I pull my hand away.
“I’m glad you’ve brought some sense back from this lunacy, Dr. Clark. It’s a constant struggle to deal with these people,” Garrett says.
I ignore the insult, and Finn ignores it too.
“Who’s going in the water?” I ask.
“Scott and his team. Sid and her team… and me.”
“You cave dive?”
“I’ve done some. I like to see what I’m researching up close.” He glances at Garrett. “Get my hands dirty.”
“About the dives.” Garrett scans the room before he continues. “Sidney can’t go.”
“I’m afraid she can and is,” Finn tells him patiently.
“I insist you reconsider. She has a team, so she can let them do the work. I don’t want her in those caves,” he says as he raises his voice.
“You don’t have the authority to exclude her from this expedition. I do, but I’m not going to.” Finn softens the edge in his voice. “I’m sure you love her, and you’re worried about her safety. Fair enough. We’ll adhere to strict safety protocols. She’ll be fine. Besides, it’s not her first rodeo, is it? She’s already a pro.”
Garrett swears and mumbles something to himself. “She’s worse than her mother. I’m constantly trying to keep her out of trouble and… keep trouble away from her.” He lets out a puff of air. “To no avail.”
“I’m on my way to meet with the Coast Guard right now to go over the logistics and pull together those permits,” Finn says. “Garrett, I’d like you to come with me. Is that okay, chap?”
Still grumbling about Sid, Garrett follows Finn out.
This meeting didn’t go as I intended. Frankly, I’m pissed. But Finn may already be close to narrowing in on what is causing the problem, and he’s working as fast as possible to find answers. That’s what matters most.
I walk out to the porch and look down the drive.
Where’s Scott?
CHAPTER 11
The Stranger
I follow Scott’s truck as he pulls into the Driftwood Inn and Cottages’ gravel driveway. My home. I park. When I turn off the engine, the loud thrum of my heart pounds in my ears. While I thought the inn was charming earlier this morning when I showed up for work, it feels a little different now. Like I’m intruding. The wide front porch is dotted with swaying flower baskets, and there’s a handmade Welcome Home sign hanging from the side of the railing.
Who the hell is Nathan Carter?
The sun has set, and it will be dark soon. I try to push the air out of my lungs. What will I say toher? Crystal.
Focusing my thoughts on her, I can’t quite make out the details of her face. In my dreams, her image is clear, but when I’m awake, it’s blurred and fragmented. Did the day we kissed really happen? Was it our first kiss, or were we already lovers?
I can’t even remember what it’s like to touch a woman. Hot blood rushes up my neck to my face, and cold sweat pours down my back and out of my palms.
I’m not sure I can do this.
It’s dark now. Electric lanterns and the porch light flicker on. Scott told me to wait. He climbs up the stairs and glances over to the area of the porch that’s obscured by hedges and walks that way. He’s not going in. He’s talking to someone on a swing. I can see the metal chains moving.
It has to beher. My wife.
Time stops. I stare at a patch of sable palms and wait for something to happen. I’m so excited to meet her. And I already know I want her. Does that make me a freak? To want her and know very little about her and absolutely nothing about us.
I think about my friend Karen in Miami. We’d meet every day in the breakroom to chat. I knew how she liked her coffee and what she liked to eat for lunch. I knew her favorite color to wear was green, and that she had three cats and a dog. All those little things had to stack up before we could call each other friends.
I don’t want to wait for all that. I want to give Crystal everything now, and I want my family back.
