Everyone could see something was up. Ria and Jake had barely spoken over the last 2 days, and they could only get so far away from eachother on the boat. The weird part was...they still slept in the same bed. No one could figure it out.

They of course didnt know what had happened.

Nor were they present for the conversation that happened after the incident on the stateroom.

Ria had found Jake down by the dock, head in his hands cigarette hanging out of his mouth. His whole body was shaking with anger. He nearly took her head off when she put a hand very gently.

"Jake" She said softly "Why are you so angry?"

"I dont fucking know Ria! Im pissed all the time. i see you with other guys, and i get so angry can barely see straight. Im so annoyed by having you on the boat, but i ache to see you when your away. I get so angry when you dont talk to me, and nearly have a heart attack when we sleep together every night. I dont know whats wrong with my head! I cant shake this feeling that i need you, and I want you so bad but I dont get why. That night in the bar when you waked in. The way I saw you before changed and I couldnt get you out of my head. And now everytime I see you, I wanna tell you all this but I cant get the words out. So I act like a fucking asshole, and try to push you away so I wont feel this way because I dont wanna fucking lose you. I am so fucked in the head Ria, and no one. No one can fix it."

He finally finished breathing heavily. Ria's mouth fell open slightly, as she watched him pace.

"Why didnt you tell me." She said after along mment of silence

His expression softened "Because Ria. Your my bestfriend, and you deserve so much better than-

"Stop it." she said coldly "Don't you dare tell me what I deserve Jacob. Fuck!"

she said suddenly cuasing him to jump slightly

"I have been fucking in love with you since I was 16, and you blew me off for years. After all the shit that I've fucking been through, I always had you and maybe not in the way I wanted it to be but that ache never went away. And thenI get a glimmer of hope sometimes and you shoot me down. I cant do it anymore Jake. You need to decide what you want."

She was now standing up a few feet away from him, fist balled up at her sides. Jake looked out over the Bering Sea and then back at her.

"I want you Ria. It's always been you. I could never tell you how I felt because I wasn't afraid of losing you. I knew no matter how much I jerked you around, especially when we awere teenagers, I would always ahve you. I knew this whole time how you felt about me Ria.

Jake's eyes were locked on hers. She bit her lip, as he closed the space between them reaching out to wrap his arms around her. She gazed at him

"What the hell are we doing Jake?"

He snoreted as he ran his hands up and down her crossed arms.

"Being ourselves"

He leaned down and very gently kissed her. It wasn't like the kiss in the stateroom. It was soft and sweet, and gave her butterflies. She responded as their mouths moved slowly against eachothers. It felt so right, so perfect, and so new. When they broke apart, Jake smiled

"Soooo...He said "Are we like..."

She laughed, and pushed him away from her "Your too much Jacob. "

And that was just the way she liked him.

Jake had always known he was a tease.

But this was just wrong.

He and Ria had decided to keep their relationship secret for the time being in order to avoid the questions, and awkwardness on the boat. They got together when no one was around, and even thought that wasn't really enough for Jake he had to deal with it.

But Ria was just being unfair.

She was dangling herself in front of him, when they both knew he couldnt have her. She would wear short shorts, and tiny tank tops which showed several inches of flat stomach and back.

The other day, she was sitting on the counter in the kitchen knocking her feet against the wooden doors below, giving him so many dirty thoughts as she openly licked a lollipop. Every now and again she would run her tounge across her upper lip. He shuddered

She was sooo doing that on purpose.

They were at the bar last night laughing an having a good time when she put her hand on his knee. She slowly crept her fingers up his leg, underneath the table up to his upper thigh. She could see from his expression how nervous he was.

When they slept at night she would run her hands up and down his chest, and along the rim of his boxers, because he knew they couldnt do anything.

She was dong anything she could to get Jake's heart rate going, and it was working.

He watched her as she exited the bathroom weaaring a minscule tank top,and tiny shorts, rivulets of water from her shower sliding down her neck her long hair sticking to her neck and shoulders. She winked at him as she walked to the stateroom.

He shook his head.

That girl is going to be the death of me