The Reef Roamer (The Roamer Series Book 1) (22 page)

CHAPTER TWENTY

Jayme shifted her legs to a more comfortable position on the plastic wicker chair in front of her, knocking off the towel she had under her feet. It wasn’t worth the effort to pick it up. It felt as if her whole body ached, not just her heart. It had been days since she’d heard from Mark. Days since that awful scene in the restaurant when she’d tried to introduce him to her son. She still felt confused and hurt.

A tiny voice inside her said she should have known better than to let herself fall in love with Dr. Steele. She should have known it would lead to nothing but heartache. Then another voice defended her. How could she have known? The only man she ever had experience with, she married. In all the years she was married to Donald, no one even tempted her to stray from his side. And in the five years since his death, no one even remotely attracted her, not until Mark. Mark, with his finely chiseled features and piercing gray eyes. Mark, with his unruly dark hair that curled behind his ears. Mark, with his kisses that burned into her soul and a touch that made her quiver with longing.

She had been wrong. Inside was not the caring, sensitive, generous man she thought she knew. Instead, she saw the cruel and cold demeanor he displayed the other night. What had set him against her? Perhaps it was best she saw this side of him before it was too late. Or was it already too late? As much as she tried to hide it from herself, Jayme knew she was hopelessly, madly, head-over-heels in love with the man. That only made the pain in her heart worse.

She squinted up toward the sun, her face now a golden honey brown from weeks in the Caribbean. Jayme watched Alan in the pool, her heart swelling with a mother’s pride. His trim figure was cutting smoothly through the artificial azure of the chlorinated water, the late morning sun dancing across his dark golden head.

What a beautiful child he is,
she mused.
No, he’s a handsome man now,
she corrected,
and how very much like his father.

When asked which one he looked like, no one could say for sure. Alan was a perfect combination of both parents, with Donald’s blond hair, fine features, and blue eyes flecked liberally with green from her, and her trim and athletic physique.

A shadow fell across her as she watched Alan swim. When she looked up, she was startled to see Mark staring at her.

“He is a handsome young man. I can understand how you could be drawn to him,” he stated dryly.

Jayme couldn’t help but notice the way the fine muscles in Mark’s jaw twitched with suppressed anger. Why was he so upset with her? Because she hadn’t told him she was old enough to have a son Alan’s age? No, something else was going on here.

“Yes, he is,” she murmured. She looked back at the pool in time to see Alan effortlessly lift himself out of the water and start toward them. “Mark, why haven’t you been to see me?” she asked. “Is it because of Alan?”

“Yes.” The reply was simple, honest, and painful. Mark turned to face the approaching Alan, his hands clenching and unclenching at his sides. Who was this young Adonis that had stolen his newfound love? Did he mean so much to Jayme that she would forget the magic that they had shared these last ten days? What hold did Alan have on Jayme’s heart? Mark focused his steely gaze on Alan.

Alan, slightly confused at the animosity coming from this man he knew had captured his mother’s heart, smiled as best he could. He turned to Jayme, picking the towel up from the ground. Wiping himself of the glistening pool water, he said, “I’m going to run into town for a few things if you don’t mind.”

“Of course not, dear. Don’t be long, though. Remember your flight leaves at 4:00.”

The simple endearment was like a knife in Mark’s heart.

“Ah, I-I, um…” Alan stammered, “I’m a little short on cash.”

“My purse is in the room. Here’s the key. Be sure to give me the key back before you go to town, and let me know how much you took.” Alan set off at a slow jog toward the condos.

“Just like that?” Mark’s voice was harsh.

“What?”

“Do you always give him whatever he wants?” The bitterness in his voice could not be hidden.

“I suppose I have been a little bit indulgent; it’s hard for me to refuse him. It always has been. You don’t approve?”

Was this it? He didn’t approve of the way she raised Alan? He didn’t even know her son!

Approve?
Mark snorted. Was she really asking if he approved of the blatant affair with an obviously younger man? This was too much!

“No, I don’t approve! How could I? I see how perfectly matched the two of you are. It’s like you were cast from the same mold, and then I remember how you felt in my arms and I hurt. I see how you caress his arm, and I remember how your hands felt on me, and I ache with desire for you. I see that look of pure love on your face when you smile at him, and my heart breaks because I want you to look at
me
that way. I love you, Jayme. Please send him away,” he pleaded, his world crashing down around him.

“Send him away? You don’t know what you’re asking, Mark.” The look on her face was one of disbelief. “From the first time I held him in my arms, I knew I would love him like I could never love another. He’s been my life, my sole reason for going on. I couldn’t possibly give him up! Why would I?”

This was incredulous! He was asking her to disown her own son? Why? Then she had a spark of anger. Her voice got calm and quiet and precise. “If you force me to choose, Mark, I’d choose Alan. I’d rather be alone the rest of my life than to lose him.”

There it was. The final blow. Mark was stunned into momentary silence. “I guess that’s it then.” His anger returned. “If you would choose that…that gigolo over me, we never had anything in the first place.”

“Gigolo?”

“Yes, gigolo! What else would you call him? Playmate? Boy-Toy? Take your pick. You’ve admitted you can’t deny him anything, not even money!” His anger and hurt were all too real. “Just like my ex-wife,” he muttered.

Jayme’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Gigolo?” she repeated. Things began to click in her mind. He thought she and Alan were lovers! Another less mature woman might have been outraged. Jayme saw the humor in what should be a disaster. A smile formed on her lips as the realization hit her. “You’re jealous. That’s what all this is about. You. Are. Jealous!” The final three words were spaced out and with greatly restrained amusement.

Mark was startled by her calmness. “You’re damn right I’m jealous!”

His anger heightened as Jayme started to laugh.

Alan picked that time to come back. He dropped the key on the table in front of Jayme, and he noticed she had the most delightful, sincere smile on her face. It made him smile in return. He had been worried. The last several days his mother had been in a real funk and wouldn’t talk to him about it. That was unusual. He was pleased to see her with a real smile on her face. Maybe now he could tell her about Jennifer.

“Here’s the key. I took twenty dollars.”

“Sure that’s enough? You’d better take fifty,” she coaxed, keeping a fixed look at Mark.

“I knew you’d say that. No matter what I’d take, you’d make me take more.”

“You sure have me pegged,” she said, looking at him now.

“I’ve had plenty of practice,” Alan laughed.

Mark was dismayed over the easy banter. He couldn’t compete with their relationship. He turned and fled, never giving her a chance to explain.

Jayme’s face fell. Gone was the smile Alan had been so pleased to see.

“What is it with that dude? Is he
always
that angry?” Alan asked. “Maybe you’re better off without him, Mom.”

“Maybe you’re right.”

CHAPTER

TWENTY-ONE

Mark rapped loudly on Jayme’s door. He couldn’t let her leave like this. His emotions were eating him alive. He couldn’t concentrate, and it was affecting his judgment with his patients. She didn’t answer the door.

***

“I’d like to leave a message for Ms. Haller. Did she say when she’d be back?” Mark asked the woman at the front desk as he started writing on a piece of hotel stationery.

“I’m sorry, Dr. Steele. Mrs. Haller and her son checked out yesterday,” the clerk answered.

Mark froze. “Son?”

“Yes.” She looked at her computer screen. “Alan Haller. Nice young man; military; looks a great deal like his mother, though I heard her comment that he had his father’s blond hair even though it’s difficult to tell since he keeps it cut military style since he’s in the service. Otherwise he bears a strong resemblance to her. Don’t you think?”

“Son?” Mark repeated. No wonder they looked like they were from the same mold. Her son. Military? His
Uncle Sam
! How could he have been so blind and so stupid? “Can you give me her home address?”

“No, I couldn’t share that, not even with you, Dr. Steele. I’m sorry. Besides, I don’t have it. All her arrangements were made through a travel agency.”

“Can you tell me the name of the agency?” he pressed.

“Yes, that I can do. It was It’s Time To Travel. Catchy name.”

***

It took over a week for Mark to find a temporary replacement for himself at his practice on Holm Cay that Dr. Sam Aubrey approved of.

“What is the rush, Mark?” Aubrey questioned.

“I need the time off, Sam. Can we leave it at that for now?”

“Sure. And, Mark…I hope you find her.”

***

It was easy enough to find the travel agency’s location from a web search. The town for the agency anyway, and it didn’t mean that would be where Jayme was. Jayme.
His
Jayme. He had to find her.

***

Katherine sipped her gin and tonic while Jayme got the new DVD ready for viewing.

“Jayme, we’ve been friends a long time, so tell me…what’s wrong?” She had noticed immediately there was something amiss.

“Nothing.”

“
Jayme
! You always come back from a trip enthused and happy. You’re neither right now, so spill it. What happened?” Katherine pushed.

“I don’t want to talk about it, Kath. Please, just drop it.”

***

When the DVD ended an hour later, Katherine saw Jayme wiping her eyes.

“It’s that gorgeous male specimen at the top of the lighthouse, isn’t it?”

Jayme nodded. Her throat was so tight she didn’t think she could speak if she really had to.

“You fell in love,” Katherine stated quietly. “Does he love you?”

“I…I don’t know. I think so.” She sniffled. “He was so angry the last time I saw him. I tried to explain, but he wouldn’t let me and then he left. I checked out that afternoon, two days early, and I haven’t seen or heard from him since.” They say confession was good for the soul; however, Jayme felt even worse after telling Katherine what a fool she’d been.

“He wouldn’t let you explain what?”

“About Alan.”

“What about Alan? He’s a great kid, Jayme. I know you’re proud of him,” Katherine said, confused.

“He thinks Alan is my…boy-toy…”

“
WHAT
?” Katherine spilled some of her drink as she bolted from the chair.

“Every time I started to explain, he would look at Alan and…oh, Kath!”

Jayme burst in tears.

CHAPTER

TWENTY-TWO

Three days after viewing the latest
Reef Roamer
DVD, Katherine sat at her desk, staring at the back wall mural, trying to visualize herself in that remote, peaceful cove. Her close friend was a wreck from a love affair gone sour, and Katherine felt the pain too. She had sent Jayme to that place, and now she felt guilty and responsible for all that had happened.

“Excuse me.” A male voice brought her out of her contemplation, and she swiveled her chair around. She had been so lost in her thoughts she hadn’t even heard the door open. Before her stood a handsome and slightly familiar man.

“Good afternoon.” She stood, extending her hand to his. “Have we met before?” Her face took on a quizzical look.

Mark was momentarily taken aback, as that was what he had said to Jayme not a month ago. “I doubt it.”

“Hmm, you seem familiar. What can I do for you, Mister…?” Katherine sat back down in her plush chair, trying hard to conjure up the memory of seeing this man.

“Steele,” Mark said.

It hit Katherine with an impact akin to a slap to the forehead, and her spine went rigid. Her smile froze around her words. “Dr. Mark Steele.”

He was surprised she knew who he was and decided she must be a close friend of Jayme’s. He nodded silently. “Can you help me find Jayme?”

“Why should I? Jayme is a mess right now. Her heart is broken, and she can’t stop crying because of
you
! I don’t want her hurt again.” Katherine had just met this man, the man from the top of the lighthouse, and she was already angry with him. “Dr. Steele, do you know how long it’s taken Jayme to get over the death of her husband? Five long years! And now you come along and the first guy she falls for breaks her into little pieces!”

“I know I deserve all your anger, Ms. Konoly,” he said, glancing at her name plate, “but I love Jayme. I’ve been miserable since she left Marsh Harbor.”

Katherine assessed this man with a cold gaze and a colder heart. He had devastated her best friend. She owed him nothing.

“Before I decide whether or not seeing you again is in Jayme’s best interest, I want to tell you something about her family.”

“You mean about her son, Alan,” Mark said ashamedly.

“You know?”

“I found out after she left. What an idiot I was!” Mark stood, raking his fingers through his dark hair. “I’ll level with you. It never penetrated my love-fogged brain that she would have a child of that age. The entire mix up was my fault. I wouldn’t listen to her when she tried to tell me. And now I might have lost her for good…unless you help me.”

Katherine knew that Jayme loved this man deeply, and he must love her too to have come all this way to find her.

“Dr. Steele, it’s against my business and personal ethics to give out client information to anyone for any reason.” His face fell. “However, I’m dropping off some paperwork to Ms. Haller at her home. If you happen to follow me, well, I can’t stop you from doing that.” She looked into his eyes. “And if you hurt her again, I swear I’ll track you down myself and make you pay for it.”

She picked up her purse and some brochures, put on her jacket, and walked out the door. After Mark got into his rental car, she locked the office door and drove the few blocks to Jayme’s house.

***

“You didn’t have to bring these over, Kath,” Jayme said after letting her friend in. “It’s going to be a long time before I go on another
Reef Roamer
mission, if ever. I’m thinking about giving it all up.”

She sat on one of the burgundy leather swivel barstools. She had no energy, no appetite, no…nothing. She felt completely drained and empty. The pain and loneliness that was consuming her was worse than when Donald died. The only thing that kept her breathing, just like back then, was her son Alan. Her wonderful child, now a man, who was hated by…well, it didn’t matter anymore.

She sighed. “Do you want some coffee, Kath?”

“No, I need to get going.” Katherine stood. “Call me in a couple of days, okay?” she said with a mischievous smile and left.

***

Jayme stood at the cold fireplace, running her finger across the delicate sail on the miniature schooner, the only souvenir she’d kept from her time in the Abacos. She had placed it on the mantel as a reminder to herself to never, ever, let anyone get that close to her again. She looked at the pile of brochures Katherine had left on the coffee table. There would be no more trips, no more Reef Roamer. She was done.

Jayme was even considering moving. Away from everything that reminded her of Donald, of her life here. Maybe she would go to Florida to be closer to Alan. She smiled, although it was a pain-filled one. After they landed in Miami, Alan told her about Jennifer. Jayme stifled a sob. Her little boy was now a man and had found someone he loved enough to marry. The wedding wouldn’t be for another year or two, they weren’t going to rush things, and Jayme thought that was a good thing. Moving to Florida though would put her too close to Mark, and that was even more devastating to her now. She wiped a tear away, surprised she still had some in her.

A few minutes later, the doorbell rang again. Thinking Katherine had forgotten something, Jayme opened the door without checking who it was.

The shock of seeing Mark caused her to sway. Mark reached out to catch her. His cool hands instantly sent heat rushing through her body, and she stepped out of his reach.

“What are you doing here?” Jayme asked, knowing it was a stupid question.

“I’ve been trying to come up with a really flippant reason, like maybe I’m here to take your stitches out.” He smiled at her painfully. “Jayme, I’ve missed you so much. I’m so sorry for being such an ass. I checked at the hotel desk to leave you a note and found out you and your
son
had checked out early. It suddenly all made sense, and I almost lost it, because I thought I lost
you
. Why didn’t you tell me you were his mother? Why did you let me think…? My lord. What an idiot I’ve been!”

“I didn’t know what you thought; you wouldn’t tell me. I thought you were angry with me because, well, because of my age. I’m not five years younger than you, Mark. I’m five years
older
. Some men can’t handle that. I’ve never lied to you; I just didn’t correct your assumptions. I didn’t know if you’d turn away from me if you knew. I wanted those days and nights we shared to be a perfect memory for me, something to keep me warm here in Michigan.” She cast her eyes down, more tears trickling down her cheeks. “And when you accused me and Alan…well, honestly it was amusing and kind of weird, until you stormed out of my life without letting me set you straight.”

“Oh, Jayme, Jayme my love.” He drew her to him and wrapped his arms tightly around her. “I’ve been a fool, but no more. I don’t care if you’re
ten
years older than me. I love you, and I’m not going to lose you again.” He dropped to his knees in front of her. “Marry me, Jayme. If you’ll have me, I’ll stay in Michigan with you or anywhere else you want to go. Wherever The Reef Roamer roams, so will I.”

He stood and his dark head descended to hers, his mouth taking passionate possession of her waiting and eager lips.