“After what happened tonight, would you prefer me to keep my distance? For your safety?” The pain in his eyes as he asked made it clear how much the question cost him.
The rational part of Isabel’s brain—the part that had kept her safe and sensible for sixty-five years—was screaming yes, keep your distance. A man with dangerous enemies wasn’t someone she should be getting involved with.
But another part of her, a part that had come alive when she’d arrived in Sapphire Bay, thought about their conversation in the kitchen. The way Frank’s eyes had filled with warmth when he’d talked about Theresa. The surprising ease she feltwhen she was with him. The fact she’d started to imagine a future that included him.
“No,” she said finally. “I wouldn’t prefer that at all.”
Frank’s expression softened, relief washing over his features. His thumb gently traced the line of her cheekbone. “It could be dangerous to be associated with me right now.”
“I was married to a police officer, Frank. I’m familiar with risk.” She kissed his cheek. “And I won’t let some corporate bullies scare me away from someone I care about.”
The admission hung between them, and Frank’s eyes darkened with emotion. For a moment, she thought he might kiss her, despite everything happening around them.
“Isabel,” he said softly, her name almost a caress on his lips. “I never expected to find someone like you. Not here, not now, not after everything.”
William cleared his throat from the doorway. “We should move soon. The safe house is ready.”
Frank nodded, reluctantly dropping his hands from Isabel’s face, though his eyes never left hers. “I’ll call when I can,” he promised. “Once we’re settled somewhere secure.”
“I’ll be here.” When Tommy came back downstairs with a small backpack slung over his shoulder, Isabel repeated her words to him. “If you ever need me, Tommy, I’ll be in Sapphire Bay. It doesn’t matter whether I’m in the bookstore or at home, I’ll find you and help you.”
Tommy nodded and tucked Fido securely under his arm. He looked so brave and so young that Isabel’s breath caught.
“All set, buddy?” Frank asked, his voice steady and reassuring.
Tommy nodded again, then surprised Isabel by walking over and giving her a quick, fierce hug. “Don’t forget about the dinner,” he whispered.
“I won’t,” she promised, hugging him back.
As William escorted them toward a waiting unmarked car, Frank paused at the door, looking back at Isabel. So much remained unsaid between them—questions, concerns, and that tentative, fragile connection they’d been building.
“Be careful,” she said simply.
Frank crossed back to her in half a dozen quick strides. Before she could react, he pressed his lips to hers in a kiss that was brief but filled with emotion.
“Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?”
Isabel nodded. “I’m sure, Frank. I’ll be okay.”
With a defeated sigh, he touched his forehead against hers. When he stepped away, tears glistened on his lashes. “I’ll come back to you,” Frank promised. “That’s not just a line, Isabel. I will come back.”
And then they were gone, the door closing behind them with a finality that seemed to echo through the house.
Isabel stood in Frank’s living room, fingers pressed to her lips where she could still feel the warmth of his kiss. The evidence of their interrupted evening surrounded her—the board game Tommy had set up but never played, Frank’s reading glasses on the side table, and the remains of their barbecue dinner in the kitchen.
Outside, vehicle doors slammed and an engine started. Through the window, Isabel watched a truck pull away, taking Frank and Tommy to somewhere safer than Sapphire Bay.
She sank onto the couch, suddenly exhausted. In the distance, the police and the FBI continued to search the woods, secure evidence, and piece together exactly what had happened.
Her cell phone buzzed—a text from Lynda:Just saw police cars heading toward your side of the lake. Is everything okay?
Isabel stared at the message, unsure how she’d explain the evening’s events. How did you summarize being shot at, hidingunder the dock, and the dawning realization that she was falling for a man whose past had just violently caught up with him?
I’m safe,she typed finally.Will explain tomorrow.
As she placed her phone on the coffee table, her gaze fell on a framed photo on Frank’s bookshelf. It showed a younger Frank with a dark-haired woman—Theresa, presumably—and a teenage girl who must have been Sarah, Tommy’s mother. They were laughing, caught in a moment of uncomplicated happiness.
“I’ll look after them,” Isabel whispered to the woman in the photograph. “I promise.”
