Justice Is Always Ready (A Graham Family Story, 1) (3 page)

“
I’m a lieutenant in the
Coast Guard, home ported here in Quiet Harbor.”

I can see him
serving.
She smiled again and spun the
beer bottle in her hand. “Really? Have you gone to check out the
Pea Island LSS?”

He chuckled. “Yes. I’ve been to the
Pea Island Life Saving Station Memorial many times. My
great-grandfather served there. One of the reasons I joined the
Coast Guard.”

His
great-grandfather.
Her mind working
overtime, Kassidy streamed through her knowledge. With a gasp she
looked at him. “Calvin Running Wolf Graham is your
great-grandfather?”

He faced her. “Yes, ma’am.”

“
Wow. That’s… I mean…
I’m…” she sighed, “…I’m babbling like an idiot again.”

“
I think it’s
adorable.”

She flushed.

“
My turn. What do you
do?”

“
I work at the library,
the main one, and I spend a lot of my days with groups of kids
helping them become more comfortable reading.”

“
Sounds very
fulfilling.”

“
I love it. Do you have
siblings?”

“
I have a sister, we’re
twins.”

“
Oh, how cool. Is she in
the Coast Guard too?”

“
No, she’s in the
Navy.”

“
That’s awesome. You come
from a serving family.”

He nodded. “We sure do. My
great-great-grandfather was a Buffalo Solider and was assigned to
the Seventh Calvary right before Wounded Knee, so he was
there.”

“
Oh my. That was such a
tragedy.”

“
Yes,” Justice agreed.
“His name was Sergeant Isaiah Graham. Calvin Running Wolf Graham
was his son.”

“
Did Isaiah marry a Sioux
woman?” Her love of history was totally piqued.

“
No. He got injured at
Wounded Knee, lost an arm, retired and married a Comanche woman,
Gentle Wind. They moved back to North Carolina. Once Calvin grew up
he married a local woman named Sarah and they had a child. A boy
they named Jamal Two Bears, in honor of Calvin’s brother who’d
passed.”

Kassidy allowed the rich timbre of his
voice to flow over her. She hung on every word. “So, Jamal Two
Bears Graham is your grandfather?”

“
Yes, and he served in the
Navy during WWII. He met grandma, Martha Rose, and married her.”
Justice paused for a moment, staring out over the water at
something only he could see.

She watched his face and saw the pain.
Kassidy reached out her hand and laid it on his forearm. Beneath
her touch, his muscle jumped and he looked at her. “You don’t have
to say anymore. I didn’t mean to pry.”

“
No, it’s okay.” He
dropped his gaze briefly to where her hand lay and a small smile
filled his face. “Thank you though.”

Kassidy didn’t ask what he thanked her
for. Some things were best left alone.

“
Where was I? Oh, right.
Grandpa Jamal and Martha Rose. Their eldest was my father, Justice
Standing Bear. They had one more but she didn’t survive and neither
did Martha Rose. Dad grew up and married mom, her name is Dinah.
Grandpa lived with us, now with mom. Dad and mom had my sister,
Jasira and I. Like I said before, we’re twins and she’s Navy, I’m
the older of us. Dad was in the Army and went to Vietnam when we
were little.” Justice drew a deep breath. “He never came home, was
KIA.”

Her fingers tightened on his arm in
sadness. “I’m so sorry. Thank you for sharing that with me. So you
were named for your father?”

“
No. My full name is Jamal
Isaiah Graham. I took his name as my nickname to honor him, which
is why people call me Justice.” He shrugged. “Now I’ve been
rambling and have told you more than you could possibly want to
know.”

“
Not at all. I would love
to meet your family,” she said with all honesty.

“
Anytime,” he
murmured.

They stared at one another for a while
until overhead thunder rumbled. Pulling her hand from his arm,
Kassidy looked away. “We should get inside.”

“
Yes,” he agreed as the
first drops of rain fell.

Kassidy glanced at the
timepiece on her wrist. Close to ten. She put her empty beer bottle
in a glass recycling bin.
Man, I was
having a great time too.

“
Can I get you another?”
he asked leaning in close to be heard over the chaos inside the
bar.

“
Thank you, but no. I have
to get going.”

“
It’s Friday night.” He
pressed against her and Kassidy fought the urge to sink into
him.

“
I work tomorrow morning.”
Turning so they were facing one another she said, “Thank you for
letting me get to know you, Justice.”

Kassidy ducked around him and went to
say goodbye to Lucy and Ethan. Walking to the front, she stepped
out and jogged down the steps toward her car. Her gaze picked up
Justice standing on the top step, framed by raindrops and light as
he stared at her. Kassidy shuddered at the intensity in his stare.
She waved briefly and drove off thinking of how it would be to kiss
him.

* * * *

The sun shone down on him as he
bounded up the steps. With a deep breath, Justice strode toward the
automatic doors and entered the Quiet Harbor Main Public
Library.

Haven’t been in one of
these for a while.
Shoving his hands into
his pockets, he walked past the front desk and looked at the signs
trying to figure out where the children’s area was. He moved
quietly and heard a young voice reading aloud.

Peeking around the corner, Justice
sighed in pleasure as his gaze landed on Kassidy. She sat on the
floor with about ten kids in a circle. There was a dog stretched
out beside the child reading, its head in the boy’s lap.

Unnoticed, Justice stared at Kassidy.
She wore a pair of buttercream capris and a white tank top. Her
hair bounced with every movement she made. It was a beautiful blend
of black, brown, and honey colored full out natural curl. He longed
to sink his hands in it and devour her. Her skin had a radiance to
it that even the fluorescent lights above couldn’t ruin.

“
Very good, Trey. Thank
you for reading the last Chapter,” Kassidy spoke as she rose
smoothly to her feet and reached for the book. “I believe y’all’s
parents are waiting, so go find them and don’t forget to check out
a book to read this week. I’ll see all of y’all next
week.”

A small smile curved up his lips as
they all stood and said, “Bye, Miss Barrow. Bye, Libby.”

Must be Libby’s the
dog.

“
You have a way with
children,” he commented softly as she began picking up
pillows.

Kassidy jumped and looked at him. A
huge smile filled her face. “Justice, you scared me. What are you
doing here?”

Gathering some of the pillows, he
moved to where she piled hers and placed them there as well. “I
came to see you.”

“
Well, here I am. I’m free
for the next thirty minutes. Care to walk with me
outside?”

“
I’d love to.”
Like I’d not want to spend time with you,
Kassidy.

“
Libs, let’s go,” Kassidy
said.

The dog moved to her side from where
it had rested on the floor and Kassidy picked up the leash dangling
from its collar. Justice followed her into the back where she waved
at a few people and opened a door. Kassidy propped it open and
released the dog before walking to a picnic table. Justice sat
beside her and for a moment they remained silent.

“
Tell me something,” he
said as Libby ran up with a ball in her mouth.

“
What do you wish to
know?” She lobbed the ball and the dog took off.

“
What got you into
this?”

Kassidy sat forward, elbows on knees.
“Well, let me see. I wanted to be a teacher, then realized I didn’t
have the patience to deal with kids all day. So I began working
here to help pay for college and I found I really enjoyed it.” She
turned her head and stared at him, her eyes having a bit more green
in them today. “When I got Libby, a friend suggested getting her
certified as a Therapy Dog. So I did and now she comes with me a
few days a week. I get to be around kids, but in short amounts. And
they’re quiet when I see them.”

He smiled. “Libby’s a poodle,
right?”

“
Yes.”

“
She looks different from
the ones you see on TV.”

“
Oh yeah. I don’t have the
time to maintain that kind of clip on a dog. So I keep her shaved
in a puppy clip, a short one, at that.”

“
She’s
beautiful.”

“
Thank you. And what are
you doing this lovely Saturday?”

Justice took the ball and threw it for
Libby. “I was hoping to get a date with this woman I met outside
the museum.”

A blush tinged her smooth cheeks as
her gaze dropped to focus on the ground. He never looked away and
soon she glanced up again.

“
I don’t know,” she
hedged.

Justice had no intention of giving up.
He smiled. “Why not? In a relationship?” It was hard to breathe
with that thought.

“
No,” Kassidy
said.

And just like that it was easier to
breathe again.

“
Okay. Then what do I have
to do to get your consent?” He watched Libby.

“
I just, I don’t date
much,” she blurted out and he knew she was wishing she could take
it all back.

Keeping his gaze on the dog, Justice
pursed his lips briefly. “How about a day in the park. I’ll bring
lunch and you bring Libby.” He cut his gaze to her.

The smile that filled her face told
him he’d succeeded.

“
That would be
wonderful.”

She’s comfortable with her
things around her.
“Tomorrow work for
you?”

“
That would be fine, but
let me bring something.”

The urge to kiss her lips raced
through him and it took a lot to tear his gaze from them. “You are.
You’re bringing yourself and Libby. Say, Harbour Park about
two?”

“
I’ll be
there.”

Justice got to his feet and stared
down at her. “Wonderful. I’ll see you tomorrow, Kassidy.” He smiled
and walked away, hands in his pockets and a jaunty whistle on his
lips.

Chapter
Three

Sunday afternoon, Kassidy was nervous.
Ever since Justice had left her yesterday, she continually ran his
final phrase in her mind. What had she done to get his attention?
He was a very handsome man. With a deep breath, Kassidy loaded
Libby up in the car and headed toward Harbour Park.

She arrived early and sat
upon a bench while Libby lay beside her. The minutes ticked by and
the two o’clock hour passed.
Guess he got
a better offer.
At two-fifteen, Kassidy
got to her feet and turned to head back to her car, heart
heavy.

“
Like Daddy says, if it’s
to work out, it’s gotta be written in the stars. And I guess it’s
just not.” She rubbed Libby’s head. “I really liked him too. Come
on, girl, let’s go home.”

Kassidy walked to her car and just as
she unlocked it, she heard someone yell her name.

“
Kassidy.
Kassidy!”

Glancing over her shoulder, she was
shocked to see Justice running toward her. Kassidy turned and
rested against the door. She licked her lips. Justice wore
knee-length blue shorts, a red tee shirt, and tennis shoes. On his
face were mirrored sunglasses. He waved and jogged up.

“
I’m so sorry, Kassidy,”
he said. “We had a drill this morning and it went over.”

“
I thought you weren’t
coming,” she told him, looking anywhere but at him.

“
I would have called, but
we haven’t exchanged numbers yet. Hey, look at me.” Justice brought
her face up to his where she discovered he’d removed his mirrored
glasses. “Nothing would keep me from being here.”

The amount of sincerity in his voice
threw her. “So what happens now?”

“
I just have to grab the
cooler and we can eat.”

“
You have the
food?”

“
I told you, I had no
intention of missing this date. Whaddya say, give a guy a second
chance?”

How can I say no to
that?
“Okay, let’s eat. Where’s your
vehicle? I can help carry.” She took Libby back out.

The smile he bestowed on
her made her knees go weak. For a moment, Justice stared at her
before reaching out and taking the hand without Libby’s leash in
it. His thumb skimmed along the back of her hand and she
sighed.
How long has it been since I’ve
just held hands with a guy?

“
I’m this way,” he uttered
softly. They walked slowly, hand in hand, until he halted them by a
shiny red Corvette. “Here we go,” Justice said, opening the trunk.
“You carry the blanket.”

Kassidy hung it over her arm and
watched him effortlessly lift the cooler out. “Nice car,” she
said.