A Dolphin's Gift

by Watters, Patricia

  "I’m aware of that," Will said, in a restrained voice. "I thought it would be okay."

  "I don't care what you thought," Nellie said. "I don't want Mike simply going off like that without consulting me first."

  "I don’t know why you’re so upset," Will replied. "He's with Roy and his grandson."

  "I'm upset because any number of things could happen," Nellie said, her voice growing shrill. "He could be abducted!"

  Will looked at her as if she were deranged. "He's going to a store two blocks away!"

  Nellie realized she was overreacting. It wasn't as if Will let Mike go alone. But she'd been on edge ever since she caught the old man in the boathouse then learned that the car that followed them had been stolen. She gave him an contrite smile. "I'm sorry, Will. I should trust you to use good judgment. I'm sure he'll appreciate your allowing him to go."

  "Yeah, I suppose," Will said.

  The look of uncertainty on Will's face puzzled her. "Is there more to it than what you just told me?" she asked.

  Will's lips parted as if he were about to say something, then he shrugged, and said, "That's about it." Before Nellie could press him further, he turned and left. And Nellie knew then that there was something more to it. As soon as Mike returned, she'd find out what it was. If Mike would tell her. Things between them were at an all-time low.

  ***

  Back arched, ears flat, Zeke stared at Katy, who looked steadily back at him. The tabby moved in a slow circle, head tucked low, growls reverberating in his chest. Katy jumped forward. Catching Zeke's high-pitched scream and lightning fast claws to her nose, Katy yelped and jumped back. Snatching the moment to flee, Zeke leapt into Will's kayak and darted into the cockpit. Katy landed on the kayak with a thud, sending several wooden boxes toppling as the small craft rocked against the bulwarks.

  Hearing the commotion, Will scurried down the ladder from the bridge and rushed over to protect the sonar equipment stashed in several boxes beneath the kayak. Seeing Katy shoving her way between the boxes in an effort to get to Zeke, he clapped his hands loudly. Katy stopped abruptly and stared at him. Will thrust out a finger. "Out! Back to the dock." Katy lowered her head, dropped her tail, and jumped to the dock, and Will tied her to a cleat.

  He looked around for Mike, who he knew had untied Katy again. The kid was really testing him. Ever since the incident about going to the store with Donnie Peterson, Mike had been even more hostile. But he hadn't exactly let Mike go. Mike had been pretty determined to do as he damn well pleased. Later, he'd tell Nellie about their encounter, and about Mike's threat. There was no point worrying her over something the boy was undoubtedly using as a ploy to keep his mother to himself...

  Nellie rapped on the window. "What's going on out there?"

  "Guess," Will replied, provoked.

  Nellie joined him on deck. "Katy and Zeke again?"

  "Umm." Will crouched to unlatch the lids and check the fragile contents.

  Nellie peered down at him as he hovered over the box. "When we're underway tomorrow, Zeke will have to stand up to Katy because he won't have any place to go," Nellie said. "They'll work things out between them. You'll see."

  But Will didn't feel at all confident. "It's not the animals," he said. "It's Mike. He let the dog loose again. The evidence is over there." He pointed to where Mike's scraggly stuffed bear peeked out from between two boxes of groceries.

  "Well, yes, I suppose he did," Nellie said.

  Will looked around. "Where is he now? I don't feel real great about leaving this equipment unattended."

  "Don't worry," Nellie said. "He's next door having hamburgers with Donnie since it's our last day here." She looked at the containers in the kayak. "What's all this anyway?"

  "Electronic equipment," Will said, while examining a recording device to make sure it wasn't damaged. "It belongs to the Cetacean Communication Society, one of the organizations funding the project, and I can't afford to replace it if something happens to it." It was ludicrous thinking he could conduct scientific research aboard a boat with a kid who despised him. Nellie wasn't making things easy either, with her big hazel eyes, and generous curves and passionate kisses. And after her comment that she didn't believe kissing or anything else had to end in marriage, it was all he could do to keep his hands off her. He wouldn't once they were underway. Once Mike was be asleep, they'd have the master stateroom to themselves, and if things progressed as he hoped, he and Nellie would be in bed together before the week was up. It couldn't come soon enough for him...

  "What's all this for?" Nellie asked, peering down at the equipment surrounding him.

  From his crouched position, Will said, while pointing, "This is a hydrophone, and those are amplifiers and headphones, and that's a synthesizer... all for communicating with the animals."

  "How do you communicate with a whale?" Nellie asked.

  Will stood, and while scanning his equipment, replied, "We start by creating a shared space with them and building mutual trust."

  "How do you do that?" Nellie asked.

  "We watch for spontaneous reactions to touch," Will said. He brushed his knuckle across her cheek. "Scientists have proved that touch has a profound effect on the well-being of all creatures. Whales, dogs, cats..." He smiled. "A beautiful woman... " He trailed his finger along the line of her lips then curved his finger beneath her chin and lifted. When he kissed her, Nellie returned the kiss with a passion that surprised her. And when Will's hands moved over the swells of her breasts and down to press her intimately against him, she didn't try to stop him.

  It was crazy, irrational, bizarre, but in two weeks she'd fallen in love with Will. She had no idea what lay ahead for them, nor did she want to analyze what was happening. All she knew was, in Will's arms she felt whole. A little niggling voice reminded her that Will had no intention of marrying, but she dismissed it, knowing he only needed time to realize a wife and son would fill a void in his solitary existence. She also believed he was slowly coming to that realization. At least about her. It would take a little more time for Mike to come around and accept Will, but that would happen too. "Things are going to work out," she whispered against his parted lips.

  Will relaxed his hold and looked at her warily. "I'm not sure what you mean by things working out," he said, "but you have to understand there can be no promises beyond the assurance of a one-to-one relationship while it lasts."

  "Is that all you want? A casual sexual relationship and nothing more?" Nellie asked.

  "I don't consider any relationship casual," Will said. "But I think we can have a good relationship and a satisfying sex life without commitment, like you said."

  "Then obviously you read your own meaning into what I said," Nellie snapped. "I said kissing doesn't necessarily have to end in marriage."

  "You said kissing, or anything else, just to clarify things," Will fired back. "But you can't deny you're lonely for adult companionship. Intimacy."

  Nellie clutched her elbows. Why was he doing this, forcing her to admit the deep lonely void left by Richard's death? Tears misted her eyes.

  "I'm sorry if I seem insensitive," Will said, "but there's nothing wrong with two consenting adults having sex as long as they care about each other. And I do care about you. All I think about is you and how much I want to be with you."

  "And I'm faced with the challenge of raising a son, and I want someone to share the experience with, to help round out my life, not a quick roll in a bunk bed while at sea," Nellie said. "And in spite of what you might have gathered from our passionate encounter, I have no intention of getting involved in an intimate relationship outside of marriage."

  Will dropped his hands to his sides, and said, "Look, let's just forget this happened. We've both jumped to some pretty heavy conclusions."

  Humiliated by her seemingly uncontrollable responses to Will's kisses, Nellie gave a shrug of indifference, and said, "Sure, okay. Meanwhile we'd better put the groceries away." She turned from Will and hopped to the d
ock and grabbed a bag of groceries.

  As they stashed the canned food in the cabinets in the galley, neither talking, neither touching, Nellie tried to put things in perspective. Before meeting Will she'd never considered her own needs. But she had to admit, in the short time she'd known him, his presence in her life had become important. She'd started to feel responses long forgotten, like the warmth that crept over her when he smiled at her, and the tingles that radiated throughout her body when he kissed the back of her neck, and the deep sensual feeling he aroused when he covered her mouth with his in a long, sustained kiss. Maybe she'd misread those feelings as love. Maybe what she felt for Will was more sexual than emotional. After all, she’d had a satisfying sex life with Richard, and she missed the closeness they'd shared...

  "We haven't discussed where we're going to sleep," Will said. "I assume I'll be in the master stateroom and you'll be with Mike in the double bunks."

  Nellie shook her head. "Dr. Emery advised against sharing a room with Mike. I was doing that when the nightmares started and it seemed to make things worse."

  "Ah yes. The venerable Dr. Emery," Will said, a cynical edge to his voice.

  "I'm sorry if you don't have faith in therapists," Nellie clipped, "but Dr. Emery has done a good job helping us get our lives back together."

  "Okay," Will said, with resolve. "I'll stay in the fo'c'sle with Mike. Meanwhile, we'll be pulling out at daybreak so you'd better get to bed early." When he didn't leave right away, Nellie waited, wondering if he might take her in his arms and hold her and kiss her as before. But he didn't move toward her, and after a few moments, he turned and left. And with his departure, Nellie felt a profound emptiness. In Will she saw a man she could love, a man who made her feel wanted and needed in a deeply sensual way.

  He was also a man who was avoiding marriage and she wondered why. The curious thing was, he seemed to have no insight into his own seemingly insecure psyche, and she didn't have the experience or knowledge to unravel the reasons behind his solitary existence and his reluctance to make a permanent bond. Maybe in time she'd understand him, but for now, if she wanted to share her life with Will, though their relationship be brief, it would have to be on his terms. Sex without marriage, and love without the promise of anything more.

  CHAPTER 5

  The following morning they were greeted by a dismal overcast sky heavy with low scudding clouds. While listening for the rain, which threatened to come at any moment, Nellie checked the latches on the cabinet doors and secured the heavy strap around the small refrigerator. Will told her they'd encounter large ocean swells in the Straits of Juan de Fuca and to be prepared for rough seas. The big, overhead door to the boathouse was now raised, and she saw whitecaps everywhere. The seas looked dark and menacing, an unwelcome contrast to the beautiful late summer days they'd been having. Feeling uneasy, she said to Will, when he came to check the galley, "I hope it doesn't get as stormy as it's threatening."

  "It's just morning clouds," Will assured her, while making a quick round to recheck the latches on the cabinets. "The wind will blow them away before long."

  "We've never had morning clouds like this before," Nellie said.

  "The season's changing," Will replied. "We'll be fine."

  Nellie peered out the porthole again. "It still looks kind of rough," she said, then glanced back at Will, and added, "Are you sure you can handle the boat alone?"

  "No problem," Will assured her. "I spent six weeks cruising Johnstone Strait by myself last summer. This old girl and I weathered several gales." He thumped a wadded fist to the bulkhead. "She’s a tough old lady. Our main concern will be watching for deadheads and drift logs. They don't show up on radar." Satisfied that the galley was secure, he turned and left.

  Mike, who was sitting on the floor in a corner of galley, elbows propped on his folded legs, face against his knotted fists, looked at Nellie and said, "What about Katy?"

  "We'll keep her here in the galley," Nellie said. "She'll be fine in her box."

  "But Mr. Edenshaw's dumb old cat's going to be in here too," Mike said, eyes focused on Will’s apartment where Zeke sat on the window ledge staring down at them.

  "Then they'll just have to learn to get along," Nellie said, wondering what would happen when they turned Katy and Zeke loose in the galley. Will had removed the door to one of the larger lower storage cabinets and replaced it with a plywood door in which he'd cut a cat-sized opening so Zeke could have a place to hide. Inside the cabinet he'd placed a pad covered with a piece of flannel and a small litter box. Zeke, Nellie suspected, would probably spend most of the cruise inside the cabinet. For Katy, Nellie purchased a fleece-lined dog bed just before they left Medford, and the little dog lay curled contentedly inside. "Meanwhile, you need to straighten your cabin before we get underway," she said to Mike. "I saw clothes thrown all over the floor."

  A few minutes later, Nellie stepped on deck and found Will securing the kayak. "How long before we shove off?" she asked, staring at the play of muscles in Will's arms as he tightened the ropes around a cleat on the bulwark.

  "About twenty minutes," Will replied. He reached into his pocket, and said, "These patches are for seasickness. They go behind your ear. You and Mike better put them on now so they'll take affect before we leave. It's going to be rough for a while."

  As Nellie looked at the patches and the big hands holding them, she resisted the urge to place her hands on Will's arms and reach up and kiss him. She knew her advances would not be returned. At least not the way she wanted. Nothing had changed. In the end, the only relationship for Will was one without ties, and after a night of thrashing around in her berth, trying to justify other options, she knew the only relationship for her was love, with the only true commitment being marriage. She took the patches and headed to the fo'c'sle, where Mike was supposed to be preparing to get underway. But he was not in the cabin, and his belongings remained strewn about the small quarters.

  She called to Will. "Did you see Mike leave the boat?"

  "No," Will replied. "But you'd better round him up because we need to get underway."

  Nellie ran to the boathouse next door, where Roy Peterson informed her that Mike came to get Donnie, and he thought the boys were with her. Wasting no time, Nellie jogged along the dock while calling out for Mike. Finding no sign of him, she felt a rush of panic that her worse fears might have become reality—the boys had been lured away by the person who'd followed them, for whatever reason. She raced up and down piers, calling for Mike, but he and Donnie were nowhere to be found. Running back to the boat house, she said to Will, in a desperate voice, "I can't find them... Mike and Donnie. They were together but they're nowhere around!"

  "How long has it been since you last saw him?" Will asked.

  "I don't know. Maybe fifteen minutes," Nellie replied, her eyes wide with fright, her hands clasped together against her chest.

  "I'll go look around," Will said. "Maybe they're by the highway."

  "The highway?" Nellie said, bewildered and alarmed. "Why would they be there? Mike knows he's not to go near the road."

  Will looked at her, gravely. "I guess I should have told you about the day he went with Roy and Donnie to the store." He shoved his fingers in his hair and paced the floor, trying to find the right words to explain, in a way that wouldn’t send Nellie into a complete panic. But the words wouldn’t come, and after a few moments, he said, "Mike told me he'd hitchhike to Medford if I didn't stay away from you. I didn't believe him."

  "My God, Will! You had no right to keep that from me," Nellie said, her voice wavering with a blend of anger and panic.

  "I would've said something, but Mike didn't sound convincing," Will said. "But if they are heading for Medford, they can't be far. There hasn't been enough time. You call the police and report the boys missing and I’ll check the highway."

  Will rushed out the boathouse and headed toward the highway. After scanning the road both ways, he questioned people up and down the docks, and
fifteen minutes later, returned to the boathouse, where he found Nellie wringing her hands and pacing up and down the dock connecting the boathouses.

  When she saw him coming without Mike, she rushed up to him, and cried, in a voice teetering on panic, "You should have told me, Will. You had no right keeping that from me. You don't know Mike, and you don't know what he might do."

  Will said nothing because Nellie was right. He didn't know Mike. And there was no parallel between what Mike might do and what he would have done as a child. He remembered the times he planned to run away but could never bring himself to do it. He'd accepted the harsh realities of home. They were predictable, and for that reason, offered some measure of security, perverse as it was. But he had no way of knowing what might be lying in wait for him in the world beyond.

  But Mike was acting out of anger and jealousy, not desperation. Still, it had been foolish to assume the kid was making idle threats. Meanwhile, what does he say to a distraught mother who believes she may never see her son again? So he said the obvious. "You're right, I should have told you, but I have no experience with kids. And no, I'm not perceptive when it comes to them, and I don't have the makings of a natural father, just to set the record straight. But I am sorry I didn't tell you. I know better now."

  To Will's distress, Nellie started sobbing and saying, "You have no idea what it's like... after the wreck and almost losing him... and now maybe never seeing him... never seeing him..."

  At a loss what to do, Will tugged her by the hand into the boathouse and lowered himself onto a bench along the wall and pulled Nellie onto his lap and held her and let her cry, and wipe her eyes, and cry some more, until by the time the police arrived, she couldn't be consoled.

  The officer knocked on the door to the boathouse, then poked his head inside. Seeing him, Will set Nellie aside and stood. The officer said, as he walked toward Will, "I've got a couple of boys that match the descriptions you gave us."