The Shy Captain

by Michelle Sutton

  Now certain that he would be better off remaining silent, he followed behind until they arrived at her truck. Neither spoke on the drive back to Tombstone. He pointed at his house when they passed by. "That's my humble abode over there."

  Sammie just nodded and continued driving, searching the area for an available parking space. She looped around the block and went down the street again.

  He wanted to shoot himself for saying something so lame just to try and make her laugh. In his effort to impress her, somehow he'd insulted her instead. His voice hoarse, he muttered. "Listen, I never meant to make you feel insulted back there."

  She shot him a narrow-eyed look. "Oh, I understood your meaning perfectly."

  Great. He had insulted her. Now what should he do?

  She turned back to watch the road. She circled the street and when she saw someone leaving, she parked her truck a few houses down from his place.

  "I'm really sorry you took it the wrong way, Sammie."

  Turning, she stared at him, mouth gaping. "What did you just say?"

  His breath caught and he choked out. "I… I don't know. I didn't finish. I meant…"

  "Wait." Lifting her hand to stop him, her gaze fixed on his, wary and untrusting. "Who told you my real name?"

  Jimmy bit back an incredulous retort. Was that all she was bugged about? She was bugged that he knew her real name? "Does it matter? That is your real name, isn't it?"

  Nodding, she stared out the window, biting her lower lip. After several uncomfortable seconds, she turned to face him. "Is Big Jim your real name?"

  Jimmy laughed. "No, I already told you my real name."

  Narrowing her eyes again, she asked, "Well, then, what is?"

  "I told you before. My friends call me Jimmy, remember?"

  "I know you said that, but it doesn't really fit you. It seems too… juvenile."

  Now his hackles lifted. "Well, maybe I'm just a big kid."

  She smirked and lifted her chin. "I don't believe you. I doubt you have people calling you Jimmy at work, right? So is your real name John, Joe, Jim, Jerry, Jeff? What is it?"

  Unsure why he decided to tell her the truth, he answered with some reluctance, "People call me Jimmy at work, but my given name…" He hesitated, rubbing his chin as he spoke. "Well, it's James. But I haven't been called that in years. Not since…"

  The bewildered look in her eyes took him by surprise and he stopped. For a few seconds that vulnerable expression, which had tugged on his heartstrings the day he first met her, appeared in her eyes. Then just as quickly as it had appeared, it vanished like a vapor, leaving him wondering what had provoked the sudden change in her mood.

  He could swear she started shaking when her hand touched the truck door. With a feminine-sounding grunt, she hopped out and started speed walking down the road. Before slamming the door shut, she sniffed. "Well, it was nice seeing you again. I'll talk to you later, um, Big Jimmy. I… I have to go meet someone. . ."

  Her smile never reached her eyes.

  Without another word, she hustled away, passing the courthouse, then the library. As she strode down the street, her feathers bounced to the tempo of her strut. He climbed out of her truck with a heavy sigh. He got the distinct impression that somehow he'd stolen her happiness again, and he didn't know how, or why.

  *****

  Sammie's stomach cramped from her distress as she marched toward Allen Street. With her head tipped down, she proceeded in long, deliberate strides. It couldn't be her James. That was impossible, right? He was too buff and good-looking to be him.

  "Oof." Sammie halted when her body hit a solid wall of muscle. She glanced into the eyes of the wannabe Dudley-do right, the pretend Sheriff of Tombstone. The impact to his chest had ruffled her feathers, literally. Her hand reached for her plume but she couldn't locate it.

  "Let me help you." The sheriff's eyes glimmered as he grinned and attempted to reattach the tiny cap to the back of her head. After several minutes of adjusting and re-pinning the hat, it finally rested correctly on her head.

  From the corner of her eye she noticed James heading her way. He must have stopped by his house to change because he now wore a tall hat, black boots with spurs, and leather chaps.

  The nervous flutter vibrating in her stomach made her want to run in the other direction. Without thinking, she resorted to the next best thing. Surely, he would lose interest in her if she openly flirted with the sheriff, right?

  Grinning at the attractive lawman, she winked. "Why thank you kindly, handsome." She toyed with the sheriff's badge, then slowly draped her arms around his neck and eased closer. She purred in a loud voice. "What would a girl like me do without a big, strong man like you?"

  The tall wanna-be Dudley Do Right tensed as he stifled a nervous-sounding chuckle and held her arms. "Whoa, down girl."

  Glancing over the sheriff's shoulder, she noted her ploy hadn't worked at all. James never once broke his stride. Upping the ante, she kissed the sheriff's cheek and whispered in his ear. "I truly appreciate it."

  Easing away from him, she smiled. Confident her ploy had worked this time, she giggled as the poor, flustered sheriff looked even cuter with his tomato-red cheeks. He stepped back, adjusting his collar as he cleared his throat and averted his gaze.

  "Sheriff Steve." Jimmy smacked the sheriff on the back, knocking the unsuspecting man forward a few inches and thus further away from Sammie. "I see you're at it again, old buddy. Aren't you just as slick as calf's slobber."

  "And aren't you one to talk?" The sheriff cleared his throat and smiled at Sammie. He reached for her hand and raised it to his lips to kiss her knuckles.

  Jimmy winked at Sammie and waited until Steve released her hand. He teased the sheriff by tapping his badge. "Don't forget you're needed at home."

  Sammie nearly choked. She'd kissed a married man? How mortifying.

  Steve smirked. "Um, Jimmy, I'm not married. You know that."

  She nearly sagged with relief. Thank God he was single. That was too close for her.

  Pounding the sheriff's back harder, Jimmy pulled him close by throwing his arm over the man's shoulder and giving him a side hug. "Not yet, but you will be soon. Right, ole pardner? So stop looking as limp as a worn out fiddle string and go find yer woman."

  Clearing his throat and with a flash of recognition passing over his gaze, Steve stepped away from Sammie with his hands held in surrender. "Oh, you mean for real? Of course, duh." The sheriff slapped his forehead, knocking his hat loose. He captured it mid-air before it hit the dusty road. "Why, I thought you'd meant as the sheriff of Tombstone." He followed up with a nervous laugh.

  Jimmy winked at Sammie again and with his thumb cocked in the sheriff's direction quipped, "My friend here… He's not strong on brains, but he ain't short on guts."

  "Hey," Steve retorted as he pushed his hat down on his head. "At least I ain't dumb enough to let ‘em play cats-cradle with my neck."

  She offered a weak smile. "Y'all are so charming."

  The sheriff had offered a brisk nod and slipped away.

  For a moment she locked gazes with Jimmy. As much as she wanted to deny it, she was sure he was her James. That's why his mouth looked the same. So, then, what if Jimmy was James? What did that mean? What would be the point of finding her first love, only to lose him again when the Army deployed her as planned? She wished that weren't true now. But it was still better to be friends and stay in touch than to lose her heart all over again.

  Jimmy shifted on his feet under her perusal. His cheeks turned pink.

  Funny, James used to blush and shift his feet the exact same way. Her mouth gaped at the realization. It had to be him.

  Clearing his throat, Jimmy held her gaze, his voice lowered, "Sammie. I'm sorry if I said something that offended you. Seems like I'm always stuffing my boot in that ol' hole in my face."

  The corner of his mouth curled in a grin. Just like James used to do. She stared in shock. How could she not have noticed before? />
  Tears filled her eyes and she tried to blink them away. With a sniffle, she turned her back toward Jimmy as she tried to collect her thoughts. How was she supposed to deal with this new revelation? Should she tell him what she suspected? She had to be rational about this. Falling in love with James — Jimmy again made no sense at all.

  A large, warm hand touched her bare shoulder. His thumb stroked her skin as he spoke. She closed her eyes and focused on the pleasure his touch brought and let it soothe away her hurt.

  "I know somehow I've hurt you. I'm truly sorry."

  With a tiny shudder zipping through her, she turned to face him. The curious look in his gaze made her wonder if he had recognized her, too. Without hesitation, she asked, "James, where did you grow up?"

  He blinked as if surprised by her question. "Colorado mostly, but my dad was military so we traveled a lot. I've lived in Idaho, Japan, Nevada, and other places. Why?"

  Swallowing hard, she pressed further. She needed to know if he remembered her, too. "Are those the only place you've lived?"

  With a frown, he answered, "Like I said before, my family was military."

  "Ever been to New York?" She held her breath, staring at him as she imagined him throwing his arms around her when he realized they had found each other again.

  He rubbed his forehead and heaved a sigh. "I lived in Syracuse with my grandmother for a month or so, but that was years ago. Why?"

  Shaking her head, she exhaled. "It's nothing. I thought you looked familiar. Guess I was wrong." It really was James, but she wasn't going to tell him she recognized him. He had to figure out for himself who she was.

  "Where did you grow up?"

  She glanced up. "Doesn't matter."

  "Why not?" His stare bored into hers.

  Sammie dismissed his question by averting her gaze.

  His hand touched her shoulder again. She tried to block out the sensation of his thumb stroking her skin. It proved to be impossible, though. She released a contented sigh and enjoyed the feeling for a minute.

  He stopped and became very quiet.

  Peering into his eyes once more, she asked, "Were you close to… anyone… when you lived in Syracuse?"

  His eyes took on a glazed expression, and then he blinked. "Just my grandmother. Why are you asking me stuff like this?"

  Stuffing the ache from his confession that he didn't remember her, she forced a smile. "No real reason. That's really… sweet."

  His mouth pulled into a frown.

  "Everyone needs a grandma to love." She meant nothing to him.

  Her throat clogged from the pain that revelation caused. She didn't trust herself to speak without betraying her upset.

  James eyed her strangely. "Yeah, I guess so."

  Sammie decided at that moment that she had to find a way to resurrect his memories of her if he had any at all. And if he failed to recover those memories, she'd create new ones for them both. The thought made her smile, until fear squeezed her throat. What was an inexperienced girl to do?

  He looked past her at the street clock and grinned. Rubbing his throat, he joked, "It's almost time for me to get my neck stretched. Want to come watch my utter demise?"

  A smile spread over her face as she poked his chest. "Only if I can help with the hanging."

  "If you insist." Jimmy strolled down the road exuding confidence. He hardly looked like a man walking to the gallows and to his certain death.

  She walked briskly to try and keep up. They saw the hanging tree at the same time. It wasn't high up enough to hang anyone for real, but this was all supposed to be for show anyway, right? He winked at her and hammed it up. Dropping to his knees with his hands behind his back as if they were tied up, he aimed his head for the noose.

  "Here, let me." Sammie chuckled and made sure the rope was securely fastened around his neck. Then she realized the horror of what she was doing and backed away.

  "Aren't you going to wait and watch me die, honey? It'll help me knowing that someone who loves me is standing by me to the very end."

  His acting was impressive, but not enough to keep her there. Swallowing back the bile that had risen in her throat, she remembered a childhood friend telling her about how she had found her brother hanging in the bathroom after school. Her friend had gone into detail about what her brother looked liked. Suddenly the whole thing seemed utterly morbid and not funny at all.

  "No, I can't stay." She pressed her fingers over her mouth to contain the nausea.

  "What do you mean you can't stay?" He turned his head and gazed up at her, his brows crinkled in confusion.

  "I just realized I've gotta go. We'll talk later." She had to get to a bathroom in case she vomited. Oh, please, God let her make it to the bathroom before she heaved.

  "But I don't have any way to reach you so how are we supposed to talk later?"

  She recited her phone number from memory and left as fast as her feet would obey. She didn't want a dizzy spell to overtake her again. Remembering what her friend had told her about her brother had made her head feel tingly inside. She blinked to clear the spots from her vision.

  As soon as she got into her truck to leave, she exhaled in relief. If she couldn't handle the simulation of a pretend hanging, how would she handle violence in the Middle East? She didn't want to find out. For the first time ever, she could honestly say that she wanted to stay somewhere — like Arizona — and not move on. If only that were possible.

  After arriving home exhausted, she took a short nap.

  It didn't take long before the phone ringing woke her.

  "Hello?" She sat up and rubbed her eye.

  "What are your plans for tomorrow?" A sexy male voice greeted her ears. No need for an introduction. She knew exactly who had called her.

  "Right now? I don't have any plans." Not unless the Army needed her. It was rare that she would be called into work on a weekend.

  "Awesome!"

  Her cheeks heated in response to his happy tone of voice. It was actually happening. He'd called her to take her on a date. "I'm glad you're excited."

  "Oh, I'm beyond tickled. So let's make some plans, honey."

  His cowboy accent made her smile. She thought about his words and paused. He'd called her honey. Yeah, he sounded like he was teasing, but it still sounded genuinely affectionate. She'd never been called honey by anyone else. Not even her dad.

  "You still there?"

  "Yeah, sorry. Sure, let's make some plans."

  An excited tremor raced through her. This would be a real date. She was going on her first real date. Whoa, she was going on a real date! Spots appeared in her vision as she listened to him plan the events for the following day.

  She hoped that through spending time together as friends things would improve between them. And maybe, just maybe something that she would say or do would trigger a memory for him. Just one tiny memory of her from those tender days when they had enjoyed the summer together. That wasn't too much to ask, was it?

  Chapter Seven

  As Jimmy brought Sammie on their date to Bisbee the next morning his muscles knotted. He'd never been so nervous in his life.

  He glanced over at her and smiled. The warm response she offered caused gratitude to swell in his chest. Praise God, she'd gotten past whatever had upset her the other day. Now he could only pray that her mood would remain stable. That he could handle.

  Unfortunately, they arrived minutes after the last tickets for the Queen Mine Tour had sold out for that day. Neither realized it would be a busy weekend schedule because of the Brewery Gulch Days annual event. Since they were already in Bisbee they decided to stay and participate in the other festivities.

  Jimmy led the way as they walked up and down the hilly streets and browsed inside numerous art shops and antique stores. Some items in the gallery were so bizarre they couldn't help laughing at them. Art was so subjective.

  The most interesting discoveries they made that day were of several historical hotels which were el
egant and full of old time photos and memorabilia. One of the hotels even had bathroom stalls located in the hallway, just like in the old mining days.

  They strolled down the road and observed young children competing in a sidewalk chalk art contest; quite a unique fundraiser. Each observer was supposed to toss a quarter to vote on the drawing they like the best. The one with the most money at the end of the competition would be the winner. The proceeds were then collected for charity.

  Since they couldn't decide between the fish tank drawing and the rainforest, they voted for both. They waited to see who won and then walked back through the Brewery Gulch and onto the main street in old town Bisbee.

  After going up and down so many hills and steep stairs, Jimmy was puffing and panting. Sammie seemed to be in better physical shape that he was. He didn't like that at all and vowed to himself to get to the gym more often.

  Sammie suggested they rest on a bench outside the coffee shop when he got their drinks. Jimmy agreed and went inside to get them each an Italian cream soda with whipped cream. He emerged with the tasty-looking drinks a few minutes later.

  "Thanks. I was getting really thirsty," Sammie said as she took a large sip from the straw. She smiled coyly at Jimmy and plucked out a small dollop of whip cream with the end. She slid the straw in her mouth and licked off the cream, then flipped it over and did the same with the opposite end. "Mmm."

  Jimmy grinned and copied her. "Mmmm, this is delicious. Want a taste of mine?"

  She nodded and looked up at him with her big brown eyes. Her mouth opened just wide enough for him to put a little bit of whip cream on her tongue. She licked and swallowed. Her face adopted a dreamy expression. "Tastes just like mine."

  "Let me see." He opened his mouth with anticipation. This was a hot game and he was enjoying it immensely.

  With a wry grin she slipped a bit of whipped cream on his tongue.

  "Yup, it's definitely the same."

  She giggled and stared at his lips.

  He couldn't help returning the gesture. Her mouth looked so moist and kissable.