Page 318 of Hidden Depths
“No, you weren’t.”
Frank smiled.
“No. I wasn’t. I’m an old man set in his ways.”
The mechanics began working beneath portable lights.
Hazel supervised every repair.
Ivy transferred her photographs onto three separate drives.
Calle helped Willow prepare dinner.
Frank sat at the salon table, studying Grandpa’s journal beneath Ben’s watchful eye.
Nathan contacted someone he trusted to investigate the boat registration.
And Ward...
Ward stood alone on the upper deck.
I told myself to leave him alone.
Tonya had ended their engagement only hours ago.
Even if she no longer loved him enough to marry him...
Ward had loved her enough to ask.
He had planned a life with her.
He deserved time to understand that the life he expected was gone.
But when I looked up again...
He was still standing there.
Alone.
I carried two glasses of iced tea to the upper deck.
Ward didn’t turn when I approached.
He knew it was me.
Maybe he recognized my footsteps.
Or maybe Navy SEALs simply knew when someone entered their space.
“I brought refreshments.”
“Thank you.”
I handed him the cup.
Our fingers brushed.
It shouldn’t have felt like anything.
