With This Ring (Windswept Bay Book 6)

by Debra Clopton

  And it had been wonderful. But she wasn’t telling Lana that.

  Cars pulled up and they had to unload kids but the moment there was an opening, Lana came back over.

  “Sooo,” she cooed, coming back to stand beside Jessica. “This has been a very eventful three days. But I’m curious about the lunch date with the sexy police chief. How’d that go?” She drawled slowly and waggled her brows.

  Jessica sighed. “Oh Lana, he’s really wonderful.” And he was…which was the problem. “I understand why so many women seem to be upset by rumors that he might be off the market…no matter how untrue the rumors are.”

  “You like him.” She gasped. “Oh, Jessica, that’s wonderful. It sounds like you’ve connected.”

  “But, it’s not that simpl—”

  Her friend grabbed her by the arms. “Don’t shut the door on this. Take a deep breath and take it slow. It’s been two years since you lost Adam, and I know there are things going on in your head and heart that only someone who has lost a husband or a wife would understand. But, I do understand that there was something sparkling in your eyes for just a moment and I saw it.”

  “No—”

  Lana smiled. “There is something going on here. Don’t just shut it down.”

  “I’m scared, Lana. And just that alone makes me feel guilty.”

  “I get that. And I bet it’s going to be a process that will sort itself out. As long as you don’t shut down. Promise me you won’t slam the door on at least exploring this new possibility.”

  Jessica’s stomach felt shaky but she nodded. “Okay. I’m not promising anything is going to happen but I’ll try to not run away from the process.”

  Lana’s eyes softened. “Good for you. I’m here, you know. Anytime you need me.”

  “Thanks. You have no idea how comforting that is.” It was huge.

  On Monday afternoon, Max, Levi’s brother who was special ops with the military, stopped by the office. He walked in holding a cake wrapped in decorative cellophane and frilly curly ribbons.

  Levi had just come in from a zoning meeting in which he had been asked by several people whether the rumors were true that he was getting married.

  “Special delivery.” Max held the cake out to him.

  Max was leaving on an assignment, and as it always was, no one knew where he was going or when he’d be back.

  “So I can tell you’re about to leave town but I’m not sure why you’re bringing me a cake. I should be sending you off with one.”

  “I didn’t bring this to you. It was sitting outside on the sidewalk and it’s got your name on it with the card.” He grinned and set the cake on the desk.

  Levi took the cake and glanced at the card. Sure enough, scrawled in pretty handwriting was his name. He looked inside and read. The invitation still stands.

  His thoughts went to the woman at the grocery store and her dinner invitation.

  “So is it true you have rumors rampaging about you and secret admirers all over the place? And now you’re getting cakes dropped off at the doorstep of the police station...interesting, brother.” Max didn’t try to hide the humor he was feeling for the situation.

  “It’s true,” Betty Lou called from the dispatch room. “Your brother is now the most wanted man in town.” Betty Lou’s chuckles spilled from the small dispatch room and flowed into their area.

  “Betty Lou, I told you this morning, it’s not funny anymore.”

  “From where I see it, it’s hilarious,” she called back.

  Levi shook his head and met his brother’s laughing eyes.

  Max cocked his head to one side. “Betty Lou, I tend to be with you on this one. Chief, you going to be married by the time I get back?”

  “Don’t egg her on, Max. All this will pass over by the time you get back, unless you’re leaving today and come back tomorrow. But your missions usually take at least a week, so I’m hoping that in a week it’s all gone.”

  “I’ll probably be back by the end of the week. I’m not sure what we’re doing but I have a feeling it’s probably a three-day mission. That’s all I can say, but you know the rules. Anyway, I want to come by and ask if you’ll check on my place a few times and feed the animals.”

  “You got it. Stay safe out there.” Levi held his hand out.

  Max grabbed the firm shake and then they hugged.

  “I’m always careful.”

  “I hear you, but it doesn’t hurt to say the words. Keep low and don’t get cocky.”

  Max grinned. “Seems you need to take care of your own self while I’m gone. That cake looks like serious business. You may have a whole bakery piled up out there soon.”

  Levi paused, considering the worrisome suggestion. “Nah, not happening.” At least he hoped not. He was here to protect the people of Windswept Bay, not be the focus of a husband hunt.

  Max put his hands on his hips and studied him. “In all those Hallmark movies our sisters watched growing up, I think things like that happen all the time. I’d watch out for cakes.”

  “I’ll send them your way,” Levi grunted. They walked out of the office and onto the sidewalk. He had no idea where these rumors were heading but he knew that the only person he’d like to get a cake from was Jessica and he wasn’t sure what to do about that. He had to get her off his mind. “You’ll be home in time for Mom’s birthday then?”

  “I hope so. It’ll be a nice birthday bash,” Max said.

  “I think Cam is coming down too, even though he was just here for Christmas. He’s spending more time down here lately and I’m starting to wonder if he’s missing his roots.”

  “I noticed that too. I’m glad he’ll be here because if somehow I don’t make it back in time, well, at least everyone else will be.” He glanced at his watch. “Okay, I got to be at the base soon. And hey.” He looked over his shoulder as he put his hand on the door handle of his truck. “If something happens and by the time I get back you do happen to be hitched or nearly hitched, more power to you, man.”

  “Not happening.” Levi laughed. “But to be honest, I do like Jessica. But she’s lost her first husband and she has a very tender, fragile heart right now. There’s not much room for more than just getting to know her better for the time being.”

  “I like that you are interested in someone. It’s time because you’re settled. Me, I’m not settling down, not with my erratic schedule and the risk involved. Oh, hey, I hear you got a new pup.”

  Levi laughed. “You should see my pup. He’s so big. I knew nobody was going to adopt that dog and I couldn’t resist him.”

  “Love at first sight. I hear it happens between a man and a woman too.” Max grinned. “Gotta go.”

  “We’ll leave a light on for you. See you soon.”

  Max climbed into his truck, gave a quick wave and then headed out. Levi was proud of his brother and the country should be too.

  Instead of going back inside, he decided to take a walk down to the boat dock. Ryan was making the rounds and so was his other deputy. A little fresh air would do him good right now. He didn’t tell Max but he hadn’t slept a lot last night and had a certain strawberry-blonde on his mind.

  She’d been on his mind ever since he’d first met her. And he had a feeling it was going to be that way for a very long time.

  Chapter Seven

  On Wednesday, Jessica dropped Kevin off at her friend’s house for a play date, and had three hours all to herself. As a single parent and his schoolteacher, three hours alone was not something to be wasted. She contemplated treating herself to a rare manicure and a pedicure but then she thought about lunch with Jillian. They’d been trying to do lunch for a while now and not getting a time worked out.

  She dialed the number. “Hey, Jillian, it’s Jessica.”

  “Jessica, it is so good to hear from you.”

  She sounded as if she were rushing, maybe walking really fast. “You sound busy. I was calling about maybe having coffee since we haven’t found time for lunch
. I find myself with a few free hours today.”

  “Oh, that would be so great. But I can’t. I’m actually about to walk into the doctor’s office for an appointment right now. We are having the worst time getting our schedules to match up. But maybe tomorrow?”

  “We’ll get it worked out. Is everything okay? You’re not sick, I hope.”

  There was a pause. “No, the truth is I’m seeing the doctor to find out if I’m expecting. Don’t say anything to anyone please because the odds are against me but I have to tell you I’m nervous right now. “Don’t be. Wish me luck—better yet, say a prayer for me and Ryan.”

  “Oh, you bet,” Jessica said, understanding how important this moment was for them.

  “Okay, I’ve got to go, but we will do lunch or coffee soon.”

  After ending the call, Jessica said a prayer for her friend and then decided coffee on her own would have to do. She’d grab her favorite mocha latte and a piece of cheesecake and just chill for thirty minutes as she decided what to do with her other two hours.

  She parked her car at the local coffee shop and entered the building. It was a busy place and she had to wait in line. The door opened behind her and she turned to see Levi walk in. Her breath caught and her pulse instantly jumped.

  Her conversation with Lana rang in her ears as his gaze met hers and he crossed the room to come to stand behind her.

  “We are going to have to stop meeting like this.” He had a smile in his voice and an enticing twinkle in his eyes.

  He looked so good and there was no denying that she was happy to see him. “We are definitely working with similar mindsets lately.”

  He chuckled. “I’m not complaining at all. How are you?”

  He looked as if he was happy to see her. Her stomach felt bottomless and she had to admit that she was glad to see him. “I’m good,” she said with a little hesitancy.

  “If you’re here alone, I’d love to join you.”

  How could she resist him? “Sure. I had a few spare hours while Kevin is at a friend’s house. They are working on a project. I don’t think it’s fair of me to be helping him with his project when I’m the teacher, so he goes to his friend’s house and they work on it together. And it gives him a chance to be with someone other than me all the time.”

  It was her time to order, so she asked for coffee and cheesecake.

  He grinned. “I came to get my coffee at the perfect time today. I’ll have the same thing she’s having and I’ll take the check please,” he said to the girl.

  “Sure, Chief,” the girl said. “I heard you were getting married.”

  He glanced at Jessica, and she forced her expression to remain neutral.

  “Sandy, it’s just a rumor.”

  “So my sister still stands a chance?” Sandy smiled teasingly and Jessica got the feeling the high-school-aged girl was just teasing him.

  “Melinda will always own my heart.”

  “She will be so happy.”

  They moved to the end of the counter to wait on their order and Jessica couldn’t help asking, “So you and Melinda?”

  “Yup. She’s a great little gal. I’ll be getting married in about eighteen years or so. Melinda is four.”

  Jessica laughed. “Oh, so now I understand.”

  “I have a feeling she’ll lose interest before the wedding date and leave me broken-hearted.”

  “Let’s hope so anyway.” She liked him more and more. And he was so good with kids, it was obvious…or at least he was when he wasn’t being ambushed in a roomful of them. “So, you’re off again today?”

  “Imagine that, the police chief gets time off.”

  “Imagine.” Her smile widened.

  “I’m about to drive out to my brother Max’s place and check on it for him since he had to go out of town yesterday. But I can do that after cheesecake.”

  Their order came up and they went to a table by the window. “So, Max is your brother who is in the military?” she said with a little uncertainty. She and Jillian had talked a little bit and she knew some about his family. But there were so many of them, Jessica was almost guessing.

  She knew he had four brothers and four sisters and therefore with nine of them, getting all their names straight was a task in itself.

  “Yeah, Max is in special ops with the SEALs. He’s on a mission. And when he’s on a mission, I go by and check on his place every couple of days. It’s several miles outside of town.”

  “That’s nice of you. So he’s on a mission? A dangerous mission?”

  “I’m sure if he’s been called out, then it’s very dangerous. Missions that nobody will ever know about.”

  “I don’t know if I could deal with that. If I was married to a man who was in such a dangerous career, I would be worried all the time. Life is dangerous enough already. Your job is too dangerous for me.”

  “My job isn’t going straight into combat situations like Max. There are risks just walking out of your house and getting into your car every day. You can’t live your life being afraid. Prepared, but not afraid.”

  She knew he was probably right but she also knew that he was minimizing the danger for her benefit. “I tend to worry more than I should.”

  “I would think after losing your husband like you did, in such a traumatic way, that you would worry more.”

  She sipped her coffee, thinking about how much she should share. He was going to think that all she talked about was Adam’s death. But he seemed interested. “Right after he died, I had this calm come over me. Like I understood that everything happens for a reason and that everything about your life is set in stone and when it is your time to go, you’ll go.” She paused, remembering those horrible first hours and days after Adam died. “As odd as it sounds, I felt peace about that and I was ready to go. It was as if I had one foot in the door of heaven, with Adam already there.” She wondered what Levi would say to that.

  His expression tightened. “I hate that you went through that. Do you feel that way now?”

  She shrugged. “Time heals. It doesn’t make me forget, but it helps me feel more like my old self. And I don’t know if I’ll ever marry again, but I do know it wouldn’t be to someone who has a risky job. I’ve lost too much and don’t want to go through that again if I can help it.”

  Levi looked thoughtful and then he took a drink of his coffee before he put a fork in his cheesecake. She did the same.

  “So,” he said at last. “Hypothetically speaking, you’re saying someone like me would never have a chance with you.”

  She cringed. “I didn’t mean it like that. I…you’re a great guy, but I don’t think so. I…don’t think I would let myself fall for you or someone like you or like your brother.”

  He had placed his hand on the table beside his coffee and now his long fingers tapped silently on the table as if counting the beats while he thought. After a moment, his gaze dug into hers. “I don’t think I’m going to like that. But I’ll take my chances because I really like being your friend.”

  She was having a hard time concentrating on anything but the look in his eyes: intense and totally focused. She was mesmerized by him. And she didn’t know what to say… Ha—she didn’t know what to think.

  His lips quirked upward. “Stop worrying. I see it in your eyes. I get it. All of it.” He held his hand out to her. “Friends?”

  She stared at that hand. And she was almost afraid to take it. Afraid of the sparks that she knew his touch ignited in her. But she had promised Lana that she wouldn’t run. “Friends.”

  The moment she placed her hand in his, and the rougher, manly feel of his grasp met her softer skin, her stomach dropped to her toes.

  “Good. I’m glad we’re friends at least. Going to Max’s will take me about an hour round trip. Would you like to ride out with me? He lives in a unique place—it’s worth the drive. No strings attached.”

  She had started to sip her coffee and stopped. “I don’t know.” She knew she shouldn’t say ye
s. That she should go home and do laundry or something else just that exciting before picking Kevin up in a little over two hours. But, well, this was an opportunity to do something...something for herself. She felt guilty even for contemplating it but she nodded anyway. “Okay,” she said and she could hear Lana applauding her.

  She decided that Lana might be a bad influence.

  Levi’s smile of genuine pleasure caused butterflies to erupt behind her ribs.

  “Great.” He paused as they both stared at each other, as if not sure where to go from that moment. He chuckled, easing the sudden tension between them. “Then finish off that cheesecake. You’ve barely started and it’s too good to leave behind. As you can see, I’m going to finish off my last two bites. We’ll head out when you’re done.” He dug his fork into his dessert.

  Suddenly feeling lighthearted, she cut into her cheesecake and took a bite. It melted against her tongue but she barely tasted it now.

  Moments later, they were loaded in his truck and headed out of town. Her stomach alternated between feeling bottomless and churning with nervous energy. She tried to ignore both and pretend that it had nothing to do with her attraction for the appealing man driving the truck.

  No, these feelings were merely excitement at doing something spontaneous, having some fun. Of getting out of the house for some free time. That was it, she assured herself.

  It had nothing to do with attraction.

  Nothing at all.

  Chapter Eight

  “So do you enjoy teaching?” Levi asked a few miles down the road. He’d been thinking about what she’d said back at the coffee shop. The loss of her husband and how it had affected her. How she’d felt as though she already had one foot in heaven’s door. And then about his job being too dangerous. She seemed just as lost in thought as he was since they’d gotten into his truck.