Caught in the Current (Pacific Shores Book 2) (8 page)

Dakota caught sight of them and gave a little squeal. “Marie!”

She threw her arms around Marie’s neck, much to her surprise. But she recuperated quickly and hugged her back. “Dakota, so nice to see you again.”

Dakota actually gave a little bounce. “I’m so happy to be home!” Her sparkling blue eyes turned toward Dan, who still held Alyssa in his arms. “And Dan! You two got married? I hadn’t heard! Congratulations!”

“Uh…no.”

Marie spoke at the same time Dan said, “I’m still working on her.”

Marie hid a cringe. Shouldn’t a woman considering marriage to a man be a bit more excited about the prospect? I’ll get there. She just needed to give her heart a little more time to catch up with what her mind knew was a good choice.

Reece shuffled his feet, and Marie noted the bare burger waiting for condiments on his plate. Poor guy couldn’t even get a bite to eat at his own welcome-home party.

“Oh! I’m so sorry! Me and my big mouth.”

Marie detected true embarrassment from Dakota and knew she hadn’t made the gaffe on purpose to humiliate her as some people had in the past. “Don’t worry about it. So, tell us about Africa. But why don’t we all grab some food while you do?”

Reece gave her an appreciative look.

“Oh, I just loved working there. I wanted to stay, but I’ve been battling malaria fairly regularly lately, so they sent me home for a while for some rest and recuperation.”

Marie grabbed an extra plate for Alyssa and tried not to think too hard about what perfect timing it was that Reece and Dakota had returned home at pretty much the same time.

Dakota chattered on about how fulfilling it was to serve the needy in Africa, and Marie pondered the fact that the most significant thing she did each day was take care of her three-year-old.

Yes, Reece, who had served the last several years as a counselor to troubled youth, and Dakota, who had served in Africa, were definitely perfect for each other, and it was best she remember it.

Plates filled, the group headed for one of the wooden picnic tables. Marie stuffed her and Alyssa’s plastic ware into her back pocket and managed to balance both plates, two cups of punch, and the bread roll she knew Alyssa would want, but only if it didn’t touch any of her other food beforehand. Dan settled Alyssa on her knees on the bench, and Marie set her plate before her and handed her a fork from her pocket. “Oh, Mom forgot napkins. I’ll grab you one and be right back, okay?”

Reece started to rise. “I’ll get you some.”

She waved him back into his seat next to Dakota. “No. No. I’ll get it. This is your party. You eat.” It only took a moment to grab a few napkins, but when she returned to the table, it was to find that someone had given Alyssa the squeeze ketchup bottle. A little bit of panic swelled inside her. Alyssa could be pretty dangerous with those things! The ketchup never came out easily at first, and Alyssa always tended to use overpressure. Marie couldn’t count the number of times she’d cleaned ketchup off the walls and even the ceiling one time. She rushed toward Alyssa.

But even as she did so, her daughter complained, “Mommy! The ketchup won’t come out again!” Tongue held firmly between tiny teeth, Alyssa tipped up the bottle to examine it even as her little hands trembled with the force of applied pressure.

That was when the nozzle gave way. A stream of red sauce splatted in an arc across the front of Marie’s blouse. Marie gave a chirp of dismayed shock and stepped back, closing her eyes. Some of it had hit her chest and slid into regions there would be no way to clean in public.

Silence settled around the table, only broken by Alyssa’s “Oops! Sorry!”

Marie opened her eyes to find Reece standing, the ketchup bottle now firmly in his grasp. Dakota had disappeared, but everyone else at the table was staring at her, or more pointedly at the front of her shirt.

“Uh…” Marie held her hands out to the side and looked down to assess the damage. Oh, it was bad. She could probably pass as an extra corpse on any Halloween slasher movie, right about now. How could such tiny hands squeeze that much ketchup out of a bottle?

Still, she had to look on the bright side. At least it was only her who had been tagged.

Dan turned back to his plate. “That’s bad.” He picked up his burger and took a huge bite.

Marie’s jaw jutted off to one side. She met Reece’s look.

A small smile played at the edges of his mouth, and he leaned over to squeeze some ketchup on Alyssa’s burger.

Dakota was suddenly thrusting a huge wad of napkins into her hands and apologizing profusely as if she’d been the one to launch the attack herself.

Reece set the plastic bottle far from Alyssa and then stepped over and took Marie’s elbow. “Come on. I’ll get you a shirt to change into.”

Marie protested as she swiped at her shirt. “No. It’s okay. Dan can just take me home, can’t you, Dan?”

“But, Mom! I haven’t finished my hamburger yet, and I want cake and ice cream!”

Dan frowned. “Why do I need to take you home? It’s just a little ketchup. Can’t you drive?”

Dakota’s eyebrows disappeared into her hairline, and her jaw dropped a touch.

Reece’s face softened in sympathy. “Come on. Let Alyssa have her dinner. Besides, I still want to show you those cabins.”

Just the touch of Reece’s fingers at her elbow sent a wave of warmth through her. She pulled from his grasp. “Just a sec.” She leaned closer to Dan, wishing he’d look at her instead of his food. “Dan, my car died today. Remember I asked you to look at it the other day because it was acting funny?”

Dan chomped on a chip. “I should have gotten to it sooner, I guess. Sorry.”

“Could you run me home in a few minutes after Reece shows me some cabins he wants me to decorate?”

His brow furrowed, Dan finally looked up at her. “How’d you get here?”

“I gave her a ride,” Reece said. A ripple of something dark crossed his features.

What was he upset about? Maybe he just wanted to eat his food and was tired of waiting on her. So instead of pushing for Dan to agree to take her home, she said, “I’ll be right back. Can you watch Alyssa for a sec?”

Dan had his burger three-quarters of the way to his mouth and only nodded and grunted.

Hands on his hips, Reece kicked at the ground. But as soon as he realized she’d faced him once more, he stretched a hand toward the house, and she stepped out. The hand he rested at the small of her back felt natural, familiar, desirable. She picked up her pace to put a little distance between them.

Reece seemed to take the hint and kept his hands to himself. Inside, he led her past his father, who’d fallen asleep, and down the hallway to his room.

Marie paused on the threshold. After all her years of promiscuity, she’d promised God never to walk into a situation that might even look promiscuous. It was her pledge to prove her changed heart.

Reece’s bed was unmade, and a pile of dirty clothes lay in a heap in one corner. He pulled open his dresser drawer, rummaged around, and came up with a T-shirt that had to have been his back when he was a lot less built. It was turquoise with a surfboard company emblem on the front. He held it out. “It’s old. But might fit you better than any of my newer ones.”

“It will be fine. Thank you.”

He nodded and pointed. “Bathroom’s the first door down the hall to the left, there.”

It only took her a few minutes to change and clean up. When she came back out, Reece waited for her with a plastic bag. “Thought you might want to put your shirt in here.”

She’d rinsed the blouse and was thankful for a place to put the wadded-up wet material. “Thanks.”

He grinned. “You’re swimming in that thing.”

She glanced down. The shirt he’d given her was much too large, but she’d done the best she could, tying a knot in one corner to make it look less like a bag. She grinned at him and smoothed a self-conscious hand over it. “What? I thought I looked like I belonged on the cover of Pretty Citizens.”

His expression turned serious as his perusal roamed her face. “You do.”

She held her breath, not quite able to break eye contact.

He stepped closer and tilted his head, reaching out to touch her arm. His thumb stroked softly over the skin by her elbow. “We’re friends, right?”

She offered a tiny nod.

“So I hope you won’t take offense when I ask…why are you with him? It’s obvious you deserve someone who cares for you more.” He studied her features, his eyes soft and tempting.

She held her breath. Every thought she clutched for was only a blank screen.

His focus leisurely skimmed from her hairline to her brows, brushed her lids, swept across both cheeks, and finally paused at her lips. He took half a step closer, one side of his bottom lip caught between his teeth.

Her stomach lurched as surely as it would have if she’d been free-falling on a roller coaster. Mouth dry, she slowly stepped back from him. She wouldn’t do this to Dan. She wouldn’t let Reece do this to himself. No matter how tempted she was.

If there was one thing she knew and understood, it was men’s desires. She knew the expression on his face. He was falling for her. Only this time she hadn’t worked hard, thrown herself at him, or used her body to solicit his attention. And maybe that, more than anything, terrified her.

She’d promised God she wouldn’t be that way anymore. Consigned herself to settling for a man she didn’t feel much for, because she never wanted to be that lost girl so hungry for just a little touch of love she would give her body to see it. And Reece could so easily make her lose her fragile control.

God’s love was enough, she reasoned. She’d just have to do her penance for all those years of promiscuity. Do her part to protect Reece from himself.

Thankfully Reece didn’t step after her, but he hooked his thumbs into his Levi’s and stood in such a way that he blocked her route of escape down the hall. “I can see just by looking at the two of you you’re not in love, so why would Alyssa say you’re considering marriage to him?”

Marie lifted her chin and fiddled with the plastic bag. “Not all love looks the same. And I suppose she said so because I am.”

He slid nearer and tipped his head. “And if another guy came into your life? One who”—he cleared his throat and bobbed his gaze to the floor and then back to her—“wanted to take care of you and get to know you better? One you might be interested in because you were interested in him once before…would such a guy have a chance?”

Marie’s eyes widened, and she willed down the panic rising in her chest. Her mouth was drier than the top layer of beach sand on a sunny summer day. She shook her head, backing up till her shoulder blades pressed into the wall behind her. “No, because that guy would realize a woman like Dakota is much more his type and he’d be much better off with her.”

“Marie…” There was a hint of chastisement in his tone, and he reached for her hand.

She jerked away and clenched her jaw. “Reece!” She fumbled for words. “No. There would be no hope.” The lie tasted bitter on her tongue. She held out one finger. “Dan and I might not have the most conventional of relationships, but we’re doing the best we can. And—” She cut off before she could blurt out it was her due to live in a loveless relationship for the rest of her life.

A glimmer of something hard touched his eyes. “And what?”

“Nothing.”

“Nothing?”

“Reece, please. I need to go check on Alyssa.” It was an excuse, and she could see by the expression on his face he knew it.

But he stepped out of her way and stretched a hand down the hall. As she brushed past him, he took the plastic bag from her.

“I’ll take this out to the truck. Then I’d like to show you those cabins and get your thoughts.”

“Sure. I’ll meet you at the table?”

“Be there in just a minute.”

She left him as quickly as she could without making it look like she was running from him. Which she was. The man made her pinky finger feel more than her entire body felt around Dan, and that wasn’t good. Not good at all

Chapter 7

When she got back to the table, Dakota was there with Alyssa, but Dan was nowhere to be seen. A surge of anger curled through her. Where was he? She’d asked him to watch Alyssa. And he’d never given her an answer about taking her home.

Dakota was teaching Alyssa a hand-clapping chant, and they were both giggling together.

Marie eased down in front of her untouched plate.

Dakota looked over and smiled, flickering a glance to Reece’s T-shirt for only a moment before her focus returned to Alyssa.

“Where’s Dan?” Marie twirled her fork in the fluffy green pistachio salad mound.

Alyssa shrugged. “He askded me to stay here and went away.”

Dakota offered a wrinkled nose of sympathy. “He did ask me to stay with her, if that helps. But I’m not sure where he went.”

“I’m sorry, but thanks for staying with her. Feel free to mingle now.”

Dakota tapped Alyssa on her nose. “Actually, we’ve been having a blast, haven’t we, Alyssa?”

“Kota’s fun!” Alyssa nodded emphatically and spoke around the large bite of burger in her mouth.

“Don’t talk with food in your mouth, please.” Marie felt exhausted. She really just wanted to go home.

“Everything alright?” Concern traced the edges of Dakota’s question.

Marie forced a smile. “Yes. Fine. Just been a long day.” She needed to deflect the attention off herself. “Your work with Convoy of Hope sounds like it was very rewarding. Are you glad to be home? Or still wishing you were back in Africa?”

Dakota traced the grain on the tabletop. “A little of both, I guess. I love my work, and miss it. But it’s been nice to see Mom and Dad again. And I really did need some rest. I feel like I’ve done hardly anything but sleep since I got here.”

Marie smiled. “Well, I’m glad you are home for a bit.”

Dakota reached over and clasped her hand. “I have a feeling we’re going to be great friends.”

Something went soft inside Marie. She didn’t have many friends. Taysia was her best friend, but she was more like a sister, really. “I’m sorry I wasn’t more welcoming back in high school.”