Sea of Love(49)

“I’m worried about you, Lacy. Are you sure you don’t want to go visit your sisters, or spend some time just relaxing? Tasha can handle covering for a few days,” Fred said.

Before going to Chatham, the idea of Tasha covering for her just to take time off would have knocked her from her seat. Now, sitting with Fred and begging him to let her do a subpar job to keep her mind off of Dane seemed ridiculous. Maybe she should take time off. God knows that every time she walked by Fred’s office, she remembered finding Dane there. Maybe she should go visit Kaylie and the kids and immerse herself in them for a while. Or maybe she should take off work and stay home and wallow in her loneliness. Either way, having Fred look at her with pity wasn’t the answer, even if it meant Tasha earning the promotion she had wanted so badly. I don’t care anymore. The truth of her thought startled her.

She needed to clear the chaos from her mind. She glanced at the clock. “I really appreciate your concern, Fred. I’ll think about it while I’m at lunch. Can we talk later this afternoon?” Lacy promised herself she wouldn’t dwell on Dane while she was at lunch. She’d get a cold Diet Pepsi, a People magazine, and sit at the café down the street and just veg for a while.





“EVERYTHING SUCKS. THAT’s just the way my life is right now.” Lacy held the cell between her shoulder and ear as she pulled out of the office parking lot.

“I know it feels that way, Lace, but you’re really very blessed when you look at the bigger picture,” Danica said.

“Oh, I know. I have a great family, a good job that I might have just jeopardized, and I’ve got a nice place to live. I think I’m just tired and stressed. I’m gonna grab a rag mag and chill for an hour. And I’m not gonna think about Dane. Shit…hold on.” Lacy slammed on her brakes and dropped the phone in her lap. “Asshole,” she yelled at the car that cut her off. She looked down for a split second to retrieve her phone and stepped on the gas to cross the intersection. Lacy never saw the Honda Civic coming her way, and she never heard Danica’s scream coming through the phone when the sound of metal against metal sent her car spinning and her phone flying through the air.





Chapter Thirty-Four


IT WAS A typical New England evening. Dane sat on the deck of Treat’s bungalow, having decided not to return to Florida after all. He wanted to be able to visit Rob as he recovered and be there for Sheila. They were both doing much better. Rob was getting stronger by the day, and without the ventilator, he was able to speak freely, even if a tad gravelly. He and Sheila were looking forward to returning to their home in Florida, and they were grateful for Dane’s generosity, as he covered Sheila’s hotel stay and any medical bills that insurance didn’t cover. He’d offered Rob a job with Brave on the boat or in the office—the choice was up to him—and for as much as his friend’s life was coming together, Dane felt unglued within his own.

Every time he thought about going back to his boat, he thought of Lacy. He knew he’d see her in the cabin and feel her in bed beside him. He’d stayed in Treat’s cottage to avoid being in the cabin of that boat because the memories were too fresh, his emotions too raw. He’d done the right thing. At least he thought he had. Who was he to ask her to live a life surrounded by risk and worry when she’d so willingly been overcoming her own fears? He loved her too much to allow that. As he watched the sun set over the bay, he knew that another reason he’d stayed in Massachusetts was that the act of physically leaving would finalize their breakup. As silly as it seemed, somehow being in the same state made him feel closer to her.

His cell phone rang. Dad. His family had been all over him for ignoring their calls after Rob’s accident, but in the end they’d all understood his need to be alone. He picked up the phone.

“Hi, Dad.”

“How are you doing, son?”

Hal’s voice wrapped itself around Dane.

Lonely. Sad. Feeling like taking a step on a boat might hurt too much. “Not bad. How about you?”

“Fairly well. I was down at the barn this afternoon with Hope. She’s doing well. Strong. Rex takes good care of her.”

When his mother had first become ill, his father had bought her Hope, a mare, and his father treated Hope as though Dane’s mother lived within her. Although that had always bothered Dane, he knew it brought his father comfort, and for that he was grateful.

“Good, Dad.”

“Dane, what are you doing out at Treat’s place? Why aren’t you back home?” his father asked.

“Home?” His father never pressured any of his children to visit, and his question brought a string of worry to Dane. “Is something wrong?”

“Home, Dane. Your home. On your boat.”

Dane sighed. “I’m headed that way, Dad. I just needed a little time to make sure Rob was okay.” And to make sure I was ready.

“All right. What have you been doing for the past week?”

“Uh, you know, going out on the boat.” The lie tasted like acid on his tongue. “Trying to get past Rob’s accident.”

“Treat’s boat?” his father asked.

Dane shook his head. He knew his father didn’t believe him. Hell, all it would take is one call from Treat to the resort to know that he hadn’t even sailed it back. He’d paid to have it returned.

“Dad.”

“Something you want to tell me, son?”

Dane pictured his father sitting in his favorite leather recliner wearing a flannel shirt and a pair of Levi’s, his face a mask of worry. “Not really,” Dane said.

“What’s your plan?” his father asked.

“I don’t know, Dad. I guess I’ll head back to Florida at some point and get back in the game. Right now I’m trying to remember what it all means,” Dane admitted.

“What it all means? Like what it means to save sharks?”

He knew his father’s inquisition could not be deterred. When Hal Braden set his sights on making a point, he made it. Dane wondered what today’s point would be and decided he’d better cut to the chase and fess up now if he wanted to get to the point of it.

“Life, Dad. Work, relationships, death. I’m trying to figure out the point of it all.” He closed his eyes and waited for his father’s wisdom to enlighten him. When his father didn’t answer, he said, “Dad?”

“Yeah, I’m here.”

“You asked me a question, and I answered. Don’t you have anything to say?”

“I was kind of waiting for you to tell me the answer. I never knew life, work, relationships, or death had a point,” his father said.

Dane kicked his feet up on the railing. “Good, then I’m not alone in this quandary.”

“Son, you’re never alone in anything. You know that. Your brothers and sister are worried sick about you. Max had to practically tie up Treat to keep him from chasing after you these last few days. He said you shouldn’t be alone, but your mother—” He took a deep breath. “I thought that you needed this time to think.”

Hearing his father stop himself from mentioning what his dead mother thought made Dane smile. He and his siblings were used to the messages their father received from beyond their mother’s grave. Dane didn’t know if he believed in his father’s supposed connection with his mother or not, but if she was what allowed him his privacy this past week, then he was thankful.

“Thanks, Dad. I think I need about a year, but since that’s not reasonable, I’ll take what I can get,” Dane said.

“Rob’s doing okay, I hear.”

Dane could always trust that Braden grapevine to ensure news traveled swiftly. He knew the information about Lacy wouldn’t be far behind.

“He is. He’s going home soon.”

“Glad to hear it. I’ve always liked Rob and Sheila,” he said. “And Lacy Snow?”

Dane stood and paced. He knew the question was coming, but it still hit him like a punch to the gut.

“She’s back at home. You know, work and all that.”

“Uh-huh. Son, did you ever figure out what your heart wanted?”

“Yeah, I did, Dad, but sometimes that’s not all that matters,” Dane said.

“Oh, no? Damn, Dane, I wish you had been around to tell me that when I was a teenager and fought to be able to date your mother. You could have saved me weeks of headache, and come to think of it, a black eye, too.”

Dane sat back down and leaned his elbows on his knees. “A black eye?”

“Sometimes love hurts, son. There’s no two ways around it. But it was worth every painful second, and I’d do it all over again if I could have her back in my arms,” his father said.

“I know you miss Mom.”

“Every minute of every day, but that’s because she was stolen from me. I’d never have sent her away. Like I said, I’d have done anything to be with her.”

Dane sat back again and looked out at the waves rolling in against the shore. His father knew what he had done. Thanks, Treat. He might as well face it head-on.

“I did the right thing, Dad, and I think that’s one reason I never allowed myself to get to close to anyone before. I never knew if I’d return after leaving. Think about it. Think about my job,” Dane said.