Anna dashed to the edge and watched her friend fall. She hit the water feet first and surfaced a moment later. Her head bobbed as she got her bearings, then she swam to the boat. Tony pulled her in and hugged her tightly before smacking her gently on the head. She wriggled out of his grip and gestured up to Anna, yelling something indecipherable.
“It’s time to go,” Evelyn said firmly, taking Anna’s hand. “We take a deep breath, run, and jump. Stay vertical, hit the water feet first, then swim up.”
“You won’t let go?”
“Not unless you do.”
Anna looked at her mother and nodded once.
“Deep breath,” Evelyn said. “We go on three. One. Two. Three.”
The two ran in unison, leaping off the cliff, hands together as they fell through the air.
Anna surfaced first, sputtering, looking for her mother, whose hand she lost when they hit the water.
Evelyn didn’t appear.
“Mom!” Anna screamed.
Tony scanned the water for her, then, with no hesitation, dove into the ocean, swimming with a strong stroke toward Anna, who thrashed, looking around panicked.
“What are you two doing all the way over there?” Evelyn called, her foot on the rung of the boat’s ladder.
“Mom!”
“Come on, darling. I haven’t got all day, you know.”
Tony shook his head. “You are the absolute worst thing that ever happened to me, you know that?”
“I make life more interesting.”
He turned to Anna, who seemed dazed. “Are you okay to swim?” She nodded and started toward the boat. Once she was in, he pulled himself up the ladder and stripped off his soaked uniform shirt, shoes, and belt. “You may owe me a new gun,” he said to Evelyn.
“Put it on my tab.”
“I swear—”
“Little pitchers have big ears,” she warned, inclining her head toward the two girls, who sat huddled together in the back of the boat.
He stopped talking and started the boat back toward the marina.
When they returned, the furious boat owner was still there, along with another police officer. Evelyn put a hand on Tony’s arm as they neared the dock. “Take the girls home. I’ll deal with this.”
He looked at her, holding her gaze for a long moment. “You take them home. I can handle the owner.”
“You’re sure?”
Tony nodded. “I didn’t mean what I said, you know.”
Evelyn planted a long kiss on his cheek. “I know.” She wanted to say more, but she felt Anna’s eyes on her. “And thank you.”
He took her hand and squeezed it, then released her to ease the boat into its slip.
“Arrest them!” the owner cried.
The poor officer on the dock was at a loss, seeing his superior officer shirtless and damp, handing a woman and two children off the boat. “Captain?” he asked, scratching his head.
“To the car,” Evelyn said to Anna and Sofia. “Go. Now.” She turned to the irate man. “It’s all right now. The girls are safe. My dear sir, you are a hero. Thanks to your gallantly selfless performance of civic duty, Captain Delgado”—she looked back at Tony—“Captain? Impressive.” Tony suppressed a laugh. “Captain Delgado was able to rescue my daughter and his niece. I’m sure the newspaper would even write a story about your heroism today in lending us your boat, you wonderful, wonderful man.” She hugged him, still damp, kissed him on both cheeks, then flashed a dazzling smile at Tony. “Captain.”
And without a backward glance, she walked off toward her car.
“Wha—what just happened?” the other officer asked.
“Evelyn Bergman,” Tony said. “She’s a force of nature.”
CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT
Joe held my hand as we walked along the beach in the late morning, Jax playing in the waves next to us, the water lapping against our bare feet and ankles. When we got back, he picked up sandwiches from a shop across from the beach while I showered; my grandmother had asked me to take her to the cemetery in the afternoon, and Joe needed to pop into the gallery for a couple of hours.
“I’ll text you when we’re done, and I can just go to the cottage if you’re not back yet,” I said as I was leaving.
He shrugged and kissed me. “If you want. But I’ll leave the door unlocked. You can come back here whenever.”
My grandma was sitting on the sofa in the living room, shoes on, purse on her lap, when I arrived. There was no sign of Tony. “Where’s your boyfriend?” I asked.