She broke the surface, gulping air, and was about to go under again when she heard a man’s voice.
“I’ve got him! He’s okay!”
Evelyn twisted around in the water in time to see Clancy handing Christina over to another police officer reaching from the dock. Though immediately relieved beyond measure, she swam as fast as she’d ever done the freestyle in her life, her only objective to get to her niece.
“Let me help you, Cricket. I got you.”
Clancy had already pulled himself onto the dock and was seated on the edge, holding out his hand to her. She gripped her fingers around his muscular wrist as he grasped hers. He pulled her up from the water, and though Evelyn tried to get leverage on the dock with her foot, she slipped. He grabbed her, and for a moment she was caught there, tight against him, body to body, his lips an inch from her own. Evelyn felt his warm breath brush her face. His body pressed into hers and she felt him—firm and solid. She remembered him. Oh, God, even for that brief flash of contact, it was as if those eighteen years had never happened.
This was not good.
She twisted from his grasp and reached for the lowest rail, pulling herself up and swinging her body through onto the dock. And then, finally, she had her arms around Christina.
“Are you all right?”
Through the sobs she managed a singular, loud, “No!”
Evelyn’s heart nearly burst. “Where are you hurt?”
“No! My sword! My sword is in the water!”
“He seems to be fine.” That was the second police officer, now crouching nearby. Evelyn swore he looked familiar too. She must be hallucinating. “I’ve called the rescue squad as a precaution. Do you want to get him to the hospital on Nantucket and have him checked out?”
“My new sword!” Christina yelled out.
Evelyn loosened her grip on her niece and held her out in front of her. “Did you swallow any water?”
“My pretty new sword! My pirate costume!”
That’s when Evelyn noticed Christina was missing her bandanna, and eye patch, and one of her shoes. Thank God her breeches had stayed on, since her niece chose a pair of pink-flowered underpants that morning.
“We will get you a new sword and everything else. Please answer me—did you swallow water?”
She shook her head, her ultrashort hair flinging out drops of water. “I did what you said and always keep my mouth closed and blow out my nose.”
Evelyn hugged her tight again, but Chris pushed against her. “I want to go home,” she said, her bottom lip trembling.
“Okay, Jellybean. Okay.” Just then, Evelyn realized that though she’d jettisoned her daypack, she’d forgotten to remove her hat and sunglasses before she dove into the water. She smiled at Christina. “Look! I lost my costume, too! We’ll go shopping together!”
Her niece pouted, not convinced.
“All right, kiddo.” Evelyn stood, pulling Christina to a stand. “Let’s go change our clothes.”
“I’ll go with you to Nantucket.”
Evelyn twisted around to see Clancy, soaked to the skin, standing tall and serious, his arm outstretched as he handed her the daypack. In any other circumstance, she would have hugged and kissed him and told him she was indebted to him forever. But all she did was accept the pack and shake her head. “Thanks, but no.”
He looked puzzled.