Jenny (Beach Brides Book 5)

by Melissa McClone

  I don’t know when I last ate a corn dog (maybe a fair when I was a teenager?) but meal mission #2 is completed. I’m not a fan of soda (diet or regular), but I suffered through the sweetness for you. Happy to take on another meal mission should you desire.

  I shared with my sister-in-law what you told me about your friend’s wife, and Missy got really quiet. She said to tell you thanks. I don’t know if it’ll make a difference, but she needs to hear stuff like that from people other than me. Thank you! I hope someday she can remarry like your friend’s wife. Though at this point, going out on a date would be a huge step for Missy. She was also very happy I have a new friend. She thinks I don’t get out enough, but what can I say? I’m a homebody.

  I wish I could see the Jenny star. Thanks for telling me about it. I’d love to know what star it really is. The clouds cleared for a brief time last night. I stood on my patio bundled in a blanket. Lots of stars, but the best part was imagining you looking up at the sky, too.

  I hope you’re home soon.

  Thinking about you,

  Jenny

  ****

  Re: Mission Accomplished

  Dare

  To: Jenny <8675309@…>

  I’ve never had a BFF. Glad my first one is you! My team still thinks there’s more going on than friendship, so I smile and nod when they ask for details.

  Looking at the sky each night and knowing you’re doing the same makes me feel like I’m not so far away from home. It’s a good feeling, just what I need. Thanks.

  The Jenny star seems to be even brighter than before. I’m still trying to figure out the official information. I may have to make a wish that I can get that for you.

  I hope Missy is doing better this week. You’re a great sister-in-law to care so much about her. It’s a good sign she listened even if she was only humoring you. Stuff will sink in eventually—probably already has—but as you wrote, grief doesn’t have a time frame. When I’m home, I’ll reach out to my friend’s widow. She might have more ideas.

  Nothing wrong with being a homebody. After a while, the bars and clubs all look the same.

  No meal mission for you, but I’d love if you could go on a dessert one—I’d like a warm chocolate brownie, two scoops of vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, whipped cream, and a cherry on top. Make that two cherries. One for each of us.

  I’m out of time, so I’ll sign off. Can’t wait to hear from you. Your emails are keeping me going, Jenny. If that’s weird, I don’t care.

  Your BFF,

  Dare

  ****

  Re: Re: Mission Accomplished

  Jenny <8675309@…>

  To: Dare

  Hey, BFF!

  Guess what? I made a wish on a star, too. I can’t tell you the wish, but I hope yours and mine both come true. There’s no rush on getting the star info. It might be fun figuring that out together when you get home. Any word when that will be?

  The dessert mission was completed. A total success. Excellent choice, but totally decadent. The calories went straight to my hips. Not that I minded because it was that delicious.

  I really could use a BFF, especially if you can be a voice of reason because the logical side of my brain has gone missing. Missy is fostering a litter of kittens. They are the cutest things ever. Tiny and a ton of work. We’re bottle feeding them around the clock. They make these little mews and are so soft and cuddly. They fall asleep on you. My heart melts every time I’m around them.

  Please tell me I don’t need to adopt a kitten. They are adorable, yes, but would be a huge responsibility. One I’m not sure I’m ready for. Did you know there’s a cat that is thirty-one years old? That’s the same age as me!

  Missy says I’m overthinking this, but I’ve had this plan, sort of a life plan, for a while. It’s old-fashioned, but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with doing things like my parents or grandparents did (i.e. fall in love, get married, have kids, adopt a pet or two in that order). That makes logical sense to me. But what happens if I do stuff out of order? If I adopt a kitten, will it mess up everything else? I’m not the spontaneous type, but I fear one of those cute bundles of fur will be my downfall.

  Not much else is going on other than the kittens and work. I’m going to head outside in a few minutes to look at the stars and will be thinking of you doing the same.

  Wishing you were here,

  Jenny

  P.S. That wasn’t my wish on a star. Just in case you thought I’d let it slip.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Jenny kneeled in her backyard. The ground beneath her knees was rock hard. Sweat dotted her hairline beneath her wide-brimmed hat and ran down her neck. She wiped her face with her gardening glove. A good thing she’d slathered on sunscreen or she’d be getting sunburned.

  The temperature was a scorcher on this August day. She glanced at Missy. “It’s hot, but it feels good to be outside.”

  “That’s the spirit.” Missy dug holes to plant pink impatiens. She’d said the yard needed more color, left the house, and returned with flats of flowers. “You spend too much time inside. Somedays, I wonder if you’d ever see the sun if I didn’t open the blinds.”

  “I work indoors, and the sun doesn’t appear that often in the Pacific Northwest, so I don’t miss much.”

  “Today is gorgeous. Not a cloud in the sky.”

  “Beautiful. I hope tonight is clear.”

  “You’ve gotten into stargazing.”

  Jenny nodded. “Something Dare started.”

  Knowing he might be—or had been—looking at the same sky that night made her feel closer to him. Silly, but she went outside every night.

  “You’re still emailing?” Missy asked.

  “Not as much as we texted. He’s away for work, but we’ve kept in touch. It’s nice to have a new friend.”

  Missy’s gaze narrowed. “Are you sure that’s all it is?”

  “Yes, but…”

  “What?”

  Jenny thought about the way tingles filled her stomach whenever Dare’s emails arrived. His words made her feel as if she were special to him. “Sometimes… it feels like we’re more than friends.”

  “Are you okay with that?”

  “More than I thought I’d be considering I know nothing about him. Maybe that’s the appeal.”

  “Whether you two are friends or something else, he makes you happy, and that’s all that matters to me.”

  “Thanks.” Dare did make her happy.

  Missy raised her chin and let the sun kiss her face. “This is the life. Hands in the dirt. Kittens asleep in the house. You next to me with a big smile on your face. It doesn’t get much better than this.”

  Missy hadn’t sounded this content in years, not since before Rob’s death. Jenny’s heart overflowed with joy. Maybe her sister-in-law was finally finding some peace with what had happened. That was what Rob would have wanted.

  Jenny wanted that for Missy, too. “After we finish and get the kittens fed again, let’s go out to eat and see a movie.”

  “I’d love that. We haven’t done something like that in—”

  “Way too long.”

  Missy laughed. “We’re a pair.”

  “Partners in crime.”

  “Yes, but if Homeland Security comes knocking due to your internet searches, you’re on your own.”

  It was Jenny’s turn to laugh. She wouldn’t be surprised if she was on a government watch list due to her internet searches on explosives, weapons, coup d’états, espionage, untraceable poisons, bomb defusing, and a hundred other things she’d looked up to research her thrillers.

  They continued planting the rest of the flowers—red, pink, yellow, and purple. The bright colors shouted summertime and fun.

  Jenny brushed the dirt from her hands. “This is exactly what the yard needed. And me, too.”

  Missy beamed as she picked up the garden tools.

  Jenny’s cell phone rang, so she pulled it from the pocket o
f her shorts. The name “Dare” was written on her screen.

  Her heart slammed against her rib cage. Anticipation surged through her. He must be home. “It’s him.”

  “Dare?” Missy asked.

  Nodding, Jenny raised the phone to her ear. “Hello?”

  “This is Susan O’Rourke, Darragh’s mother. Is this Jenny?”

  Her brain froze, but at the same time, her body grew warmer.

  “Jenny?” the woman asked.

  Not woman. Dare’s mother. “Yes, I’m Jenny.”

  “Darragh was in an accident. He was a passenger in a helicopter that went down. He’s been evacuated to the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.”

  Her chest hurt as if a hundred-pound bag of potting soil had been dropped on top of her. The racing of her heart was more like a lit fuse ready to detonate. Unable to speak, she froze.

  Words flashed through her mind.

  Dare. Army. Injured. Evacuated.

  Just like Rob.

  A lump burned in the back of Jenny’s throat. Chills racked her body.

  Except her brother had never made the trip back for medical treatment and a goodbye. She’d flown with Missy to Dover Air Force Base to receive Rob’s flag-draped coffin instead.

  The past and present crashed into one another. Jenny rocked back onto her bottom. “Is he going to be okay?

  “Darragh had surgery before he arrived. He’s had more since and needs another.”

  “Another surgery…” Jenny realized his mother had never said that he would be okay. As she hugged her knees to her chest with her free arm, she kept the phone plastered against her ear. She didn’t want to miss a word.

  “He’s been asking for you.”

  “Me?” Her voice cracked. She didn’t know what to say. “We…I…”

  They’d never exchanged last names or photos, but since he’d gone away on his trip—most likely a deployment based on this new information—she felt as if each email had brought them closer. Did he feel the same?

  “Darragh wants to talk to you.” Susan sounded tired. “I’ll hold the phone for him, but let me warn you, he’s weak and on pain medication. He won’t sound like himself.”

  Jenny had never heard his voice so had no idea what he sounded like.

  “Okay.” The word came out as a whisper.

  Missy had concern written all over her face and moved closer, but she didn’t say anything.

  Noises sounded in the background. Voices, but Jenny couldn’t make out what was being said.

  “Jenny.” He sounded shaky.

  “Hi, Dare.” She gripped the phone with her right hand. “It’s nice to hear your voice.”

  “Same.”

  An image of Rob appeared in her mind. She took a deep breath. “You’re in the military.”

  Missy gasped.

  “Army. Ranger,” he said.

  Another chill shivered through Jenny. Her hands felt cold. “I’ve heard rangers are tough.”

  Missy held Jenny’s left hand.

  “I…” Dare’s voice wavered. “I miss you.”

  She sighed. The raw emotion in his voice tugged at her heart. Melted it. “I’ve missed you, but you’re in the States now. Everything will be okay.”

  “Thinking about you kept me from giving up. Kept me alive.”

  Her breath caught in her throat. She forced herself to breathe. “Oh, Dare…”

  “I want to see you.”

  She wanted to see him. “I’ll text a pic—”

  “No. In real life. Come to me.”

  Her ears rang. Her body shook. She was almost afraid to ask. “When?”

  “Now.”

  The mix of hope and anguish in that one word tore at her. “You want me to come there?”

  “Please.”

  Other than book signings and the vacation to Enchanted Island last year, she stayed close to home for Missy’s sake. Adventure was left for the books Jenny wrote or read. She wasn’t the kind of woman to hop on an airplane to go to someone she’d never met. But how could she say no when he was hurting and asking for her?

  “I…”

  “If you want to see him…then you need to go,” Missy whispered. “I’ll be okay.”

  That was the push Jenny needed. She wanted to go to Dare. She needed to go to him.

  “Okay.” Her wish upon a star had been for him to come home, but not like this. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  ****

  The trip to San Antonio took Jenny all day thanks to a three-hour delay during a layover in Salt Lake City. She rode a shuttle bus to the rental car place and stood in line at the counter. Her phone rang. It was Missy.

  “I was following your flight online and saw that the plane landed a few minutes ago.” Missy’s call must be on speakerphone because she sounded like she was talking in a cave full of meowing kittens. “How are you?”

  “Fine.” Jenny was. Well, as fine as a person could be meeting someone for the first time after they’d been injured doing who knew what for their country. “I’m waiting to pick up the rental car.”

  “I’m relieved you’re fine, but I’m worried.”

  “Your research last night proved Dare is legit.” Missy hadn’t wanted Jenny to fly off without knowing more and had even asked another Gold Star family—families who’d lost a loved one during a war—for help. “A few days ago, a Blackhawk helicopter went down in Central America with United States Army Rangers aboard.”

  “But that’s all you know.”

  “It’s enough.” And it was for now.

  Jenny stepped forward in the line. Three people were ahead of her to get cars.

  “It’s just…” Missy paused. Silence filled the line. “Neither of us had the chance to be with Rob after he was injured. He was gone too soon. But you spent days at the hospital after your parents’ car accident. You’ve lost your entire family. Stuff might come up when you’re with Dare.”

  “It’s been a couple of years since I’ve had any nightmares or panic attacks. I’ve visited people at the hospital and been fine.”

  “Yes, but you need to be prepared in case something happens this time.”

  “I will.” The concern in Missy’s voice touched Jenny’s heart. She didn’t know what she would do without her. “But just so you know, I haven’t lost my entire family. I still have you.”

  “We might be sisters-in-law, but we’re also sisters of the heart.” Missy’s voice was full of love.

  “For sure, and I’m glad you brought this up, but…” Jenny tried to put into words what she was feeling. “This is going to sound bizarre and I can’t explain it, but I feel like I’m supposed to be here with Dare.”

  “I could tell when I dropped you off at the airport this morning, but please, be careful. He’s still someone you don’t really know, and you’re a long way from home.” The kittens got louder. “I need to fill more bottles with formula. Call me later.”

  “Will do.” Jenny imagined the bundles of fur running around the kitchen. “Have fun with the kitten brigade.”

  Soon, Jenny had her rental car. She ate fast food—a burger and fries with a chocolate milkshake—for dinner, and then drove to the hospital.

  Coming to San Antonio felt like the right thing to do, but she couldn’t stop thinking about what Missy had said.

  That’s all you know.

  Jenny gripped the steering wheel. She liked how she and Dare wrote each other. No last names. No details of what they did. Not a lot about real life. Just fun, advice, and some heartfelt sharing. Had they gotten closer over the weeks—almost two months of being in contact? Yes. Without a doubt. But once she met Dare face to face…

  Her worst-case-scenario writer brain went into overdrive.

  What if the man she’d gotten to know through his emails and texts hadn’t been real? What if he’d crafted a persona the way she created characters in her books? What if…?

  At Fort Sam Houston’s visitor center, Jenny presented her ID to receive a
pass before driving to the hospital. She’d received a text—most likely from his mom—with Dare’s room number. As she walked along a brightly lit hallway, Jenny’s stomach felt fluttery, more nerves than anxiety, but she’d forgotten that feeling of uncertainty that seemed to hang in the air in hospitals.

  She checked the room number of the nearest door. Not quite there yet, so she kept walking.

  People spoke in hushed voices. A phone rang. Nurses entered and left rooms.

  Jenny reached Dare’s door, but she didn’t go inside. What-ifs wracked her brain. Not bad ones like before but good ones. What if Dare turned out to be exactly the man she thought he was? What if her feelings for him got stronger once she saw him? What if she fell for him?

  Being friends had been enough for her. It wasn’t until the past couple of weeks that her feelings for Dare had been growing…changing. It made her wonder what he would think about her.

  Interacting online was different from real life. With a keyboard to communicate, she could use words to her advantage to be funny or entertaining. In person, she came across as introverted and shy. He might not want anything to do with a quiet, boring author.

  The thought poked her heart.

  Jenny pushed her shoulders back.

  Didn’t matter what he thought about her.

  That wasn’t why she was here.

  Come to me.

  When?

  Now.

  It was time to stop procrastinating. Jenny knocked on Dare’s door.

  CHAPTER SIX

  A female voice said, “Come in.”

  Jenny pushed open the door and walked into the hospital room. Beeps and blips sounded. The bed closest to her was empty but not the other.