"It's simple. Sam and Tessa were in love. I got in the way. Megan got in the way. Maybe their love would have lasted if I hadn't been in the picture. Maybe it wouldn't. But they'll never know unless they have a chance to find out."
"It's a big risk," Jimmy warned her, his expression more serious. "I think Tessa could actually talk herself into sticking around here if it meant getting Sam back."
"Really?" she asked, somewhat shocked, although wasn't that what she'd told herself all along might happen?
"But I don't think she can have her career and have Sam. I'm not sure she's figured that out yet."
"She wouldn't give up her career. It's all she ever wanted."
"Tessa has started believing that Sam is all she ever wanted."
Alli stared at him, still not quite sure Tessa would or could give up her career for Sam. "I thought...”
"What did you think?"
"I thought if anything Sam would go with Tessa."
"How could he? His business is here. His family is here. And what the hell would he do with Tessa anyway? Hang up her clothes, comment on her hair, follow her around like a puppy dog? She doesn't need a fisherman."
"That's true. I never thought about that part."
"Take him back, Alli. Save us all from this madness," Jimmy said dramatically.
"They have to decide for themselves. I can't fight for Sam anymore. It's his turn to fight for me." She paused, sending him a mischievous look "But that doesn't mean you can't fight for Tessa. I wouldn't mind if she had another distraction."
"I bet you wouldn't. Unfortunately, it's tough to compete with a memory of some out-of-this-world love affair."
"Tell me about it. I've been trying to do it for the past nine years." Alli stopped as she saw Tessa, Sam, and Megan come into view. They were walking like a family, with Megan skipping between them, her hands in theirs.
The scene tore at Alli's heart. It was one thing to lose her husband, but she couldn't lose Megan as well. And it was that thought that made her throat tighten and her words come out sharper than she intended. "About time," she said. "The tide won't stay out forever."
"I think we'll be all right," Sam replied. "What's the plan?"
"Fill up the bags." Alli tossed him a burlap sack. "Megan, you stay close to me or your daddy. The mud can get so thick it will suck you down like quicksand if you're not careful. And the rocks are slippery, so don't go jumping about," she added.
"But have fun," Jimmy interrupted.
"Yeah, right," Megan grumbled.
"We will have fun," Alli promised Megan, softening her voice and her expression. "We're going to find a pearl today and you're going to help us do it."
"Okay, Mommy," Megan said with a blooming smile.
"I'm taking pictures," Jimmy declared, dropping his bag to the beach and pulling out his camera. "You all go ahead."
"I thought you didn't want to miss out on this experience," Tessa said to him.
"I won't miss out. I'll be watching you, Tessa, you little beachcomber you."
Tessa made a face at him, and he snapped her picture.
"Stop that."
"Blackmail, baby. Tessa MacGuire with her hair blowing in the wind and nowhere near her usual amount of makeup. I can see the tabloids getting into a bidding war."
Alli grinned. She liked Jimmy Duggan more by the minute. Why couldn't Tessa see that Jimmy fit into her life so much better than Sam did?
Picking up her bag, Alli walked toward the rocks and pools uncovered by the vanishing tide. Megan moved along next to her, with Sam and Tessa veering off to the right. As they climbed around the rocks, they began to see signs of life in the pools, starfish and baby crabs, sea anemones and all sorts of tiny creatures.
A kaleidoscope of colors, a banquet of smells, and the constant hum of the ocean in the distance combined with the clicking of Jimmy's camera provided a rhythm for their oyster hunt. This particular tidal flat was open and wild, barely managed by one of the old oyster companies, who had made it known that the locals were welcome to hunt to their hearts' content.
The oysters just lay there, closed up tight in their shells, waiting for the water to come back to cover them, nourish them for another day. But these oysters were going to be shucked and probed for that one elusive pearl that would finish her grandmother's necklace.
"I think we're going to get lucky today," Megan said as she stuck her small hand into the mud and scooped out an oyster. "Look, I got one."
"You'll get more than one before long," Alli promised.
"I can't wait to show Grams a pearl," Megan continued. "Maybe she'll let me wear the necklace when we get it all fixed up and she comes home from the hospital."
"I'm sure she'll let you try it on."
"When is Grams coming home?"
"Soon, I hope."
"What are we going to do with all the oysters after we open them up?" Megan asked.
"Good question," Sam said, startling Alli by his nearness. "I'm not sure I can take any more raw oysters on the half shell, or that it would be advisable for any of us to do so."
She saw the gleam in his eye and remembered their leaping libidos from the last time they'd gone oyster hunting.
"Stew," she said abruptly. "We'll make oyster stew at Grams's house in her big black pot. And what we don't eat, we'll give away to the neighbors like we used to do."
"Tessa," Sam called. "Alli says we're making oyster stew at Phoebe's house tonight."
Tessa looked up in surprise. "Why? Why can't you make it at your house?"
"Because we always did it at Grams's house," Alli explained, although she was irritated that Sam had felt the need to bring Tessa into it at all. She belonged at her grandmother's house as much as Tessa did, if not more.
"I still don't see--” Tessa began.
"You don't have to see," Alli cut in. "That's where we're doing it. Her kitchen is bigger. The table is longer. And besides, we almost always found the pearl sitting around Grams's kitchen table."
"Fine," Tessa said with a sigh. "Let's just get this over with." She wrinkled up her nose as she bent over and scooped several oysters into her bag. "I can't believe I'm doing this. I never thought coming home would include wading in the tide pools. I can feel the water seeping through my rubber boots."
"You'll live," Alli said crisply.
Tessa shot her a dark look. "Of course I will. Did I say I wouldn't?"
"Are you guys fighting?" Megan asked curiously.
"No," Alli said quickly. "We're just talking like sisters do."
"Sounded like fighting to me," Megan muttered.
"Me, too," Sam said, taking his daughter's hand. "Why don't we go look over there? I think I see a better spot."
Alli bit down on her lip as Sam and Megan wandered away. She hadn't meant to snap, to start anything. Why couldn't she just stop putting her foot in her mouth?
* * *
Two hours later, their bags full, they began the hike back to the car. Tessa handed Jimmy her bag to carry "It's the least you can do," she told him.
"Anything for you, princess," he said, swinging the sack over one shoulder, the camera bag on the other.
"Thus speaks the man who wouldn't get his feet wet or his hands dirty."
"I got some great shots, though. This is a beautiful piece of coastline, and with you in it, it's quite spectacular." His voice turned husky and something inside of her melted. It was nice to be appreciated. Sam hadn't paid her much attention at all, catering to Megan, helping Alli, talking to Jimmy. In fact, it seemed like he'd gone out of his way to avoid her.
"Come on," she said. "I'm thirsty. I just want to go home, put my feet up, and have a really big glass of iced tea."
He sent her a strange look
"What?"
"You just called your grandmother's house home."
"It was my home," she said slowly.
"Freudian slip?" He didn't wait for an answer, heading up the path with Alli, leaving Tessa once again to bring up
the rear with Sam.
"Tired?" Sam asked her as she let out a sigh.
"A little. I'm not used to all this fresh air."
"I don't think I could breathe in a city," he said. "We went to L.A. for a weekend a few years back. The smog about killed me. I don't how you can stand to live there."
"It's not that bad. Maybe if you spent some time there, or in New York—it's such a wonderful city, so much energy and action and things to do. I think you'd like it."
"Manhattan was always on the top of your list of places to see. I'm glad you got there, Tessa."
"Me, too."
He nodded and they set off up the hill. He didn't have much to say and for the moment she didn't either. They'd talked around their relationship in so many circles she wasn't sure if she was coming or going. Her feelings about Sam were just as mixed up, just as confused.
"Sam--”
"Later," he said, cutting her off.
"It is later."
"Alli and Megan are just up ahead."
She wondered if that was the real reason for the stall or if Sam was finding it as hard as she was to figure out what to do next.
A piercing scream came from up ahead.
"Megan." The word came out of Sam's mouth in a rush. They both burst into a run, turning the corner to see Megan in a swarm of bees.
"Oh, my God," Tessa said, as Alli and Jimmy tried to swat the bees away from her.
"Daddy, save me," Megan screamed, looking directly at her father.
Sam ran straight into the swarm of bees. He gathered Megan into his arms and took off up the path, daring the bees to follow them.
Alli ran after them, and Tessa and Jimmy followed. They didn't stop until they reached the parking lot, where Sam set Megan down on her feet and knelt in front of her, so he could see into her face, run his hands up and down her arms.
"You're okay, honey, you're okay," Sam said soothingly. "They're all gone."
Megan sniffed back a snob. "I don't like bees," she said, then burst into tears.
Sam pulled her against his chest. "I don't either. But they aren't going to hurt you anymore."
"How badly is she stung?" Alli asked, her face white, but her voice still strong and composed as she gently pulled Megan away from her father so she could check her for bee stings.
Tessa was amazed at Alli's calm. She was a good mother, strong, someone her daughter could count on.
"I see at least four," Alli said to Sam. "Oh, my God." She stared at Sam in horror.
"What's wrong?" Tessa asked. But she knew, of course, she knew as well as Alli did.
"You're allergic." Both Alli and Tessa breathed the words at exactly the same time.
"Sam, you have to go to the hospital," Alli said. "You've been stung on your face."
"As soon as I make sure is Megan is okay," Sam replied.
"She's fine. Get in the car."
He got to his feet and Tessa saw that his cheeks were beginning to swell. She had a vivid flashback to the last time, when Sam had stepped on a bee at the beach. Within minutes he hadn't been able to breathe. If they hadn't called the paramedics...
"Help me get him in the car," Alli said to Jimmy. "He got stung by a bee once before and almost died."
Between them, they got a staggering Sam into the front seat of Alli's minivan, while Megan climbed into the back, crying even louder now that she sensed something was wrong with her daddy.
"It will be okay, Megan," Tessa told her helplessly. "We'll meet you at the hospital," she added as Jimmy slammed the car door and Alli tore off down the road.
"Well," Jimmy said, letting out a breath. "I think I know why you and Alli are so hung up on the guy.”
"What do you mean?"
"He almost died from a bee sting once before, yet he still ran into that swarm of bees without a second thought."
"For his daughter," Tessa said slowly.
"He's a hero," Jimmy muttered. "A goddamned hero."
Chapter Twenty
Within ten minutes, Alli was turning into the emergency room parking lot. Sam's face was swollen, one of his eyes was shut, and he was already extremely short of breath. But she managed to get him out of the car and through the double doors of the hospital. The receptionist took one look at Sam and had an orderly grab a nearby wheelchair.
"Be okay," Alli said breathlessly, kissing the top of his head. "I'll take care of everything out here." She hesitated. "I love you," she said after him, but he was already gone.
"Is Daddy going to be all right?" Megan asked, tugging on her hand.
"He will be fine. They just have to give him some medicine, and then he'll be good as new."
"I'm sorry, Mommy." Megan burst into tears once again as she buried her face in Alli's stomach.
"It's not your fault," Alli said, stroking Megan's head. "You didn't see the bees."
"I should have looked where I was going," she choked out in between sobs.
Alli pulled Megan's head up and smiled down at her watery blue eyes. "It's not your fault," she repeated. "I was talking to you, distracting you, remember? If it's anyone's fault, it's mine. You don't worry about it for one second longer, okay? Now, how's your face, sweet pea?"
"It hurts," Megan whimpered.
Alli pulled Megan's hair away from her face and counted at least four bee stings, but unlike Sam, Megan had only slight tender puffs at the sting sites.
"Excuse me, ma'am, but could you fill out these forms on your husband, please?" the receptionist asked. "And I'll need your insurance card."
"Okay." Alli turned her head as Tessa and Jimmy burst through the emergency room doors. Tessa looked frantic, her eyes holding a fear that Alli remembered seeing once before when their parents had died. "He's going to be okay," she said automatically. "They'll give him a shot. It will be all right."
"Are you sure?"
Alli nodded. "I'm sure."
Tessa sent her a searching look, then let out a breath and glanced toward Megan. "How are you, honey?"
Megan's lip quivered once again. "Hurts," she said, drawing a hand across her teary eyes.
The receptionist came back with a clipboard and an ice bag. "I thought you might need this for your little girl."
"Thank you," Alli said. She juggled both items for a minute, then turned to Tessa. "I need to fill out the paperwork. Could you help Megan with the ice pack?"
Tessa looked taken aback by the request. "I—I guess. Let's sit over there." Tessa took Megan's hand and led her over to a row of chairs against the wall.
"You okay?" Jimmy asked Alli.
"I'm fine."
He slowly smiled. "Yeah, you are, aren't you?”
"What does that mean?"
"I figured out not only what you see in Sam, but what he sees in you."
Alli wanted to ask him what he meant, but he simply winked at her and went over to join Tessa. First things first, she decided. She had to take care of the insurance, then deal with Megan. She hoped Sam would truly be all right, as she'd predicted so confidently just a moment before.
Megan had chosen to sit in Tessa's lap rather than on the chair next to her. It felt strange to have a child on her lap, to feel a curly head under her chin, to smell baby shampoo and to hear tiny little sobs. Tessa patted Megan, feeling awkward and incompetent. She would have preferred dealing with the insurance forms and letting Alli handle the mothering part. She feared she'd do the wrong thing, make Megan feel worse instead of better.
Tessa sent Jimmy a desperate look, but he gave her a sublime smile that told her he was enjoying her predicament. Well, screw him, she decided. So much for helping her, for being a friend...
"Daddy's going to be mad at me," Megan said.
The line caught at Tessa's heart. "Oh, no, he's not, Megan. He loves you. He would never be mad at you for this. It was an accident."
Megan turned to look up at her. "Are you mad at me?"
"Of course not."
"Do you like me?"
"Yes, I do. Very mu
ch," Tessa said, wondering where the questions were coming from.
"How come you never came to see me before?"
Tessa licked her lips. "Well, I've been traveling around the world. I just never got back to Tucker's Landing, but that doesn't mean I don't like you."
"I heard Mrs. Conroy tell Mommy that you stayed away because Mommy had me. And you didn't like me."
Tessa stared at Megan in horror, hating the rejected look in Megan's eyes, hating the fact that somehow, however inadvertently, she'd been the one to put it there.
"That's just not true," Tessa said firmly. "I left home to become a model, because that's my job. That's what I do. My staying away had nothing to do with you."
"But you don't like Mommy," Megan said.
"We're sisters. Sometimes sisters fight, just like friends fight. I bet you argue with your friends sometimes."
"Then we make up." Megan put her hands on Tessa's face, and Tessa had to stop herself from flinching. This mothering stuff was dirty business. "You and Mommy have to make up."
"We will someday," Tessa lied, because she didn't know what else to say.
Megan studied her for a long moment. "All right, then." She turned her attention to the nearby television.
Tessa tightened her arms around the little girl, realizing she was starting to enjoy the contact. She wondered what it would be like to have a child of her own. It wasn't something she'd thought much about, especially after Sam's departure from her life.
After that, she'd been consumed with staying thin and looking beautiful and getting magazine covers. But her career wouldn't last forever, not in the business she'd chosen. And then what would she have? Scrapbooks full of photos, two apartments but no home, no man?
Did she want children? Did she want a husband? The white picket fence, the carpools, the peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches? Right now, holding Megan, she could see some definite advantages to having a child. She'd have someone to love her, someone to belong to her. Maybe that's what Alli had been looking for, she thought suddenly, her gaze traveling to the counter where Alli was finishing up the admittance procedures.
Summer Reads Box Set, Books 4-6 Page 51