Free Gasping For Air 2 (Last Chance Romance Series) by Abigail Keam Page B

Lillian down by the pool testing the water. “Hey,” he said, helping Lillian back up to her feet.
    “Hey back,” replied Lillian looking at Officer Masterson dressed in shorts and a casual shirt with sandals. She rarely saw him out of uniform and was pleased to see him wearing something that looked comfortable.
    “Can I talk to you for a few minutes?”
    “Sure. Let’s go over to the chairs by the lagoon.”
    Lillian followed Officer Masterson to the chairs and sat in the one he offered. “Jim, you’re scaring me.”
    Jim’s face relaxed when Lillian called him Jim. Making progress , he thought. “I heard through the grapevine that your daughter was in town.”
    “Is that why you wanted to talk with me?”
    “Not really, but I thought maybe you needed to talk to someone.”
    Lillian looked at the sun setting in the west. “My daughter, Emma, came to see me, but I can’t say it was a successful visit. She left confused and bitter.”
    “She’ll calm down and see that you were right to leave.”
    “I don’t know,” confided Lillian. “I just don’t know if that child ever sees beyond her own needs. I realize that I overindulged her. She’s not a very nice person and that’s a horrible thing to realize about one’s child.”
    “She’ll come around,” comforted Jim. “It will just take time. I see lots of these situations in my line of work and most times, if both parties want it, the hurt can be mended and later forgotten.”
    Lillian placed her hand over Jim’s and squeezed. “I hope you’re right, Jim. I don’t know if I could go on knowing that the breach with my daughter would be permanent.”
    Jim smiled and squeezed Lillian’s hand back.
    “Enough about that. You said you wanted to tell me something.”
    Jim cleared his throat. “I thought you might like to see my boat. We can make a day of it and sail down the Keys, have lunch somewhere and sail back before dark. You don’t get seasick, do you?”
    “I don’t know. I’ve never been on a boat that sailed the ocean before. I wouldn’t know what to expect.”
    “Bring a bathing suit and a change of clothing. I have everything else that you’ll need. Even a shower.”
    “My goodness,” laughed Lillian. “A shower. It must be a big boat.”
    “She’ll do,” proudly announced Jim. “She’ll do.”
    Lillian pondered for a moment. “Can we stay close to the shoreline?”
    “No problem. I know several places where we can snorkel.”
    “I’ve never done that.”
    “No time like the present.”
    “I happen to be off tomorrow.”
    “Great. Can you meet me at the marina at nine?”
    “Yes. And thank you for the invitation. I would like to get out and see the Keys. Is that everything you wanted to talk to me about?”
    Jim exhaled. He hated to give Lillian such bad news. “Jeremy slipped through the Texas police’s hands. They don’t know where he is now.”
    Lillian’s smile fell. “Will this nightmare with this kid never end? All over bussing cluttered tables. It’s ridiculous. Simply insane that this boy has a grudge against me because I cleared some of his tables.”
    She stood up. “You know it’s starting to make me mad. Really mad.”
    Jim laughed. “That’s good going. Get mad and stay mad. We’ll catch him sooner or later. Just be alert and stay mad!”
    Lillian laughed with Jim. “I am really, really mad at this kid. And I’m really, really mad at my husband. I could just kick him in the you-know-what. How dare he hit me?”
    “I think you just made a breakthrough,” gushed Jim. “A real breakthrough. Now you can really start to heal.”
    Lillian leaned over and kissed Jim on the cheek. “Thanks to you and Eva and Jack. I’ve found my home, my place in the sun, all thanks to your kindness.”
    Not used to warm sentiment, Jim took his leave. “Just be at the marina at nine or the boat leaves without you.”
    Lillian stood at attention and saluted, “Aye, aye, Sir.”

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