They’ll be ruined by morning.”
She shook off her uneasiness with difficulty. “Yes, you’re right. Thank you.” Faith took the roses from him even though she couldn’t bear the sight of them. She’d throw them in the trash as soon as JT left.
“If you’d like, I could come inside and take a look around. Just to ease your mind.”
Her hand stilled on the door. She hesitated. She didn’t know what to trust anymore, including her own judgment. She should refuse JT’s offer outright. Thank him for his kindness and send him on his way.
“That’s very kind of you, but I don’t think so.”
When he stepped closer, her back hit the door and he stopped. “You’re obviously frightened. I can check things out to make sure nothing’s out of place and then I’ll be on my way. If you want, you can wait out here until I’m finished. I promise I don’t have any ulterior motives,” JT added with a hint of a smile.
She knew she was being ridiculous. He only wanted to help. After all, he’d taken the time to bring Ollie home when the dog had wandered onto his back deck. JT seemed genuinely concerned about her well-being, and at some point in her life she needed to learn to trust someone if she wanted to live long enough to discover her attacker’s identity.
Through every single one of the moves, she’d prayed for God’s help. At times, it seemed as if He wasn’t in the answering mood when it came to her prayers. At one of the church services she’d attended once, she remembered the pastor saying that God didn’t always choose to answer prayers in the way we would like Him to, but He always answered them in the best way for us. Had God sent a total stranger into her life as an answer to her prayer?
Trust Me. The words echoed through her thoughts. Trust was a hard thing for Faith to give freely, but she needed to try.
“Okay,” she said at last. “Thank you. I’d really like that.” She stepped aside and let JT pass through.
Faith flipped on the lights. She set the roses on the table by the door and waited with Ollie while JT searched through each room of her house.
“Here’s your problem,” he called out from the kitchen. When she followed him to the room, he pointed to Ollie’s pet door. “You forgot to lock it in place. The little guy probably figured out how to open it.”
An unbelievable sense of relief soaked into every fiber of her body. “Oh, I’m so relieved. For a second, I thought...”
“That you had an intruder?” JT finished for her.
He obviously thought she’d overreacted. He had no way of knowing what she’d been through in her life to warrant such a response.
“Yes,” she admitted and felt foolish. “I’ve only been here on the island a month. I guess I’m still getting used to living out here. Especially so far away from town.”
“I see. Well, you don’t have anything to worry about living here alone. This is one of the safest places to live in Maine. We rarely have anything more than the occasional high school prank.”
So he was a local. This surprised her. “You live here?”
JT nodded. “Yes. I’m restoring the house down the beach from you.” He was a carpenter. That explained the healthy tan. Still, it didn’t quite fit her first impression of him.
JT had a funny little grin on his face and she realized she’d been staring again. “Well, thank you for rescuing Ollie,” she said to cover up her embarrassment.
“No problem. I kind of admire the little guy’s spunk.” He reached down and scratched Ollie’s ears, and the dog rewarded him with a lick on his hand.
Faith laughed warmly. “I think you’ve made a new friend. Ollie loves having his ears scratched.”
When JT straightened, he looked right into her eyes and her heart did a little flip. He was an incredibly attractive man, yet she wondered if he even realized it.
He glanced away and she could breathe normally once more.
“You know, I remember this house. I came here a lot as a kid. My mom and the previous owners were friends. As I recall, Mom brought my sister and me over a couple of times a week for a visit. Liz and I used to explore the house while my mom and Evie Fitzgerald talked.” He sighed fondly. “I remember Mrs. Fitzgerald used to make this mean chocolate cake and she’d give my sister and me each a huge slice. We would end up with a sugar rush for hours after. It drove our mom crazy.”
She smiled as she listened to him reminisce about his family. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d had such a simple conversation with anyone without looking for ulterior motives. It felt nice. “I can imagine. Are you and your sister still close?” Ollie scratched at her leg, his little signal he wanted her to hold him. She scooped the dog up in her arms.
“Oh, yes.” He sounded amused. “Sometimes a little too close. Liz is happily married and determined that everyone around her should be as well. She’s constantly trying to set me up on blind dates,” he added with a shake of his head.
Faith found herself unexpectedly drawn to him. She liked the way his eyes lit up when he talked about his sister. It must be an incredible blessing to have someone to care about you in such a way. She’d been on her own for a long time and she’d never really known the love of a family. Since moving to Hope Island, her interactions with others had been limited to the cashier at the local grocery store and the occasional hello from the postal employee who sorted the mail.
“Actually, that sounds pretty nice.” She stole a sideways glance at him and found him watching her with a sympathetic look on his face. When had she gotten so bad at covering up her feelings?
“Yes, I guess it is. As much as I tease my sister about being a mother hen, it’s nice having her close. She and her husband, Sam, and my niece Ellie live here on the island as well, so I get to see them a lot.” He hesitated. “I take it you don’t have any family close by?”
Faith struggled against feelings of loneliness. She hated being completely alone with no one to talk to about her problems and terrified of something she couldn’t remember.
Before she could come up with an answer, JT held up his hands. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked and it’s none of my business. Here I am talking about Liz being nosy.” He chuckled. “Blame it on the detective in me. I guess we’re always searching for answers.”
Faith did her best not to react to the news that he was a cop. After what happened in Austin and the way the detectives had treated her, she had stopped trusting in the police for help.
“You know, we can keep doing this all night,” he said softly, interrupting her troubled thoughts.
She swallowed hard. “Doing what?” But she knew.
His expression gave nothing away. “Making polite conversation while we ignore what we should be talking about. Like who you really thought was following you tonight.”
Faith couldn’t hold his gaze.
“I know you’re scared of someone. Who’s following you, Faith?”
He had no idea
