Bristol Bay 3 - Love and Tequila Make Her Crazy

Copyright This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are theproduct of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblanceto actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. Love & Tequila Make Her Crazy © 2022 by Brittanee Nicole All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any mannerwithout written permission to the copyright owner except for the use ofquotations in a book review. First Edition March 2022 Cover Design by Cover to Cover Author Services Editing by Happily Editing Anns Dedication John, You’re my first, my last, my everything…and I’m your favorite person. Thanks for sharing this life with me. I love you. Brittanee Love & Tequila Make Her Crazy Playlist Listen to this playlist on Spotify now! Freedom Was A Highway by Jimmie Allen and Brad Paisley Tequila by Dan & Shay Wyd now? by Sadie Jean Three Little Birds by Bob Marley 23 by Sam Hunt Love Story by Taylor Swift Never Say Never by Cole Swindell & Lainey Wilson Springsteen by Eric Church One Man Band by Old Dominion You and Tequila by Kenny Chesney If I Didn’t Love You by Jason Aldean & Carrie Underwood Written in the Sand by Old Dominion Hurts So Good by John Mellencamp Dreams by Fleetwood Mac Let Go by Frou Frou Love You Too Late by Cole Swindell She’s Everything by Brad Paisley Mine by Taylor Swift Nate Nine Years old “Shhh. Stop giggling or they are going to find us.” Covering Amelia’s pink lips with my hand, I pull her lower into our hiding spot, the smell of chocolate overwhelming me. “Did you bring a cookie with you?” Amelia’s eyes grow wide, and she shakes her head, but I know better. The seven-year-old goes nowhere without chocolate. Chocolate chip cookies to be exact. Her cheeks are constantly smudged with dark black and I’m never sure if it’s chocolate or dirt. She’s not a girl who likes bows or playing with Barbies, but chocolate and chasing after us boys, those are her two favorite things. I glare at her, letting her know that I don’t believe her, and she timidly pulls the telltale blue Chips Ahoy! bag out of her pocket. It’s crinkled and missing a few cookies, but she offers them to me anyway. I laugh and shake my head. “Put them away before we get caught.” Amelia shrugs and takes a cookie out before stuffing the bag back in her pocket. “It’s been a while. I don’t think they’re coming.” I lean back against the bed and cross my ankles like my dad does when he relaxes after a long day at work. “We picked a pretty good spot.” She giggles again, and her white-blonde hair falls wispily in front of her face. She needs a haircut. Badly. “They know the boat is your favorite spot. I’m not sure how Jack never figures out this is where we hide.” They probably just figure I’m not about to bring Jack’s seven-year-old sister onto my dad’s boat. Or they are using this excuse to play basketball while Amelia is missing. Jack hates having his little sister trailing us all the time. I feel bad for the kid. There are only boys in the neighborhood, and she’s harmless. Besides, she’s always got chocolate, and I happen to love chocolate. And she laughs at all my jokes. No one laughs at my jokes. I’m not even sure I’m funny, but she sure thinks so. “Give me a cookie, Cookie.” Amelia smiles at her given nickname. I’m the only one who calls her that, and never in front of the boys. I’m not asking for a beating. I’m pretty sure Jack and Peter would tease me relentlessly if they knew I actually liked spending time with Amelia. And then Jack would probably punch me. It’s not like I like her, like her. She’s seven. Pulling the blue bag out of her shorts, she grabs a cookie and hands it to me and then lies down next to me in the bed which sits behind the seating area of the boat. The boat has bunk beds, a master bedroom, and this sneak-away bed in the back. It’s my favorite spot because it gives me privacy. When Jack or Peter come for an overnight trip with my parents, we stay in the bunks, but when it’s just me—the only child—and my parents, I like this spot better. And it makes an excellent hiding spot. Although, I’m almost positive the boys are no longer looking for us. Amelia turns her greyish-blue eyes to me. “Do you think I’ll get seasick?” I consider her question seriously. “No. I mean we’re on the boat now and you’re not sick.” “Right. But we aren’t moving.” For the first time, Jack’s parents are coming to Block Island with my family, and we are taking our two boats. My dad has been spending the past few weekends with Jack’s dad teaching him everything he knows about boating. And I get to help him. The other boys don’t get to come when we go out for the day, but since I’ve been boating with Dad since I was in diapers, he lets me come along, and I’ve got to be honest, I think even Dad would admit I’m more help than Jack’s dad. This trip to Block Island is definitely going to be a test for him. “You’ll be fine, Cookie. But to be on the safe side, I wouldn’t recommend eating any chocolate before you get on the boat.” She cocks her eyebrow up at me. This is an impossible ask. The girl eats Cocoa Puffs for breakfast, Nutella and peanut butter for lunch, and cries if her mom doesn’t give her strawberries with chocolate to dip them in for snack. Amelia and chocolate go together like peanut butter and jelly. Footsteps on the dock take my eyes off the chocolate which stains Amelia’s upper lip.