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To challenge my independence?
To show me what I’m missing?
Strangers whose paths will cross for a split second in the grand scheme of things.
The universe must have some twisted sense of humor. Had he appeared in Ashville, damn straight I’d be diving in and taking my chances.
Why not now?
I’ve known him all of twenty-four hours and it’s ridiculous. He’s gone out of his way-somewhat-to help me. The way he talks to his daughter is endearing. And what can I say, there’s something about thatangsty, alpha, slightly cocky persona, the cracks on the bravado when he talks about the career he lost.
I just want to be around him. And the crazy, sexy hot doesn’t hurt.
I get the feeling he doesn’t normally let people in. Maybe I’m part of his own personal experiment. Whatever it is. I’m glad for the chance, however short-lived it might be. Two people, doing their soul searching on a small east-coast island. Let’s make a bet on how those chances will play out.
“So, you want to tell me what happened with your dad, or are we leaving the demon hashing to me?”
I scratch and rub at the back of my neck. “He just left. I was in second grade and one day I came home from school, but he never came home from work. It wasn’t uncommon for him to work late or drink even later, but when he hadn’t shown up by morning, I started to panic. Mom assured me everything was fine and sent me to school. He came by while I was gone, packed his things and promised Mom he’d call in a few weeks, on my birthday. He never did. He couldn’t even face me to say goodbye.”
Riker squeezes my shoulder.
“Last I heard he was on his third divorce, and I don’t even want to know how many other kids he has running around. I guess he was also fired from the department a few weeks after he left. Mom hated that I ‘followed in his footsteps,’ but I didn’t become a cop to be anything like him.”
“Why did you?”
My steps become uneven as I cycle through the thoughts. As a kid, I thought Dad wanted a son to follow in his footsteps. As a tomboy, I tried to step into the shoes of what I believed he wanted. I looked up to him, respected him, but later I found out that wasn’t what drove him to distance himself from myself and Mom. Maybe it was the alcohol as she claimed, but I think the demons were deeper and darker. All I know is that after my eighth birthday, I never saw him again.
Nevertheless, I ended up in the same career. Three generations of cops, and they’d left me with some nasty messes to clean up. That attitude combined with my gender hadn’t won me many friends along the way, but I’m okay with that. I have a few tried and trusted who wouldn’t back down, who I can always count on—even if they try my patience on a daily basis. “I don’t know. I want to say it had nothing to do with him, but that’s probably a bigger lie than I want it to be. I just grew up in a town where there wasn’t a lot of hope. More crime than jobs, and half of the corruption was stemming from the people who were supposed to prevent it. I thought I could offer a different perspective. Somehow shift the focus to healing, but most days I feel like a dog chasing its tail.”
As the condos appear in view, my shoulders fall, and I bite the tip of my fingernail. “So, I really need to ask you for one more favor.”
“What is it?”
I bob my head from side to side. “Right before we left, my bank sent me an update. They arranged for me to be able to get money at a local credit union, but I don’t have a way to get there, and I kind of noticed you have a car.”
Riker snorts. “No problem. It looks like rain tomorrow, so I may as well play chauffeur.”
I breathe a bit easier, even if I feel like I’m taking advantage.
“Can I ask why you came all the way out here without a car?”
My face heats. “Well, in spite of excelling at most things”—my voice breaks because I can’t even take myself seriously—“driving in places I’m unfamiliar with usually results in disaster, and I didn’t want to take the risk my vacation ending up orchestrated by creepy banjo music in the middle of nowhere.”
Riker looks away, covering his face with his hand. His shoulders bounce with laughter, before he shakes his head and looks up to the sky. “Fair enough.”
Chapter Six
Riker
A good day usually ends to a night of hell, and last night was no exception. I woke around four to the sensation of lava creeping down my arm. I can’t even tell where the pain is coming from anymore: muscles, nerves, tendons, bone. Maybe the swim pushed it too far, maybe the sun, or the change in weather.
I don’t fucking know. All I know is my shoulder decided that this was a golden opportunity to send me back to hell.
Since I woke up, I’ve been stretched out on the couch listening to the sizzle of rain beating on the windows and roof. I haven’t even bothered with a shirt and don’t intend to until Libby’s ready to go to the bank.
I hear a tap on the front door and wince as I pull myself up. The crazy woman is standing out front even though I’d given her my number so she could avoid standing in the rain entirely.
I jerk the door open. “Why are you standing in the rain?”
