Free Hard Rain by Darlene Scalera Page A

fortunate to have the support of my family, especially my aunt, who I lived with at the time, but…”
    Her eyes turned vague, and a flatness had come into her voice. For a moment, Jesse feared she wouldn’t continue.
    “We were both lonely, Malcolm and I. We respected and cared about each other, but loneliness is not a good foundation for a lifetime together. We thought we could give each other what we both craved.”
    She stared out into the storm as if seeing her own past. “We were wrong,” she finished simply.
    “How long were you married?”
    “Let’s see.” She thought. “We married over the semester midwinter break in February. I was in my fourth year of medical school. I was twenty-five.”
    They had just been newlyweds, Jesse realized. It had been more than seven years and countless operations before he had been strong enough to look for Amy. And after three months of searching, he’d finally found her. He’d called her telephone number in Courage Bay,California, his heart slamming wildly with each ring. Her husband had answered.
    That had been March seven years ago. What if he had called a month, six weeks earlier?
    “Three years later, it was over,” Amy continued. “But it was an amicable divorce. Actually we’re still really good friends. He often comes and spends holidays with Ian and me.”
    Jesse’s heart bottomed out. Amy had been divorced four years. She was a beautiful, smart, successful woman. Of course she’d be involved with someone else. Still, spending the holidays with your ex-husband and your new lover sounded a little too contemporary…even for California.
    Perhaps the new relationship wasn’t that serious. Don’t hope, he told himself. But it had been hope that had driven him through the first seven years after the accident and played a large role in his remarkable recovery. The hope of being well enough, strong enough again to be the man Amy could love.
    “And many times, Malcolm and Ian make plans and spend the whole weekend together. They’re both diehard Dodgers fans, while I’m afraid what I know about baseball could fit on the head of a pin.”
    Jesse raised his brows. “Your ex-husband and your new boyfriend go to baseball games together?”
    Amy released a sweet, soft laugh that made his blood hum. “Ian’s my son.”
    Her son. Jesse’s hope spiked. Tiny shells and small pebbles being swept up by the wind clattered against the sides of the van as if echoing the confusion of emotions inside him. Maybe it wasn’t sheer coincidence that brought her to Turning Point. Maybe…
    Don’t hope, Jesse.
    He looked at the woman beside him. Too late.
    “So, you aren’t involved with anyone now?”
    “Are you always so damn nosy, Sheriff?” She pretended indignation, but her eyes twinkled like stardust.
    “No.”
    She looked out at the storm. Her smile disappeared. “No, I’m not involved with anyone. I learned my lesson.”
    “What lesson was that?” He downshifted to maneuver a curve.
    “Life doesn’t give you second chances.”
    He had to tell her she was wrong. He had to tell her everything. When he had believed she was still married, he had feared the truth would have only served his own selfish needs and caused her pain and confusion. But now… His hand rested on the gear shift, close enough to take her hand in his. He opened his fingers.
    “Jesse?”
    He heard his name on her lips as if it were a dream. But her face was turned away to the window. She peered into the gray-green of the storm to the east. “Do you see something over there?”
    He shifted his gaze the same direction as hers. A flash of red cut through the rain-whipped landscape. Slowing down, he steered toward the road’s shoulder to take a closer look. A large, long form was pressed flat against a tree. He peered into the vast gray scape, the rain making everything a blur. The wind took theobject and tossed it easily. On the object’s underbelly, Jesse saw the design of red and blue