Always Devoted Read Free Page A

shoreline.
    "Sort of."
    "Linc, I can't afford one.  I hired someone the first week after Paige disappeared.  But he couldn't find anything and I couldn't afford to have him go on looking.  When Barrett died, he didn't have life insurance.  It was one of those things he kept putting off doing.  Thank goodness I had my business, but with insurance costs and the mortgage, I don't have much left over each month."
    Linc stopped and took her arm.  Again his touch made her tummy somersault and her pulse race.  But she had to focus on what they were discussing, not her reactions to him.
    "Emma, this isn't about money.  It's about a gift my best friend's wife has.  Nathan's wife, Gillian, works with another friend of mine, Jake Donovan.  Jake used to be a cop.  Then he turned to private investigation.  But after he met Gillian, his life changed.  For the most part he and Gillian find missing persons, especially lost children.  They started a foundation for this purpose.  People they've helped have donated a lot of money.  Funds just seem to stream in because it's a good cause."
    "So Nathan's wife, Gillian, is a private investigator, too?"
    "No, she's not.  Nathan found Gillian through Jake as a last-ditch effort when his ex-wife disappeared with his daughters.  Gillian found them for him.  She has a gift.  Some people would label her a psychic.  She doesn't think of herself that way.  She just seems to be able to tune in to missing persons.  She gets sensations and feelings and in themselves they're not enough.  But when family members are questioned, or Jake does research tracking down information Gillian gets, they've got a 99% success rate."
    Emma was astonished by what Linc was telling her.  He was a rational businessman and yet he obviously believed in what he called Gillian's gift.
    "Let's walk some more," she said to Linc, pulling her arm from his clasp because she couldn't think straight with his hand on her skin.
    Silent as they walked, he glanced at her every now and then.  She could feel that glance, feel his concern and compassion for her.
    Finally she said, "My dad left after Paige was born.  We never heard from him again.  My mom was really hurt by his abandonment.  When she felt hurt, she went to church, taking us with her for the same comfort she found there until she died of breast cancer."
    Linc stopped walking again.  "I'm sorry."
    She could see he wasn't just saying the words, he was sorry.  And there was a deeper understanding in his expression that made her wonder about his background.  "Thank you.  The reason I'm telling you this is—before mom died, she took my hand and she made me promise that I would take care of Paige and if I ever had children that I would take them to church.  She thought everyone needed to believe in something outside of themselves, just like she did and just like Paige and I did."
    "Do you take Becky to church?"
    "I do most weeks.  She attends Sunday School while I go to the service.  So what I'm trying to say is that I believe in something outside of myself."  She looked toward the ocean and waved her hand.  "I believe in the power behind this."
    Facing him again, she requested, "So tell me more about Gillian."
    "The way I understand it, when she was ten she was hit by lightning.  It was after that the sensations started to come to her.  She's a caring person.  She loves her husband and son, and Nathan's daughters accept her as a second mom."
    "And she teamed up with a former cop."
    "Jake had heard about her, looked into her success rate and then recommended her to Nathan.  After she found Nathan's daughters, Jake was a believer."
    "Are you sure there's no fee, Linc?  I can make a donation, but I don't know how much."
    "They don't charge."
    "But you've donated to this foundation," she guessed.
    "I have.  I believe in the work they do."
    Emma stared at the sun beginning to set, the sky shot through with pink and orange.  She thought about