Page 31 of Keeping Her Safe

Knowing it had to an end, she reluctantly pulled away from his arms. Instantly, her body felt the cold surround her. Was it from the air or the absence of his body?

Seeing Max from the previous night in the crowd, she watched as he walked towards them. He was holding hands with whom Zephyr knew was Della. She looked like the pictures she had seen of the woman on the plane—short, medium-length red curly hair. The couple was holding hands and slowly strolling through the crowd, greeting people as they went.

Sliding her eyes back to the other sisters, who were talking to the little girl still, she saw all three in one place. It actually surprised her how much she wanted to tell them who she was. She wanted to be a part of the family; the family she had been denied by decisions beyond her control. But she still didn’t know if they would want her.

She knew she had swayed because Zachary grabbed her by the waist, on the outside of her jacket this time, steading her, reassuring her. How does he always know when her emotions are getting the best of her? Was she that easy to read?

When the couple finally made it to the stand, Della and Max talked to the sisters for a bit before turning to Zachary and Zephyr. Watching her sisters interact, she knew she had missed the opportunity to be a part of the group. Once again, the girls were together, and Zephyr was separate.

“Della, this is the couple staying at the B&B this week. Zachary and Zephyr. I’m glad the coats fit.” Max introduced them to Zephyr’s oldest sister, who looked so much like her mom. The mom Zephyr knew, but Della hadn’t.

“Yes, they are almost perfect.” Zachary agreed.

“I was worried that hers wouldn’t fit. She’s a bit bustier than my Della,” Max said, lifting his wife’s hand to his lips for a kiss.

“Max, did you really just say that in front of her? Sorry about him. I cannot control what he says.” Della turned to her and smiled.

“It’s okay. I am a bit bustier than most,” Zephyr said with a smile.

“I just meant that she was the same size as my beautiful wife, but bigger. Not complaining, just stating a fact.” Max tried to fix the situation, but only dug his hole deeper.

Della turned to her husband and said, “Max Valentine, stop talking.”

Zoey was laughing at her brother-in-law. “Max, are you starting to think your wife lacks something?”

Della ignored her sister's question. “How is your stay going? Did Jasper bring by the books you wanted, Zachary?”

“Yes, and thank you for that. I just hate to leave this one alone, even if she’s ignoring me to work.” He pulled her closer to him.

“Isn’t he just so sweet?” Zoey said.

“He knows all the right things to say,” Zephyr agreed, wishing it wasn’t an act.

“So, Zephyr, Max said you have relatives around here?” Della asked. Her green eyes suddenly on the younger woman.

“No, it was Zachary who said he had relatives around here,” she replied, knowing she said had said it wrong, but hated that she lied to them. When she was young, those same green eyes could see through every lie she told. Could Della see through her today?

“That’s right. You are working on your doctorate. You don’t look old enough to have made it through a master’s program.” Della was squinting at Zephyr, trying to catch the lie.

“When you are good at something, you can get through a program faster than some people might think. I have some gifts that have paid off for me over the years,” Zephyr said in challenge, not answering but telling the truth.

“Sounds like she is smart, Della. You don’t have a doctorate, though, do you?” Evie asked slyly from behind the table.

“One day,” Della assured her younger sister.

Zoey turned to Zephyr and Zachary and changed the subject completely. “How did you two meet?”

Both were silent for a moment, and Zephyr realized Zachary wasn’t going to say anything. It was up to her. “We met on the beach. He was surfing and had just come in and was all wet and sexy. He had just left the Army and was still fit at that time—very sexy. I was staying at a friend’s beach house for the weekend, and he was staying at his dad’s beach house.” No need to mention that it was the same beach house.

“So, he came in from surfing, and I was poking my toes in the water. He asked if I wanted to use his board, I said no. Then he asked if I wanted to go swimming, I said no.” She wondered if he remembered that day on the beach. It wasn’t the first time they had met. They had actually met three years before, but that was the first day she saw Zachary as a man. A sexy man.

“Why didn’t you go swimming?” Evie was hanging on every word.

“I’m scared of the water. I haven’t been in the ocean since I was five. I had been caught in a riptide and almost died. I don’t ever go in there.” She shook at the memory. Zachary’s hands tightened on her waist again. “So anyway, we went to his dad’s beach house and talked on the deck for hours. That was the beginning. And now, here we are.”

What she left out was that they had actually fought like cats and dogs until Zachary stormed off, and they proceeded to ignore each other for the rest of the weekend. With time, Zephyr had realized that no matter what they fought about, it came down to a battle for the love of a man. A man who had enough love for both a son and daughter, but neither could see it at the time. But could they see it now?

“How cute. I love a good love story,” Zoey said dreamily.

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