A CRY FROM THE DEEP (29 page)

She could feel his strong hands sliding under her t-shirt, caressing her breasts, touching her nipples, causing her to moan. With the heat of their lust rising, he was about to lift her t-shirt over her head, when the sound of a car honking stopped him. She froze. They both looked back. They could see nothing but the steam that covered the car windows. Suddenly self-conscious, Catherine moved over and straightened her clothes.

Frustrated, Daniel leaned back in his seat.

She wiped the window with her sleeve and saw a mother with two small children running to a car nearby. It looked as if the father had let them out to look at the view. She guessed he’d honked to remind them it was time to return.

She wished there was something she could say, anything that would take them back to the point before the disruption, but the mood had been broken. The family’s appearance had jolted her back to reality. She was suddenly aware of how far she and Daniel had gone. Had she led him on? Much as she was attracted to him, that had never been her intent. She had gotten carried away. She glanced at him, then peeked at her watch. It was close to the dinner hour. If they didn’t get back soon, they’d be driving in the dark.

He caught her looking at her watch.

She didn’t have to say anything. She could tell by his downcast face that he was disappointed, too.

He gave her a half smile and started the car. “It was nice, while it -.”

“While it lasted.” She said, overlapping him. She wished she could’ve said,
This isn’t like me. I’m not a flirt. I’m not a tease.
She also wasn’t the type who could take a summertime flirtation lightly.

On the ride back, Daniel put the radio on. They said nothing, but a curtain had fallen, hiding both of their needs, stopping any further performance and it didn’t rise again even when he dropped her off an hour later at Sea Breeze. 

~~~

Catherine lay on the bed and mulled over her trip to the museum. It’d been an odd day, there was no other way to describe it. There was that business with the Gaelic voices she’d heard, the dress hanging in the cottage, and her calling him Daniel Gallagher with an Irish accent. Where did that come from? Gallagher? She knew no one by that name. And that dress, and seeing her face on that vision, the woman looking out to sea? She could make no sense of it. There was something else at play here. But what? She picked up her ring from the night table and twirled it between her fingers. Was it possible that she was somehow entwined with the young woman from the past? But that was ludicrous. More craziness to talk about with Barbara when she got back to New York. Maybe it was a good thing she wasn’t seeing a shrink. The next thing she’d get with stories like that would be anti-psychotic medication.

She put the ring back and turned off the lamp by her bed. Why had Daniel called her in the first place? Maybe he had hoped for a little fling. And what did Catherine know about that? After her divorce, she’d had the occasional date, some arrangement through a friend or someone who knew someone, but it rarely went beyond one or two meetings. She couldn’t get her hopes up now. They had fallen into each other’s arms because they were far from home, that was all.

But no matter how hard she tried to convince herself otherwise, she kept returning to what had happened. They had come together as easily as a hand in a glove. She knew he’d entertained the same lust when he’d taken her in his arms and kissed her. It had taken all her strength to untangle herself, not that he was forcing her. It was her own desire that had taken her farther than was safe. If that family hadn’t happened by, would they have gone all the way? Would she have complicated things to the point where it would’ve been impossible to work alongside of him?

She sighed. She’d always despised the whole other woman thing, and yet here she was, entertaining the possibility. But where would it lead? Nowhere, that’s where. There was no
‘I love you
or
I can’t live without you
or
my engagement was a big mistake’
confession from him
.
She could at least give him credit for that. She’d hate for him to lie just to see how far he could get. She’d read enough to know that these things happen all the time and in the end, the couple go their separate ways.
Finis.

She didn’t fall asleep easily. It wasn’t only her encounter with Daniel that made sleep so unattainable, it was the fact she’d forgotten to call Alex. By the time it dawned on her she should’ve called, she realized Alex would’ve been at Kaitlin’s for her sleepover, and she didn’t even know Kaitlin’s last name. Why hadn’t she asked? She’d always been so good at details. She tried calling Richard to find out, but he wasn’t answering. He was probably in session and had his cell phone turned off. Or maybe he was out with Monique. She could’ve waited and called later, but as it was, she had to get to bed. Between her guilt over Alex, and her confusion about Daniel, she tossed and turned all night.

She dreamt
she was standing on shore, watching a baby float away on a neon green plastic ring. She watched it go, feeling powerless to do anything about it. Horrified, she watched the baby become smaller and smaller as it drifted away on the ocean. She tried to yell but no sound came out.

She woke up in a panic, and was relieved to find it had only been a dream. She wrote it down to try and make sense of it later, and then went back to sleep.

Somehow, she ended up on a sailboat with Daniel. They were both naked in the hot sun. He was feeding her grapes while she was petting a swan in the water. And then, there was a lemon tree, right beside them. She turned to take a lemon, and it seemed they were now on a small island. Where it came from she didn’t know. She took a lemon from the tree, bit into it, and made a face. It was sour. But when she turned to tell Daniel not to bother trying the lemons, she found she was talking to Richard. Daniel was nowhere to be seen.

THIRTY

Having overslept, Catherine skipped breakfast and raced down the road to the docks. As she ran, she rehearsed all the things she might say to Daniel.

I had a nice time with you, but I didn’t mean it to go so far. I know you’re about to be married, and it was just one of those things. Don’t worry about it, these things happen. I’m not ready for a relationship anyway.

It was at times like this, she wished she’d been a writer. Try as she might, she couldn’t find the right words. Well, maybe that was a clue. Maybe she didn’t need to say anything.

When she got to the boat, Patrick was already untying the rope.

“It’s a good thing you arrived when you did,” he said, as she climbed on board. “We were going to leave without you.”

“Someone slept in.” said Olaf, coming to help Patrick. “Daniel arrived bleary-eyed, too. Must be something going around.”

“Hope we don’t catch it,” said Patrick, chortling. 

“Very funny.” She went along with the kidding, but she wondered what they knew about her and Daniel.

It seemed everything was different. Even their boat’s departure from the bay. This time, Hennesey and his crew got more attention than they’d had before. Since the government agents had paid them a visit, their cover was blown. Now, they couldn’t pass other boaters without hearing the odd comment thrown their way.

“Have you found anything yet?” And then a laugh. “As if they’d tell us if they had.”

“Make sure you share any gold you find with the rest of us.”

“Aye, it’s a bonny day when the Americans come looking for treasure. Just remember, whatever you find, if it’s on Irish land, it’s ours.”

Catherine could see Hennesey in the wheelhouse. It looked like he was muttering obscenities. She was too preoccupied with what had happened the day before to care one way or the other. When she checked to see where Daniel was, she found him down in the galley talking with Tom. She’d have to catch him later, when it was more private. She didn’t even bother going all the way down the stairs. Instead, she went back on deck and let the vistas soothe her troubled mind.

When they passed Carrigan head with its nineteenth century watch tower, she was struck by how desolate it looked. The vertical cube of stone had been erected during the Napoleonic wars and now it stood on the rocky precipice, abandoned. There was no longer any need for its observations.

Though the thought of being alone troubled her, diving again and Daniel’s attentiveness had bolstered her confidence. She felt sexy and attractive again. Coming to this mysterious land had given her some hope, along with some persistent ghosts. 

They were now getting close to their dive spot. Since Daniel hadn’t come up on deck, she went below hoping to find him alone.

He was still sitting at the table with Tom. His head was down, and he was pouring over a chart that marked the two wrecks. Neither man looked up when she entered the galley.

Nearby, Joy was cutting up pieces of chicken.

Catherine said, “You got anything for breakfast? I missed it this morning.”

“Check the fridge. You might be able to scrounge something up.” Joy stirred onions in the fry pan; the smell was like that of a greasy spoon.

Catherine found some yogurt with berries in the fridge and poured herself a cup of coffee. That would have to do until lunch. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Daniel. It was then he looked up and gave her a smile before returning back to his chart. She wondered what he was thinking. Was he having any regrets? She hoped not.

Pulling a chain from inside her shirt, Joy said, “Hennesey got me this yesterday.”

On the chain was a gold Celtic cross, carved with fine detail. Catherine had seen one like that in a jewelry story in town. “It’s lovely. Any special occasion?”

“No,” said Joy. “Nuttin’ special goin’ on. He does things like this every so often.”

Who would’ve thought Hennesey had it in him?
Catherine mumbled, “nice surprise”, and left with her make-do breakfast, casting one more look at Daniel before she climbed the steps. His head was still bent over his papers; his focus, remarkable. Could he really put aside what had happened so easily? She couldn’t, and was immediately annoyed with herself for being so foolish.

Gazing at the rocky coastline, she wished she could talk to Lindsey, but then again Lindsey would probably tell her to go after him and not let a little engagement stand in her way. No, Lindsey wasn’t the one to confide in. Maybe Joy could help, not that Joy was an expert when it came to men. Was it possible she was blind to Hennesey’s unprincipled conduct? There were couples like that. One day they’re happily married, and then the next, one of them wakes up to find they’ve been tied to a murderer, adulterer, or embezzler, and they wonder how they could’ve gone on thinking their life was so rosy.

In a bid to escape her punishing thoughts, Catherine scanned the waters. Everything was a blur. Ahead were the Slieve League cliffs. She viewed them now in a different light. It was there she’d stood with Daniel and experienced that first kiss, that had led to another and another. And then in the car, they’d carried on as if there was no one else in the world. That was only yesterday. Was this love or had this magical place colored her heart with its brush?

And then she’d had that crazy dream. Maybe there was something to it. In it, Daniel had vanished. Maybe her subconscious was trying to tell her something. Maybe she had to accept the fact that she had her life and he had his, and soon they would be going back to their routines. In her dream, she had ended up with Richard. Was that where her future lay? People did remarry the ones they’d divorced. Unless this Monique had her claws in him already, he was someone she could consider. He had definitely mellowed, and he was Alex’s father. But could she love him again?

The other part of her dream was less puzzling. The baby floating out to sea was obviously her guilt in not calling Alex. She hadn’t even known how to reach her daughter, who was over at a friend’s. What kind of a mother was she? Of course, her baby had drifted away.

She bent over the gunwale and stared at the sea with its white foam trailing on the surface. She inhaled the salty sea air as a spray of water spattered her face. She looked out at the shoreline rocks rising steeply out of the water and the rolling glens beyond them. Despite her disappointments, she was going to miss this beautiful place steeped in folklore. She had a week left, not nearly enough time to solve the mystery of the phantom woman.

This whole
National Geographic
assignment had been a confusing one right from the start. She’d given up her life on a lavender farm (albeit temporarily), had left Alex for three weeks more than she’d ever left her before (which was never), and had tackled her fears of diving (which she had to admit was long overdue). But if someone had told her that her life would take a paranormal turn, or that she’d fall for an engaged man, she would’ve stayed home.

~~~

Having given up on talking with Daniel anytime soon, Catherine pulled her sports bag over to the bench and took out her camera. She was about to review her photos when Raul sat down beside her and said, “Alfredo says you saw a ghost.”