by JoAnn Durgin
“Sure is.” At least it made her neighbor smile, relaxing her features. “I like that Italian, Tony what’s-his-name. I think he used to drive a taxi in New York. He and that hoity-toity blonde boss lady are funny.” She waved her hand in the air. “Always knew those two would end up together.”
“On the show, of course,” Serenity said.
“Well, yes. On the show.” Mrs. Marciano arched a brow. “If you’re that practical, you should be more worried about the man lurking outside.”
“Where is he?” When Serenity turned back toward the front door, the older woman reached out to stop her.
“Are you crazy? Don’t go out there now. You’d be opening up your life to a whole boatload of trouble.”
“I really don’t think you have to worry. I’m sure it’s Mr. Herndon’s cat or a dog chasing a rabbit into the bushes or something. This is a very safe, quiet neighborhood.”
“Well,” she huffed, “if you call tall and dark with lots of muscles safe, well, okay then.”
Serenity’s brows rose. Tall, dark and handsome? “Dark?”
“That’s what I said. It’s dark, you know?”
“What’s dark? The night or the man?” Serenity shook her head at this inane conversation.
“His hair.” Mrs. Marciano pointed to her head and rolled her eyes. “Dark. Wavy, I think.”
“What was he wearing?” Okay, that sounded a little strange. Mrs. Marciano might think she was as much a pervert as the man outside. If that’s what it—he—was.
She snorted. “Why does that matter? Can’t really tell you except I think it might have been black on top and jeans.” The crinkles in the corners of her neighbor’s eyes deepened. “Do you know this pervert?”
“I think I just might. What did the…what exactly did he do?” She almost slipped and called him a pervert. Serenity hid her grin.
“He kept walking up and down the sidewalk out front. Then he’d stop and stare at your house. I’m not afraid of some Sneaking Thomas, and thought if I came over and made a racket, he might leave. You think we should call the sheriff?”
“No, I don’t think that’s necessary.” Stalking to the front door, Serenity flung it wide and stomped outside on the front walkway in her bare feet. “Jackson!” she hissed. Something stirred in the bushes to the right of the front door and she jumped.
Moving behind her in the doorway, Mrs. Marciano put a hand on her arm. “You okay?” They both startled as another neighbor’s cat scampered out from beneath the bushes and across the sidewalk.
“Well, at least it’s not black,” the older woman said under her breath.
Serenity looked up to see Jackson walking toward her with a sheepish expression, as well he should, at this ridiculous hour. Crossing her arms, she eyed him with a sleepy smirk.
“I forgot to give you something earlier tonight.” Jackson nodded to Mrs. Marciano with a grin. “Evening, Mrs. Marciano.”
“Young man, doctor or not, fancy car or not, unless you just got off a plane from somewhere, it’s going on one o’clock in the morning. What kind of fool are you to be hanging around a single lady’s house at this hour?” She planted both feet apart, fingers gripping the skillet with both hands like a baseball bat at-the-ready, a menacing expression creasing her face.
Jackson’s mouth twisted with his effort not to grin. He held up both hands in surrender. “I assure you, I come in peace and mean you ladies no harm. Serenity, why don’t you tell this lovely woman where we went earlier today.”
“Delighted.” Serenity graced Mrs. Marciano with her sweetest smile. “Dr. Ross escorted me to Faire Kingdom today.”
“Did he now?” The skillet lowered and she stared at Jackson. “Son, that place is for kids.” She eyed him up and down. “You ain’t been a kid for a while now.”
Serenity bit her lip not to laugh and darted a quick glance at Jackson. “My dad used to take me there. I haven’t been in years and Jackson thought it would be fun. It was.” She gave him a wink, and it was worth it for the smile that lit his face. Tiny shivers ran through her.
“Only the best for Princess Serenity.”
Mrs. Marciano snorted again. “Princess Serenity,” she harrumphed. “Sounds like a fancy cat name to me.” She waved her hand. “You kids today are silly. Next thing I know you’ll be telling me you wore a crown or something crazy. Serenity, you want me to stay with you tonight?” She tossed a chastising glance at Jackson. “You never know what kind of pervert might be lurking around.”
“I think I’ll be safe enough, but I sincerely appreciate your concern for me.” She gave her neighbor a warm hug. “You’re a dear to come over here and check on me, especially at this time of the morning. Jackson’s a good friend and will protect me if there’s any real danger.”
Mrs. Marciano swatted Jackson’s arm as she moved past him, her expression a combination of wariness and bemused curiosity. “I know what goes on with you young people nowadays,” she said, wagging a finger in Jackson’s face. “Miss Serenity’s a good girl, Doc. You treat her right or you’ll be seeing the bigger end of this skillet up close and personal. And that’s no idle threat.” She held up the skillet for emphasis.
“I’m a man of honor, and I’ll be good. Promise.” Jackson’s warm smile and the sincerity of his words appeared to thaw Mrs. Marciano. “Let me walk you back home.”
Mrs. Marciano paused on the grass and inclined her head. “Okay, then. Get a move on. Don’t dawdle. And they say old people are slow.” She crooked her elbow, waiting. Serenity smiled as Jackson took her arm and they headed across the lawn.
Closing her front door, she wasn’t sure what to do. She suspected Jackson would return. But, he hadn’t wanted to come inside earlier in the evening, when it was still a respectable hour. Darting into her bedroom, she pulled on her shorts and her favorite pink tee. After running a brush through her hair, she returned to the living room.
Hesitating for a few seconds, she opened the door and stepped outside. She’d sit on the top step and wait for her prince to return.
~CHAPTER 37~
“Mrs. Marciano thinks you’re a pervert.” Serenity watched as Jackson settled beside her.
“Correction. She did, but I’ve managed to get back in her good graces.”
Conscious of the way her shorts had ridden up on her thighs, Serenity tugged down the hem on both legs.
“Too late. You can’t cover up the best view in town.”
Her cheeks flooded with heat. “Do you make it a habit of hanging around a single woman’s home uninvited in the wee hours of the morning?” She shook her head. “Wait a minute. That came out totally wrong. I retract the question.”
Jackson’s smile was enough to chase all coherent thoughts from her brain. “Only your house.”
“You still haven’t told me why you’re here,” she said. “I believe you said you forgot something earlier?” She suspected he meant a good night kiss.
Stretching out his legs, Jackson avoided her gaze. An inner voice whispered she wasn’t going to get a straight answer. At least not right away. She knew him well enough to know he was leading up to something. What, she had no idea.
“If you thought I’d invite you inside—”
“This isn’t anything like that.” He sounded almost brusque.
“Okay.” She shook her head. “Forgive me, but men don’t usually show up on a woman’s doorstep at this hour unless they’re looking for...companionship.”
He shifted his gaze back to hers. “You know me better than that.”
“I know. You wouldn’t even come inside earlier tonight.”
“Yeah, sorry for the timing.”
“Not that I’m not thrilled to see you, but couldn’t you have called?”
“This is something I wanted to discuss face-to-face and I decided it couldn’t wait. One of the main reasons I wanted to meet you on the beach was to tell you I got the report from Kyle.”
Serenity inhaled a quick, sharp breath. “He found her?
Is it bad?”
“No.” His lips curved. “Unless you consider living in New York a bad thing.”
“Manhattan?”
“Long Island. As of two years ago.”
“Oh.” A sudden coldness swept over her, making her shiver.
“May I?” When Jackson opened his arms, she snuggled in the curve of his warmth, resting her head on his shoulder.
“I used to wonder what would happen if she ever came back,” she said. “Would she act the same? Would she be sad or happy? Heavier, thinner, blonder, darker or the same?”
“She looks a lot like you, right? Or the other way around?”
“Yes, like in that photo you like so much,” she murmured. “Basically the same but with a few more lines around the eyes and a few pounds heavier.”
“Your dad would be pretty happy if she came back, don’t you think?”
“He would. Very much so. Even if she’d run away with another man—I’m not saying she did, but anything’s possible—Dad would forgive her. But in my heart, I know there’s no way she’d ever do that. They were soulmates, as much as any two people I’ve ever met.” She pulled back to look at him. “Except for Charlie and Marcela.”
Jackson absently stroked his fingers along her arm, up and down. She doubted he was even aware of what he was doing. “I met up with Clinton at McHenry’s the other day and we talked.”
“Oh, that’s right,” she said, “you’ve become best buds.” That came out more sarcastic than she intended. “Sorry. I warned you I inherited some of my dad’s cynicism.”
“I really like your dad,” Jackson said. “Beneath his crustiness is as soft a heart as I’ve ever known.”
“I know.” Her eyes misted. “Bet you didn’t expect that, huh?” She shrugged. “You’re good for him.”
“We’re good for each other, I think,” Jackson said. “He dropped another clue, although I don’t think on purpose. He said something about your mother being ecstatic when the little girl kidnapped from the slumber party in Georgia was found safe in Florida. The one where her best friend’s father took her. You might remember the case. It was all over the news last week. He mentioned how Elise was always broken up when a child was kidnapped.”
Serenity shook her head, confused. “I remember a case in California where that happened, but it was a long time ago and had a tragic ending. I don’t remember a recent case in Florida. It’s not like I’ve been glued to the news lately, though, since it’s mostly bad.”
“Let me see if I can remember something else about that case to jog your memory.”
“It doesn’t matter. I believe you,” she said. “So, according to my Dad, my mother reacted to a news story about a little girl who was abducted but found alive in the last week?”
“Exactly. I honestly don’t think he realized what he’d said.”
Her frown deepened. “I don’t know what to think.” Curling her arms around her legs, Serenity leaned her chin on her propped knees. “Maybe he wasn’t thinking and let it slip. Or, like we said before, it could be he’s trying to drop little hints here and there, hoping we’ll pick up on it and question him.”
“Has he ever told you an outright, bald-faced lie?”
“No, at least not to my knowledge. Offhand comments or throwing questions back in my face is his preferred method of avoidance.”
“I think he’s either afraid to tell you, Serenity, or else he can’t for some reason.”
A slight breeze stirred the Tuscarora Crape tree. “Care to hazard any guesses?”
“From what you’ve told me about your mom, she was—is—a good woman and loved her family and her life here in Croisette Shores. I keep puzzling over what could have happened that would drive her away from you and your dad. From what you’ve told me, she wouldn’t have left because she was consumed by grief over everything that happened. She wouldn’t have abandoned you or your dad willingly.”
“Right,” she said. “That’s why I wasn’t buying into Dad’s reasoning when he said she couldn’t take the sadness. She wouldn’t have left because of that. If anything, she would have stayed to help me.” Tears stung her eyes.
“You get your strength from her, Serenity. The only conclusion that makes any sense is that either someone forcibly made her leave against her will or she did it in order to protect herself or to protect you and Clinton in some way.”
She darted a sharp glance at him. “What makes you say that?”
“A feeling, I guess. I can’t really explain it otherwise.”
“Your instincts are very good,” she said, her voice quiet. “I’m sure that helps in your work.”
“I know something else,” Jackson said, shifting and taking both her hands in his. “You’re Clinton’s world. He shared some memories with me about what you were like as a baby, then a little girl, a rebellious teenager and”—he tapped her chin—“as the gracious and lovely woman you’ve become.”
Those words hit home and she blinked hard. “I wasn’t that rebellious, but I’m not sure I’m his world. At one time, that might have been true, but not so much anymore.”
“Tell me what kind of father kept a calendar in his desk drawer while his daughter lived in Atlanta, and marked off the days since he’d last seen her? Marked the days until he’d see her again when she came home? Kept every letter, postcard, birthday card and Father’s Day card she’d ever made or sent to him? Told the nurses in the hospital about his beautiful daughter and how successful she is? If that’s not a father who absolutely adores his daughter, I don’t know what love is.”
“How do you know all this?”
“I saw the calendar. Clinton had it out on the kitchen table during one of our visits, along with the stack of cards you’d given him through the years. He keeps them all in a big, wooden treasure box.” Jackson chuckled. “I teased him and called it his pirate loot, and he made some comment about how it was his treasure. Come with me, please.” Rising to his feet, Jackson reached for her hand. “We can’t very well do what I have in mind if we’re sitting on the steps.”
“That’s a provocative statement if ever I’ve heard one.” Hesitating only a moment, Serenity placed her hand in his. Her heart soared when he wrapped his fingers around hers. “You’re keeping me from my beauty sleep, you know, so you’d better get to it. This kind of behavior is getting to be a habit with you. Are you taking me to the beach?”
“A walk in the moonlight sounds incredible, but sorry. Not this time.” With a strong tug on her hand, Jackson pulled her down on the grass beside him. Stretching out on his back, he settled himself on the lush grass and crossed his arms beneath his head. “Look up.”
Mirroring him, Serenity moved her gaze to the night sky where dozens of stars winked at them. “They’re so beautiful,” she breathed. “I didn’t think too much about God growing up, but how can anything like this be in the universe without being made by the Master Creator? It’s so far beyond our comprehension, isn’t it?” She felt Jackson’s eyes on her. “You’re not looking at the stars.”
“Oh, I’m looking at one, and she shines brighter than she knows.”
Her laugh was shaky. “I’m a disheveled mess, silly. Got anything better than that?”
Jackson reached for her hand, caressing the side with his thumb. His fingers were warm as he traced the lines on her palm. “A lover holds her hand like a precious jewel. A lover craves the presence of his love, wants to be near her, listens to what she says, hears what she’s not saying. A lover hears with his big, silly ears,” he said with a small grin, “but opens his heart wide ...for her.”
She giggled. “Where’d you get that?”
“Didn’t like it?” He appeared slightly wounded.
“Actually, it’s rather sweet. Not exactly profound, but very touching.”
“In that case, it came from me. Straight from here.” He thumped his fist against his chest.
Tears welled in her eyes and she turned her head.
“I think until you
have some closure about your mother, you won’t be fully free to love.”
“Is that your professional opinion?” She lifted her chin to the sky as a light breeze caressed her cheeks.
“That, too.”
Something inside her quickened at his tender sentiment. Let him wait for me, Father, if that’s Your will. Biting her lower lip, Serenity willed herself to stay strong. This man was getting too close, too deep into her soul. Removing her hand from his, she closed her eyes and forced several deep breaths. “Jackson, you deserve more. You shouldn’t wait around for me, hoping I’ll eventually come around.”
“Serenity.” The mere whisper of her name held compassion beyond any she’d ever known. When had she let this man get into her bloodstream, into her heart? Jackson moved his loving gaze from her hairline, to her forehead, her cheeks and then slid down to her mouth. As one tear slipped out, then another, Jackson absorbed each one with his lips. He moved his arms around her, drawing her close. Here she was secure and safe from the world. Burrowing her head against his chest, she loved the way she felt when he held her. Loved him. He held her that way for a long time, so long the first rays of dawn peeked over the horizon. They didn’t speak, but something between them changed. It wasn’t just Jackson holding her. They were holding each other.
“Jackson, thank you for waiting,” she said as he walked her to the front door.
He smoothed her hair away from her face with his big, gentle fingers. “Tonight you met me halfway, Serenity, and that’s a significant gift.”
“I—”
He moved two fingers over her lips, stilling them. “I know.” Patting his fist over his heart, he kissed her forehead.
She watched as he walked back down the front walkway. Pausing at the end of the sidewalk, he motioned for her to go inside. Closing the door behind her, turning the lock so he’d hear, Serenity stood beside the front window until he was out of sight.
After tonight, Jackson Ross would never be far from her heart.
~CHAPTER 38~
Driving to Croisette Shores Cemetery a few hours later on Saturday morning, Jackson chewed on his lower lip, something he rarely did. If he hadn’t needed a couple of hours of sleep, he would have driven this same road at the crack of dawn. He needed to see if there was a headstone for Liam’s grave. Not that it would tell him anything new.
