end of the island, where powder-white beaches surrounded a boat launch. Once they were out on the water, he gave her the tiller.
    “What am I supposed to do?” she squealed, gripping the lever that was attached to the rudder that steered the boat.
    “Just keep her headed into the wind. If the sail starts to flap or go slack, move the tiller and chase the wind.”
    Chase the wind
. April had never experienced such sheer exhilaration as she did in the sailboat. Even parasailing didn’t compare. She was intoxicated by the rise and fall of the bow as it sliced through the water, the sound of the sail filling with wind, and the salty spray of the water wetting her face. She wondered if Mark would have loved it too. He’d been fascinated with fast cars, but she’d never cared much for the smell of exhaust and the noise of roaring engines. The scent of the seaand the sound of the breeze were much more to her liking.
    She watched Brandon covertly. His sun-streaked brown hair was windblown and his skin glowed with a golden tan. He wore a bright red tank top and swimming trunks that showed off his muscular arms and legs. She realized with a start that she was attracted to him and that she cared for him. After Mark, she’d never thought she would care for another guy. And, she reminded herself, with her medical history, she shouldn’t be thinking about such things. It wasn’t fair to Brandon.
    “Bring her about!” Brandon shouted, snapping April back to the present.
    April turned the tiller until the sail went slack. The boat floundered.
    “Watch out for the boom when it comes around.”
    The bottom arm of the mainsail slowly swung around as the sail filled again, and as the sail changed directions, so did the boat.
    “You’re very good at this,” Brandon said, moving to sit beside her near the tiller. “You sure you’ve never sailed before?”
    She shook her head. “But you can bet I’lldo it again. Tell me about your boat—the one in dry dock.”
    “It’s a thirty-two-footer with beautiful teak decks. It can sleep four and has a galley—that’s a kitchen—and it was built in Denmark.”
    “Who taught you how to sail?”
    A faraway look crept into his blue eyes. “It was my mother’s boat, really. She’s the one who taught me how to sail.”
    He told her nothing else, but she sensed his sadness at being reminded of his mother. She was sorry she’d brought it up. “Well, thanks for bringing me today and for taking the time to teach me. It’s wonderful fun.”
    “Maybe your father could get you a small boat. There’s got to be water up where you live.”
    Now it was April’s turn to back away emotionally. She knew that her time on St. Croix was limited. That sooner or later she’d have to go home. And at home, she’d have to figure out what to do with the rest of her life. “The water around Long Island can sometimes get cold,” she said. “It’s not the same as St. Croix.”
    When Brandon dropped her off late in theafternoon, he asked, “How about dressing up and going to dinner with me tonight? I’ll take you to the Buccaneer. They have a band that plays on Saturday nights. A rock group, not one of those