Chapter 4
Drag your damn gaze off Maggie.
The words screamed in Ethan head. But, fuck, it was hard when she sat in the front row, so close that two steps would bring him within touching distance.
A low rumble of whispers sounded over the crowd. Then Ward shot up, crumbs falling from his protruding stomach. “What the hell is this? I didn’t approve a new SAR team.”
“You didn’t have to,” Ferris said confidently. “I’m the mayor. I approved it.”
“We already have a SAR team.”
Ethan laughed, but there was no humor in the sound. “We have a group of five senior citizens who have no formal training and only joined because no one else wanted to.”
“Well, what are you all gonna do for work?” Ward spluttered. “There aren’t enough jobs in this town.”
“This is their work,” Ferris said. “Their positions are paid.”
“By who?” Ward huffed. “I don’t want my tax dollars to go to a bunch of hotshot SEALs.”
“Your tax dollars are safe. I don’t know if you’re familiar with the term anonymous, but it means the donor gets to keep their identity hidden.”
Ward scowled at Ethan’s team like they were here to hurt his town rather than help. Like they were a problem. “I would like to speak to you all right now,” Ward seethed. “In private.”
“We’re a bit busy with a town meeting,” Ferris said with a smile.
“Sit down, Ward,” Maureen shouted. “For the love of God, they’re here to work search and rescue, not start a drug cartel.”
The red on Ward’s cheeks crept down to his neck.
“I think this is a great idea,” Anika Sharapova yelled from the third row. “I haven’t felt safe by our river in months.”
Mark Penny, Anika’s boyfriend, nodded in agreement. The two were the town’s most dysfunctional couple. They either loved or hated each other, and judging by the arm around Anika’s shoulders, right now they were in a good patch.
Murmurs of agreement sounded throughout the room.
Ward turned to face the crowd. “I keep this town safe. If there’s something that needs doing, you come to me.”
“We do,” Polly called out. “And very little gets done.”
Maureen cleared her throat. “Ward, this isn’t just for the town, it’s for you too. There’s no way your small department can handle what could come.”
Ethan’s brows flickered. What could come?
Ward’s gaze shot around the room before landing on Ferris again. “This isn’t over. You better watch your step.” He glared at Ethan’s team. “All of you.”
If the threat bothered Ferris, he didn’t let it show.
He smiled wider as the sheriff stormed out of the community center.
Then the mayor turned back to the crowd.
“I’m going to let Ethan tell everyone a bit about how this is going to work.
As we all know, Ethan’s a homegrown Deep River kid.
I’ve known him since he was in diapers. And having the expertise of him and his team will be the key to keeping this town safe. ”
Ethan took Ferris’s place. “Thanks, Joe.” He looked over the crowd, and he couldn’t stop his gaze from landing on Maggie again.
She looked straight at him, eyes wide, an expression of shock and maybe even apprehension on her face.
He forced his attention back to the crowd.
“You all know me. You know I spent over a decade as a SEAL, and so have the rest of these guys. We’re trained in basic first aid, navigation, search techniques, communications—all of which makes us highly qualified for this job.
We also have specializations. Ryan’s our lead. ”
Ryan put his hand up.
“Zac’s our medic, so he carries a bit more gear.”
Zac grinned at the group.
“I’m the tech guy, so think drones, GPS software, and communication. Connor’s our rope guy, which is a simple way of saying he does the high-elevation rescues.”
Connor dipped his head.
“And Joel’s our all-rounder. You’ll also always find him with a snack in his pocket.”
“Looking forward to trying those pancakes, Basil,” Joel yelled.
Basil grinned from the crowd.
“Can we call you directly if we need your help?” Polly asked. “Because I doubt Ward will put us through to you.”
Ethan nodded. “Yes. There’ll be a direct number you can use for our team. Our weekdays will be structured with our base being in the old firehouse, but evenings and weekends, we’ll always have someone on call. Any more questions?”
Over the next twenty minutes, Ethan and his team fielded question after question.
When Ferris finally retook his position at the front, Ethan’s gaze went back to Maggie. At this point, he didn’t feel like he had control over it. He was drawn to her. And maybe she was drawn to him too, because she was looking back again.
When the meeting was over, Ethan started toward Maggie, but Nel stepped in front of him.
She smiled, her blue eyes warm. “Hi. You’ve been keeping this secret from me.”
He glanced over Nel’s head to see Maggie watching him. Then Polly grabbed her arm and the two left.
He looked back down at Nel. “Sorry, I have to speak to someone.”
“Wait.” She shuffled back in front of him, her bottom lip disappearing between her teeth. “I was wondering if maybe we could set a time and place for that third date?”
He’d thought his not mentioning a third date was communication enough for Nel to get the hint that he wasn’t interested. Hell, she hadn’t messaged him either. “I’m actually really busy right now with this new SAR team.”
Her smile slipped. “Oh. Okay. Um, maybe in a few weeks?”
“I—” He glanced up. She was gone. Shit. “I’m sorry, Nel. I’ll see you later.”
He stepped around the woman and sprinted outside.
Maggie and Polly were already halfway across the grassy area near the gazebo.
“Ethan.”
He ignored Connor from behind him and stepped forward, but his friend grabbed his arm.
“What are you—”
“Give her time,” Connor interrupted. “She just got back to town and saw you for the first time in years. You guys have a big history. The last thing you want to do is overwhelm her.”
“Talking to her would overwhelm her?”
“In your situation? Yes.” Connor stepped closer. “You’re both here, in Deep River. There’s going to be plenty of time to catch up.”
Ethan swallowed and turned his head to look at her again. And at the exact moment, Maggie glanced behind her, and Ethan swore he saw it.
Need. Longing. And maybe even a bit of regret.
Maggie’s heart raced. It had raced for the entire one-hour town meeting, and it hadn’t stopped now that it was over.
There was so much of Ethan that was exactly the same. The power and strength in his body. The warmth in his voice and eyes. But there were also differences. New shadows in his eyes, like he’d seen things others hadn’t. New laugh lines beside his mouth.
Polly bumped her hip as they passed the gazebo. “You okay?”
“I don’t know. I knew he was here. I knew I’d see him. But actually experiencing it…”
“It’s different,” Polly finished for her. “I might not believe in the power of love and happily ever afters, but you and Ethan always felt like the exception.”
Polly could be the president of the Women Don’t Need a Man Club. In fact, she’d once argued in a high school debate class for a solid thirty minutes all the reasons men benefited from marriage and women didn’t, and she’d only been seventeen at the time.
Maggie sucked in a deep lungful of air. “When I broke up with him, I truly believed he was better off without me.”
“I hate your aunt for making you feel like you weren’t worthy of him.”
“I let her make me feel that way.”
Somedays, on her worst days, when the world really beat her down, her aunt’s words still whispered inside her. Telling her that she wasn’t good enough. That Ethan deserved better. It was hard to completely erase a voice that had been so loud for the better part of a decade growing up.
“Do you know what I think?” Polly asked.
“That I’m better off on an island than a slave to a man.”
Polly threw her head back and laughed. “You know me too well. Usually, yes. But today, no. Today, I think it’s okay to give yourself some time. And when you feel up to it, you can talk to him. Explain that night.”
“He’s dating someone. You told me that.”
Polly lifted a shoulder. “I’m not saying you lay one on the guy, just…talk. You might even become friends.”
“Friends. We could do that.” Maybe. Probably not. They’d never been friends. Not really. They’d been strangers before falling head over heels in love with each other.
Polly linked her arm through Maggie’s. “Luckily, there is no one better at being a friend than you.”
“I don’t know about that.” A crunch sounded behind them. Maggie swung her head around. “Did you hear that?”
“Hear what?”
She scanned the path. They’d entered a residential street and no one was there. “Maybe we should take a car next time. You know…with the missing women.”
“Both of them went missing on a hike. And they were both tourists who didn’t know the area. They probably just got lost.”
That was the same narrative Maggie had been telling herself. But then, why were they still missing? Shouldn’t someone have found them by now?
Five minutes later, they reached Polly’s house. The neighbors weren’t far, but the lots were big enough that everyone still had a little space between them.
“Wanna come in for a drink?” Polly asked. “Or maybe some mint chocolate ice cream?”
“I’m pretty tired. I think I’ll go to bed. Plus, you need to be up early to open Bloom.”
Polly scoffed. “Sleep’s for the weak.”
“And for the human. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
Maggie chuckled as she rounded the house. The staircase to the apartment above the garage was at the back. She took the stairs two at a time.
Inside, she flicked a switch, lighting the small space.
The kitchenette sat to the right, the circular table to the left, with the bed at the end of the apartment near the window.
The bathroom opposite the bed was tiny, with no tub, and the entire apartment was so compact she could see everything from the door.
But she didn’t mind. This worked for Maggie for now. Especially while her life was in limbo. She had no job. No home base. All she had was a best friend and a few unopened boxes.
With a sigh, she moved into the bathroom to take a shower. Her phone dinged with a text.
Her breath caught when she saw who it was. She hadn’t seen his name on her phone for so long. Years. For the first few years, she’d blocked his number so she didn’t think about him. She wasn’t sure when she’d unblocked it, but by that time, he’d stopped texting.
Ethan: One of my very smart friends told me to give you some space, but I couldn’t let the evening end without telling you that it was nice to see you again, Mags. Really nice.
Her heart squeezed so tightly that it hurt to breathe. Her gaze traced the words again and again.
He didn’t hate her. How that was possible, she had no idea.
Sometimes she wondered what would have happened if she hadn’t ended their relationship. Would they have survived the distance and the time apart? His high-pressure job and their clashing schedules?
Or would their relationship have broken down slowly? Pieces of them falling off a little bit at a time. And would that have been more painful or less?
She’d done exactly what she’d set out to do—gotten out of Deep River and traveled the world. But without Ethan, or at least, without the connection to him, it had felt hollow.
Maggie: It was good to see you too, Ethan. I guess we’ll be seeing a bit of each other for a while.
Ethan: I can only hope.
She closed her eyes and sucked in a deep breath.
Yes, he was dating someone else, but she could be friends with him. So he was the only man she’d ever loved? That didn’t matter. They were both adults and they’d make it work.
Or at least they’d try.