“Okay.I think I’ve found her.I know where her phone is, so I assume she’s with it...”
Oh, thank God.He called the right person.“Where?”he demanded.
“She’s at a campground that has some cabins in the High Banks area.”
Grant was out the door before Jack finished his sentence.
He was in the area within an hour.He resented the fact that he had to stop for gas or take a piss.He made it to the area in record time.
“Jack, I’m here.Can you narrow the search?”
“Just within half a mile.Is there an office where you can ask?”
“Shit, I don’t know.I’ll look.”
“And man, you might want to take it down a few notches if you want information.You’re going to scare the shit out of someone.”
Grant blew out a frustrated breath.“Yeah.I’m trying.”
“Just tell yourself it’s so you can find Jennifer.Call me if you need anything.”
“Thanks, man.You’re the best.”He put his car into gear and drove slowly along the road with the cabins until he found one that looked like an office.
Grant’s eyes scanned the stretch of coastline and small rustic cabins along the edge of the sand.He turned to open the office door when he caught a glimpse of a small figure on the beach.Her long hair blew in the cool wind, and she had a tan blanket wrapped around her.
Grant gritted his teeth.“Dammit.”He locked his car and headed in that direction.Relief flowed through him the closer he got to her.As much as he wanted to snatch her up and throw her over his shoulder, he knew he had to go slowly with her right now.
****
Jennifer
Jennifer stood and looked out over the water as the afternoon sun hit the waves, making them glow.She hoped it would start to soothe the enormous pain tearing at her chest so she could take a normal breath.She thought she was prepared for the pain, but it went beyond anything she thought possible.She’d heard once that a person could die from a broken heart, but she always thought it was an old wives’ tale.Now she understood how true it was.She wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out.Nothing in her life had hurt as much as this.
She knew instantly when Grant stepped up behind her.Warmth and sorrow and a sensation of panic bombarded her senses.A dark, sickening grief filled her heart and took her breath away.
“Jennifer.We need to talk, baby.”His voice was rough with tension.
Jennifer cringed at the stark tone of his voice.He didn’t touch her but stood close enough behind her so she could feel the heat of his body wrap around her.She started to shiver.She didn’t know if it was because of the cool weather or because he'd surprised her.“How did you find me?”
“That’s all you can say after scaring the hell out of me?”Grant bit off sharply.
“I already told you, you don’t need to worry about me,” she whispered warily.Jennifer watched through tear-filled eyes as the gray, foamy waves crashed against a pile of boulders to the left of them.It was a good representation of how beaten she felt.
A cold knot formed in his stomach at her voice’s lifeless, exhausted tone.“Then I’ll have to stop breathing because I can’t take a minute without you, because I’ll love you forever.I won’t stop until the day I die.”
A small whimper slipped out as silent tears ran down her pale cheeks.She gasped when his large arms curled around her, pulling her back against his chest and into his immense warmth.He held her like this, murmuring soft words into her ears while she wept.
“Which cabin is yours?”he asked after a short while.
She pointed behind them and to the right.She needed to get through the next few minutes, and then she could let her emotions go.
