Page 28 of To the Moon and Back
“Those things?” Now she was upset. “Really, Landon, that’s ridiculous.”
Suddenly she heard herself. What was happening? Why was she doing this? Fighting with the guy she loved more than her next breath? Father, calm me. Please. She closed her eyes for a brief moment and exhaled. “I’m sorry.” She stared down at her chair, and then back at Landon. “That was rude.”
He looked at her, like he wasn’t sure what to say. The hurt in his eyes told her he was still struggling. “I’ll let it go. I shouldn’t have made a big deal out of it.”
She still wanted to help the guy, but why right now? “It can wait. Or I can just drop it.”
Landon drew a slow breath. He closed the distance between them and reached his hands out. “You don’t even know him. If you contacted him, I guess you might find out more about the girl. But . . . I don’t see how that would help.”
“True.” She gently wove her fingers between his. “I really am sorry.” Something bothered her. She had no choice but to voice it. “You . . . trust me, right?”
“Baby.” They were only a few inches apart. “Of course I trust you.” He took his time as he leaned in and kissed her. More tentatively this time. When he looked into her eyes he found her heart. “I’m sorry, too.” The corners of his mouth lifted into a slight smile. “Let’s go swim.”
“Okay.” She hugged him, brushing the side of her face gently against his. The situation wasn’t worth talking about now. “I’m sorry again. I love you, Landon.”
“I love you, too.” He ran his thumb lightly along her fingers.
Ashley savored the feel of her hands in his, his cheek against hers. No one could ever understand her or love her, the way Landon did. “You’re the best husband in all the world. Have I told you that lately?”
“Mmmm.” He kissed her again. His words were a whisper, close to her neck. “You have the most beautiful hair. Has anyone ever told you that?”
Ashley felt her heart melt. Those words mattered only between the two of them. Words spoken long ago by dear Irvel, one of the Alzheimer’s patients where Ashley worked when she and Landon fell in love. When all the world spun around the two of them.
The way it still did.
Ashley kissed him again. “Swim, right? Wasn’t that it?”
“Yes.” He hugged her and spoke in a whisper. “Until tonight.”
She grinned. The private moment with her husband had turned everything for the better. The fact that even after getting frustrated with each other, they could still come together and be okay. The reality that Landon trusted her. He wasn’t angry.
And later if she still felt compelled to help Brady, she would. Because this wasn’t only about following God’s lead in helping a guy find the girl he longed for. Brady might need a lot more than a girl named Jenna.
He might need God, Himself.
• • •
ASHLEY AND LANDON met up with the kids one deck down.
They had climbed out of the water and now all of them were sitting at the long table adjacent to the galley, eating sandwiches. Ashley saw the red cheeks on a few of the kids. “Let’s do another round of sunscreen.”
Janessa came running up. “Cole tried, but I need your help, Mommy.”
Across the deck Cole shrugged. “I think she’s good.” He grinned. “But moms do a better job. That’s what she said.”
Moms do a better job. Ashley shot a quick look at Amy. Cole didn’t mean any harm by his comment, but still it must hurt. Hearing something like that.
Ashley grabbed the sunscreen and rubbed it onto Janessa’s shoulders and cheeks. Then she called Amy over. “Aunts do a better job, too.” She smiled at her niece. “Right?”
For a moment, Amy stood there. As if she wasn’t sure she wanted anyone but her mom to help her. But very quickly a smile lifted her lips. “You’re right. No one’s better than you, Aunt Ashley!”
Tears stung at Ashley’s eyes, but she refused them. Ashley had a feeling her niece’s recent growth had a lot to do with her fascination with the Survivor Tree. Like the tree, Amy was determined to live. The thought of that warmed Ashley more than the sunshine.
After lunch the kids swam and paddled around in the rafts. Cole and Devin and RJ learned how to do flips off the back of the boat. They each had a floating ring and for a while they used those to play a slow version of water tag until they were laughing too hard to keep going. They returned the boat just before sunset, and after dinner the group headed back to the hotel.
But as they turned in that night, after Landon was asleep, Ashley couldn’t settle her thoughts. What if she really could find this Jenna? Research was Ashley’s specialty, right? Wasn’t that something she’d known about herself for a decade?
And maybe if she connected with Brady, she could find out what he’d done to try to locate Jenna. Maybe Brady and Jenna were meant to be together, and maybe Ashley was supposed to help. Couldn’t that be the reason she had gotten the chance to take a photo of his heartbreaking words?
