Catching Serenity (21 page)

“
You, too.”

Before he hung up, Jackson gave Kyle the pertinent
facts he’d gotten from Serenity about her mother. It might not give them anything to go on. Then again, it might bring some definitive answers. The Lord knew that’s what he wanted more than anything—help the woman he was falling in love with find what she needed most in her life.

Blessed, sweet s
erenity.

~
CHAPTER 21~

“
You’re a great assistant.” Working side-by-side at the church picnic, Jackson smiled as he manned the grill and Serenity handed out paper plates and hot dog or hamburger buns. She got reacquainted with a few members of the church she’d known in the past and Jackson introduced her to everyone. She liked how he poured himself into the community and made a serious effort to get to know the townspeople, learn about their lives and show a genuine interest.

“
Michael, good to see you,” Jackson said when a curly-haired boy who looked to be about eight approached. “Want a hot dog, buddy?”

The boy
’s dark eyes widened and he bobbed his head up and down. “Yes, please. Is there ketchup? I gotta have ketchup.” Serenity opened a bun and Jackson plopped a hot dog in the middle.

“
Here you go. Condiments are on the picnic table right over there. Hey, David,” Jackson said as a tall, blond man walked up to them. “David Marsh, I’d like you to meet Serenity McClaren. She’s keeping me straight so I don’t crisp the meat beyond recognition. Serenity, this is Michael’s dad.”

David smiled.
“It’s nice to meet you, Serenity. I’d shake your hand, but I see you already have your hands full.”

“
I take it you’re talking about this,” she said, lifting a plate, “and not Jackson.”

David
’s laugh was hearty, and Jackson gave her a wink. “I think you’ve met your match, Doc Jack.”

Jackson breathed out an exaggerated sigh.
“That’s what I keep telling her. What’ll you have?” Jackson asked, rolling over a couple of the hot dogs. “I’ve got brats, hot dogs and burgers.” The grill sizzled and Serenity hoped neither of them heard her stomach rumble. Who knew the smells of grilling meat—not vegetables—would make her so hungry?

“
Great. I’ll take one brat and one hot dog.” David thanked her when she handed over two buns on a plate. A lovely woman walked up to stand beside him. “Carmen, this is Jackson and Serenity.” With her long, dark hair and olive skin, she was exotic and very pretty.

As the two men exchanged small talk, Serenity turned to
the other woman. She appeared to be a few years older, in her mid-thirties or thereabouts. “Are you new in town?” A weird feeling came over her, like she’d seen Carmen somewhere before.

Carmen
accepted the hot dog David handed her and Serenity walked with her to the condiment table. “Is it that obvious? New in town, new relationship...” Although she spoke with a slight accent, her English was perfect. Tucking a dark curl behind one ear, Carmen gave her a small smile. “You?”

“
I grew up here but went to Atlanta to study. I moved back a few weeks ago.”

“
What do you do?”

“
I started an interior decorating business here in town called Inner Serenity. If you’re in the market for some decorating help, let me know and I’d love to help. I also make a mean cup of tea or coffee if you’d like to stop by and chat sometime.” After Carmen asked for her business card, Serenity told her the cross streets closest to her office and dug a card from her pocket. “It’s in the heart of the downtown district.”

“
Your name is so unusual,” Carmen said, glancing at the card. “Very pretty.”

“
Thanks. It’s courtesy of two free-thinking, New Age parents. For a beach town like Croisette Shores, it seems to fit.”

“
Growing up in Miami, I always had a few other girls with my name in my classes, so consider yourself lucky.”

“
What do you do?” Serenity asked as the other woman squeezed mustard on her hot dog. The deep red color of her fingernails reminded her of something.
The woman in the hospital cafeteria.
Serenity lowered her gaze, unsure what to think or whether to say anything. What
could
she say? Nice to meet you, but have you been following me?

David called to
Carmen, and Michael stood beside him. “I’m a flight attendant, but I retired a few months ago. I’d better go, but it’s very nice to meet you.”

“
You, too.” Serenity watched, puzzled, as they headed toward a picnic table.

“
David’s wife died in a car accident a few years ago,” Jackson said when she rejoined him by the grill. “Michael took it really hard, as you can imagine, and he’s having a little trouble adjusting to his dad’s new relationship. They moved here for a fresh start, and David’s the history teacher at the high school.”

Without Jackson actually saying the words,
Serenity understood Michael was one of his patients. “I hope it works out for all of them,” she said.

Jackson
nudged her shoulder, an action that was becoming more frequent. Not that she minded. “I think
you’re
nice. I heard your invitation to Carmen.”

“
Just being neighborly.”

“
Well,” he said, “here’s an idea. How about the two of us get neighborly later tonight?”

Her mouth dropped open.
“Dr. Ross!” She didn’t know what to think, but against her better judgment, the idea sounded better all the time.

“
Now, see?
This
is the real Serenity. The fun-loving, genuine, giving—”

“
I get your point,” she said. “Don’t spoil the moment by reminding me of my shortcomings.”

“
Point taken.” He started whistling and she moved over to straighten the condiment table. No wonder he’d more or less accused her of being hot and cold. It’s how she’d survived the past five years and it would take some time to work it out of her system. If she
ever
did.

A half hour later,
the crowd seemed to wind down. Another guy came over and told Jackson to go eat and he’d take over the grill duty. “Time to live dangerously,” Jackson said, plopping a sizzling hot dog on her plate.

“
Right,” she said, giving him a mock frown as she grabbed a bun. “But don’t put any chips on my plate or you’re in big trouble, mister.”

“
I’m shaking in my shoes.”

After loading her plate with salad and an ear of corn, Serenity canvassed the park for a table. Most were already occupied, but
seeing Mrs. Marciano waving to her, Serenity led the way to a table occupied by a young couple, Mark and Sarah Coltrane, and their three kids. Friends of Deidre and Wes, she’d known them before they were married. Life moving on as it should. In some ways, seeing their children made the pain of losing Liam all the more real.

“
A word of warning,” she said, whispering in Jackson’s ear after they’d climbed over the park bench and sat down side-by-side. “Dustin’s a prankster. He’s the one to your immediate right.” Jackson smelled so good, his skin warm.

“
Bring it on.” She giggled and bowed her head as he took her hand and said a quiet prayer.

The first few minutes, Mrs. Marciano asked Jackson questions.
“Why do I feel like
I’m
the one getting grilled?” he whispered, leaning so close his lips touched her ear, sending shivers everywhere.

“
I can tell Mrs. Marciano likes you.”

He chuckled, low in his throat.
“Better than the quarterback?”

“
Most definitely,” she said, doing a little nudging of her own with her knee beneath the table. Jackson’s surprised glance told her how much he enjoyed it when she initiated the flirting.

“
Haven’t you ever eaten a hot dog before?” Ten-year-old Katelyn watched as Serenity surveyed her hot dog, turning the bun in her hands, debating which end to nibble. “You’re looking at it like you don’t know what to do.” Katelyn would faint if she told her she’d never consumed macaroni and cheese from a box mix or tried a Pop-Tart.

“
My mom wouldn’t let me eat them when I was your age,” Serenity said. “I’ve never had one with mustard. Normally, I like ketchup.”

“
Then how come you put mustard on it this time?” Katelyn asked. Leave it to kids to ask the hard-hitting questions.

“
Because I want to eat it the way Jackson likes it.” Without looking at him, Serenity sensed Jackson’s satisfaction with that statement.

“
How come?” The girl seemed fascinated with the way she picked off a section and sampled it instead of digging right in and chewing a big bite. “My mom says you gotta do things your own way or you’re a copycat. If Jackson jumped off a bridge, would you...”

“
That’s quite enough out of you, young lady,” Sarah said. “Serenity has a right to eat her hot dog any way she wants without any comment from you.”

“
Yeah, it’s a free country.” Peyton scrunched his nose in his sister’s direction.

“
You see, Katelyn,” Serenity said, tossing a glance at Jackson, “I don’t look at it as copying, but more like an experiment.” Taking a bigger bite for emphasis, she chewed slowly, savoring the taste.

“
Whaddya think?” That from Peyton, watching for her reaction.

She wiped her mouth with the napkin
and grinned. “Not bad at all.”

Doubling over be
side Jackson, Dustin clutched his stomach and gagged. It only took a second to figure out what was happening. Jumping up from the bench, Serenity ran to Dustin, wrapped her arms around the boy and hauled him off the bench from behind.

“
What’s she
doing
, Daddy?” Katelyn’s question barely registered as Serenity performed the Heimlich with swift, sure thrusts. A piece of hot dog spewed out and landed on Katelyn’s plate.

“
Eww! Gross!” Squealing, Katelyn scrambled down from the picnic bench and threw herself into her mother’s arms.

Dustin crumpled and cried as Mark reached his side. Peyton stared at the scene with wide eyes
and then looked over at her. “Wow. That was way awesome.”

“
Thank you, Serenity,” Mark said, and Sarah echoed the sentiment as she released Katelyn and moved around the table to gather the now whimpering Dustin in her arms, sitting on the bench and rocking her younger son back and forth.

Serenity nodded,
embarrassed. “I’m glad I could help.”

Mrs. Marciano sat
watching the scene, appearing stunned, but she quickly recovered. “I always knew that girl was special,” she said to Peyton, gesturing to her, “but I had no idea she could actually save somebody’s life. Good neighbor to have, wouldn’t you say?” Peyton nodded with enthusiasm.

“
You’re my heroine,” Jackson said as he finished cleaning the grill and Serenity repackaged leftover buns a short time later. “What you did for Dustin was amazing and Peyton’s crushing on you big time. Where’d you learn how to do that, anyway?”

“
Mama made sure I learned the Heimlich by the time I was in middle school.” She gathered leftover packages of buns and supplies, noticing Jackson’s muscles on full display as he used serious elbow grease on the grill. Her mother always said a good man worth having was one who wasn’t afraid to roll up his sleeves and work hard. Funny how her mother kept coming to her mind lately.

“
Good to know in case I’m ever choking.”

“
Surely working with children, you know it, too.”

His cheeks
flushed, a rare sight. “Yeah, I do. But unlike you, I’ve never had to use it, thank the Lord.” He grinned. “I know you’re better at the Heimlich than you are at eating a hot dog. There’s an art to it, and I think I’m going to have to teach you.”

She sniffed.
“No, thanks. A hot dog-free existence is fine with me, especially after what happened today.” A few minutes later, finished with their task, she prepared to leave. “Ready to go?”

The look he gave her could only be described as sheepish.
“Some of the guys are planning a game of touch football. Only for an hour or so. Do you mind?”

“
Of course not. Why should I? Go. Have fun.”