True Devotion

by Dee Henderson

  “Joe—”

  He held out his hand. “Come on, let’s go eat.”

  She picked up a small clutch purse and let him lock the door behind them. He settled his hand lightly on her back as he escorted her to the car.

  “You traded the Jeep for the night.”

  “The occasion demanded a nice ride.” He held her door for her.

  “Where are we going?”

  “The Prince of Wales Grill.”

  “I’m impressed. How did you swing reservations on such short notice?”

  “Ingenuity.”

  “And a friend somewhere?”

  Joe glanced over to share a smile. “A friend of a friend. Coronado is a small place when you get right down to it.”

  “I knew you would try for extravagant.”

  “Just wait—I think I pulled it off.”

  Her laughter was nice to hear.

  The restaurant was in an exclusive part of the Hotel del Coronado, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It had been recently voted most romantic restaurant by San Diego magazine for a reason. Joe gave his name and they were escorted to a table with a wonderful view.

  Heather did indeed play nice jazz on the piano. Joe caught her attention and gave her a small salute, pleased to see the roses he had sent her as a thank-you had arrived. Heather touched a rose and smiled back at him, sending a silent thanks.

  Kelly saw the exchange. “What’s her name?”

  “Heather.”

  “Your friend of a friend?”

  Joe settled into his chair. “Yes.”

  “Thanks for sending the roses.”

  “Not jealous?”

  “When you went to the trouble on my behalf? Flattered is a better word.”

  He handed her the cloth-covered menu, appreciating her reply. “What would you like for dinner?”

  * * *

  “Joe, are you sure you want to see a comedy? We’ve already been laughing most of the evening.”

  Kelly’s hand was clutching his arm, and her weight leaned slightly against him as they stood in front of the theater debating which movie to see. The happiness seemed to sparkle out of her, and Joe wished he could sweep her closer. It was hard to subdue his own pleasure. He had set out to make tonight memorable for her, but instead discovered she had done it for him. She never mentioned Nick or Charles, never touched on a serious subject. Instead she thoroughly enjoyed everything—the food, the music, the ocean view, the short walk from where he parked to the theater—and in doing so, pulled him along to share that happiness. It practically bubbled from her.

  “I like laughing with you,” he replied, enjoying the merriment in her eyes.

  “You laugh at all the wrong places in my jokes.”

  “You don’t know how to tell one. You need more practice.”

  She giggled. “Probably true.” She looked again at the marquee. “Okay, let’s see the comedy.” She glanced around at the crowd they had joined. “We fit right in.”

  They were a decade too old and considerably overdressed, but the couples in the crowd were easy to spot. Joe settled his arm comfortably around Kelly’s shoulders as they moved into line. “Yes, we do.” His satisfaction at having her at his side matched the expressions of numerous others on dates around him.

  Mingled in the crowd were a few men who saw him, glanced to Kelly then back to him, and nodded a greeting. It was a good thing Kelly hadn’t asked that they keep their dating a secret. By morning most of the base would have the news he had been seen escorting her.

  The movie was good. Joe figured it could have been a bomb and it wouldn’t have mattered. They simply would have laughed together at how awful it was.

  The evening had relaxed the tension and the wonder over what it would be like to change from friends to something more. It had been a smooth transition. Joe hoped it was only going to get better. After the movie was over, he offered his arm as they walked back to where he had parked. Kelly accepted without hesitation. He liked that about her, the way she accepted his statement of belonging together. He offered her one of the last hazelnuts from the bag they had been sharing.

  “Do you suppose this is what makes dating so much fun?” She glanced up at him and he gestured toward the people ahead of them also strolling toward their cars, then at the sky. “This sense of time stopping? There’s no reason not to stroll along and enjoy the beautiful evening.”

  “I think it also has something to do with who you are with,” she offered.

  “I figured that much out. But you and I have spent a lot of time together in six years. I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed an evening more.”

  “I’ve got a theory about nights like these.”

  “What’s your theory?” he asked.

  “That you’ve invested so much into them, they become a moment in time you have to really live in. Most of the time we rush around and never realize what’s around us, enjoy the person we are with, because we’re too busy to let ourselves live in that moment. Dates are designed to take our full attention.”

  He paused to glance down at her. “That’s really good. I’m impressed.”

  She leaned against him. “You should be. It’s my one profound comment for the night.”

  “Are you in a hurry to get home? It’s getting late.”

  “Not particularly. I don’t work tomorrow.”

  “Want to walk down along the beach?”

  “Could I change first?”

  “Sure.”

  He drove them back to her home. The full moon was bright overhead when he pulled into her driveway. She leaned her head back against the headrest and made no move to open the car door. “Thanks for all of this, Joe. You have no idea how much it means.”

  “I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.” He left his hands resting atop the steering column, for she looked a little too appealing at the moment. “You’ve still got a present to unwrap. Before or after we stroll down to the beach?”

  “I do?”

  He reached around to the backseat and picked up the sack. “It wouldn’t be a truly memorable first date without one.”

  “Joe.”

  Her protest made him smile. “It will cost you a cup of coffee, though.”

  “In that case—”

  He came around the car and opened her door for her. “I like this about you.”

  They walked to her front door, and she glanced up at him as she found the right key to unlock the house. “What?”

  “You make it nice to give you gifts.”

  Her blush was incredible. He probably shouldn’t tease her about it, but it was too much fun.

  Kelly shooed him out of the kitchen while she started the coffee, and Joe moved back to the living room, taking off his tie. When she joined him, she handed him one of the china cups, then slipped off her shoes and curled up on the couch. “A nice restaurant, roses, a present—our second date has a lot to live up to.”

  Joe took a seat on the chair across from her. “We’re painting your kitchen,” he replied dryly.

  “You’re serious?”

  “Yes.”

  She laughed so hard her eyes watered. “Oh, Joe, I needed that.”

  Joe offered her the box he had set on the table. “A memory for tonight.”

  Kelly carefully unwrapped the paper and set aside the tissue paper. “Joe—he’s beautiful.”

  He was surprised at the emotions on her face. “Bad move?”

  She shook her head. “I love it. Thank you. I was afraid since Nick bought me so many bears, you would think you shouldn’t.”

  “Kelly—” he waited until she looked up—“you collect bears. I think it’s the perfect way to mark this occasion. You’ll have to come up with a name.”

  She gently straightened the ribbon the bear wore. “Bear.” She smiled. “Just Bear.”

  “You need one that’s brown or black and looks kind of rugged for that name.”

  She looked over at him. “Insulted?”

  “Embarrassed.” />
  Her laughter filled the room. Joe decided it was best to change the subject. He got to his feet and held out his hand. “Come on, let’s take that walk.”

  She let him pull her up. “It won’t take me but a minute to change.”

  “Bring a jacket.”

  She put the bear in a place of honor before she left the room.

  Bear.

  When the guys got wind of this—maybe if it lost the ribbon and got pulled through the dirt—a white plush bear with his handle was embarrassing. It also made him smile. Kelly knew how to say a lot without saying it directly.

  * * *

  Kelly slipped her hand into Joe’s as they strolled down to the water’s edge then turned north to follow the beach toward the Hotel del Coronado where their evening had begun. Music from the Ocean Terrace restaurant at the hotel drifted toward them, the colorful lanterns lit around the Terrace reflecting off the water. It was a festive mood.

  “One of the last memories I had in the water before you found me was from the last time we walked this beach.”

  “Really?”

  She nodded. “Friday night after dinner. You indulged me with a walk down to the Terrace to buy a frozen fruit smoothie. Remember?”

  “I remember the smoothie—it gave me an ice cream headache.”

  “I had forgotten that.”

  “I haven’t.”

  “What I remember is holding your hand while we walked, deciding how nice it was not to be walking alone.”

  He squeezed her hand gently. “Thank you. You’re welcome to hold my hand anytime you like.”

  Kelly returned the pressure, and they walked in silence along the shore. This was the best memory maker of the evening. The restaurant, the movie, roses, and the bear—of all the images of the evening, this was the one she treasured most. She had walked this beach with Joe before, but this time it was different. This time in a new way she belonged beside him and it felt special.

  The evening was going to end eventually, and she didn’t want that to happen. Would he kiss her good night? There were already stars in her eyes; that would certainly cap this evening with the best ending possible.

  The moonlight flickered as clouds skimmed over the sky.

  Joe stopped.

  She looked at him, puzzled, and saw his eyes narrow as he gazed ahead.

  There was only the dark shadow of the surf and the resulting white breakers. The sound clued her in, an odd interruption in the withdrawing surf as it pulled back to sea.

  They both began to run.

  A limp body was rolling in the surf, being thrown by the sea to the shore.

  Sixteen

  * * *

  “Kelly, go back to the house and call the police.” Joe still wore his pager, but he had left his phone with his suit jacket in her living room. He was angry at himself for leaving the phone behind, because he couldn’t comfort Kelly and do what needed to be done here. She was not reacting well, was scaring him, in fact.

  She had gone up to her knees into the surf with him, having instinctively moved to help get the person out of the water, but now she stood shaking, icy white, not unlike the coloring of the lady they could do nothing to help. In only the few moments it took to lift the lady to the sand, they knew there was nothing they could do to save her life.

  Joe carefully closed his hands over Kelly’s shaking ones. “Go, honey.”

  Her horror-filled eyes lifted to his, and she fought to get a breath. Joe nodded. “You’re okay. Go get us some help.”

  When she turned, she ran across the sand like hornets were after her.

  Lord, I need someone with Kelly. Liz, Christi, someone she trusts. Please, yank someone out of bed. She’s shattering.

  Joe turned and knelt beside the young woman lying on the sand. She would never walk on a beach again. Never laugh. She had drowned. Probably tonight. With painful sympathy he reached over and closed her blue eyes.

  * * *

  When he eventually arrived back at the house, Kelly was sitting on the couch, a blanket around her shoulders, still shivering. She looked up as he entered the living room. Her gaze was haunted. A cop was with her, and Joe sent the lady a grateful look at seeing the warmed-up coffee mug Kelly gripped and the fact she had now changed into dry clothes. It was a good answer to his prayer.

  “Sorry.” Kelly’s teeth chattered around the single word.

  Joe hid a wince at her apology. “Don’t be.” He sat down on the couch beside her and reached around to tug the blanket more firmly around her shoulders. He wanted to wrap his arms around her and hold on until her shivers stopped, but she was fighting for control in her own way. He settled for rubbing his hand back and forth across her wrist, feeling the coldness gripping her skin.

  “I looked at her, and I saw my own face.” She gulped for air. “In my dreams, that’s what I looked like when I drowned.”

  She’d been dreaming about drowning. He should have expected it, but he hadn’t. There wasn’t much assurance he could offer. “This comes a little too close for comfort.”

  The officer who had been with him at the beach joined them. He spoke with the officer who had come to meet up with Kelly. Joe heard the quiet debriefing and ignored it. There hadn’t been much he could tell the officer, and Kelly knew even less.

  “Do you know who she is?” Kelly asked the officer as he came over and sat in the chair across from her.

  “Not yet,” he said, frowning slightly.

  “What happened? Do you know how she drowned?”

  He looked at her steadily. “She wasn’t swimming or surfing. She wasn’t tossed against the rocks. There’s no sign of a struggle, and she hasn’t been in the water long. The dress slacks, sweater, jacket—they suggest she was out on a boat, no life jacket, probably slipped, hit her head, and fell overboard. The currents are strong; they may not even know she’s missing yet.”

  Joe felt Kelly shudder. What the cop had described happened several times along the California coast each year. An accident.

  “It’s also possible it’s a suicide, but few would enter the water with their jacket on if that were their intention And it’s doubtful she could jump from a cliff and end up on this stretch of beach. If she swam out until she was exhausted, then couldn’t swim back—we’ll look into it. Until we know something definite, we’ll be treating it as a crime scene.”

  Kelly and Ryan almost drowned, and three days later, someone does. Joe knew the timing was coincidental, but it didn’t feel that way.

  “I’m okay, Joe. Really.” He realized his hand had tightened around hers. She smoothed her free hand over his.

  The officer offered Joe his card. “We’ll be down at the beach for at least another hour. If you remember anything else, please let us know.”

  “I’ll call.”

  “I’m sorry your evening ended this way, Mrs. Jacobs.” The officer hesitated. “My daughter clipped out your picture from the paper to add to her scrapbook. It would be a real shame if you let what happened Thursday and tonight scare you away from the water, from your job. The kids love you.”

  “What’s your daughter’s name?”

  “Lynnette.”

  “Fifteen, gorgeous blue eyes, loves country music?”

  “That’s Lynn.”

  Kelly gave a glimmer of a smile. “Please tell her thanks. She is one of the best junior lifeguards we have at the beach.”

  “I’ll do that.”

  Joe saw both officers out and locked the door behind them. He returned to the living room and hesitated when he saw Kelly had tugged over a pillow, wrapping her arms around it. “Let me call Liz.”

  She glanced up at him and shook her head. “She has enough broken nights of sleep with Christopher waking up to be fed.”

  “Christi then.”

  She pushed her hands through her hair. “No. I appreciate the thought, but I simply need to sleep and forget.”

  It was a good idea, but Joe knew sleep wouldn’t be coming soon for her, not when
she looked so haunted by what had happened, was still shivering occasionally. She’d just dream again, and this time it would probably be so vivid it would feel alive. He sighed as he crossed back to join her. He caught the edges of the blanket and tugged the ends around her lap. He’d suggest a hot shower, but water wasn’t a good idea at the moment either. “You need someone with you tonight.”

  She looked up at him. “Just sit and talk to me for a while, please?”

  His hesitation had nothing to do with her request. She had no way of knowing that at 0400 hours he was due to leave for the Chocolate Mountain training grounds. If he told her, she would insist he go home, that he call one of her friends. Where was the balance between his job and Kelly supposed to be when she truly needed him?

  He took a seat beside her and knew for now it was the right decision. He wouldn’t have slept anyway.

  She sighed. “That could so easily have been me.”

  “I know.”

  Her eyes searched his, looking for something. She finally gave a slight nod, accepting something. “Joe, did Nick drown?” she whispered.

  The question sliced into him and the fact she had asked it—he couldn’t tell her, and yet to leave that question unanswered . . . “No,” he finally said softly, “Nick didn’t drown.”

  She wrapped her hands more firmly around the blanket and seemed to pull back into herself. “I couldn’t handle it if he had drowned.” She took a deep breath, then looked over at him with desperate eyes. “When you drown, you know it’s happening.”

  He froze. He was right; a lot more had happened in the water than she had told him. “What happened out there in the water?”

  She looked away. He wanted her answer but was afraid of it, and he was afraid of so little. He couldn’t fix what had happened that night, and for that reason the emotions were hard to accept. Helplessness was an unnatural state. He thought she was never going to answer him. “I went to sleep.”