He wraps his arms tighter around me. Holding me to his chest, he whispers into my ear, “You’re my everything, Tink. All I will ever need.”
And my heart wants to burst. I had no idea, none at all, when he walked back through the door of the lobster shack that he would save my life in so many different ways.
Epilogue
Jake
It’s usuallyfun working the town’s Halloween party. I remember my first couple of years when I started at the fire department in Ocean Pines it was one of my favorite events, like Illumination Night but better because the kids were adorable in all their costumes. There were a bunch of events in the center of town at the gazebo and the local businesses gave out candy. We did too from the firetruck and let kids sit in the driver’s seat.
But tonight … tonight was pure and utter hell. Because I was working seven p.m. to seven p.m., and at five o’clock the surgeon gave me the all-clear for full duty and all other strenuous physical activities. Including sex. And yeah, I asked it bluntly, because I wanted the answer to be clear. But there was no time to find Terra, who had had her appointment earlier in the day and was also cleared. So we had to wait another twenty-four hours.
Logan is off tonight but he shows up with River who is the absolute most adorable Han Solo I have ever seen. Of course he’s got his favorite sidekick, Chewie, with him and he’s dragging that Ewok stuffie I gave him as well as a little black bucket filled with candy already. “You should have dressed up as Leia,” I tell Logan who gives me a look that says ‘fuck off’.
“I told Daddy to be Jabba the Hut but he said no,” River informs me and I laugh and bend to scratch Chewie behind the ears.
“Your dad would be the best Jabba ever,” I announce and Logan’s ‘fuck you’ look gets stronger.
“Riv! Your grandpa is dressed up as a lobster!”
I lift my eyes from Chewie and my frustration at working turns to pure rage. Terra is walking across the street to the fire truck in a costume. She’s dressed up as Tinkerbell. But not the cute, goofy looking Tinkerbell she was dressed as at seven. She’s dressed in a much more adult version. Nothing too sexy, just a glittering short green dress and a pair of sparkling sky blue wings. She’s got on heels, and her dirty blonde hair is piled up in a little bun with sparkly makeup on her face, and she looks incredible. I want to lift her off those heels and fuck her against the side of the truck right this very second, which is absolutely not going to happen. Fuck my life.
“Jake, babe, you look totally flustered,” she comments, pure fake innocence dripping off her words as she bats her eyelashes.
Logan groans. “Come on Riv. Let’s go see Grampy.”
“You look pretty Auntie!” River proclaims.
“That’s an understatement,” I reply.
Logan glares at me. “Do not have sexual thoughts about my sister in front of me.”
He growls it low enough and so close to my face that River doesn’t hear. I smile and reply. “Sorry. Too late.”
“Barf,” Logan takes River’s hand and Chewie’s leash and walks off toward the restaurant. Terra sticks around, smiling smugly at me.
“You are making the next twenty-four hours impossible,” I tell her.
I walk over to kiss her cheek but she puts a hand on my chest and stops me. “There’s time for that later. You have somewhere to be right now.”
“I do?”
“You need to head over to city hall,” she points to the big red brick building on the other side of the town square. “The battalion chief loves our lobster bisque, clam roll combo. He comes in once a month to grab it when he’s out this way meeting on committees in Portland. Yesterday was that day, and I couldn’t help but explain to him how one of his officers saved my life.”
“Terra…” I’m conflicted about the idea that she got involved in my work problems.
“He’s not from around here, Jake. He’s works in Augusta so he hadn’t seen Mrs. Green’s blog, and apparently you didn’t tell them why you postponed the first interview,” Terra gives me a brief but stern look of disapproval. “Anyway, now he knows and Aspen also called him and explained she was having a pregnancy emergency, and you came to help her over the interview and, well, he agreed to have an informal interview with you tonight.”
“I can’t … Are you serious?”
“She’s serious,” Captain D’Amato walks up beside us. “He’s here with one of the other battalion chiefs who would have also been at your interview, so get your ass to City Hall, first floor conference room, and have a little chat.”
“Like this?” I look down at my work clothes. They both nod.
“Go, Jake! There isn’t going to be a third chance,” Cap says in his sternest Cap voice. I nod and with one last look at Terra, who gives me an encouraging smile, I jog across the square.
The interview seems to go well, all things considering, but the rest of my shift is torture. I just want to be with Terra. The next evening, when it finally ends, I drive straight to Terra’s apartment as I call her on speaker phone. “Tink,” I say as soon as she answers. “It’s sex time.”
I hang up without giving her a chance to respond. I take the stairs to her place two at a time and not only did she get up, but she beat me to the door and has it open before I can knock. And she’s wearing that damn costume again. Holy shit.
