Chapter Four

Kassidy stared into the endless depths of the gaze belonging to the man. A man the likes of which she’d never met before. Her body shuddered from the two fingers he touched her face with. Her belly still flipped from when his hand had rested upon her back. Justice held her gaze without flinching.

Is he for real? With all of these women he could pick from, why me?

It wasn’t a hard stretch for her to superimpose this mouthwatering man into her dream of happily ever after. Her heart encouraged and her brain hesitated.

“Kassidy?” he asked, breaking the silence between them.

“What do I need to know about you, Justice?” Kassidy turned slightly so they were facing one another in the night; the lights from the bar kept the darkness somewhat at bay.

“Everything.”

She smiled. Kassidy faced back out over the water. “How about we start with what you do.” Her breath caught when his broad shoulder brushed hers as he mimicked her stance. Dropping her gaze, Kassidy stared at his hands, strong hands with long fingers. Hands designed to protect and love a woman.

Wonder how’d they feel running along my skin as we made love.

“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 Ed. 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.