Summer At The Shore

“Get. Out!” the girl exclaimed as she examined Nora’s handiwork, a blue-haired girl flying through the air on a skateboard. Her arms were outstretched, an apple in one hand and a book in the other. A slice of the skate park stretched out before her.

Nora pointed to the apple and then the book. “Health and knowledge. Notice how this gal keeps her body leaning forward so she doesn’t have an epic wipeout in the bottom of the skate bowl?” Nora winked at her.

“Duly noted.” Ty grinned. “You’ve got mad skills.” She looked at Mia. “Your mom is like a real artist.”

Mia nodded, pride welling inside her. “I know.” She loved seeing her mom using her skills. Since they’d moved to Pacific Cove, she’d been doing so more and more. It filled Nora with joy and Mia knew that her mom could have done extraordinary things with her gift. Her dad, however, had never wanted her to pursue it, believing that art was a “hobby,” not a profession. According to Bill Frasier, if it wasn’t military, it was neither interesting nor worth pursuing. Mia’s love for animals and her choice of veterinary medicine as a career also fell into this category.

Nora squeezed Ty’s hand. “Come by the shop to see me when you get sprung. I’ll be competing in the Sandcastle Expo next month with my squad, the Sand Bandits. I’m serious about teaching you some sculpting if you’re up for it. And you’ve got my Instagram.”

“Sounds perfect. I love you, Mrs. Frasier,” Ty said without a trace of the hip that had been previously lacing her tone.

“Love you, too, kiddo.”

Yes, Mia thought with satisfaction and a bit of wonder as they made their way through the hospital, my mom is back. And we’re both alive.

No more wasting time.

She’d already parked her SUV near the curb in the loading area. Mia wasn’t surprised to see her mom had plenty of strength after her hospital stint. That, and the fact that her mom didn’t weigh much over a hundred pounds, made it an easy job getting her settled in the passenger seat.

“If I never see the inside of that place again it will be too soon.”

“I hear that, girlfriend,” Mia said.

“That’s the spirit,” her mom answered with a laugh. “One quick stop on the way home?”

“Definitely,” Mia said, figuring she was going to ask for a carton of her favorite organic frozen soy cream “treat” or a take-out garden burger.

“Great. You know how to get to the Coast Guard Air Station, right? I’ve got some thanking to do.”

Mia felt a surge of nervous tension at the thought of seeing Officer Johnston again. She hadn’t exactly been in the best state of mind when she’d seen him last, babbling about who-knows-what and gushing with gratitude. Not that he didn’t deserve the gratitude part, but she could have done a better job of maintaining her composure. As much as she appreciated his kindness, and the rest of him for that matter, because they’d had fun and he was pretty cute, she’d kind of been hoping she’d never see him again.

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

“JAY? HERE YOU ARE.”

Jay glanced over his shoulder to see Aubrey walking through the door. He was sitting in a chair in a storage room off the main hangar at the base trying to decide what to do with the fur-covered bundle in his arms. It had finally quit shivering but didn’t seem inclined to move from his lap.

“We have visitors and—” She’d been talking as she moved but now stopped in midsentence to gasp. “Is that a dog? It’s adorable! Where did it come from?” She continued toward him and the animal cuddled in a fuzzy pink baby blanket on his lap.

“We rescued her early this morning. A sailboat went down trying to cross the bar. Her owner didn’t make it. Can’t locate any family.” As if sensing she was the topic of conversation, the dog lifted her brown-and-white head. Wide brown eyes lit with curiosity as she sniffed Aubrey’s fingers.

Aubrey caressed one of her silky ears. “That is a heartbreaker. And you have her why? Did you call Holly?” Holly ran Paws for a Second Chance, the local no-kill shelter. She was their go-to person in the surprisingly often occurrences when they rescued animals.

“She kind of latched onto me for some reason. Maybe because I took care of her in the helo? I don’t know, but yeah, I called Holly. No answer. Left a message.” He sighed, feeling the weight of both the man’s death and the uncertain fate of the poor dog on his shoulders. “She’s going to need a trip to the vet first anyway. I haven’t had the heart to move her yet. Poor thing is exhausted and traumatized.”

He waited for Aubrey to rib him about calling a vet they knew when a different woman’s voice chimed in, “Well, it’s your lucky day, isn’t it? I literally brought you a vet.” A chuckle followed and then, “You must be Petty Officer Johnston? The young man the doctors credit with saving my life.”

He looked toward the doorway again, this time to find Nora Frasier standing there smiling. His pulse stuttered when he saw Mia by her side. Nora moved his way.

He returned her smile. “Yes, I am—the first part of that, anyway. Please, call me Jay. I’m glad to see you looking so well.” He started to stand, but she waved him off.

“No, no. Sit. You’ve got some precious cargo there. I’m feeling great, thanks to you.” She walked closer and reached out a hand.

He shook her hand and settled back into his seat because she had that kind of bossiness about her. “I don’t deserve the credit you’re giving me for saving your life, though. That was a team effort.”

“I already thanked Aubrey when she came by the hospital for a second visit. I was awake that time. My daughter tells me you stopped by and I slept through it?” At his nod, she went on, “We met the pilot and the copilot out there in the hangar. But they all say they couldn’t have done it without you.”

Jay grinned. He could see where Mia got her sparkle and vitality. He also remembered that she was a teacher, and he could see that about her as well. “That’s the way we work, ma’am. We’re a team. I couldn’t have done my job without them, either.”

“What’s wrong with the dog?” Mia asked, stepping around her mom and into his line of sight.

Their eyes met and Jay felt that same pull of attraction, even stronger this time if that was possible. Had she had enough time to get over the gratitude-attraction thing?

“Laceration on her back,” he answered.

“Oh, I see it.” She knelt beside the chair and crooned, “Hi, pretty lady. Rough day, huh?” She kept talking in the same soothing tone as she caressed the dog behind her ears. The dog let out a whimper, but not like she was in pain. More like she was in heaven.

“I’m gonna give her a second to trust me.”

“Yeah,” Jay commented drily as the dog licked her chin. “I’m thinking mission accomplished.”

Her low chuckle made him smile. Slowly, she worked her hands around to the wound. Jay liked the way she moved, gentle yet confident and practiced. It was cute the way her brow furrowed as she examined the injury. When her hands brushed against his, a current of awareness coursed through him. Funny that he’d had this thought a few days ago, of using a dog to get close to her again. He felt guilty about that now, because this poor pup’s life had just been upended in the worst possible way.

“It’s not too deep, but she could use a few stitches. You did an excellent job of cleaning it up.” Dipping down, she kissed the dog’s forehead. “Poor baby. I can only imagine what you’ve been through. That helicopter ride was probably bad enough, but losing your person is beyond tragic.”

She then pinned that warm look of concern on Jay. He felt his insides start to go soft and realized he was no better than the dog. This woman oozed compassion and obviously knew animals.

“Who did you say you were going to leave her with?” she asked.

He cleared his throat. “Holly Camp. She runs Paws for a Second Chance. It’s an animal adoption place.”

“Yes, I know Holly. She’s great.” She kept one hand on the dog as she talked. Small hands with slim fingers and trimmed nails, he noticed. Delicate-looking, like the rest of her. But he already knew from the rescue she was anything but. No one who demanded that their fellow airplane-wrecked passengers be rescued first was “delicate.” He’d watched her plunge into the ocean after Aubrey without even pausing, seen her concern for her mom and Captain Shear during the helicopter ride. Now that he thought about it, he couldn’t imagine that anyone who chose veterinary medicine as a career would be considered delicate.

“Do we know her name?” Mia asked.

“Holly?” he asked, thinking that her eyes were like the blue of the ocean on a calm, sunny day.

“I think she means the dog,” Aubrey said with a chuckle. “You need some shut-eye there, big guy?”

He felt his lips twitch with a grin. No, what I need is for this blue-eyed woman who smells like flowers and makes me forget my own name to back off so I can think. “Yeah. Maybe. I’m beat,” he said. “No, no collar. She was wearing a bandanna. I know it sounds crazy, but I feel like this dog is... It’s a miracle she even survived. We spotted the guy because the dog was swimming right next to him, or rather, swimming circles around him. She was in that choppy water for a long time and she’s so small, I can’t believe she didn’t drown.”

“Dogs have the most incredible will to live. You know how you hear that dogs are the most loyal creatures on the planet?”

Jay found himself nodding.

“We hear it and say it so much that I think it’s become a cliché. But last year I was finishing my residency in Colorado when this border collie was brought in. Half-starved, dehydrated—turns out, her sheepherding owner had suffered an aneurysm and died. From the condition the dog was in, my colleague and I determined that she had been waiting by his side for at least a week. Just sitting there and waiting for help to come along.”

He had no idea how to respond to that. He couldn’t relate; he’d never had a dog or a pet of any kind. He’d always been too focused on his own survival, and more to the point, his family’s survival.