On Shadow Beach Read Free Page B

him?” she asked.
    “We’ll pull up next to him. If he doesn’t stop onhis own, one of us will have to jump onto his boat and take over.”
    “Excuse me? Did you say one of us is going to jump between the boats while they’re
moving
?”
    “It’s not that difficult.”
    “Well, it won’t be me,” she declared.
    “Then you can drive.”
    She didn’t like that scenario, either. “I haven’t driven a boat in a long time.”
    “You can do it. Take the wheel now. Get comfortable with it. I’ll see if I can get your dad on the radio.”
    She gripped the wheel with tight hands as Shane tried to raise her father on the radio.
    Nothing.
    When they neared the
Leonora,
she could see her father standing inside the cabin. The door was closed and he seemed oblivious to their presence. Shane switched frequencies, and the sound of music blasted through. Her father had always loved opera—a strange passion for a simple fisherman, but he found some affinity between the music and the sea.
    “I don’t think he can hear us,” Shane said. “Bring the boat as close as you can.”
    “Are you sure you don’t want to drive it?”
    “Just hold her steady, Lauren. I’ll jump onto your dad’s boat and drive him back. You can follow us.”
    “You’re going to leave me alone on this boat—on the ocean?” It had been a long time since she’d allowed herself to get into a situation she couldn’tcontrol, and this was
way
out of her comfort zone. “I don’t think I can do this.”
    He looked her straight in the eye. “You can.”
    His words, his gaze, reminded her of a conversation from a lifetime ago when he’d handed her a helmet and taught her how to drive his motorcycle. He’d always pushed her beyond her limits, forced her to believe in herself.
    “You want your father back or not?” he challenged.
    She lifted her chin and drew in a deep breath. “You jump. I’ll drive.”
    “Good. Don’t worry, I won’t let you out of my sight. It took me a long time to save enough cash to buy this boat. I don’t intend to lose it.”
    “I’m touched by your sentiment.” While she was getting dreamy-eyed about their past, he was thinking only of his boat.
    “Just stay close, Lauren. I don’t feel like going for a swim, even though I’m sure you’d enjoy tossing me into the sea.”
    She bit down on her lip as Shane went to the side of the boat. She wasn’t worried about him, he could take care of himself. Fearlessness was part of his makeup. He wasn’t a man to sit on the sidelines and wait for someone else to take charge, and right now she was grateful for that.
    Shane stepped over the rail, paused for a second, and then jumped, landing on the fishing platform on her father’s boat. He stumbled slightly, then straightenedand yanked open the door to the cabin.
    Her father finally turned his head. He exchanged a few words with Shane, then Shane took over at the wheel. A moment later his voice came over the radio. “Let’s go home, Lauren.”
    His words brought a bittersweet rush of emotion. Angel’s Bay wasn’t her home now, and it never would be again.
    It took about twenty minutes to get back to the marina. Shane kept in constant contact on the radio and Lauren stayed as close to her father’s boat as possible. She breathed a sigh of relief when she drove the boat into the slip. Shane came on board to tie the lines down while she joined her father, who was waiting for her on the dock.
    His khaki pants and black windbreaker hung loosely on his thin frame. He’d lost weight in the years since she’d last seen him, and he’d aged quite a bit. His dark hair was all gray now, including the stubble on his cheeks. He stood with his shoulders hunched, but he didn’t seem concerned about his jaunt out to sea. She didn’t know if that was good or bad.
    When he saw her his eyes widened with surprise, followed by what appeared to be teary emotion. He shook his head as if he couldn’t believe she was there, and she