As Blue as the Sky Page 5

  “I just want to help,” she said quietly.

  Cade laughed. “You look too much like a girl to help.”

  “I heard you this morning, Cade. Not funny, for the second time.” She looked from face to face, and Kyle was sure she was finding no compassion.

  “Seriously, Jess, you’re supposed to rest your hand, and we’ve got it covered.” He turned to Kyle, throwing up his hands. “Can you help us out? Get her out of here, maybe?”

  “What?” Kyle and Jess said in unison, looking toward each other at the same time.

  “That would be perfect,” Cade said, grabbing a wrench and heading toward the quad. “We don’t have too awful much time to fix this, and she won’t leave us alone.”

  “Oh, Cade, you know I just want to be part of the team.” Her eyebrows furrowed as she looked from her father, to her brother and to Kyle. The other crew members had slunk away and started working on the bike.

  “Doctor? Some help here?” Mr. McNally said as he ripped his hat from his head, running his hand through his hair.

  “Call me Kyle. And, um, I guess I can take her with me up to the new resort. I was headed there next.”

  “Well, I’d sure appreciate it. I know you’d have your hands full, but I don’t need her in here bugging us.”

  “Bugging you? I’m the best mechanic on the team,” she said, without a hint of arrogance. She said it as a simple statement of fact. Based on the lack of objection from the race crew, or her father or brother, Kyle figured it must be true.

  “Look, you really do need to go easy on your hand. In fact, you shouldn’t use it at all if you want it to heal properly. Seriously, I was headed up to have lunch with my friend, Cassie, at the resort. She’s like a sister. Why don’t you come with me? Have you seen it?” he asked, noticing the looks of gratitude from both Mr. McNally and Cade.

  “Is she that marine biologist who married the guy building the resort?” Jess asked, her shoulders sagging a bit as if accepting defeat.

  Kyle smiled and nodded. “I’ll tell you the story on the way. I haven’t seen her for a while, and I think you’d probably like her.”

  “Actually, I haven’t been up there since they started,” she said, sounding a little defeated but willing to take a step back.

  Mr. McNally whipped out his wallet from the back pocket of his jeans. He crushed a hundred-dollar bill in Kyle’s hand, and with another firm handshake said, “Great. You kids go have a good time, and we’ll be working here when you get back.”

  Kyle closed his mouth that had fallen open at the quick gesture, and turned to Jess, the corners of her mouth now turning up into a smile.

  “He rarely takes no for an answer, so you just saved yourself a lot of time arguing. Trust me,” she said, shaking her head slowly.

  “Go on, now, get out of here,” Mr. McNally said over his shoulder as he headed back toward the quad.

  Chapter 11

  “How’s the pain today?” Kyle asked as he led her over to the Manx.

  She looked at the yellow Manx, beautifully restored, and didn’t even hear his question. “Wow, that’s a nice one. And yellow, too. Not many yellow ones anymore.”

  She saw Kyle’s grin and noticed how his eyes lit up as he looked at the dune buggy. “I restored it myself. It was a gift for my mom.”

  She let out an appreciative whistle as he helped her into the passenger seat. He helped her lower herself into the seat and came around to the passenger side, hopping in as he held onto the roll bar. “Do you need help with your seatbelt?”

  Confused for a minute, she realized he was serious. “Seatbelt? Are we going on the road?” She’d assumed they would be driving on the beach, as she’d heard the resort had made it possible to get through the mud flats.

  He turned to look at her, his eyes intense. “Yes, we’re going on the beach, but no seat belt, no ride.”

  “You’re serious, aren’t you?” she asked, wondering if he was the only person in Baja who wore a seatbelt. She didn’t remember the last time she’d worn one in a buggy, at least at the beach when she wasn’t racing, but his eyes had clouded and she thought it would be better to comply than argue the point. There was something about this guy that she couldn’t quite put her finger on. He seemed nice enough, friendly even, but when anything came up about racing or speed, he clammed up and clouded over. Maybe it had something to do with what the nurse had told her.

  “Okay, but I don’t think I can do it with this brace on. My fingers can barely move.” She held up the black brace, barely wiggling one of her fingers. His face changed immediately and he went into doctor mode, taking her wrist gently in his hand and pinching one of her fingers slightly.

  “Can you feel that?” he asked, putting a small amount of pressure on her thumbnail.

  “Yes, I can.” She watched as he looked at her hand intently, turning it over in his hand and repeating the process with each of her fingernails. She saw his jaw clench as he examined her hand, and noticed the light stubble that had appeared on his chin, sparkling a little bit in the light and matching the sandy color of his hair. Although she wished they wouldn’t, the butterflies returned and she felt her face flush a bit as his scent wafted over her.

  And it flushed a little bit more as he looked up and met her gaze while she’d been staring at him. Her breath hitched and she looked quickly back down at her hand, wishing he hadn’t seen her.

  “Well, looks like everything’s okay for now,” he said, setting her hand on her lap and reaching over her for the seatbelt. She held her breath as he clasped her in, hoping this feeling would go away and she could get back to what was most important...the race.

  They were quiet on the short trip up the beach after he’d given her a run-down on the resort, both lost in thought. Jess hadn’t been to the beach on a trip down in years, and the salty air massaged her senses. The smell was clean and fresh, and the cool wind on her face and flipping through her hair...one of her rare drives without a helmet...felt great for a change.

  “Stop,” she said as they approached the north point of Bahia Santa Maria.

  He glanced at her quickly and slowed the Manx to a stop. “Everything okay?” he asked, concern in his eyes as he looked at her hand.

  “Oh, sorry, yes. I just wanted to know what happened here,” she said, pointing to a row of three brick houses that appeared to have collapsed onto the beach. She popped the seatbelt open—much easier than closing it, she found—and pulled herself up on the roll-bar with her good hand. She settled on top of the seat she’d been sitting in so she could see better.

  Kyle followed her gaze and turned back toward her, slowly shaking his head. “Isn’t it awful? The tides have changed here in the last few years, and these houses used to be much further from the high tide. See those retaining walls on the houses at each end? The folks who live here had to build those to stave off damage. This past summer, a hurricane passed through and the combination of the high tides and storm took these out.”

  She stared at the rubble of these lovely round houses, all built with the beautiful red ladrillo bricks that she thought was so lovely. Her heart tugged at the thought of how devastating such a loss would be, as most people loved this place with a passion. “What will they do?” she asked, as she sat back down in her seat, cursing her decision to wear a dress as she tugged it down beneath her and hoped he was still looking at the houses. She looked up to find him looking right at her, his face covered with a wide grin.

  “Need any help?” he said, laughing.

  She felt her brow furrow as she squinted at him. “I don’t like being laughed at.”

  “So you’ve told me. Twice, I think it is. I’m not laughing at you...isn’t that how the saying goes?” The twinkle in his eyes made them appear even more deep, and she couldn’t stop the smile that curved her lips.

  “I guess I do look kind of silly. I’m not used to wearing dresses,” she said, her skirt now firmly back where it needed to be.

  “Silly wasn’t th
e word I would have used. I was thinking something more along the lines of...charming,” he said as he looked back to the house quickly.

  She cleared her throat, wondering if that was the first time any man had classified her as charming, and decided that it in fact was the first time. Charming was not a word that most of the men she hung around with used to describe her.

  Still a little flustered, she asked again. “So, what are these people going to do?”

  “Can you see the larger structures behind these houses? When the damage started to happen more and more frequently, in little bits and pieces, most people built an additional house directly behind. These lots are all pretty big and they had plenty of room to do it. I don’t know many people in this campo, so not sure of the whole story. But it really is a shame.”

  He started the buggy and headed north, staying mostly on the firm sand. She looked over and noticed that his hands were placed exactly at ten and two on the steering wheel, and he seemed to be paying a great deal of attention to his driving...which was incredibly slow.

  “Can’t you go any faster?” she asked, raising her eyebrows.

  “Um, no. I can’t. This is fast as I go in a dune buggy. It must be excruciating for you as a racer,” he said, his voice suddenly flat.

  She thought maybe she’d insulted him, but hadn’t meant to. “I was just teasing. I’m perfectly happy taking in the scenery.

  He turned to look at her quickly before turning back to the road. His quizzical gaze seemed to be assessing whether or not she was making fun of him, and he said, “It’s just the way it has to be, Jess. We’ll get there.”

  She looked ahead and noticed the spots of what looked like small casitas growing larger. As they got closer, a larger building came into view past the smaller casitas and a huge area of the sea looked cordoned off, almost like a marina with wooden docks reaching out into the water. “What’s that?” she said as they passed the first dock.

  “That’s Cassie’s sanctuary, a breeding place for the vaquita porpoises. Looks like it’s turning out nicely.”

  “That’s an amazing story, what she did. I read about it in a magazine. I’m looking forward to meeting her,” she said as they circled in on a very big, incredibly lovely brick house that stood on top of a dune. It was surrounded by brightly-colored bougainvillea—red, purple, orange and even white ones. Large trees loomed over a courtyard where a very pretty woman, about her own age, stood with a big smile, waving at Kyle. Her blonde hair blew in the breeze, and as they walked up the stairs, a tall, dark man stepped up from behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

  As they reached the top, she moved quickly toward Kyle, throwing her arms around his neck as he met her embrace.

  “Kyle, it’s so good to see you. You haven’t been here since the wedding!” she said, standing back with her hands on his shoulders. “You look great.”

  “Thanks, Cass, so do you,” Kyle said as he extended his hand to the tall man. “Hi, Alex. Great to see you. Cassie, Alex, this is Jess McNally. She’s a racer.”

  They both turned to Jess with wide smiles, and Cassie extended her hand. “Oh, I’m sorry,” Jess said, holding up her right hand with the brace on it, waving weakly.

  “She was in a quad accident last night and turned up at the clinic. I patched her up, but she’s got to lay off racing for a while and her father asked me to get her out and about,” he said. Jessica was grateful that he hadn’t shared the reason her father had wanted her out, and glanced at him gratefully.

  He smiled in return, and said, “How’s everything going here? Looks like it’s changed quite a bit.”

  “Oh, it sure has. We’re making great progress. I’m sure you saw the sanctuary on your way in,” Alex said, placing his hand on his wife’s shoulder as she turned to him and smiled.

  “I can’t believe you guys pulled it off,” Kyle said, his hand raised over his eyes as he looked out over the sea.

  “It’s amazing,” Cassie said. She grabbed Kyle’s hand and pulled him toward the big French doors and into the lovely brick house. “We’ve got lunch ready for you. Come inside and I’ll tell you all about it.”

  Jessica smiled as Alex offered her his arm and escorted her inside behind the life-long friends who were talking a mile a minute, arm in arm.

  Chapter 12

  As Jessica and Alex walked into the beautiful dining room, he turned to her and held his finger to his lips, his eyes twinkling as he quietly said, “Shhh. It’s a surprise.”

  She couldn’t help but laugh at the look of shock on Kyle’s face as he stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes wide.

  “Surprise,” shouted at least thirty people, and Cassie jumped up and down as she clapped her hands together.

  Jessica had no idea who most of these people were, but she couldn’t help be happy for Kyle...whatever he’d done to deserve the surprise. Was it his birthday, she wondered? She hoped he would have told her that, if it was.

  Alex tapped the glass of champagne he was now holding, and cleared his throat, encouraging the crowd to silence. “Thank you all for joining us here. It is a momentous occasion, and we’d like to congratulate Kyle — and us, here at the resort — for his decision to accept our offer of becoming resident doctor for us and our guests. We couldn’t have wished for a better physician...or a more honorable man. He will make us proud here, I am positive. Congratulations, Kyle, and thank you,” he said, hoisting his glass to a round of applause, whistles and cheers.

  Cassie beamed as she rushed to hug her friend, her smile spread ear to ear. “You surprised?” she said, hugging him tightly.

  “Um, I don’t know what to say, Cass. Thank you.” He gave her a peck on the cheek as he turned to hug Alex as well. “I truly am excited, and thanks for having friends and family come to celebrate. Can’t believe I get to start in a couple of weeks,” he said, glancing around the room.

  “The sooner the better,” Alex said. “We’ve got a whole clinic to design and set up before we open, and that day’s coming fast.”

  “I didn’t know you were going to work here,” Jessica said, her eyebrows raised. “What an exciting thing.” She glanced around the beautiful house and out the huge, plate-glass windows to the ocean. In the distance, she could see the beginnings of the resort, a stable, and the smaller casitas they’d passed on their way in.

  “Good decision, lad,” she heard from behind her, and she immediately recognized the man who had helped her after her accident.

  “Thanks, Colin,” Kyle said as he shook his hand. “Nice to see you again, Hanna,” he said to the stunning woman next to Colin, her dark braid down her back complimenting her colorful Mexican skirt.

  “You too, Kyle. Welcome aboard,” she said with a smile as she leaned in and kissed his cheek.

  “Here come James and Megan,” Kyle said as he waited for another couple to approach, Jessica recognizing the man from the accident also. His white hair and beard didn’t fit with his age, as she judged him to be not older than fifty, and the lovely woman on his arm’s long, blonde hair and smiling blue eyes made her seem a perfect match for him.

  “All of you, I’d like to introduce Jessica McNally,” Kyle said.

  “Have you forgotten, son,” Colin said, poking an elbow in Kyle’s arm. “We’re the ones who brought her to you.” He laughed and winked at James.

  “Ah, this is the young racer you told me about, James. You’re right, she’s lovely,” Megan said as she offered her hand to Jessica.

  Jessica felt her face flush, her memory instantly returning to the previous night when she’d crashed and flew through the air. “Oh, goodness. It’s nice to officially meet all of you and thank you for taking such good care of me last night. Good time to apologize, too, as I was thrown for a loop. Literally. And I don’t think I was an easy patient.”

  Kyle, Colin and James exchanged glances and broke into hearty laughter. “That’s an understatement, madam, but apology accepted,” James said, squeezing his wife’s hand. You back
in the saddle again, so to speak?”

  It was Kyle and Jessica’s turn to exchange glances. She couldn’t quite read his face, but thought she saw a flicker of concern.

  “Not yet. Doctor’s orders...and I’m following them,” she said, raising her glass to the group.

  “Best thing for you, Jessica. Kyle knows what he’s doing,” Cassie interjected. “And these guys are great at getting folks to him. Colin here is our fire captain and Hanna is our horse trainer and trail leader.”

  “I wondered about the red cowboy boots,” Jessica said, laughing. “They suit you.”

  Hanna lifted up her skirt, kicking out the heel of the cowboy boots that had become her trademark after the arsonist had been caught. “Thanks. Now if only I knew how to line dance.”

  As the people stopping by to congratulate Kyle filled their plates with the colorful array of seafood laid out on a long table by the windows, Jessica listened mostly in silence as the group of friends caught up over an impressive lunch of cold shrimp cocktail, chips and salsa and the most amazing guacamole she’d ever had. She remembered that the shrimp cocktail down in Mexico was different...not cold steamed shrimp with cocktail sauce like ketchup. This one was authentic and traditional, with shrimp, tomato juice, jalapeños, onions and lime juice, almost more like a ceviche. It was one of her favorites, and she happily dug in while listening to the current progress on the porpoise sanctuary and resort that Cassie and Alex were creating. Margaritas had been offered, but she politely declined, not sure it would interfere with her pain medication and wanting to make sure she was healing as best she could.

  After much laughter and great stories, Cassie turned to Jessica and said, “So, you’re a racer, Jessica? Here for the 250?”

  “Yes, I am. I’m competing in the quad class, and want to be the first woman to win.”

  Kyle cleared his throat and she turned quickly to look at him. His eyebrows were raised as he looked at her intently.