𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡 | 𝐫𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐧

０１５．

So, Ren's night had definitely gone differently than planned.

She wasn't sure which was a more significant breach of her own expectations of herself; completely losing her head and telling Rafe shit she couldn't even admit to herself, or allowing him to end up in her bed for the second night in a row.

As much of a mindfuck as it was, he truly made her act like a different person. She just wasn't sure whether it was for the better or not.

And she wasn't sure what to think about the fact that he'd stayed at all. That he'd been able to not only look her in the eye, but to kiss her like that after she'd admitted to murder. Actual, real-life homicide.

Sounds like the country club cranked out some pretty heavy shit. Mack had laughed when she'd said it to him what felt like weeks ago, but maybe it was more true than she'd realized. Rafe had barely even faltered when she'd thrown the gruesome details of her past at him, and she couldn't help but wonder what had made him so desensitized as she rolled over to face him.

An empty bed stared back at her.

Ren sat up, glancing at the clock. It was only just eight, and he'd slept in past noon the day before. Not to mention that, once again, they'd been awake well into the morning hours.

Part of her was offended, but part of her was unsurprised. There was next to no intimacy in their relationship-- whatever it was-- and the unexpected kiss last night had been the closest they'd gotten to it. The bar was low.

Still, though, the fact that he'd had a protective arm around her throughout the entirety of the night didn't exactly prepare her to wake up to him completely disappeared.

But that was for the best. She'd ignored the warnings and red flags over and over again, and she'd let him get under her skin more than she could have ever expected, and she needed to distance herself. Which would have been easy enough if not for the fact that she was not still trying to get information about him and his family at the same time.

But she could do both. Yeah, she could go back to the Coastal Venture, figure out a way to bribe Mack or someone else on the crew. She could do it -- all of it -- without Rafe in her bed every evening.

It didn't particularly matter that she wanted him there.

So she slipped out of bed and dressed in the warm, early morning sunlight, and she headed to the docks, careful not to disturb Vanessa's sleeping form.

Just as she suspected, the Coastal Venture was there, rocking gently in the waves, days past the amount of time any container ship was expected to remain in port. And, just as she suspected, the crew was milling about the deck, pretending as though they were preparing to load or unload the ship despite the fact that they'd been doing nothing for the better part of a week now.

This time, she was lucky enough to have a gangway lowered prior to her arrival. No one was there to stop her, or even notice, as Ren strode upon the ship.

She milled about the crew, smiling easily and offering up what was left of her stock to anyone who looked her way for too long. Most of them were pleased to see her and even more pleased to see the coke in her hand, and didn't question her return to the ship so soon after she'd sold to them.

A quick scan of the deck told her that Mack was still asleep, or at the very least, hadn't emerged from his quarters below deck. And, lucky for Ren, there had been many an occasion where Mack had been exceptionally high -- enough so that he felt bold enough to invite her down to those very quarters. Though she'd never accepted, Ren knew precisely where to go, which door to knock on, and she leaned against the wall with a hefty wad of cash as she waited for Mack to open it.