“A proud, independent and very stubborn woman,” she amended.
“Something tells me the two of you are very much alike.”
Maddie smiled faintly. “If you’d said that to me ten years ago—even six years ago—I’d have said you were crazy. Joanna was the star student, the dutiful daughter, the one who never broke a rule or even missed a curfew.”
“And you?”
She shrugged, relaxing now that the conversation had turned more personal. Maybe Walt irked the hell out of her when he defended his buddy, but she still found him sexy as all get-out. She brought a hint of flirtation back to her voice when she murmured, “I was none of those things.”
He eyed her with a renewed wariness. “Why doesn’t that surprise me?”
She laughed softly and reached out to trace his jaw. “Can’t imagine.”
“I, uh, I guess you turned out okay, regardless. Smartass,” he added wryly, “but respectable.”
Her grin widened. “I’m not so sure my parents would agree with you, but once their perfect older daughter got herself knocked up, I looked a little better to them. Dad’s still waiting for me to join a more upscale country club legal firm—or at the very least, become a professor—and both of them wish Jo would concentrate on getting tenure at an Ivy League university rather than going into practice, but they’ve resigned themselves. I think Jo’s picked up a few tips from me about living her own life without worrying so much about pleasing others.”
“I’ve always admired people who learn that lesson early and then follow the beat of their own personal drummers.”
Okay, so Walt was on the other side legally. And he seemed to have issues with her age—or was it her boldness that unsettled him? Didn’t stop her from melting in response to the open admiration on his face. A few other sun-lovers lounged, strolled, chatted and played on the beach around them while waves crashed and seagulls shrieked, but as far as she was concerned, nothing around them was as interesting as the battle-scarred man sharing her towel, incongruously dressed in business casual.
She eyed him through her lashes. “What about you, Sarge? Whose drums do you follow?”
He gave her a grin that was unexpectedly roguish—not to mention devastatingly attractive. “The drums that usually lead me into the most trouble.”
Oh, wow. If he’d decided to seduce her, he was doing a damned good job.
Studying him, she asked, “Mind if I ask why Mrs. Sergeant Becker decided she’d rather be Mrs. Plastic Surgeon?”
His grin dimmed, and she could tell she’d hit a nerve. Still, he managed to keep his tone droll when he replied, “She said she didn’t care for the man who came back from the war.”
Instantly indignant on his behalf, Maddie demanded, “She left you because you lost your arm?”
“She claimed I lost a lot more than an arm.” He shrugged. “Maybe she was right. Whatever. She preferred the doctor she’d met while I was out of the country. They got married before the ink was dry on the divorce papers. Got a litter of babies now.”
Judging by the tone and expression with which he spoke, Walt had accepted the situation. Maddie suspected his feelings were a bit more complex. She wanted to know a lot more about him—but first she supposed they should settle Joanna and Adam’s issues.
She wasn’t sure how Joanna would feel about her seeing Adam’s friend. His attorney. But Joanna would be moving to Seattle soon and Maddie would continue, as she always had, to make her own choices. Those choices might well include a few long weekends at the Carolina coast.
CHAPTER NINE
“THIS WAS THE best day ever, Mom!” Simon proclaimed as they entered the suite that afternoon. “I had so much fun. I can’t wait to tell Aunt Maddie and Mr. Adam about it. We can show them all the pictures we took, can’t we? I bet Mr. Adam has seen the dolphins in the ocean lots of times, but I don’t know if Aunt Maddie has. I bet she’ll like our pictures.”
“I’m sure she will.” Joanna was tired and a little sunburned, but she’d had a wonderful day with her son. The well-organized outing had begun with an island shell hunt, during which Simon had pounced on the starfish he’d hoped to find all week, followed by a traditional Carolina crab boil lunch with the other families, and concluding with a two-hour dolphin cruise. The dolphins had been playfully cooperative today, putting on quite a show for the delighted spectators.
“I’m hungry,” Simon declared, rubbing his tummy. “Where are we going to eat tonight? Can we have fried shrimp baskets again?”
Joanna almost groaned. She was still so stuffed from their huge lunch of crab, sausage, potatoes, corn on the cob, and peach cobbler that she would have been perfectly happy to skip dinner altogether.
“I think we’ll find something a little healthier than fried shrimp and french fries tonight,” she said, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Maybe the grilled chicken kabobs you saw the other day. You said they looked good, remember?”
“Okay. But can we have fried shrimp baskets one more time before we go home?”
“Yes. One more time. Now you need to go shower and change for dinner. I’ll call Aunt Maddie and tell her we’re back.”
“Okay. Can you call Mr. Adam, too? Maybe he can have dinner with us. I want to show him my starfish.”
Thinking of the way she and Adam had parted last night, Joanna wasn’t sure Adam would accept. Would he want to spend another evening with Simon even though he wasn’t going to have a relationship with the boy in the future? Or would he want the chance to spend every minute he could with Simon before they left the resort Sunday morning?