Sea of Love (Love in Bloom: The Bradens, Book 4) Contemporary Romance (6 page)

Lacy whipped her head around. “The thing in your life that made you the happiest was swimming with sharks?”

Hugh laughed. “No, it was convincing other people to forget their fears and save the animals they hated.” He leaned back and clasped his hands behind his head, trapping his thick dark waves as they blew in the wind, and flashed a wide smile.

“You’re kind of right,” Dane said. He remembered the day his father had asked him what he wanted to do as clearly as if it were yesterday. They were in the living room, his father in his favorite leather recliner and Dane sitting on the sofa. “It was right after I graduated with my double major—biology and social science. The more I studied, the more I wanted to know. The summer before I entered my master’s program, I completed a research internship, and something strange happened. My enthusiasm for knowledge and understanding became a passion for saving and educating. I think I told him something like,
I wanna know more about sharks than anyone else in the world
. I could see by the way he looked at me that he thought I was nuts, and honestly, I’m sure it sounded that way.” He smiled at the memory. “But Dad being who he is, he said,
Then, by golly, make it happen
.”

Lacy put her hand on his leg. “Your dad sounds really supportive.”

“Apparently, more so to the males in our family than to me,” Savannah chimed in. “I told him I wanted to be an accountant.”

“No way,” Hugh said with a laugh.

“You were always great at math,” Dane said.

“Yeah, and I like to figure things out, but he told me I was too smart to be a number pusher, and he asked me to think about it. The next day I told him that I didn’t care what I did as long as I was the boss, and he said—”

“That’s the Vanny I know,” Dane and Hugh said in unison.

“I guess your dad says that a lot?” Lacy asked. She watched the three of them, enjoying the way they teased one another. She noticed the glance that Dane and Hugh shared when they called Savannah Vanny, like they knew all her secrets.

“Dad just knows how to guide us well, and sometimes Savannah goes down the wrong trail. He nudges her back onto her path,” Dane explained. He lifted his glass toward Savannah and said, “You’re an amazing attorney, and just look at all the perks.”

Hugh said, “Connor Dean,” disguised as a cough.

Savannah sipped her wine and rolled her eyes.

“You know Connor Dean?
The
Connor Dean?” Lacy asked.

“Yeah, we kinda date, on and off,” Savannah answered. She gathered her long hair in her hand and twisted it, then laid it over one shoulder—it sprung free of the twist and covered that side of her chest.

Lacy’s reaction to Connor sent jealousy slicing through Dane’s gut. He put a possessive arm around Lacy and pulled her close.

Lacy put a hand over his arm and squeezed, then brought his hand to her mouth and kissed it before placing it back around her belly. “So how did you go from saying you wanted to be the boss to being an attorney?” Lacy asked.

“My father said that was the only profession where I could use my manipulative skills for a good purpose.” Savannah laughed. “He’s so funny. Most people really don’t like attorneys, but he said if I went into the entertainment business, maybe I could help clean it up. And now I can’t imagine doing anything else.”

“What about you, Lacy? What do you do?” Hugh asked.

“Nothing quite as exciting as you all do. I’m an advertising executive for World Geographic. I work mostly with nonprofits, building brands and bringing companies to the public’s attention, engaging media outlets for features. I guess you could say that I pave the way for companies to make their mark.”

“Do you like it?” Hugh asked.

Dane noticed that Hugh was stepping out of his typical self-absorbed bubble, and he wondered why. His brother held Lacy’s eye contact, but he wasn’t measuring her up or flirting. Dane shot a glance at Savannah, who appeared to be eyeing Hugh with the same curiosity.

“I do. I love my work, my boss, and my coworkers. I’m really lucky, actually, and the promotion I’ve been working so hard for could be really exciting. I’ve been there a few years now, and I can’t imagine working anywhere else.”

They ate the sandwiches and fruit Dane had brought from the inn.

Hugh lifted the bottle of wine. “Another glass?” He filled Lacy’s and Savannah’s glasses without waiting for an answer.

“Not me, thanks. I’ve got to get this beauty home safely.” Dane winked at Lacy.

Savannah went to the railing. Her auburn hair blew across her face. She gathered her thick mane in one hand and drew it over one shoulder. “Dane, we’re in the middle of the water. Can you conjure up some sharks?”

“Conjure them up?” Dane asked. “This isn’t really a shark-seeking vessel. We have no chum, no equipment.”

“We could throw Savannah in. She’s chummy enough,” Hugh teased.

Dane watched Lacy furrow her brow. Her eyes darted from Hugh to Dane.

“This is merely a pleasure cruise,” he said easily.

“Oh, come on. Sharks are all over Monomoy Island because of the seals. Couldn’t we just head over and see what we see?”

Lacy’s face went sheet white.

LACY’S HANDS TREMBLED. She felt her breathing become shallow, and her body temperature dropped a notch.
What the hell is happening?

“Lace?”

Dane?
She felt everything around her fading away in the distance, like she was being sucked into a vacuum with no way to climb back out. She thought she opened her mouth but couldn’t be sure.

“Maybe we’ll get lucky and see a great white,” Savannah said.

Great white?
Lacy’s throat tightened. She gripped the edge of the seat cushion so hard her knuckles turned white.

“Lacy?”

Dane. Focus. It’s Dane
. She heard his voice, but her mind was still struggling with the idea of a great white in the water around the boat.

“Lace?”

Dane knelt before her, his hands placed firmly on her shaking knees. Lacy tried to focus on his concerned eyes, but her mind tumbled back to the treacherously hot afternoon twenty years earlier—the afternoon she’d successfully pushed away for so many years. She knew it lingered in the recesses of her mind, but she’d never expected it to claw its way out, or to consume her when it did. The memory spiraled into her brain, seizing her concentration. The sun had beaten down on her family all afternoon as they trekked through the remote village of Bora Bora, finally taking a break at a restaurant built on pilings at the end of a long pier. The pilings looked as if they’d sprouted naturally from the water, and the entire pier seemed to sway with the movement of the water. She’d been seven then, and they’d been on an adventure. That’s what her father had called it,
an adventure
. He said her mother had wanted to go all her life, so they went. She remembered complaining to him about the heat and feeling guilty because she knew she was ruining the afternoon for her mother. She’d complained so much that he’d finally said, “There’s the water. You know how to swim.” Lacy’s body was sticky from sweat. She remembered how her curls had tightened and frizzed, like the Brillo her mother had used to clean dishes. The water looked so refreshing; she could almost feel the relief it would bring her. Her mother had told her that they’d be cool as soon as the sun set, and she’d laughed—like her father had been teasing about jumping in the water—but by then Lacy had already had her heart set on jumping in and cooling off. Even if she had to pretend to fall in so she didn’t get in trouble.

“Lace. Look at me. Lacy.”

Dane’s voice wavered in her foggy state. Lacy felt the rough wood of the pier scratch the bottom of her toes as she pretended to fall off the edge. She felt the cold water against her skin as her toes broke through the surface and she slipped beneath, her eyes closed tight, as if she were seven years old again. She’d popped up above the surface quickly, kicking her feet wildly, excited and worried about fooling her parents. Something strong and cold—
a car, it had to be a car
—dragged its full length against her thigh—hard and painful. Spears of anguish seared through her.
A car. I’ve been hit by a car!
The water turned red around her, and it had taken a second before she realized it was blood. Her blood.
Wait. That can’t be right. Cars don’t go in the water
.
Daddy! Daddy!

Dane’s face blurred before her. Her heartbeat was drowned out by the sound of Dane’s insistent voice.

“Lacy!”

Someone’s hand touched her cheek. They were pulling her toward them. She was being carried, laid on her back. Lacy flailed, trying to get away from the water, but her arms were met with something firm.
A mattress. I’m on a bed
.

“Lace, you’re okay.”

Dane. I’m with Dane, on a boat
. Reality crept back to Lacy as Savannah’s voice came through her foggy mind.

“I’ll get water,” Savannah said.

“Panic attack. I’ve seen it a million times,” Hugh said.

The right side of the bed sank beneath someone’s weight. Then Dane’s arms were around her, holding her tight, comforting her. She could smell him.
Dane. Dane
.

His breath was warm on her cheek. “It’s okay, Lacy. I’m right here. You’re safe.”

Safe. I’m safe
. Lacy blinked, trying to push away the memory. She was cold, so very cold. Even with Dane holding her, she still trembled. She held tight to him, her eyes finally coming into focus.
What the hell happened?

“I’m…I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“It’s okay,” Dane assured her, kissing her forehead.

Savannah came rushing through the door—the door that just an hour earlier Lacy had locked so she and Dane could fool around.

“Is she okay?” Savannah handed a cup of water to Dane.

“She’s gonna be just fine.” Dane sat up, and Lacy wrapped her arms around his waist and clung tightly to him. “Lace, drink some water.” He helped Lacy take a sip, steadying her shaking hands.

Lacy nodded. “I’m okay,” she said, avoiding Savannah’s worried stare.

“What happened? One minute we were talking, and the next, Lacy looked like she’d seen a ghost,” Savannah said.

Lacy covered her scar with her hand, and a shiver ran through her again. She moved closer to Dane, wishing she could crawl beneath the safety of his skin.

“I can take us back in,” Hugh offered. “Why don’t you stay with Lacy? Savannah, let’s give them some privacy.” Not only did Hugh race cars, but he’d also spent a few summers racing boats.

“You gonna be okay? She’s a big one,” Dane asked.

His eyes never wavered from Lacy; his grip remained strong and secure. There was no doubt in Lacy's mind that he was not going to leave her side—even if it meant staying out on the boat all night.

“Sheesh. Piece of cake,” Hugh said.

Hugh and Savannah left them alone, and the room became excruciatingly quiet, bringing Lacy’s embarrassment to the forefront.

“Lace, talk to me,” he urged.

“I’m so embarrassed.”
What is wrong with me?
Lacy hadn’t thought of her run-in with the shark in such detail for years. Why would it send her into such a tizzy after all that time? Why hadn’t she seen some clue over the years that she was that scared? She grasped for answers, wishing Danica were there with her. She’d have the answer. She’d help her to understand what was going on in her crazy head.

“Don’t be silly. The first time I went down in a shark cage, I freaked. Really freaked.” He smiled. Dane reached up and tucked a wayward curl behind her ear. “Want to tell me about it?”

I’d rather be locked up with Jeffrey Dahmer.
Lacy shook her head.

“Okay. I’m here if you want to.”

Slowly, the tension in Lacy’s body drained, the shaking subsided, and she realized that Danica had already given her the advice she needed. Her sister’s voice ran through her mind.
He deserves to know.
She needed to tell Dane what she’d been through, even if she didn’t understand the depth of her fears.

“You said you thought you were afraid of sharks, but I had no idea it ran so deep,” Dane said.

Neither did I
. He’d never want to see her after this nonsense. Hell, she didn’t even want to be around herself, but if she’d learned one thing from her mother’s affair with her father when he was still married to Danica and Kaylie’s mother, it was that living honestly wasn’t just the right thing to do—it was the only way to live. Filled with doubts over what might come next, she drew courage from his strength.

“I want to talk about it.”
No, I don’t, but I should.

Dane didn’t rush her, or push her to spill her guts. He simply folded her hand into his and stroked her back. He snuggled against her, and Lacy couldn’t remember a time when she’d felt so loved, which she knew was completely ridiculous. He was being kind, comforting, nothing more. She had to remember that. He was doing what anyone else would do in that situation.
Was he?
Would any of the men she’d dated have done the same? She doubted it. She thought most of them wouldn’t have known what to do.
How does he?

Savannah appeared in the doorway. “Are you guys okay?” She walked into the room slowly and touched Dane’s shoulder. “What can I do?”

Dane looked up at his sister. So much love and appreciation passed between the two of them in that instant that Lacy’s question was answered without ever being asked. Of course he knew how to handle silent fears and unspoken emotions. As the second-eldest, he must have cared for his siblings in some fashion after his mother’s death.

“We’re okay,” Dane said. “Thanks, Vanny.”

Vanny
. She loved the way they were there for one another and the way Savannah looked at her, with tenderness in her green eyes that matched Dane’s concern—absent of judgment and filled with empathy.

“Okay. Hugh’s got everything under control, so take your time.” She came to the side of the bed and touched Lacy’s shoulder. “The first time I had to meet with a celebrity, I had a panic attack. I was struck numb. It took me twenty minutes to remember my name.” She smiled. “I think it’s a show of strength in some ways.” She shrugged when Lacy crinkled her nose in question. “Think about it. It’s easy to be suave and cool, but it takes real courage to come back after falling flat in front of others.” She bent down and whispered in Lacy’s ear, as if she had read her mind, “Hang in there. He’s worth it.”