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He took the necklace as she turned around and lifted her hair.
As he stepped behind her, the curve of her neck, the wisp of hairs around the sweet shell of her ear called out to him. He wanted to put his mouth on that soft skin and bury his face in her hair, and pull her body up hard against his, so she could feel how much he wanted her.
"Drew," she said. "Are you having trouble with the clasp?"
He was having trouble all right, but it had nothing to do with the clasp.
He focused on getting the necklace hooked. Then he forced himself to step away. She turned to face him.
"Thanks for bringing it back, Drew."
He stared into her eyes. "I think I was meant to see you again, Ria."
"You don't believe in fate."
"Maybe I do. Do you know the odds of me being the one to find that necklace in the water? It has to be millions to one."
She licked her lips. "I'm just glad you found it."
Her cell phone rang, and she frowned, then pulled the phone out of the pocket of her jacket. Fear ran across her face as she saw the number. "Megan? Is something wrong? Where are you?" She paused. "You have to stop crying. I can't understand you." Another beat. "Okay, I'm coming right now. I'll be there as fast as I can." She hung up the phone. "I have to go."
"What's happened?" he asked, concerned by the worried light in her eyes.
"I have to go to the hospital."
He didn't like the sound of that. "I'll take you."
"No, I can get a cab," she said, as she hopped off the boat and walked briskly down the block.
"On a Sunday—in this area? It will take you a half hour. My car is in the lot."
She hesitated, her desire to get to the hospital obviously warring with her reluctance to spend any more time with him. Finally, she nodded. "All right. Thank you."
"No problem."
As they walked toward his car, he couldn't help thinking that maybe fate wasn't ready for them to say goodbye, either.
Chapter Eight
Ria tried to stay calm on the trip to the hospital. Megan was not in the hospital because of the danger that constantly surrounded them. In between sobs, she'd mentioned something about a softball hitting her in the face. So this incident was not life-threatening, nor connected to their past. It was just an accident.
Despite the mental pep talk, her heart was still beating too fast. Megan was her responsibility. She was supposed to protect her. She never should have let Megan go to the park with her friends, or at the very least she should have told her to stay in the outfield. Megan was not the most athletic kid on the planet.
But she was always saying no to her niece, so sometimes she forced herself to say yes just to avoid complete and utter rebellion.
"Do you know what happened?" Drew asked as he stopped at a light.
She shook her head.
"Is it someone in your family?"
She nodded, hoping the questions would stop there.
"Is it serious?" he asked.
"I don't think so," she said shortly. "I don't know. I just want to get there."
"We're almost there."
A few minutes later, he pulled into the circular lot by the emergency room of San Francisco General Hospital. "I'll wait for you."
"Don't," she said, her hand on the door. "It could be hours. You know how emergency rooms are. I'll get a cab." She stepped out onto the sidewalk. "Thanks," she added. Then she shut the door and hurried through double doors of the hospital.
Ria checked in with the nurse, who quickly found Megan's name on the computer and had someone take her to examination room three. When she walked into the small room, Megan was sitting up on the table, an ice pack to her face. There was blood on her shirt and jeans, but Ria didn't see any other injuries.
When Megan saw Ria, she burst into tears. She lowered the ice pack to reveal an incredibly swollen nose and two cheeks that were purple and black.
"My life is over," Megan said dramatically.
Ria put her arm around her niece's shoulders and patted her back. "It's going to be okay."
"It's not going to be okay," Megan wailed. "I look like a freak."
Ria stepped back. "It's not so bad," she said, trying to downplay the swelling. "What happened?"
