by Vivi Holt
He nodded and folded his hands together. “I know what you mean. I blamed God for my relationship with my folks for a long time. When I was a teen, I left home as soon as I could, and I remember asking Him how he could give me parents like that? I’d look around and see other kids with loving parents who took care of them and picked them up from school dances and think, why can’t I have that? Why does Dad drink so much and get so angry? Why does Mom blame me for everything that goes wrong in her life?
“After I left home, I tried to find that affection wherever I could. That’s part of why I joined the Navy – I finally found somewhere I felt I belonged and was appreciated.”
“I can understand that. It was similar when I joined the force.”
He nodded. “At first it was great, but then there was an incident in my unit, and all the old insecurities came rushing back. I went to see the chaplain and asked him all those questions I had and he showed me in the Bible about how God is good and has a good plan for me, and I broke down. That’s when my perspective changed.”
Jessie’s brow furrowed. “I get it. It’s hard to see God in the things that happen to us sometimes. But we have to remember that He’s good, that He doesn’t cause the bad things in our lives.”
The boat pulled in a wide arc, the water sparkling beneath the hull as it slowed and finally pulled to a stop, engines chugging. “Where are we?” asked Jessie, peering over the bow.
Callum walked to the side of the boat and looked out. “We’re stopped at a dock,” he called.
Jessie came to his side. “Thanks for your insight. It’s very helpful.” She rolled her eyes as he chuckled. “I guess this is where we get out.”
The captain’s voice boomed over the loudspeaker. “We’re at Tugboat Beach, so named for the famous wreck you’re bound to see once you’re out in the water. If you’re diving, stay with the boat and Tony will take you to a deeper drop-off point. Those of you who are snorkeling, disembark here. Don’t forget to meet back on the dock for lunch, after which we’ll return you to your ship. Snorkelers, stick with Davey – he’s your guide and he’ll answer any questions you have. Thank you for coming and we hope you have a great morning!”
Callum and Jessie waited in line to disembark. Once they did, Davey handed each of them a snorkel, mask and flippers, and they carried their gear down to the pebble-covered beach. Callum was glad to see Alton and Liliana were snorkeling as well. He’d had to guess when purchasing the tickets but hadn’t figured them for divers. He wished he could be diving instead – he was a qualified dive instructor from his SEAL days and missed the excitement and beauty of it. “You all set?” he asked Jessie.
She was struggling with her mask. “I can’t seem to get this … ugh!”
He chuckled. “Here, let me help you. You’ve got it twisted up.” He helped her get her mask on straight while her words rang in his ears. He’d known she was a single mom, but hadn’t really thought through the implications. Of course it must make her life more complicated. Her move away from Chicago to start an entirely new life and career in Atlanta was all the more impressive since she’d done it alone, with a child who’d lost his father.
As he and Jessie splashed backward in their flippers through the shallow waves, he glanced back at the beach. Liliana was sitting on a rock beneath a small bush, a book in hand, clearly with no intention of snorkeling. He shook his head in amazement, trying to imagine what was going through her mind – the view was breathtaking, but it paled in comparison to what they were about to witness underwater. There was no way he’d sit on the shore and miss out.
Alton was struggling to put on his flippers, his mask sticking up on top of his head. Finally he stood and attempted to walk into the water, tripping on the ends of his flippers with each step.
Callum slid into the water and Jessie followed. She grinned as she donned her mask, then disappeared beneath the surface, kicking gently past him to follow their guide. He waited for Alton to catch up, pretending to work on his snorkel and mask. “These things are tricky,” he muttered.
Alton chuckled. “Tell me about it.”
“Are you and the missus enjoying the cruise so far?” asked Callum, finally fitting the mask onto his face.
Alton shrugged. “I guess. I’ve done it all before, so it’s a bit of the same-old. And Liliana isn’t exactly outdoorsy.” With a hollow laugh, he glanced back toward the beach, discomfort clear on his pale face.
“I get you,” replied Callum with a nod. “Have you been married long?”
Alton frowned and he looked anxiously at his wife once again. “Ah … well, not long, no.”
“Same here. We’re still getting the hang of the whole being-married thing. It can be hard, I think, especially when you haven’t lived with the person before.”
“Oh, we’ve lived together … er, for a while.” Alton’s cheeks flushed. “We’d better catch up with the group.”
Callum hung back as Alton kicked awkwardly past him and after the group. He rubbed his chin, thinking hard. Alton and Liliana were planning on running, he would bet on it. And what better place to run and hide than the Caribbean? The question was how and when? He ducked his head under the water and followed the group. If he couldn’t get anything out of Liliana, he needed to stick close to Alton – and hope for a break.
Jessie hung up the phone and lay back on the bed with a sigh, rubbing her eyes to keep the tears at bay. Scott’s sweet voice on the phone had put a lump in her throat she couldn’t dislodge. She missed him like crazy. And even though the trip was like a dream come true after years of hard work and no vacation, part of her just wanted to go home.
She sat up and inhaled slowly. Mom had told her to enjoy herself – who knew when she’d get to go on another cruise like this again? She knew her mom was right. It wasn’t as if she’d have time off from work anytime soon, seeing as how she was just starting out.
But maybe she could take time down the road and bring Scott on a cruise with her – he’d love all the activities, especially the swimming pools. He was like a little fish – she could hardly get him out of the water even after his fingers and toes were wrinkled. And Callum mentioned that baseball was a big deal in Curacao, the island they’d left last night.
Another sigh, this one louder. She stood, adjusted the strap on her bikini top and wrapped the sarong more tightly around her waist. She knew she had to follow Liliana to the pool again. Unless she and Alton decided to go ashore at Bonaire today instead of staying – which Jessie highly doubted – she’d be at the pool already. Callum would be frustrated if something happened and they missed it.
Jessie grabbed her bag and stuffed her cell phone into it. It already held everything else she’d need for the morning: sunscreen, Kindle and towel. There would be food and water nearby if she got hungry or thirsty. She went out the door and hurried down the hall to the elevators.
Liliana was beside the pool, book in hand, just as expected. Jessie smiled, sat on a lounge nearby and waved to Liliana. She wanted to get closer – she was sick of keeping her distance. They were running out of time to figure out just what she and Alton were planning on doing and when. She put on her own pair of sunglasses and reached for the tube of sunscreen in her bag.
Just as she did, Liliana stood and moved to the other side of the pool, as if intentionally putting distance between herself and Jessie. Jessie rolled her eyes and sighed – fine. But she had to find something to do. Sitting by the pool was okay for the first few days, but she wanted a little more adventure in her vacation time. She was all caught up on her rest and relaxation and ached for a bit of fun.
She spied the Flowrider out of the corner of her eye. Perfect – the roll and froth of an artificial wave was just the thing she needed, and she could still keep an eye on Liliana at the same time.
“Have you ever done this before?” asked the attendant as he explained the process to her and handed her a board to ride.
She shook her head with a grin. “No.” She went to t
he side of the Flowrider to wait her turn.
A young woman was riding the wave like it was a Sunday afternoon stroll. She stood on the board without a single wobble and sailed back and forth across the wave. As she came closer, she dug into the water with the side of the board and sprayed Jessie from head to toe. She shivered and wiped the water from her eyes with a laugh. “Now you’re just showing off!” she shouted.
The woman laughed and shrugged before dismounting and carrying her board to where Jessie stood. “That was amazing,” Jessie told her.
The woman smiled. “Thanks. I’m Xanna.”
“Jessie – nice to meet you. I especially liked that 360 spin you did – you made it look so easy.”
“It’s pretty simple,” replied Xanna with a bored yawn.
“Okay, I guess I’ll give it a try.” She held onto the side of the Flowrider, stepped backward onto the board and headed out into the water. The wave picked her up and held her. She bit her lip in concentration – she just had to move a little from one side to the other, right? She leaned to the left, and the board shot away to the right. Startled, she quickly righted herself, her arms stuck out at her sides. She wobbled precariously and almost landed on her face, catching herself just in time.
She glanced at Xanna, who was smacking gum with a listless expression, her board resting against her leg. Apparently she wasn’t entertaining enough for her. Perhaps she should surprise everyone, herself included, by doing a 360 spin. It couldn’t be that hard, surely – it hadn’t looked difficult for Xanna.
She counted down, arms still outstretched, then went to spin the board in place, but all it did was slip a little to one side and point her toward the wall. She tried to change direction, thought better of it, finished the turn – and her gaze landed on Callum’s smiling face. He stood beside the Flowrider, his arms crossed, his eyes sparkling with delight. Her cheeks flamed.
She didn’t notice the front end of her surfboard continuing to spin around until it caught on the wave and flipped upward, sending her sprawling backward into the water. She landed on her back, then flipped onto her stomach with the pressure from the water, rolling up the rise and into the backboard with a thud. She grunted and pushed herself up with both hands, water pummeling her face and chest.
Worse still, she glanced down and saw with horror that her bikini top had flipped up and dangled uselessly around her neck. She gasped and tugged it back into place, her heart pounding. The water worked against her, but she finally managed to tie her top back into place before standing and gingerly making her way to the edge of the ride.
Xanna was there, casually waiting for her to exit the ride, still chewing her gum open-mouthed. As soon as she reached the side, the woman leaped onto her board and rode the wave like she’d been made just for that purpose. Jessie waved and grimaced. “No problem, thanks for waiting.” It could’ve been worse – at least Xanna hadn’t made fun of her for that wipeout/indecent exposure combo. She picked up her board where it floated at the water’s edge and carried it down to where the attendant stood, his eyes on Xanna’s acrobatics. “Thanks.”
He nodded, not even looking as he took it from her. “You’re welcome.”
She made a face and hobbled past him to where Callum stood, smiling sympathetically. “You okay?”
She nodded. “Oh yeah, fine.”
He looked her over. “Your knees are bleeding.”
She looked down. Red lines trickled down her legs, and she winced. “I think I bruised … well, everything.”
He arched an eyebrow. “Why don’t you come back to the cabin with me and I’ll see what first aid I can do?”
She nodded. “Okay, let me just grab my bag.”
12
“What about Liliana?” Jessie asked as she and Callum walked back to their room.
He shrugged. “I’m sure she’ll be there when we get back. By the way, what were you doing up the back of the Flowrider?”
She arched an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”
“You fell off the board, then disappeared behind the back of the wave – it looked like you were just sitting in the water. I thought I might have to dive in and rescue you.”
Her cheeks flushed. “No, I was fine. Just getting my bearings.”
He chuckled. “Okay. Glad you made it out.”
“Thanks for your sympathy,” she grumbled.
He bumped her shoulder with his. “Come on, it was a little bit funny.”
“Not really. And by the way, I was doing pretty well until you showed up.”
Callum opened the door to their room and she went inside, still limping but only a little. “You’re blaming me?”
“I saw you watching me and I fell off.”
Callum threw his head back and laughed, his eyes flashing. “So my mere presence threw you off your game?”
Her eyes narrowed. She didn’t like where this conversation was headed. “Not exactly. I mean … I just didn’t like you staring at me that way.”
“Uh-huh, I get it. Your feelings for me were so strong, your knees buckled beneath you.”
“I didn’t say that …”
Callum stepped closer and brushed a wet strand of hair from her face with gentle fingertips. Her eyes widened as his breath caressed her skin, his gaze intense, and she could feel the warmth of his body close to hers. Too close – she tingled from head to toe in anticipation. All she could think of were his lips on hers. He’d told her they needed space, that they had to stay professional, and she’d agreed. But now he was acting like they’d never said a word. And part of her wished they hadn’t.
Callum seemed to sense the confusion as well. He stepped back with a sigh, running his fingers through his hair. “I’m, uh … I think I’ll go to the gym.” He went to the closet, grabbed his gym bag and headed for the door.
She watched him leave with wide eyes, her heart pounding loudly in her ears. As the door shut, she fell back on the bed behind her with a groan. She covered her eyes, remembering the feel of his fingers against her cheek and the warmth of his breath as his lips hovered over hers. Then she remembered she was still dripping wet and bleeding from her run-in with the Flowrider – hadn’t he brought her up here to do some repairs on her torn-up knees? But they’d gotten distracted.
She got up, grabbed the first-aid kit and a few towels, and returned to the bed. The TV remote lay on the top of the covers beside her, so she picked it up, flipped it on and began squeezing the water from her hair in between changing channels.
She ran across the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice and grinned. That was exactly what she needed, a dose of Colin Firth. Now where was that stash of chocolate she’d hidden away two days earlier? She burrowed into the bottom of the closet, pulled out a plastic bag and went back to her seat, then tore the wrapper off a large block of dark chocolate with almonds and popped a square into her mouth with delight. Perhaps she had no romance in her own life, but watching Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy find theirs would have to do for today.
She sighed. She had her job to do, just as she’d repeatedly told Callum. Someone needed to watch Liliana Meer and catch her when she slipped up. She didn’t have time to sit in her room and drool over Mr. Darcy, as appealing as the idea was. Scott was depending on her. Callum was depending on her, as was Callum’s client. Time to be an adult and get back to work.
Five minutes later, Jessie’s knees were medicated and bandaged, her hair was brushed and she was headed back to the pool to keep an eye on the ever-suspicious Liliana. Romance would just have to wait until this case was closed — either fictional or real. So what if her hormones didn’t want to wait? Too bad for them.
“When are you coming home?” asked Tim.
Callum had his cell pressed to his ear. “Five days left on the cruise, then we fly straight back to Atlanta after we dock.”
“Good to know. Daisy misses you.”
Callum laughed. “Sure she does. That dog hasn’t even noticed I’m gone – she’s too busy with her n
ose pasted to the ground following a squirrel’s trail or something.”
Tim chuckled. “You’re right about that. How’s the case coming?”
Callum held the phone in place with his shoulder as he pulled on his flip-flops. Water from his post-workout shower dripped from his hair and down the back of his neck. “It’s a tough one. Still trying to figure it all out.”
“And what about your colleague, the other PI? How’s she working out?”
Callum wasn’t sure how to answer that. Better than expected? Harder than he’d anticipated? Great. Not so good. Really, all of the above. But he didn’t want to get into the details with Tim over the phone. And he wasn’t sure exactly how things stood between them. That moment between them in the cabin earlier still had his head spinning – he’d almost abandoned the boundaries he’d set, then walked away without even taking care of her dinged-up knees. He needed to get his head together.
“You still there, man?” Tim prompted.
“Yeah - she’s good. She knows her stuff and has been very helpful keeping track of the target’s wife. But honestly, we’re at a bit of a loss for what to do next. I really need to do more investigating in Atlanta, but we’re stuck on this cruise and the target is keeping his cards close to his chest.”
“What’s the other PI’s name?” asked Tim.
“Jessie.”
“She attractive?”
Callum frowned. “What’s that got to do with anything?”
“So she is, huh? Do you like her?” Tim chuckled.
Callum slapped his forehead and rubbed his face. He could never hide anything from his friend and neighbor. “It’s complicated,” he groaned.
Tim laughed. “I’ll bet it is, since you’re her boss.”
“Just for now.”
“But still …”
“I am very aware of our current situation. But thanks for the recap.”
“Hey, don’t shoot the messenger.”
“Sorry. We’re working to keep things professional between us.” He sighed and lay back on the bed to stare at the ceiling.
