Nick’s parasail ride was nearing its conclusion, and he felt himself descending as the boat slowed. Gary worked the crank, reeling in the tether line to bring Nick back to the flat landing area at the rear of the boat. He stretched his legs straight in front of him in preparation, then made a perfect landing on his butt. Gary quickly gathered up the parasail while Nick shrugged off the harness and scooted forward.
“Have a good time up there?” Felicia asked in her West Indies accent.
Nick ran his fingers through his hair. “Very relaxing, yet stimulating.”
“Whatever makes you happy, hon.”
In a few minutes they were underway, heading back to the dock outside the Sunset Resort. The small white sandy beach, one of the few in the Upper Keys, was half-filled with sun worshipers occupying chaise lounges and kids splashing in the warm water. Felicia positioned herself next to Nick, then held the camera in front of them to take a couple of selfies with the three-story hotel in the background.
After the boat was docked, Nick took out his wallet and gave Gary a ten-dollar tip. Nick and Felicia deboarded and walked along the dock to the beach, heading for the parking lot.
Felicia took a deep breath. “Beautiful day. I love it when the sky’s clear. Not too hot, either.”
“Making you homesick?”
“Maybe a little. Back home, I used to hit the beach nearly every day before I went to work.” She leaned in close and lowered her voice a notch. “Some days, I’d visit the clothing-optional one.”
Nick chuckled. “I always knew you were a closet exhibitionist.”
“Hey, if you’ve got it, you shouldn’t keep it hidden.”
He ran a lusty scan of her shapely bronzed frame, highlighted by a white mesh string bikini. “You’ve definitely got it.”
He stopped when they reached a railing that separated the beach from the sidewalk. Nick took the camera and stepped back a few feet.
“Give me a good pose,” he said.
Felicia leaned against the railing and rested her right arm on it. “You want casual or touristy?”
“Sex. Raw, uninhibited, can’t-wait-to-tear-that-bikini-off-with-my-teeth sex.”
Felicia laughed. “I can’t give you that with all these people around.”
“Improvise.”
Felicia struck a pose with one leg bent slightly inward to show off her toned thigh, while giving him the sultriest look in her arsenal. After Nick took two shots, she requested a close-up. He zoomed in on her upper torso and face. Felicia brought her free hand up then raised her middle finger, while giving him a coy look.
Nick laughed. “Beautiful! That shows the real you.”
They walked to Nick’s Mustang convertible in the parking lot. He lowered the top for the drive home. After crossing U.S. 1, he merged with the northbound traffic on the other side of the median. The blowing wind felt good, offsetting the sultry Keys humidity of early Spring.
“What do you think about when you’re sailin’ up there?” Felicia asked.
Nick took a moment to compose a response. “Mainly how lucky I feel having you here.”
She rested her hand on his bare knee and gave it a squeeze. “You’re sweet. I feel pretty damn lucky, too.”
Nick gave her a sideways glance. “I don’t think you’ve ever said that before.”
“Then that’s my bad. I think back to the day a few years ago when you asked me to stay here with you instead of goin’ home after that op was finished. I thought we just got to enjoy each other for a little while and my time in your life was over. You kinda surprised me when you made your indecent proposal.”
“Indecent proposal?”
“Askin’ me to shack up with you without offerin’ me a ring.”
He laughed. “Would that make you feel like an honest woman?”
“Not really necessary because I’m not that insecure. There are a lot of reasons why I’m glad I stayed here. It reminds me of home, there’s a lot to do, and we have fun together.” She hesitated. “And I have to admit, the sex is pretty damn terrific.”
Nick sighed. “You’re telling me.”
Can you, for those who don't know you already, tell something about yourself and how you became an author?
I became a published author 20 years ago, but I’ve been writing since high school. My first adventure novel “Memories Die Last” came about from a personal challenge. I’d had this idea for a story with a unique hero for a lot of years and one day, I told myself to either write the damn thing or stop saying “Someday I’m going to write that book…” I found a publisher who liked it, it found an audience, won a couple of awards, and I was off to the races.
My current release “Out of the Shadows” is my 29th published book. This is the 8th installment in the Nick Seven Florida-based spy thriller series that began with “Memories Die Last,” but I have two other series. One features a former cop turned private eye named Vic Fallon, who operates in the Lake Erie town of Sandusky, Ohio. I also have a series of summer short reads under the umbrella title “Key West Heat,” and have published a number of holiday romance short stories.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
Getting some great reviews for my first book was one indication, along with the first royalty check. Shortly after publication I was part of a book signing event and was introduced as “Tim Smith, the author of…” That made it sink in. A few years later I was doing a signing tour in the Florida Keys to promote my third Keys-based adventure. I walked into one of the bookstores and saw my books on the shelf alongside Florida authors I admired, like Tim Dorsey and James W. Hall. There were also customers waiting for me to get autographed copies of my newest book. I thought “Smith, you have arrived!”
Do you have a favorite movie?
I’m a movie buff, and I gravitate toward classic film noir crime capers from the ‘40s and ‘50s. Films like “The Maltese Falcon,” “The Big Sleep” and “Double Indemnity,” among others, inspired me to pursue writing when I was growing up. My mother was an avid reader and when I enjoyed a movie that was based on a book, I’d get the book from the library. If I liked it, she could usually suggest an author who wrote in a similar style. It made me a well-rounded reader. Eventually I developed an interest in writing my own stories.
Which of your novels can you imagine made into a movie?
I can envision the entire Nick Seven series as a movie franchise. When I write any of my books, I see the action playing out in my mind like it’s on a giant movie screen. I’m often asked who I see playing the main characters, Nick Seven and his Barbadian lover and former co-worker, Felicia. Nick could easily be played by George Clooney or Brad Pitt, because they both have the flip smart-ass attitude I’ve written into the character. As for Felicia, I’m holding out for Kerry Washington or Marisol Nichols. If they aren’t available, I’d accept Angela Bassett.
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