“Who's your partner?”
“Mark Robbins.”
Rachel's face lit up immediately. “Mark! He married Karen Drummond. He had a son, and she had two daughters, and then they adopted two siblings in need.”
Jack smiled at the genuine happiness in her voice. “He's great. I've only been in the station for a couple of days, and I already feel like one of the team. Although it's so different from the Navy.”
“Can you talk about some of the cases in the area?”
“Right now, just the robbery at the pawn shop and the armed holdup at the gas station outside of Seaside. I got to see a few more of the law enforcement leaders in the area that I was so excited to be with when I was a kid.”
Rachel shoulder bumped him, playful and light. “You still get excited talking about law enforcement.”
Jack chuckled, shaking his head. “Yeah, I guess I do. Just hard to believe that I'm back and doing the job I always wanted to do. Makes me realize how many people don't get to do that.”
He finished his sandwich and looked at her. “Can I ask about the man you’re seeing?” Jack felt the weight of the question settle between them. He held her gaze, wanting her to see that he would accept whatever she told him. At least he would try to.
“We weren't dating exclusively.” She winced and shook her head. “Oh, that didn’t sound good. What I mean is that we were just friends who went out. It was pleasant, and I knew he was leaning toward more, but I just wasn’t there yet. I didn’t have those feelings. I did talk to him last night.” She paused. “He’d already heard about you returning. It seems the gossip about us has started just from us having breakfast.”
Jack heard from her tone that she wasn't pleased. It didn't matter how much time and distance had separated them, he still knew her tells. Something inside him sharpened. “What did he say?”
Rachel's jaw tightened slightly. “Oh, just some silly stuff about the baseball team record not comparing to the wrestling team wins. It was… strange.”
“What the fuck?” The words burst out before Jack could stop them.
Rachel sighed and held his gaze. “There was an odd, competitive vibe from him that I’d never noticed before.”
He reared back in surprise. “Seriously?”
Rachel stared at him. “Yeah. You know your winning baseball is still in the trophy case at the school for winning states our senior year.”
“I can't imagine someone so into that shit that they'd go back all those years just to see who I was.”
“Well, he seemed peeved to realize we would be seeing each other, then when I mentioned that you’d be coaching, he said something stupid about how even if you were coaching varsity baseball, you couldn't beat his wrestling team's season.”
Jack snorted. The guy sounded like a royal prick, but he didn’t want to say that aloud, not wanting to imply that Rachel had gone out with such a man.
She looked at him and shrugged. “I'm glad it's over before it became too complicated. Sometimes you have to spend time with someone to see them for who they are.”
Jack leaned closer, wanting to get the conversation back on them. “And have you spent enough time with me to see who I am?”
Her eyes met his, and something shifted in her expression. The playfulness was still there, but underneath it was something deeper. “I think you and I knew each other very well.” Then she leaned closer, and when she was only a whisper away, she said, “But I'll gladly volunteer to do more research.”
Then she kissed him lightly, her lips barely brushing his. Before Jack could lean in and take it deeper, Rachel pulled back with a small smile and said, “Now, feed me those brownies that smell so good. “
Jack laughed. Being with Rachel had always been easy. No pretense. No artifice. Just real. And he planned on making sure he was the only man she dated from now on.
They finished eating as the sun dropped lower, painting the water in shades of gold and copper. Jack packed away the empty containers while Rachel stretched out on the blanket, propping herself up on one elbow.
“Thank you for this,” she said. “For bringing me here.”
“I wanted to.” Jack settled beside her, close enough that their shoulders almost touched. “Wanted to do this right.”
Rachel was quiet for a moment, her eyes on the water. Then she turned to look at him. “Jack, what are we doing?”
The question hung between them, honest and open. Jack reached over and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, his fingers lingering against her cheek. “I'm trying to show you that I'm staying. That I mean it this time.”
“And if I'm scared?” Rachel's voice was barely above a whisper.
