Summer At The Shore

“It’s so great of you to take care of her. I wish...” He trailed off as Ruby came closer to investigate the new canine invading her couch space. They both watched as she stuck her neck out and executed a pretentious sniff. Coastie didn’t seem the least bit perturbed by the intrusion.

“What do you wish?” Mia asked. She found herself holding a breath.

“She was healthy,” he finally said. “I wish she was healthy so we could find her a new home. I hate to drag this out.”

“You could keep her—you know? If no family is found.”

Mia watched his entire body stiffen with discomfort.

“Oh... No, I can’t. I’m really not a dog person.”

From her spot on his lap, Coastie looked up and gave his chin a lick.

“Really?” she answered doubtfully.

He winced. “I know, I’m not sure what the deal is with this dog in particular. But I can’t keep her. I don’t do pets.”

“Huh.” Mia felt her smile dim. Disappointment settled into her as she realized how much she’d been hoping he’d decide to keep the dog. It was probably better this way, she told herself. Regardless of her own rule, she was already liking the guy; if she had to add animal lover to the list it would only make him that much more difficult to resist. “Must love animals” was another deal-breaker. Jay Johnston was now in violation of her top two dating criteria.

“Hey, guess what, Mia?” Nora said, coming back into the room. “Jay has offered to take a look at our sticky back door.”

Living on the beach meant constantly battling issues that could arise from the humidity. The previous homeowner had installed a custom-made back door constructed from wood. It was incredibly lovely, but unfortunately, when wood absorbs moisture it swells, which was the case with the door.

“Oh, that’s really nice, but you don’t have to do that.”

“I don’t mind. I like to fix things.”

“Is that a skill you learned from your father?” Nora asked as she settled back down on the sofa. Mia gave her head a little shake at her mom’s obvious attempt to vet their guest.

“No,” Jay answered. “Self-taught for the most part. I worked for a carpenter for a while when I was younger. He taught me the basics. I learned on my own from there.” Mia silently added “good sport” to the list as she watched him swallow a large bite of cookie-blob.

“Do your parents live here in the Northwest?”

“My mother lives in Portland.”

“Oh, that’s not far. You two must be close. Probably requested Air Station Astoria to be near her?”

“Uh... Not exactly. But I did request Astoria to be closer to...other family.”

Other family? Mia’s curiosity was piqued. What did that mean?

“Are you married?” her mom asked, taking care of the question at the top of Mia’s list.

“No. These are really good, Nora,” he lied, shoving another cookie into his mouth.

Not married, but obviously uncomfortable talking about himself. Mia hoped her mom wouldn’t go too far. And yet she found herself irrationally disappointed when Nora changed the subject.

“Mia may have mentioned it but my husband was military, too. Navy,” she said proudly. “Thirty-two years. I’m sure he still would be if he hadn’t up and died on me. We saw some amazing places, didn’t we, Mia?”

Mia answered with a flat, “Yep.” Because they had seen plenty of the world, but as far as Mia was concerned it had not been worth it.

“I’m so sorry, Mrs. Frasier. Did he die in combat?”

“What happened to calling me Nora? And no, he didn’t. Heart attack. I miss him every day, but I’m determined not to go out that way.” She gestured at the cookies. Jay dutifully took another bite.

Nora went on, “My son, Mia’s brother, is in the Navy, too. Kyle is a SEAL. He’s overseas right now...”

Mia listened silently, painful memories battering away at her, as they began chatting about the military. This was good, she told herself. It reminded her of all the things she’d disliked about military life while growing up: moving almost constantly, having to make new friends, attending new schools, learning new languages, a dad who was more devoted to his job than his family. She’d never understood her mom’s enthusiasm or Kyle’s infatuation. Mia didn’t share their devotion. But then, she’d essentially been invisible to her father. As a child, there’d been times Mia was convinced she’d been adopted or dropped here from another planet. In middle school, she’d gone through a phase of Googling terms like “switched at birth” and “mistaken babies” trying to calculate the odds. She wasn’t about to go down that road again as a grown woman. Her path was now hers to choose.

“I think I better head home,” Jay said a while later. “I’m beat.” He stood, Coastie still snuggled in his arms. He thanked her mom for the tea and cookies, promised to check out the door as soon as he could, and vaguely added that he’d look into that yoga class.

Mia said, “I’ll walk you out.”

He followed her to the entryway and stopped. Glancing around, he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. Finally, he held Coastie out for Mia to take. “Can you hold her for a minute while I get her stuff? I don’t want to trip over her while I pack all this stuff up and put it in the car.” He pointed at the round fleece snuggle bed Charlotte had purchased. “Is this dog bed for her, too?” At her confirmation, he let out a chuckle. “It’s going to take up half my living room.”

Mia took the dog, who let out a whine as she stared longingly at Jay.

Mia laughed. “Tell you what, I’ll carry her stuff. You carry the dog.”

“Maybe you’re right.” Jay chuckled as he gently removed the dog from her arms. “What am I going to do with you?” he asked as he looked down at Coastie. She gave his cheek an enthusiastic dog kiss.

In spite of his comments, the gentle way he treated the dog spoke volumes. She wouldn’t let him out of here with Coastie if she didn’t think he’d treat her well. A thought occurred to her then. “Never had a dog before, I’m guessing?”

“Nope.”

“Don’t worry. I’m here for you. Anything you need.” She kissed one of Coastie’s velvety soft doggy cheeks. “Both of you.”

CHAPTER FIVE (#u52ae8b8f-7334-5f9a-a549-93308d726184)

JAY DROVE HOME, Coastie happily riding shotgun beside him, wondering how in the world he’d managed to get himself so...involved. He barely knew these people yet he’d offered to fix their sticky door, agreed to consider trying a yoga class (thanks again, Aubrey) choked down three cookies he was pretty sure were made out of sawdust and fostered a dog. What next? he wondered.

He pulled into his driveway and realized that if he walked down to the beach from his cabin, hung a right, and stuck to the shoreline, it would be less than a mile to Mia’s house. Geography might mean they were close, but he and Dr. Mia Frasier were otherwise worlds apart. He thought about her gorgeous home as he studied his weathered gray rental cabin, a fraction of the size with two small bedrooms, one and a half bathrooms, and an open kitchen-dining-living area. It did have a cool loft with giant windows looking out onto the beach. Well, it would be cool as soon as he repaired the narrow, deteriorated stairs leading up to it, his current project.

Even with his Coast Guard housing stipend, the only way he’d been able to afford a place on the beach at all was because it was a rat hole. The elderly man who owned it, Mr. Faraday, didn’t want to expend the funds or the energy to make it habitable. In exchange for a huge break in rent, Jay had agreed to fix the place up. So far, he’d caulked and weatherproofed the exterior, replaced the roof shingles, installed some new wiring and light fixtures, repaired the dry rot in the floor, and evacuated the rats. Most of the rats; he was pretty sure they were all gone, although a couple days ago he’d heard a suspicious clawing sound coming from beneath the floor in the bathroom. The plumbing still needed some work, but overall he was satisfied with the progress he’d made. He felt confident by the time his assignment at Air Station Astoria was up, Mr. Faraday would be happy with what he’d accomplished, too.

Beside him Coastie stirred, seeming to sense they’d reached their destination. That’s when Jay saw the curtain move. He’d been so distracted he hadn’t noticed that the lights were on inside the cabin. Lights were expensive, and he never left them on when he wasn’t home.

He looked at Coastie. “Will you be okay if I leave you here for a minute while I check this out?”

Her response was a soft sigh as she curled into a ball on the seat.

Jay patted her, got out of the car, and headed around the back of the house. He considered calling the police but held back, because what burglar would be stupid enough to turn the lights on? Reaching the back door, the top half of which was glass and currently had no curtain, he peered inside. Not a thief. Raking a hand through his hair, he let out a sigh of equal parts relief, frustration and happiness. Nope, this was much more complicated than a simple burglary. He headed back to his car.

He opened the door and gave Coastie a scratch under her chin. “Okay, girl, we’re home. Do you want to check out your temporary digs? I hope you like it. The inside isn’t much, but I think you’ll find the beachfront setting more than makes up for it.”

Coastie jumped out and trotted in a large circle, getting a feel for her new “yard,” which was essentially sand with a few patches of reedy scrub grass here and there with an occasional rock poking through. Jay gathered his pack and the large shopping bag containing the dog’s necessities. After she’d sniffed around and done her duty, she trotted over to him and stared up like “what’s next?”

“Ready to go inside and meet my family?”