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“Um, is it like the shampoo? Rub it in and rise?”
Hope laughed softly, relaxing now. “Yes.”
He was smiling too. “My hair’s pretty short, you know. I don’t use the stuff.” Alex rubbed it in, gently massaging it into her scalp while she closed her eyes and leaned into it. He brushed her lips with his, moving her once again back to the stream of water, where he ran his fingers through her hair over and over, his forehead against hers.
She was still full of emotion, but the tears threatening now were ones of relief and hope.
After he finished rinsing, she washed his hair, and they stood there, silent, holding each other under the hot, steamy water as Hope relaxed into him.
She pressed her mouth to his ear and whispered, “Thank you for keeping your word.”
Alex clasped her face with both hands. “Hope, that is one thing you never have to worry about.”
He enveloped her in his arms once again, his chin resting on top of her head. “Someone hurt you, didn’t he?”
“Yes.”
“I’m so sorry.”
Hope closed her eyes, her arms tight around his waist as she ran her hands softly up and down his back while they rocked back and forth. She tilted her head back and pressed him down to her lips, at last feeling warm and secure—where she belonged.
* * *
Hope exited first and was setting the table with food when Alex appeared. “It looks nice in here—a lot different from before. You’ve made it your own.”
“You’ve been here before?”
“I had dinner with Steve and Susan a few times. I like it a lot more now.”
“It took me a few trips to town,” Hope said and pointed to the living room wall and two large stretched canvases of abstract seascapes. “I bought those two watercolors from a street vendor in Frederiksted.”
“I think I know the guy you’re talking about. I’ve always liked his work too.” Alex poured two glasses of wine and made a toast. “Another toast to new beginnings?”
After touching his glass, Hope swirled the red liquid, the corner of her mouth twitching. “The first time I noticed you drink wine was at Sara’s going-away dinner. I had you pegged as a beer guy.”
“I like wine. But it’s a lot more enjoyable when you have someone to share it with, so I don’t really drink it.” He paused for a moment. “I can tell you and Sara are very close.”
“Yeah, we are. She’s the one person in my life I know I can always trust. We learned to depend on each other early on.”
“Sounds like there’s a story there.”
Hope nodded. “Not that unusual, unfortunately. Our father deserted us when I was twelve and Sara was eight. Our mother was a wreck, so I grew up fast. The truth is, we were much better off without him. He was hardly ever there. And when he was, he was . . . scary.” She shook her head. “Mom never saw it that way, though. She was always waiting for him to come back. He never did.”
Alex took her hand. “I’m sorry. That sounds rough.”
“We all have our crosses to bear, don’t we?” She gave him a small smile. “And both Sara and I turned out fine, so I count it as a victory.”
He squeezed her hand, lifting it to his mouth. “Sara isn’t the only one you can depend on, you know.”
“I know.” She looked down as tears rose in her eyes again. They paused to finish the meal, Alex seeming to understand she needed some time.
“So, has your hip been all right since that night on your deck? It wasn’t that long ago.”
He glanced at her, then dropped his eyes again. “Yes, it’s doing much better now. I was afraid I’d torn something in there again, but the next morning it felt better than I was expecting. Which is good, because I wasn’t looking forward to another surgery.”
“How many surgeries did you have?”
“Six total, over a year’s time. That’s why I swim so much. The doctors said it was the best exercise to keep my hip stretched out and strong.”
