Discovering Sophie (4 page)

Laughing, Jack said, “I’m kidding. Hang on a second and I’ll make you a sign.” He went back inside his house and hastily drew the doctor’s name on a white piece of paper.

“Does this gringo speak Spanish?” Hector asked, taking the paper.

“Honestly, I never asked. You speak English, so I guess it doesn’t really matter.”

“True.” Hector grinned. “But maybe I’ll keep my bilingual skills to myself. I always enjoy hearing Americans say things they don’t think I can understand.”

Jack chuckled and waved goodbye to his friend. Being fluent in two languages, combined with a teasing personality, Hector got a kick out of playing that game with the tourists.

Returning inside the house, Jack peeled off his T-shirt and tossed it in a laundry basket. He hurried upstairs to take a shower. It would be the last hot shower for at least a couple of weeks.

As he lingered under the spray of warm water, he thought about the only lead he had on Dr. Kendrick’s missing father—the GPS coordinates of his last known location. Jack mentally plotted out the trail and knew it would take them through
Por El Río
, Manuel Carrero’s village. It also meant he would see Manuel’s daughter, Elaina. Jack knew from past experiences that Elaina would create some kind of drama.

Jack had known Manuel for years. They had become friends over a decade ago when Jack had first started guiding people through the jungle. He’d watched Manuel’s daughter grow from an awkward thirteen year old into a beautiful woman. During that time, Elaina had developed a crush on Jack.

It was a harmless flirtation, at least on his part. He’d found out differently when one of his visits two years ago had almost turned disastrous for Jack, his business, and the well-being of the female nurse who had spent more time flirting with him than offering humanitarian aid. Elaina had turned a little psycho on him and had taken a machete to the woman’s clothing in a fit of jealousy. Manuel had made up excuses for his daughter, blaming PMS for her bad behavior.

Jack had been back to
Por El Río
a couple of times since that incident—without any young, single women in the party—and had smoothed things over with Manuel. Elaina had still flirted with Jack, but on his last visit four months earlier, she had gotten herself a boyfriend. If he was lucky, Elaina might be blissfully married by now. If not, at least their small party would only consist of men.

Drying off, Jack donned a pair of khaki nylon cargo pants and pulled a navy blue T-shirt over his head. Vainly, he flexed in the mirror, satisfied his hard work had paid off. Although he lifted weights every day, he had stepped up his workout the past few months. He hadn’t been this fit in years. Being in shape was necessary, especially with the increasing amount of doctors and dentists he took into the jungle. Plus, Jack was only three years away from turning forty, and he was determined to never become one of those guys with a protruding gut.

Turning off the bathroom light, he walked into his room and removed the backpack from his bed. Sort of a neat freak, he smoothed the quilt and straightened a pillow. Before leaving, he noticed the pamphlet on his dresser and picked up the brochure, studying the smiling youthful faces on the cover.

At one time, Jack had been just like these young adults: happy and eager to share his faith with those less fortunate, while at the same time, working hard with other missionaries to improve living conditions for the villagers. He’d been doing God’s work and what had he gotten in return? Nothing but heartache.

Jack tossed the pamphlet back on the dresser, wondering why he had ever agreed to look over the program in the first place. Ben, one of the dentists Jack had taken into the jungle a couple of months back, was active with the youth in his church and wanted to bring some of the college kids over with him the next time he came. Once he found out Jack had actually done something similar when he was younger, the man had been relentless about having Jack agree to participate as a guide and a counselor.

Immediately, Jack had made it clear he wasn’t going to be anyone’s counselor. Especially a spiritual counselor. Ben had only grinned and reassured Jack he didn’t have to do anything he wasn’t comfortable with. He had promised to send him some information about the program and would touch base with him by email.

Making his way downstairs, Jack passed by his computer and paused. There were a couple of messages from Ben sitting in his inbox. He had yet to open them, let alone make a reply. Part of him just wanted to delete the messages altogether. The last thing Jack wanted to do was lead a bunch of overzealous college kids on a missionary trip.

Grumbling a few words that would make Ben frown, Jack continued on to the kitchen and pulled open the fridge to get a protein drink. He popped the tab and took a long drink, relishing the cold liquid. One disadvantage about going deep into the jungle was the lack of refrigeration. Still, Jack couldn’t wait to start the journey. Traveling with such a small party this time was going to be great, and the tour should go much smoother.

His eyes landed on a yellow notepad sitting on the countertop with Tyson Andrews’ phone number and email address written on it. The call from his former friend a few weeks ago had disturbed Jack’s peace of mind even more than the request from Ben.

When he and Tyson had parted ways nearly fifteen years earlier, Jack had assumed he would see his friend a few months later at his own wedding. However, in only a matter of weeks, Jack’s life had fallen apart. While he had been off serving God and the Costa Rican people, his fiancée Heather had been cheating on him with his older brother Adam.

After their betrayal, Jack had let the bitterness seep into every part of his being, driving him away from his family, his friends, and eventually his faith. Jack hadn’t been able to stomach attending church services week after week, listening to the pastor preach about forgiving others, even if the offending party never sought your forgiveness. He had left Colorado without giving anyone his forwarding address. Tyson must have found him via the Internet.

Jack took another long swallow, and finished the drink. The conversation with Tyson had been fun until his friend had asked about Jack’s marital status. The bitterness and dislike he felt toward the female populace had oozed out and opened up old wounds that had never completely healed. The mild expletives he had used to describe what he thought of matrimony had not offended Tyson, but instead had made him laugh.

Later, when Tyson had good-naturedly tried to probe into Jack’s spiritual life, Jack had been honest and said that he and God didn’t see eye to eye about a few issues right now. Then he had moved onto a new subject, focusing on the reason behind Tyson’s call, which was to help find Dr. Kendrick’s missing father.

The problem was that long after the phone call had ended, Jack had been thinking about his jaded relationship with God. It wasn’t that he didn’t believe in God. He did. He just didn’t believe God cared about him or his life. To be honest, Jack found it was much easier to keep things the way they were. He wasn’t interested in changing, but somewhere deep down inside, Jack got the feeling that God had different ideas.

* * *

Sophie made her way through customs, excited about being in Costa Rica, but nervous about meeting Jack Mathison. With one bag over her shoulder, she pulled along two other heavy bags that were mostly filled with medical supplies. Moving out of the flow of traffic, she paused and placed a hand over her stomach, trying to quell the butterflies dancing around her middle.

Her eyes scanned the airport, looking for Jack, or at least a good-looking American man that resembled the picture Camille had shown her. Not wanting to ask her friend for an updated picture, Sophie had tried Facebook stalking Jack Mathison, but none of the profiles she had found fit his age group or his location. There had been a few links to his website that talked about his credentials and showed scenic pictures of the region, as well as a few images of the medical personnel and their endorsement of Mr. Mathison. Unfortunately, there hadn’t been one picture of the guide.

She looked around the busy airport and noted several men holding up signs with names written on them. She squinted to see if one was for her. So far, nothing. Part of her was relieved to have a few more minutes to brace herself for the meeting. How upset would he be when he found out she was a woman? But, then again, it seemed stupid to even worry about that kind of thing. She
was
Dr. Kendrick, and she wanted to find her father. Besides, if he had a problem with her being a woman, it was too late—his fee had been paid, and she was in Costa Rica.

Pulling her luggage behind her, she moved with the crowd, continuing to search for her ride and probably looking as lost as she felt. Several locals approached her, asking her if she needed a taxi. She shook her head, holding tight to her luggage.

Turning around, Sophie noticed a nice looking Hispanic man holding a piece of paper with her name on it. Relieved, she made her way toward him. “Hello, I’m Dr. Kendrick,” she said, smiling at the man.

Both eyebrows shot up, his brown eyes registering surprise. If he didn’t speak English, he probably had no idea why she was even talking to him. Sophie said one of the few things she knew in his language. “
No hablo español
.”

He grinned and pointed at her and then the sign. “¿
Doctor
?”

“Yes…
sí
, I’m Dr. Kendrick.”

“
Sí, doctor
.” He flashed his white teeth and stuck out his hand. “
Hector
.”

The tension she’d been feeling disappeared, leaving her with a huge smile on her face. She shook his hand firmly. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m sorry that I don’t speak your language.”

Hector’s dark brown eyes were still lit with humor as he reached for her luggage. He motioned for her to follow him, and she trailed after him as they silently made their way outside.

The large airport, with all the taxi cabs lined up in front, reminded her of a typical international airport in the United States. A lump formed in her throat as she watched a little girl and her father get into a waiting cab. The few times she’d visited her dad while he was on location in Central America, he’d rarely made it a point to pick her up from the airport. Usually, it was one of his research assistants. Sophie had learned not to let it bother her too much, but she still had hopes that one day she might have that special kind of father-daughter relationship other girls had with their fathers. Now she wondered if it was too late.

Hector looked over his shoulder and paused to wait for her. She quickly pushed the negative thoughts out of her mind and smiled as she caught up to him.

When they made it to his Jeep, Hector held open the passenger door for her. “
Gracias
,” Sophie said, wishing she knew more than just a few Spanish words.

The skin around Hector’s eyes crinkled. “
De nada
.” He closed the door and loaded her luggage in the back.

With all the windows down, Sophie felt the tropical air tease her hair. The warm sun felt wonderful, and the cloudless, blue sky made it hard to believe October was almost over. Back home, the weather had already turned chilly. Halloween was in two days, and the forecast had called for snow.

Sophie reached inside her purse and pulled out her lip gloss and a small mirror. Studying her reflection, she was pleased to see the dark circles under her eyes had faded. The preparation for this trip had invigorated her, and the past two weeks she’d only had the nightmare a couple of times, allowing her to catch up on sleep.

As she applied a thin layer of lip gloss, Hector stopped at an intersection to allow a group of school children to cross the street. He looked at her sidelong and grinned when he caught her primping. Sophie was glad he didn’t seem to be bothered that she was a woman instead of a man. In fact, she got the feeling he found it amusing. Hopefully his boss felt the same way.

“Let’s hope your friend Jack has a sense of humor.”

Hector raised an eyebrow, almost like he understood her. “¿
Señorita
?”

“I’m sorry. I wish I knew more Spanish,” Sophie said. “I know I should’ve corrected Mr. Mathison’s assumption that I was a man, but Tyson assured me it won’t be a big deal. I just hope that’s true.”

Hector’s smile widened at her speech, and he shrugged his shoulders. Sophie must really be nervous if she was carrying on a one-sided conversation in English with someone who couldn’t understand her.

The car behind them honked, and Hector jerked his focus back to the road to find the intersection clear. They resumed their journey, and Sophie decided not to talk anymore. She would find out soon enough how Jack was going to react.

Once they left the city limits, Sophie rested her head back against the seat and closed her eyes. Weary from the days travel, the heat from the warm sun relaxed her body. The delicious haze of sleep settled over her, and she told herself she would only close her eyes for a few minutes.

She wasn’t sure how long she’d slept when Hector gently shook her arm. “
Señorita
.”

Sophie startled awake, blinking her eyes against the bright sun. At least she hadn’t had a nightmare. Maybe she wouldn’t now that she was here.

Hector smiled and pointed in front of him. Across the street stood a beautiful Spanish styled home with white stucco and a red tiled roof. Tropical plants and trees adorned the property, the bright colored blossoms vibrant against the white exterior of the home.

Sophie’s stomach twisted with apprehension as Hector pulled into the circular driveway and came to a stop. He jumped out of the Jeep and came around to open her door. “
Un momento, por favor
,” he said with a wink. Then he jogged toward the house, leaving her standing by the vehicle.

She straightened her top and smoothed a hand down her jeans as she waited to meet Mr. Mathison. Hector stuck his head in the door and yelled something in Spanish. Then Jack stepped out, and Hector spoke to him in low tones.