Page 7 of A Heart to Find (Sweetheart Island #2)

Jared’s heart froze as he watched in horror as Keira went down. He hadn’t wanted to rush toward her and frighten her into making sudden movements, but that meant he hadn’t been there to catch her, either.

She didn’t respond to his calls immediately, but by the time he reached her side, her eyes were opening. Seconds. She had only been out for seconds.

He reminded himself to breathe as he spread on his belly to reach out to her. She gave a slight smile and reached her hand out to grasp his. She managed to free her foot from the icy water, and pulling slowly, she was nearly off the ice when the rest of her started falling through.

Stay calm.

Jared wiggled forward on his belly, spreading his weight evenly so he wouldn’t break the ice more. She held strong to his hand, but he knew he only had a short window before she would succumb to the cold and lose her strength. He needed to get a better grip on her arm so he could pull her effectively.

“I’ve got you, Keira. I’m not letting you go.”

Her head bobbed to the side, her hair spreading across the ice around her. The hole remained small, only big enough for her slender body. He needed to get the right angle to pull her out.

With a surge of power—as if she suddenly found the energy to fight her way out—she reached her other arm out of the dark water and grabbed his upper arm. Together they worked her body out of the hole and onto the ice, where he pulled her to the safety of the snowy woods.

He jerked her onto his lap and hugged her shivering body tight. That could have gone a lot worse.

“Guess I should have done a little more world traveling, huh? Or at least listened to the wisdom of my guide.”

Her teeth chattered around her words.

He shook his head and grinned, but his heart pounded so hard he thought it might shatter his ribs.

“Let’s get you to your room.”

He shrugged out of his coat and wrapped it around her, ignoring her protests and insistence that she wasn’t c-c-c-cold.

When he helped her stand up, he noticed immediately that she was unable to put her weight on the foot that had first fallen through the ice.

“Is it pain or numbness?”

“I’m not sure. It feels like I twisted the ankle, but it’s definitely feeling numb from the ice. I’ll be okay.”

She winced as she tried to walk on the injured foot. Information then registered in his shocked brain that she was shoeless and trying to walk on lightly stockinged feet.

Not wanting to ask first and risk a protest, he lifted her into his arms and started the journey up the hill to the hotel. She protested mildly, more out of embarrassment from the sounds of it. Didn’t matter. He refused to let her hurt herself any more than she already had.

Because of him.

“Put your head against my chest. You’ll be warmer that way.”

She did as he directed, cuddling her body into his warmth.

He ignored the looks of the hotel guests gathered in the main lobby as he increased his pace toward the elevator. He didn’t want to humiliate her any more than necessary.

“No boys allowed in my room,”

she teased. Her voice cracked and sounded weaker than he had ever heard it.

“They’ll make an exception.”

As they boarded the elevator, hotel staff rushed on with him, asking what had happened and offering assistance.

They followed him to the room, one of them calling the EMT they kept on staff. When they reached the room, a staff member opened the door to grant them access, then followed as Jared carried her to the chair next to the fireplace. A staff member had the fire roaring to life almost before Keira’s butt hit the chair.

“Sir, if you could wait in the hall, we’ll get her situated here.”

Keira straightened her shoulders, her cheeks blazing against the paleness of her face and her teeth chattering once again.

“I’m okay. I can take care of myself from here. Thank you so much for all of your help.”

She tried to stand, but her leg crumpled beneath her, causing her to collapse into Jared’s waiting arms.

“I’m sure you can, but you don’t have to. I know you’re used to being the helper, but please accept the help being offered to you. You don’t want to do further damage.”

She sat on the chair, melting him with her discouraged pout. He brushed her sopping wet hair away from her smoky-from-smudged-makeup eyes, feeling his heart expand in ways he couldn’t fathom.

“Sir, we’ll take it from here.”

“Told you they wouldn’t let a boy come in.”

“I’ll be right on the other side of the door.”

He smiled at Keira and then directed a pointed look at the staff member who was most adamant about kicking him out.

“I want to be informed every step of the way.”

“We will keep you updated. Now if you would excuse us so we can help her get into dry clothes…”

Jared bowed out as the EMT rushed in, carrying a bag of medical supplies. She was in good hands. She was safe. She was alert, making jokes, and her color was returning. He didn’t have to worry.

So why were his hands suddenly trembling? Why did he struggle for each breath?

Jared was notorious for being calm under pressure. As a traveler, he was used to having to deal with the unpredictable. He wrote about it often on his travel blog. He looked forward to offbeat experiences and got secretly giddy when things went wrong because it would give him good material to work with in his travel books. And though he had been through almost every stressful situation he could imagine, he had never felt like this.

Aside from his daughter, he had never been this invested in anyone.

He had never cared so deeply about a romantic interest. His love for Elizabeth had been one of deep friendship. Not this kind of infatuation.

He had to make this thing work with Keira. He had been given a second chance—one he didn’t deserve—and he couldn’t mess it up. Not again.

Jared cracked his knuckles and paced the floor outside of Keira’s door, wondering if he would give them one more minute or two before busting into the room for an update.

As he reached for the handle—the correct answer to his musings had been “ten seconds”—he watched Hannah Willows approach. The bangles on her wrists chimed loudly as she raced down the hall in bare feet.

“Oh my, oh my. I heard our little buttercup got into some trouble. I came as fast as I could! How is she doing?”

Jared accepted her proffered hand in his.

“I haven’t heard yet. It’s killing me waiting out here when I should be in there with her.”

Hannah studied him, making him wonder if he had left smears of his dinner on his face.

Then her face burst into a smile.

“Our system certainly hasn’t failed. If you’re not that rose petal’s bumblebee, I am not Hannah Willows. And I know I am, because I just had to prove it to the federal government to renew my passport. Come with me. You’re right. You belong by her side while she’s going through something so frightening. There will be conditions, of course. But let’s go check on our girl.”

Jared eagerly followed her into the room, relieved to get a thumbs up from the EMT who was packing up her bag.

“Looks like she didn’t do any major damage. She has declined a trip to the ER on the mainland to get thoroughly checked out, but we’ve wrapped up her ankle, cleaned the head wound, and helped her get into some warm, dry clothes. She should be fine to resume normal activity in a few days. For now, she’s to ice the ankle, take ibuprofen, and keep it elevated. I’ll print out instructions and have them sent to the room. So far, no signs of a concussion, but review the materials I send and watch closely for any changes.”

“Thank you so much, Karina. You’ve been a huge help. I’m feeling better already.”

Keira pulled her blanket up closer to her chin as she said goodbye to the EMT and the helpful staff.

Hannah rushed to the side of Keira’s chair. Jared stayed back a little so Hannah could do the mother hen thing.

“Oh, sunflower. How terrified you must have been. I will have maintenance rope off that area immediately. We had an issue with someone breaking through the ice to go ice fishing—which is against the rules, by the way—and it must have just started icing back over. That’s why we ask you to stick to the trails, but by all means we should have secured the area. Let me get you some comfort food. What sounds good to you right now?”

When she was done chitchatting about the frightening mishap and negotiating ways to help Keira feel better, Hannah turned to Jared and gestured for him to join her at Keira’s side.

“This goes against our rules, but I’ve given Jared special permission to continue with the courtship while you’re laid up healing. Of course, you both have to agree that our staff can come and go unannounced so as to maintain a sense of decorum, but I wouldn’t want to keep you two lovebirds apart while you’re recovering. So with that said, I will have a tray of tea and cookies sent up and will bid you both a good night. I trust you to use your judgment when it comes to a curfew.”

“Yes, ma’am,”

Jared agreed.

“I appreciate the rule bending.”

Hannah kissed the top of Keira’s head and ushered herself out the door.

“You don’t have to stay.”

Keira’s whispered words fluttered out just as the door clicked shut behind Hannah.

“I want to.”

He pulled the desk chair over and sat at the edge, placing a hand over her forehead as if to check her temperature. He had never been much of a nurturer, but the last few years had taught him more about caring for others. And Keira amplified his desire to nurture.

“Scared the heck out of me back there.”

She turned her head to look at him more directly, her eyes tired and her cheeks turning red.

“Thank you for saving me. I was dumb to run off like that. I should have been paying attention.”

“Shh, don’t put yourself down. It could have happened to anybody.”

“But it didn’t. It happened to me. Because I was reckless. I shouldn’t have been running away from you. There was no reason to.”

He caught a wet lock of hair and twisted it around his finger.

“We need to get you more comfortable. Can’t warm up with wet hair between you and the pillow.”

She tried to stop him, but he returned with her hairbrush and a blow dryer.

“Let’s get you a little more upright. Looks like you’ve been sliding down.”

She winced as he repositioned her leg and helped her to sit up with a stack of pillows against her back. But when he started combing her hair and running the heat of the blow dryer over her scalp, she practically purred.

“This is really nice. Thank you.”

“My mom loved having her hair brushed before she died. It was one of our favorite ways to spend time together.”

“Your mom?”

Jared smiled and smoothed a hand over her drying hair.

“Yeah, I found her. After a huge fight I had with my dad, I decided I needed to hear her side of the story. I tracked her down in Germany. She was very sick. Had thought about contacting me, but didn’t want to reintroduce herself into my world when she’d be leaving it permanently soon.”

“Oh, Jared. That must have been horrible.”

“It was and it wasn’t. I consider myself lucky that I had that time with her. I got to know a side of her I had never known.”

“Did she ever tell you why she left the way she did?”

“She apologized. Said she needed adventure in life and couldn’t live in the cage my father had built for her.”

Keira reached her hand over her shoulder to touch his forearm. The gentle caress nearly caused him to drop the brush.

“I’m sure you could relate to that. I guess we know where you got your adventurous spirit.”

Jared grunted in agreement.

“You were able to forgive her?”

“I didn’t feel like I had much of a choice. Sure, it would have been nice if she had found a way to get her needs met without abandoning me, but she thought she was doing the right thing. She was right to think my father would take care of me—my needs were met, and I was luckier than a lot of people.”

“I’m sure she appreciated the forgiveness.”

Keira reached her hand back and placed it on his wrist. The unexpected contact touched more than his skin.

It touched his heart.

She was warming to him. Ah, the magic of the hair dryer!

As quickly as her hand had found his arm, she pulled away, burying her wayward hands under her fuzzy blanket.

“Tell me more about your mom. What was it like seeing her after so many years? I bet she was excited to hear all about you and the things you had been through since she left.”

“She did. Though the stories she enjoyed the most were about you.”

“You told her about me?”

Her voice squeaked, and he wondered if he had heard her right.

“Of course I did. You were my whole world.”

Her shoulders visibly stiffened and the warmth in her voice vanished when, after a moment of awkward silence, she politely said, “I feel much warmer now. Thank you so much for doing that for me.”

She didn’t physically pull away, but emotionally she might as well have been on a different continent. Antarctica.

Usually one to think quickly on his feet, Jared struggled to find a way to recover from whatever faux pas he had committed. Rekindling a relationship with Keira was the thing he wanted most at this moment, and he was fumbling badly.

Jared wrapped the cord around the blow dryer and placed it on the small table next to the chair beside the brush. He then shifted his chair so he could face her. She smiled politely, but the tension around her shoulders remained.

“So that was crazy news about the engagement, right?”

Small talk wasn’t his secret weapon, but he was floundering and needed to do something to recover the budding emotional intimacy so it could bloom.

“Guess there’s something to this matchmaking thing.”

“It is pretty crazy. But I guess it’s what we all hoped for when we signed up.”

Her cheeks reddened, and she picked at her blanket.

“Sort of an updated version of an arranged marriage.”

“Not sure I like it when it’s put that way,”

he teased.

“My grandparents met that way. Their marriage was arranged between the families, and it worked beautifully. Maybe not arranged, exactly, but definitely introduced and encouraged. They were in love until the day they died. In each other’s arms.”

“That really is incredible.”

He swallowed hard.

“Sorry to hear about their passing. I guess I knew it was a possibility after ten years, but to me they seem frozen in time.”

“Thank you. I like thinking about them still being alive in someone’s memory. As if they can exist on multiple planes…”

He nodded thoughtfully.

“I hadn’t thought of it like that, but I like that idea, too.”

More silence, but this time not awkward. He enjoyed watching the nostalgia for her grandparents dancing across her face. The beautiful tilt of her chin as she gazed toward the flickering fire had him wishing he could lift her in his arms and proclaim his undying love for her. Dying in her arms at a ripe old age sounded exactly like the kind of adventure he wanted to sign up for.

“I always think of them as the perfect couple—certainly more functional than anything I grew up seeing,”

he said.

“What do you think made their marriage work so well?”

“I’ve asked myself that question over and over. I think it was a few things. Shared goals, though not always shared interests. Open communication. Respect. And above all else, honesty. They never lied to each other. Not even to protect the other’s feelings.”

Jared shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Honesty.

Was it his imagination, or was she looking at him as if she could see everything he hid?

He needed to tell her about Hailey. And Elizabeth.

Why hadn’t he already?

He told himself it just hadn’t come up, but that didn’t usually stop him from talking about his daughter.

He knew the news would upset Keira. He had told her he didn’t want a family, so the news would leave her feeling betrayed. True, a lot of time had passed, but being thrust together like this had, in some ways, brought them right back to their younger, more immature years. Like a strange time warp where everything was different and yet so much was the same.

He had gone into this thing knowing he’d need to find someone who would accept his daughter fully into their lives and hearts, and he had planned to tell his match about her as soon as he knew the match was successful, but not too soon so as to entice a woman who had a thing for single dads or who hoped for an instant family. No, he had to know the relationship was right and could last before bringing Hailey into it, even verbally.

But he had never expected to be matched with someone he knew he didn’t want to spend another day apart from. Someone who would be hurt to know he had started a family after telling her he never wanted one, even though that’s all she ever wanted.

He was in deep, and the only way to keep from hurting her more with the news was to tell her now.

“Speaking of honesty, Keira…”

Her face blanched. Her attention pierced him in the gut.

“I meant to tell you this sooner, but it’s been so crazy here that I haven’t really known how.”

“Okay…”

Her voice trailed off at the end of the word. Suspicion raised her eyebrows.

“It’s nothing bad, I promise. Something really, really great, actually. Well, great to me. I hope you’ll agree.”

A wild string of knocking on the door interrupted his confession. A smile spread across Keira’s face at the party-like sounds coming from her friends at the door.

“Would you mind letting them in, please? By the time I get to the door, they’ll think I’ve died.”

The color returned to her cheeks, and Jared couldn’t deny the fact that he was caught between annoyance at the interruption and relief that he wouldn’t have to potentially break her heart so soon.

But maybe he was underestimating her? Maybe she’d be thrilled at the prospect of loving his daughter. Maybe she’d see it as a sign that he had indeed grown up and matured the way she had wanted him to.

Megan brushed past him as soon as he opened the door, zeroing in on Keira and her propped-up leg. Matt stopped to pat Jared on the back and offer sympathy at the fright they must have experienced.

Standing back quietly watching Keira grow more and more animated as she chatted with Megan, Jared allowed the faint spark of hope to flutter in his chest.

She had always wanted a family. He could give her one sooner than she currently knew. And though no child could replace another, maybe the promise of getting to know Hailey would dull the pain of having lost her niece and nephew.