Ultimate Romance Collection. Rebecca Winters
neither one of her parents would tell her the full story, Swan knew her father had come from a wealthy family. And she knew he had been disowned by them when he had fallen in love with her mother and refused to give her up. Before dying, Leigh had given Swan a beautiful leather-bound diary to read after her death. That’s what had helped keep Swan sane, reading the daily account of her mother’s life and love for her father and believing they were now back together.
For weeks following her mother’s death, Swan had wanted to be alone to wallow in her pity and read about what she thought was the most beautiful love story that could exist between two people. Her mother had always been expressive with the written word and Swan enjoyed reading what she’d written.
It had made Swan long for such a man, such a love. Maybe that’s why she had been so quick to believe in William and why, once she’d found out about his duplicity, she’d been so reluctant to get serious with a man since.
From her mother’s diary, Swan discovered her mother’s appreciation for her husband’s agreement to make Key West their home. The people on the island embraced diversity and tolerated different lifestyles.
Swan had read the account of when her father had been stationed at a naval base in Virginia and had sent for her mother to join him there. In the diary, her mother had written about the hateful stares they would receive whenever they went out together. The unaccepting and disapproving looks. The cruel words some people had wanted them to hear.
Her father hadn’t tolerated any of it and hadn’t minded confronting anyone who didn’t accept his wife. But to avoid trouble, Leigh had preferred to live in Key West, where people’s issues with an interracial marriage were practically nonexistent.
However, people’s attitudes never kept Leigh from leaving the island to join Andrew whenever he would send for her. Oftentimes, Leigh would take Swan along and they would both join Andrew in different places for weeks at a time.
When she heard the sound of the doorbell, Swan drew in a deep breath. The time for memories was over. The only plans she had for this evening were for her and David to enjoy the meal she’d prepared and later enjoy each other’s company.
She had no problem with them deciding what the latter entailed when that time came.
* * *
“Hello, David. Welcome to my home.”
Flipper pushed from his mind the thought of how Swan would feel if she knew this wasn’t his first time here. How she would react if she knew he had invaded her space without her knowledge. If she ever found out the truth, would she understand it had been done with the best of intentions? Namely, to keep her from wasting away in a federal prison after being falsely accused of a crime?
He forced those thoughts to the back of his mind as he smiled down at her. She looked absolutely stunning in a wraparound skirt and yellow blouse. “Hi. I know you said I didn’t have to bring anything, but I wanted to give you these,” he said, handing her both a bottle of wine and a bouquet of flowers.
He had decided on the wine early on, but the flowers had been a spur of the moment thing when he’d seen them at one of those sidewalk florist shops. Their beauty and freshness had immediately reminded him of Swan.
“Thank you. The flowers are beautiful and this is my favorite wine,” she said, stepping aside to let him in.
He chuckled. “I know. I remember from the other night.” There was no way he would also mention having seen several bottles of Moscato in the wine rack the time he had checked out her house.
He glanced around, pretending to see her home for the first time. “Nice place.”
“Thanks. I thought we would enjoy a glass of wine and some of my mouthwatering crab balls out on the patio before dinner.”
“Mouthwatering crab balls?”
“Yes, from my mom’s secret recipe. You won’t be disappointed,” she said, leading him through a set of French doors. The first thought that came to his mind when he stepped out on her patio, which overlooked the Atlantic Ocean, was that it was a beautiful and breathtaking view. This had to be the best spot on the island to view the ocean in all its splendor.
He recalled how, as a boy, he would visit his cousins in California and dream of one day living near the beach. Over the years, being stationed in San Diego had been the next best thing. He owned an apartment close to base that was within walking distance of the beach.
However, his view was nothing like this. All she had to do was walk out her back door and step onto the sand. It was right there at her door. If he lived here, he would go swimming every day.
He glanced over at her. “The view from here is beautiful.”
“I love this house and appreciate my mother for not selling it when she decided to move back to Jamaica after Dad died. She got a lot of offers for it, believe me. So have I. Mom said being here without Dad was too painful, but she knew I’d feel differently. For me, it was just the opposite. Being here and recalling all the memories of when the three of us shared this place makes me happy.”
Hearing how the loss of her parents affected her made Flipper appreciate his own parents even more. Colin and Lenora Holloway had always been their sons’ staunch supporters. Their close and loving relationships had been the reason none of their sons had had any qualms about settling down and marrying. All the marriages had worked out, seemingly made in heaven, except for his brother Liam’s.
When Bonnie had gotten pregnant, Liam had done the honorable thing by marrying her. Bonnie had always been a party girl and didn’t intend to let marriage or being a mommy slow her down. While Liam was somewhere protecting his country as a Navy SEAL, Bonnie was conveniently forgetting she had a husband.
No one, not even Liam, had been surprised when he returned from an assignment one year and she asked for a divorce. Liam had given it to her without blinking an eye. Since then, Bonnie had remarried, which had introduced another set of issues for Liam. He was constantly taking Bonnie to court to enforce visitation rights to see his daughter because the man Bonnie married didn’t like Liam coming around.
Flipper had no qualms about marriage himself, but he had too much going on right now. Namely, resisting the temptation of Swan while he continued his investigation. That was his biggest challenge. The more he was around Swan the more he liked her and the more he wanted to prove her innocence. It was hard staying objective.
“Here you are,” she said, handing him a cold bottle of beer. “I figured you would like this instead of the wine.”
He smiled. Like he had picked up on her drinking preferences, she had done the same with him. “Thanks. I’ve never been a wine man.”
She chuckled. “Neither was my dad. That’s how I knew when it was time for him to come home because Mom would have his favorite beer in the fridge.”
He opened the bottle, took a sip and noticed her watching him. He licked his lips, liking the taste of the beer, which was the brand he’d chosen the other night at Summer Moon. When he took another sip and she continued to watch him, he lifted a brow. “Is anything wrong?”
She smiled. “No, nothing is wrong. I just love to watch how you drink your beer.”
He chuckled. That was a first. No woman had ever told him that before. “And how do I drink it?”
“First there’s the way your mouth fits on the beer bottle. I find it very sensuous.”
He tried ignoring the quiver that surged through his veins at the tone in her voice. “Do you?”
“Yes. And then there’s the way you drink it like you’re enjoying every drop.”
“I am.”
“I can tell.” Then, as if she thought perhaps she’d said too much, she took a step back. “I’ll go get those crab balls for you to try.”
When she turned to leave, he reached