Rum Runner

by Tricia Leedom

“You made it,” Sue said, hugging Jimmy, and then Mitch, and finally Sophie, as if they were old friends. “It’s so nice to finally meet you.”

  “And you as well.”

  “You fixed the door, Suzy-Q.” Jimmy observed, nodding toward the brand-new glass-paneled entryway.

  “I was sick and tired of fighting my way in and out of this place.”

  “Hey y’all!” Molly MacBain said, coming out of Jimmy’s office. “I’m so glad you’re okay. Sue called me and told me y’all were on your way here. I brought you a change of clothes, Sophie.”

  “Thank you so much,” Sophie said, hugging Molly back with matched enthusiasm. “It’s so wonderful to see you. We had quite an adventure, but I found my father.”

  “I want to hear all about it.”

  “Let’s meet for tea tomorrow?”

  “I’d love that.” Molly grinned. “It’s a date.”

  Mitch and Captain Tom bellied up to the bar, while Jimmy spoke quietly with Angela Garcia, who gave him a tearful hug.

  Jonas, Sophie noticed, hadn’t come inside.

  Sue put her arm around Sophie’s shoulders. “If you’d like to freshen up, there’s a shower and all the accoutrements set up in the private bathroom in Jimmy’s office.”

  “That would be wonderful. Thank you both for being so thoughtful.”

  Alone in Jimmy’s office, Sophie took in the sparse furnishings, the small suitcase Molly had brought sitting on the straight back chair across from the desk, and the lone picture hanging on the wall above it. The picture drew her in. The framed photograph was of a much younger Jimmy in uniform, having a laugh with a group of soldiers. One of the men was her father, looking very much the same as he did now. The grinning Hispanic man on Jimmy’s left barely reached his shoulder. Jimmy was smiling down at him with such brotherly affection she knew he had to be Rigoberto Garcia. Jimmy looked gorgeous, arrogant, and proud—a young man in his prime before time and tragedy had taken their toll.

  He was still gorgeous and still proud, but his pride was tempered with the weight of experience. He’d paid for every crinkle on his face and every scar, the external ones and the internal ones, and he had managed to keep his head above water when most men would have drowned. He was not perfect, but he was brave, and strong, and, above all things, loyal.

  She could not fault him for trying to protect Rigoberto’s son. Jimmy’s choices along the way may not have been the best, but in the end, he’d made the right one and saved everyone in the process. She had made some bad choices too. Not trusting him had been one of them.

  Sophie showered and then blow-dried her hair just enough to put it up in a ponytail. She had managed to sleep on the plane and dozed in the captain’s truck on the long ride to Key West, so she was feeling oddly refreshed and ready to take on the world.

  She hoped she didn’t have to, though.

  There were some neutral cosmetics laid out for her beside the sink, along with a fresh toothbrush, deodorant, and perfume. She made use of them all before she retrieved the clothes Molly had brought her. She found two outfits in the suitcase, a cute yellow sundress and jean shorts with a snug-fitting red T-shirt that stated in big gold letters, “Save a horse…ride a cowboy.” The latter was obviously Molly’s idea of a joke considering she knew how Sophie felt about saucy statement T-shirts.

  She dressed quickly and was repacking Molly’s suitcase in the office when Jimmy’s voice carried through the door in the animated retelling of their perilous takeoff from Tortola. She smiled, but it faded quickly as sadness and regret overtook her emotions. Their adventure was firmly at an end. She was glad they had come out of it alive, but she was sorry it was over. Sorry she and Jimmy were over.

  His life was in a quirky little town at the southernmost point of an island chain. Hers was in London. So why did her heart hurt so much at the thought of never seeing his aggravatingly handsome face again?

  Taking a deep breath, she opened the door.

  A dimpled smile broke across Molly’s face when she saw her. “Nice choice. I really thought you were going to go for the sundress.”

  Sophie smoothed the front of the red T-shirt and shrugged. “What can I say? The shirt spoke to me.”

  “Yee-haw!” Molly exclaimed with a giggle. Then she struck a pose to show off the designer footwear on her feet. “What do you think? I got the heel fixed.”

  “They look like they were made for you.”

  “I know, right?”

  “Can I get you ladies an alcoholic beverage?” The question came from the stocky, dark-haired man standing next to Sue behind the bar. “I know it’s early, but I think we could all probably use one.”

  “This thoughtful man is my husband Oscar Martin,” Sue said, linking her arm through his.

  “It’s a pleasure,” Sophie said, sliding onto a bar stool across from them. “And a white wine would be lovely, thank you.”

  She purposely avoided Jimmy’s gaze. He was at the far end of the bar, sitting between Mitch and Captain Tom.

  “That sounds good.” Molly took the stool next to her. “Make that two.”

  “Where’s Tulio and his mother?”

  “Oscar ran them over to our place while you were in the shower,” Sue said. “The kiddo was exhausted and Angela wanted to put him to bed. They’re staying with us.” She set three goblets in front of them and Oscar filled each with generous portions of Chardonnay. Sue smiled. “Hope you don’t mind if I join you?”

  “Of course not.” Sophie raised her glass in a toast. “To new friends and happy reunions.”

  “Hear, hear.”

  “Cheers.” Sophie took a short sip before she took another longer one. She smiled across the bar to her father who grinned back.

  The front door opened, and his smile faded. In fact, he turned quite pale, as if a ghost had just strolled into the bar.

  Following his gaze, Sophie turned around and nearly fell off her stool. A ghost had walked into the bar. A ghost from his past. “Mum? What are you doing here?” Sophie set her wineglass on the bar and went to her mother.

  Lillian Stone was a half a head shorter than Sophie and platinum blonde, but she had the same round face and slender figure. In the shabby island pub, she was as out of place as a poodle in a pig farm.

  “I was worried about you,” Lillian said, looking her over. She frowned when she got to the suggestion on Sophie’s chest that she “ride a cowboy.”

  Sophie flushed, crossing her arms. “I can’t believe you’re here. What made you come all this way?”

  “You left me two messages several days ago, some dodgy story about a sudden decision to holiday in Key West and another about losing your wallet, and then nothing. When you didn’t return my calls, I thought something terrible had happened to you. That’s when I phoned the number you left me and spoke to Molly. I flew to Key West straightaway and asked Molly to ring me at my hotel if she heard from you.”

  “I called Lillian an hour ago and told her you were on your way here,” Molly said. “Hope that’s okay?”

  Knowing her friend meant well, Sophie smiled at her and nodded.

  Mitch came up beside Sophie, his gaze transfixed on his ex-wife’s face.

  It was surreal seeing her mother and father together in the same room. Her parents stood three feet apart, eyeing each other warily. Sophie couldn’t help but note how different they were. Mitch, with his outdated handlebar mustache and limp hair hanging well past his shoulders, in a T-shirt with the word “kick” scrolled across the body of a brown donkey and shorts that may or may not have been swim trunks. And her ultra-conservative mother in a smart-looking kelly green shift dress and matching pumps, the real emerald studs in her lobes rivaling the enormous diamond on her finger.

  “Hello, Mitch,” Lillian said coolly.

  Sophie held her breath.

  “Lily,” he said with a nod.

  No one ever called her mum Lily. She opened her mouth to tell him so, but her mother’s coy smile shocked her into silen
ce.

  “How did you get here?” Mitch asked.

  “I’m not a helpless twit.”

  A smile tugged at the corner of her father’s mouth. “That was one of the reasons I fell for you.”

  Lillian sniffed. “What? My ability to pick up a phone and reserve an airline ticket?”

  “Nah, that smart mouth of yours.” He grinned and winked at her unabashedly.

  “I hardly think this is the appropriate time or place to rehash the past, Mitchell.”

  He laughed outright, taking obvious pleasure in ruffling her feathers. Sobering suddenly, he said, “I always loved when you called me that.”

  She huffed and turned back to Sophie. “Charles…that is, the English ambassador, is going to issue you an emergency passport. He has arranged for a private plane to bring us to Miami. It’s waiting at the airport.”

  “I—” Panic fluttered in Sophie’s chest. She hadn’t been expecting this. She thought she’d have a day, maybe two, to speak to Jimmy and sort out her feelings. And she’d only just met her father. She still had so many questions to ask him. She looked at Mitch helplessly. “But…”

  He pulled her in for a hug. “You do what you got to do, Ladybug. Don’t worry about me.”

  “But I just found you.”

  “We’ll see each other again.” He shot his ex-wife a dark look. “Your momma can’t keep us apart anymore.”

  Sophie’s cool, unflappable mother blanched but recovered quickly. “We all did what we had to do, Mitchell. Don’t blame me for what happened. You agreed to the arrangement.”

  “It’s not like I had much of a choice.”

  Sophie pulled away from her father and glared at her mother. “You stole me from him. You lied about your marriage. About the fact that you loved each other once. You made me believe he left us when it was the other way around. You left him.”

  “I’ll not discuss this here in the presence of strangers. Come along, Sophie. The plane is waiting.”

  Sophie turned and sought Jimmy in the gathered crowd. He stood behind the others, a look of indifference on his face.

  In the silence, Jimmy’s mobile began to ring. He pulled it out of his pocket, glanced at the screen, and answered it. “Hold on a minute,” he said to the caller. Lowering the phone, he said to the room, “I have to take this.”

  He started for the front door but stopped when he came even with Sophie and stared at her. She stared back, her heart heavy and throat clogged with all of the things she wanted to say to him. She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out.

  “Let’s keep this simple.” Jimmy’s deep, lazy Southern drawl stroked her like a caress. “Good-byes aren’t really my thing.”

  He started for the door again, and Sophie watched him go.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  Jimmy stepped into the chilly morning air and took a deep breath before putting the phone to his ear. “Yeah?”

  A vocal modulator distorted the caller’s voice. “Mr. Panama, I’m glad to see you made it back to the island unharmed.”

  “No thanks to you, bird nuts.”

  “There’s that rash temper of yours flaring its ugly head again.”

  “It’s over, Albatross. The CIA has the flash drive.”

  “I know. It’s all over the news. Bautista has been arrested and his criminal empire is imploding as we speak.”

  “What do you want?”

  “A truce, actually. You and Mr. Thompson did me an enormous favor getting rid of Bautista. You see, that flash drive contained a contact list of all the terrorist cells and rebel organizations in his territory. He was going to sell it to me for an obscene amount of money. When Mr. Thompson stole it from Bautista’s safe, I realized if I were to find it first, I could avoid having to pay Bautista a dime.”

  “Those people on that list are toast. Why aren’t you pissed?”

  “There will be shake-ups within the various organizations, a few arrests even, but they won’t be extinguished completely. They’ll sprout up again, stronger than ever, but this time I won’t have Bautista standing in my way, thanks to you.”

  “I wasn’t trying to do you any favors.”

  “But you did, and I’m feeling benevolent enough to repay it. You, Mitch Thompson, and his lovely daughter are free to go about your business. I won’t be exacting revenge.”

  “You can shove your benevolence up your ass.”

  “I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that,” the distorted voice said pleasantly before it hardened. “Don’t cross me again, Mr. Panama. I forgive, but I never forget.”

  The line went dead.

  Jimmy squeezed the phone. When the military-grade casing didn’t crack, he flung the damn thing against the wall. It bounced and skittered across the sidewalk in one piece.

  It irked the hell out of him that Albatross was going to get away with kidnapping, attempted murder, and God knew what else and Jimmy couldn’t do a damn thing about it.

  That reminded him. He had to call and check on Romario Keylard. Last he’d heard, the kid was in stable condition and it looked as if he was going to pull through.

  Jimmy’s gaze shifted to Dixie’s front door. He thought of Sophie inside, saying her good-byes.

  It was time to move on. A clean break was for the best. His chest tightened and, for a moment, he couldn’t catch his breath. He shook off the sadness that was threatening to swamp him and started up the street. He was good at walking away, he reminded himself. He’d had a lot of practice over the years.

  He made it to the lamppost on the corner when he stopped and couldn’t go a step farther. What the fuck am I doing? Only an idiot would walk away from a woman like Sophie Davies-Stone. Big Rig used to say true love was a rare and wonderful thing that not everyone was lucky enough to find. Jimmy was anything but lucky, but a guardian angel had intervened on his behalf and brought the Duchess into his life.

  An image of Big Rig flashed through his mind and for the first time in a very long time his friend wasn’t covered in blood. He was wearing his favorite T-shirt, the blue one with the Captain America logo. He was in his prime, hale and hearty. He grinned and said, “Don’t make me have to slap you upside the head, gringo.” Tears sprang to Jimmy’s eyes and he blinked them back. He placed a hand over his heart and rubbed the deep ache there. “I wish you were here, my friend. I don’t know how I’m gonna convince her to stay, but damn it, I’ve got to try.”

  “Jimmy?”

  Sophie’s voice startled him and he turned around. The sight of her in that silly red T-shirt made him melt like a marshmallow in the sun. She stood five feet away, staring at him with a mix of curiosity and hesitation.

  “After all we’ve been through, were you actually going to leave? Just like that?”

  “I was,” he said truthfully.

  “Oh.” Her eyes lowered to the pavement, and he mentally kicked himself.

  “But the thing is, I couldn’t.”

  Her gaze lifted to his. The damp tears on her eyelashes gave him hope and broke his heart at the same time. He stepped closer. “Darlin’, I—”

  “Jimmy, I—” she said at the same time.

  They both smiled and then looked away.

  “Let me go first,” Sophie said. She took a deep breath.

  “I love you,” Jimmy blurted over whatever she was preparing to say.

  She closed her mouth and blinked at him.

  He kept going. “I’m sorry for not being completely honest with you from the get-go. It was wrong. I just—I never expected to fall in love with you. You’re too good for me, and I don’t deserve you, but if you stay, I promise I will spend the rest of my days trying to be the man you deserve to have.”

  “Stop it, Jimmy.” She moved closer, so close she had to crane her neck to look up at him. Unshed tears swam in her big green eyes. “I love you just as you are. And I—”

  “Why did you run out of the pub like that, Sophie?” Lillian said as she stepped out onto the sidewalk. She stopped short
when she saw them. “What’s this?”

  Jimmy stepped back and looked down at the pavement, taking a moment to blink the moisture out of his eyes and pull himself together.

  Sue, Oscar, Mad Dog, and Captain Tom had followed Sophie’s mother outside. Just great, the whole fucking cavalry is here now.

  “Jimmy and I need a minute,” Sophie said to her mother.

  “Jimmy and I?” Lillian looked at Jimmy as if noticing him for the first time. “You say that as if you’re a couple or something, which is absurd. Come along now. The pilot is waiting for us.”

  “I can’t.” Sophie’s gaze never wavered from his face. “I was just about to tell Jimmy I’ve decided to stay.”

  His heart thumped so hard in his chest it almost knocked him on his ass.

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” Lillian said. “You’re not staying here.”

  Mitch moved beside his ex-wife. “It’s your choice, Ladybug. If you want to take your chances here with me and the rest of these kookaloos, I’ll support your decision.”

  “Thank you.” Sophie smiled at him. She stepped closer to Jimmy and looked up at him. “I forgive you, Jimmy, and I love you. I love the woman I am when I’m with you. I want to stay here with you, if you’ll have me.”

  “You’re welcome,” Big Rig’s disembodied voice said in Jimmy’s head.

  He grabbed Sophie and hauled her close, preparing to kiss the daylights out of her. “Oh, I’ll have you all right,” he said and bent his head.

  She laughed as he covered her mouth with his.

  “Stop that! What are you doing?” Lillian said, grabbing Sophie’s arm. She yanked her away, forcefully stripping her from Jimmy’s arms. “You are not staying here. Not with your father and certainly not with this…man. Your life is in England and your future is with Andrew. He told me about what happened in Rome. He took your advice and insisted on a paternity test. Turns out, the tart was lying about the pregnancy. He wants you back, Sophie. He’s waiting for you at home.”

  “Take your paws off my granddaughter, bitch,” Edith Thompson’s voice came from the street. The woman was pointing a short-barreled shotgun at Lillian Stone. She moved closer, carefully stepping up on the sidewalk as she aimed the weapon directly at her former daughter-in-law’s heart.