Ace’s inner bear growled in appreciation. Mine, his bear asserted. Ace tried to squelch the feeling for the moment. His bear could be so impatient when it wanted someone or something. Ace at least needed to get introductions out of the way before he started making a move on the beautiful woman in front of him.
“I am indeed the helicopter pilot,” Ace said. “It’s nice to meet you in person. That was quite an ordeal yesterday, wasn’t it?”
“It was crazy,” Jade said, her eyes lighting up. “But the day had such a happy ending. I cannot thank you enough for you help. Without air surveillance we probably never would have found that whale pod, and that baby whale wouldn’t have survived long without his mother. Seriously, thank you. We owe you and your crew a big debt of gratitude. I was actually just trying to figure out how to find you and your crew to say thank you.”
“Don’t mention it,” Ace said. “I was glad to help. I hate to see animals suffer. I actually came by today to check if anybody had any more news about the little guy. The woman at the front desk said if anyone knew anything it would be you.”
“I don’t have any more news, and probably never will,” Jade said. “We watched him swim away with his mom and pod, but since he doesn’t have a radio tracker, once he’s out of sight he’s gone for good. The good news, though, is that we verified that he reunited with his mom. We saw him nursing before they swam off, so he should be okay. It’s a very happy ending, and pretty lucky. Things could have been a lot worse for Ventura.”
“Ventura?” Ace asked, cocking an eyebrow in Jade’s direction.
Jade’s face turned beet red. “Oh, yeah. Sorry. I forgot to mention that we nicknamed the baby whale Ventura in honor of you and your crew. You know, like Ace Ventura.”
Ace crossed his arms and pretended to be offended. “Yeah. I remember you making a joke about Ace Ventura yesterday. And I’m pretty sure I didn’t laugh.”
Jade shrugged. “Sorry. I couldn’t resist. And the rescue effort took so long that we had to start calling the little guy something other than ‘the baby whale.’”
“Hmph.”
“Oh come one. We basically named him after you. Don’t act like you’re not honored.”
Ace tried to act like he was angry, but Jade’s playful expression was too much for him and he started laughing. “Okay, okay. I guess I am a little bit touched. You could have just named him Ace, though. Ace Ventura isn’t really my thing.”
Jade shrugged again. “How was I supposed to know what your thing was? My only communication with you was over a crackling radio.”
“I guess I’ll give you that,” Ace said “I must admit, it is nice to put a face to your crackling voice.
Jade smiled. “I could say the same to you. And I’m really touched that you stopped by to follow up on Ventura.”
“I love animals,” Ace said. “Maybe that’s not a tough guy thing to say, but it’s true. They have a special place in my heart.”
“If you love animals, you’ll really melt over the little seal pups we have in the hospital right now. They’re over in the far corner, away from the viewing area since they’re very young and sensitive. We don’t want our tour groups stressing them out. But I’d be willing to give you a private tour, if you’re interested.”
Ace felt his heart skip a beat. He definitely wasn’t going to turn down a chance to spend more time with Jade. “I’d love that,” he said. Jade grinned, and motioned him to follow her. She picked up the bucket again and started walking toward the hospital entrance. There was a pathway between each set of animal pens, and walking down it gave Ace a close-up view of the patients.
“Most of the animals we get here are seals or sea lions. Usually they’re suffering from things like poisoning, malnutrition, or injuries from interaction with human elements, like getting tangled in a fishing net. Our team does their best to get them healthy and stable again so they can get back to the ocean.”
Biscuit saw Jade with the bucket of fish, and sped over to the fence. He pressed his nose against it, and Jade laughed. “Hey, buddy. You hungry?” She fed him a few fish through the fence, then continued walking toward the back of the hospital.
“This seems like a really cool job,” Ace said. He was walking behind Jade and wishing she was wearing something other than giant waterproof overalls, which hid any chance he had at seeing what her ass looked like.
“Yeah, it’s pretty rewarding. Of course, it’s a lot of hard work, and, like any job, there are days when I’m tired and don’t feel like putting in the effort. But I’m always glad I did. And days like yesterday…wow. How many people get to rescue a whale as part of their day job? It’s pretty rewarding.”
They had reached the midpoint of the pathway, and Jade waved at a man who was standing in one of the pens with a sea lion, wearing huge overalls similar to Jade’s.
“Hey, Rick. I got that bucket of fish you wanted. Minus a few that Biscuit weaseled out of me.”
The man laughed. “Thanks! Biscuit sure loves his fish.”
Jade smiled, then pointed at Ace. “This is Ace, by the way. He’s the Coast Guard pilot who helped us with that whale rescue yesterday.”
Rick’s eyes widened and he reached over to vigorously shake Ace’s hand. “Oh, man! That’s awesome. Thank you so much for all your help. What an incredible day, huh?”
Ace shrugged. “Happy to help,” he said. For him, flying a helicopter around for a few hours was no big deal. But the effort had obviously made a strong impression on the staff here at the rescue center. Jade took him to see the baby seals, and for a tour of the exam rooms in the hospital. He met the kitchen staff, and some of the staff who were filling out record charts for the patients. Everyone he met treated him like a celebrity when they learned of his part in the whale rescue. By the time Jade finished her tour, Ace had shaken hands with a dozen people who told him he was something special. Ace acted politely toward them, but he was beginning to think that Jade was the one who was something special.
She knew all of the staff and all of the animals by name. Her smile made her whole face light up, and it was nearly impossible not to smile back at her when a beautiful grin was stretching across her face. She wasn’t wearing any makeup, as far as Ace could tell, but her skin was tanned and smooth. And despite her unconventional outfit and no-nonsense hairdo, she radiated a certain air of good fashion sense.
No wonder Ace’s bear wanted her.
As she walked him back to the front of the rescue center, he started arguing with himself over whether he should ask her out. On the one hand, he had come here to check on the whale that was rescued, not to make a move on the woman who rescued the whale. He didn’t want to come across as having ulterior motives for being here, because he definitely did not. But, on the other hand, he wanted Jade. And Ace was used to getting what he wanted. When Jade reached out to shake his hand goodbye, he decided to go for it.
“Thank you for showing me around. I really appreciate it, and I feel like I have a whole new appreciation for what it takes to rescue marine animals,” Ace said, then took a deep breath. “I’ve also really enjoyed having the chance to get to know you a little bit better. I’m just going to cut to the chase. I like you a lot. You’re kind, strong, and beautiful. I would like the chance to get to know you even more. Can I take you to dinner sometime this week?”
Jade tilted her head to one side, and gave Ace a curious stare. “I’m sorry, but I don’t think it’s a good idea. I appreciate your help with the rescue, more than I can even put into words. And I’ve enjoyed showing you the facility here. Let’s just leave it at that.”
Jade reached out and gave Ace’s hand a firm shake, then disappeared back into the building, leaving him standing alone on the sidewalk, dumbfounded.
Ace was good-looking, and he knew it. He had never had a woman turn down the chance to date him. Sure, there was always a first time for everything, but he had been having such a good time with Jade that he had expected her to jump at the chance to
continue to explore the possibilities between them.
Ace stared at the door of the rescue center that had just closed behind Jade, and then crossed his arms. He wasn’t sure what Jade’s reasoning was for so quickly brushing him off, but, in his mind, Jade had just issued a challenge to him: convince her that he was worth a second glance.
Ace turned confidently on his heel and strode back to his vehicle with his head held high.
“Challenge accepted,” he said, then fired up the engine for the drive home.
Chapter Three
Jade stood on the second floor of the rescue center and watched as Ace drove his truck out of the parking lot. She stared out the window until he disappeared from view, and then turned and leaned her back against the wall. She slid down into a sitting position, and put her head in her hands.
Of course, the first guy in years to actually make her heart beat a little bit faster just so happened to have a dangerous job. And Jade had sworn that she would not date someone who was at high risk for being killed in the line of duty. Not after Mike.
Jade abruptly lifted her head and stood up. She had to get out of here. She’d done enough for today, anyway. She’d done enough for the whole week, really. Yesterday had been exhausting, and Jade suddenly felt like she needed to lie down. She took the stairs down to the first floor two at a time, then went to the equipment room and took off her overalls. She grabbed her hooded sweatshirt from the coat rack and fished her keys out of the pocket, then headed for the front door.
“Bye, Mary,” Jade said to the sweet old lady who ran the front desk. “I’m going home for the day. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Bye, dear,” Mary said. “Have a good afternoon.”
Jade jumped into her tiny truck and started the ten minute drive back to her apartment. Thankfully, the traffic was sparse, and Jade hit every light green. She made it home in record time, and bounded up the stairs to her third floor apartment.
The place was small, but homey. Jade had lived here for the last three years, and, although she kept telling herself she was going to upgrade to something better, she kept renewing her lease here when it ended. She could afford something bigger, but she figured she didn’t really need the space. And moving seemed like so much effort. So much change. Jade was comfortable enough here, and she didn’t think it was likely that she’d be sharing this space with anyone else any time soon.
Jade sighed as she opened her fridge and grabbed a diet coke. She popped the tab open, and took a long, thirsty sip. Ace’s face flashed across her mind, and she did her best to push the image away.
He was a helicopter pilot on a Coast Guard search and rescue crew. His job had high risk written all over it, and Jade refused to go there. She refused to spend her days and nights sick with worry that something tragic might happen. She’d had enough of that to last her a lifetime.
Jade stepped out on the tiny balcony connected to her living room, and watched the cars driving by on the road adjacent to the apartment complex. Life had become a bit lonely, true. But things were calm. Settled. Peaceful. The last thing Jade wanted to do was rock the boat. Jade took another long sip of her diet coke, and then walked back inside, leaving the balcony door open to let in the cool breeze. She leaned back on her couch and stared up at the ceiling for a few minutes, trying and failing again to get the image of Ace out of her mind.
No one could objectively deny that he was gorgeous. His dark brown hair and dark brown eyes matched each other perfectly, and offset the deep, olive tone of his skin. His hair was cropped short in a military style, but this morning he’d had a healthy amount of stubble on his chin. Jade guessed that he probably hadn’t shaved since he hadn’t been on duty today. He stood well over six feet tall, and his biceps looked like they were as big as her thighs. He was a beast of a man, and Jade had worked hard all morning to keep herself from swooning over his tough guy look.
She had figured she just had to keep her cool until she was done giving him a tour, and then he would leave and she would probably never see him again. He wouldn’t have any reason to come back to the rescue center, since she’d told him that she didn’t anticipate ever having more information about the whale they had rescued. As she bid him farewell by the front entrance, she had silently congratulated herself on making it through the tour without saying something stupid. But just as she thought she was done with him, he had asked her to dinner. Jade had been flattered, and surprised. She didn’t consider herself bad-looking, necessarily. But she wasn’t a runway model, that’s for sure. And Ace seemed like the kind of guy who could have his pick of runway models, if he wanted to.
But no matter how flattered she felt by his attention, she couldn’t date him. She had made her decision. Jade put her feet up on her coffee table and used the remote to flick on the television. The local news was playing, covering a story about a shootout between some gang members and a group of police officers. All of the police officers had survived, thankfully, and one of the gang members was in critical condition at a local hospital. The other gang members were in custody.
Jade flicked the TV off and squeezed her eyes shut. Why was everything today reminding her of what she had lost? She reached to open the storage drawer on the coffee table, and pulled out a small box of photos. Tears filled her eyes as she viewed the first one. Mike, standing at the top of Razor Point Trail in the Torrey Pines State Reserve. He was flexing his muscles, and had a grin that stretched a mile wide. The next picture was Mike in formal wear, with Jade on his arm, at a charity event for the rescue center. Again, he was flashing the camera his signature grin. Jade continued flipping through the photos, laughing through the tears at the many shots of Mike goofing off. At the bottom of the box were a few newspaper clippings. The first one announced the engagement of Mike and Jade, with a planned wedding date of July fifteenth. The next article clipping, dated June fifteenth, had a blurry picture of crime scene tape in front of a convenience store, with a headline that read “San Diego Police Officer Loses His Life in Armed Robbery Response.”
Jade didn’t read through the article. She didn’t need to. She knew all the awful details of that day by heart, including details the article didn’t mention. Details like the fact that Mike had surprised her at work that morning with a latte before heading off to work himself. Details like the fact that Mike had made reservations for them at their favorite Italian restaurant to celebrate the one month countdown to their wedding date. Details like the fact that no one had managed to contact her before she showed up at the restaurant to meet Mike. She had waited there alone, knowing as the minutes continued to pass that something had gone horribly wrong. Mike was never late. Never.
She had left that restaurant in tears when she got the call, and she hadn’t been the same person since. She had rushed to the hospital, but he was already gone. She never even had the chance to say goodbye. The last she had seen of him alive was him walking away after handing her the latte, winking and saying there would be more surprises that evening. Jade would never know what those surprises were supposed to have been.
She had gone into survival mode, functioning on autopilot while arrangements were made for his funeral. Wedding plans had to be canceled: photographers and caterers called, guests notified. Thankfully, Jade’s mother had stepped in and handled most of the details. A mama never stopped doing everything in her power to make her baby’s life easier, no matter how old that baby was. Jade wasn’t sure that she would have made it through those difficult months without her mother holding her up, steady as a rock.
Jade had eventually moved out of the condo she and Mike had shared. She had sold the place, put the money in savings, and moved into this tiny apartment. She had been so scared, and so unsure of the future. She had hoarded every penny as though she was on the brink of bankruptcy and starvation, even though her job easily covered the rent for the new place. Life had seemed so volatile and uncertain, though. She couldn’t be too careful.
That awful day was now more than thre
e and a half years in the past. It had taken over two years for Jade to feel like the constant cloud of grief hanging over her had disappeared. These days, Jade was able to enjoy life again. Even though the idea of going a full day without thinking about Mike had seemed impossible at the beginning, Jade caught herself sometimes going for stretches of several days in a row without even thinking about him in passing. Even though she knew Mike would be happy to see her moving on and moving forward with life, Jade couldn’t keep herself from feeling a little bit guilty when she realized that he was becoming less and less a part of her life. She almost never shed tears over him anymore. It wasn’t that she didn’t still miss him. It’s just that time had healed the rawness of the wound.
But today, Ace’s innocent offer to take her on a date had brought a fresh surge of emotions rushing to the surface. Several men had asked her out in the years since she lost Mike, but Jade hadn’t had any interest. None of them could come even close to matching what she’d had with Ace. Ace was the first man to set her heart racing again. It was easy to see that Ace was a man’s man—strong, and full of life. He was exactly the kind of guy that Jade was looking for. Except for the fact that he had a dangerous job.
Jade had promised herself she would never again let herself love someone who might easily die from the dangers of his job.
Jade wiped the tears from her eyes and replaced the lid on the photo box. She chugged down the rest of her diet coke, then stood to head to her bedroom and change into workout clothes. She needed to do something to get her mind off of Ace. The man was off limits. And she’d told him she wasn’t interested, anyway. Odds were good she’d never see him again.
A few minutes later, Jade was lacing up her running shoes. She headed out into the crisp February afternoon to get some exercise and get her blood flowing—and to get Ace Grimes out of her head.
An Alpha's Lightning (Water Bear Shifters 2) Page 2