(A/N : I am writing the whole story in two or three chapter as no one is commenting or review my work

So I am just completing the story. )

We listened to the waves for a few minutes. But two unshowered people on the same lounger in the summer heat was a bit much. Mia stood up with a smile, grabbed my hand, and said, "Come swimming with me." Her energy was returning with her color. I let her pull me out of the chair, and we headed back to the pool.

"I don't think I have a suit for you." I said stupidly. She smirked at my ignorance.

"Then you can't wear one either." I had slowed down a bit. For some reason, I felt my naked body might be a disappointment to her. The sun was still bright in the sky. My fantasies with her had always involved darkness and sheets on a bed. She sensed my hesitation and turned to face me. She grabbed my other hand and gently pulled me while walking backwards herself. She was wearing a mischievous smile. When we reached the pool patio she let go of my hands and slowly dropped the robe to the stones below. I had seen her naked while crying, sweating, and freezing. I had seen her naked in pain I wouldn't wish even on an enemy. I had never seen her naked with eyes that matched her heavenly smile.

"You're stunning." I realized I wasn't looking at her face. I was entranced by her womanly curves and two of the

most perfect breasts. Maturity had relaxed them ever so slightly which made them all the more inviting. I could have spent a lifetime exploring them.

"Compliments won't get you out of it." She had moved her hands to her hips and she widened her smile. All I really saw was breasts when I began unbuttoning my shirt. Mia knew where my eyes were. She giggled and made her breasts bounce. I ripped the last button off my shirt, and it went bouncing into the grass. I dropped my shirt onto the patio and began undoing my pants. The stupid zipper got stuck for a moment, which forced me to move my eyes. I didn't realize how aroused I had become until I looked down. Embarrassed, I lowered my pants slowly trying to think about mergers and stock reports. It didn't work—all I could think of were those breasts. My boxers were terribly tented, and I tried to cover myself.

Mia moved in close and pushed her breasts into my chest as she leaned into me for a passionate kiss. Her right hand traveled down my side and into the elastic of my boxers. She gently wrapped her hand around my hard-on, and I barely held back a groan. "I'm glad I turn you on." She whispered in my ear.

"God, I want to swim with you." I gasped as she gave me a little squeeze. Mia broke out in laughter. It washed over me as I realized what I said and began to join in. I hadn't realized that she was turning me around, steering me by my cock. She pushed. The last thing I saw when I entered the pool was two gorgeous breasts bouncing from the

effort. I tried not to laugh underwater as I removed my now soaking shorts. It was difficult with a raging hard-on. I swam to the surface to find her still laughing at the side of the pool. God, she was beautiful. I threw my now-wadded shorts at her and got her right in the leg. She gave me a faux angry look and dove in after me.

I didn't swim away. I let her catch me. I just pulled her lips to mine and kissed her in the sun. I felt young again. The world couldn't be more perfect. We swam and played. I splashed her and let her win the ensuing water war. We cuddled, drifted, and talked of unimportant things. We just simply enjoyed each other. We ended up on the shallow end stairs. I was caressing her thigh when I let my hand slowly drift between her legs. Her hand met mine there, and she lifted it to her lips and kissed it.

"Dale, my body is still kind of messed up. It's going to take a few more days before I'm ready for anything more." Mia sounded like she thought she was disappointing me. I thought I was being rude.

"I'm sorry." I said stroking the side of her face. "I didn't mean to move so fast." I vowed I would let her set the speed from here on. She floated on top of me practically nose to nose. I felt her hand close around my manhood.

"I'm not sorry you tried." She whispered. She began slowly stroking my member, her eyes inches from mine. "I do want to have you inside me." The intensity of her eyes and her words generated electricity in my groin. She smiled

when she felt my hips react to her manipulations. She became more deliberate in her strokes. "You won't be able to keep me off you." Her hand was speeding up, and my hips began to jerk uncontrollably. I moaned into her mouth, my eyes never leaving hers. I tenderly grabbed her hips to keep myself in place. She had me and she knew it. "We'll make love over and over again, my darling." Weirdly, it was the "my darling" that sent me over the edge. A simple term of endearment.

"Oh, God," I moaned as her mouth closed over mine. My hips jerked and I spewed into the water. Her tongue began to fight with mine as I came again. Her breasts dragged across my chest and caused my climax to lengthen. My legs were no longer responding to my direction and forced my hips forward as the last of my orgasm faded into the water. She was still tenderly caressing my cock as our lips became unlocked.

I couldn't believe how wonderful a real sexual experience was. I have paid to make my dick happy in the past, but it never really lived up to the hype. When the woman was participating without any cash incentive, just wanting to make me feel good, it was on a different level all by itself.

"I really love swimming with you." I said dreamily into her eyes. I loved to hear her laughter. After seeing her in so much pain, it was heaven-sent. I held her as my body recovered and her laughter subsided. I almost told her I loved her right there. I was afraid it would scare her and

send her running. No, I could wait. I just gave her a kiss instead. "I need a shower."

"And a shave," she said stroking my shadow. I stood on the steps and offered her my hand. I rose, naked, with a beautiful woman on my arm. Three days ago, I was a confirmed bachelor satisfied with my ignorance. I only really trusted one other person, and it took Monica years to earn that trust. I have entrusted Mia with my heart in two days. It was risky, and I don't hurt well. I would just have to never give her a reason to crush it.

Without asking, I steered Mia to the bathroom and started the shower. She didn't hesitate or question my intentions. It was surreal compared to my past experiences with people. She followed me into the steam with a smile matching mine. I wanted to know all of her. I wanted her to know that I wanted to know all of her.

I soaked Mia's hair and massaged in some shampoo. Her hair seemed so silky as I pulled the shampoo down to the long ends that fell to the small of her back. She loved when I spent time at the base of her neck and behind the ears. It was all very sensual until I got shampoo in her eye. It broke the spell and she laughed, looking at me with one eye squeezed shut. I wiped what I could and steered her to the shower spray. She leaned back into the stream to wash out the shampoo. This move pushed her chest out. It was too beautiful to ignore. I grabbed the bar of soap and began to slowly soap up her breasts. It brought a giggle since she was still preoccupied trying to clear her eye.

I was mesmerized. I had never had a pair of breasts to play with. They were soft but firm. I ran my fingers across the nipples, and they grew. I felt proud making them stand up like that. I liked lifting them and watching them fall back to natural. They were so smooth. "Are they really that dirty?" I looked past Mia's smile and into her eyes.

"Filthy, absolutely filthy!" I tried to look serious to make up for my moment of obsession. It was hard to hold back a smile. Playing with her boobies was way too much fun. She leaned into me and gave me a little peck but never removed my roving hands. I continued with the rest of her body more clinically. I spent only seconds between her legs trying to not make any sexual overtures. I spent extra time collecting mini moans as I rubbed her back and shoulders with sudsy hands. This was without a doubt the best shower I had ever had.

Mia grabbed the soap and began exploring my body. I enjoyed her tender hands stroking my chest and got quite a tinge when she squeezed my butt. When she arrived at my half-mast cock, she looked into my eyes and began slowly stroking it. My dick got a bit angry when I grabbed her hand away and brought it to my lips for a kiss. "I want to wait for you." I wanted it to sound like it was laced with love, but I didn't realize how much soap was on her hand. I kind spit it out.

Mia ignored the howl and just heard what I said. Her lips locked on mine and I our tongues did a slow waltz. Even

with the slight taste of soap mixing with the kiss, neither of us wanted it to stop. It was only the need to take a proper breath that finally ended it. The kiss brought me to full arousal. I ignored it as I rinsed myself clean. A small case of blue balls was worth what that kiss promised. I shut off the shower and passed out the towels.

When I handed her my robe, I remembered that Mia still didn't have any clothes. "Should we stop by your place to pick up some of your things?" I was surprised when she hesitated, almost like she wasn't sure how to answer. She made a few aborted attempts to say something, looking at the floor then up to me.

"I'm really not ready to go back there." Her face was sad, but her eyes looked hopefully at me. I knew I was going to accept the statement. I also knew she was hiding something more sinister than memories. It wasn't time for her to tell me. I loved her, so I knew I might let her get away with never telling me. I was still curious.

"Well, we can dress you funny in my sweats and a T-shirt and go shopping tomorrow." I made it sound like it would be fun. I wanted her to know I wouldn't press on her past.

"Dale, I'm not sure I can afford a shopping trip right now." She started to re-dry her legs to give her an excuse not to look up at me. I never even considered that she would think I intended her to pay for it. I was kind of flabbergasted at the thought. I spoke without thinking.

"Mia, money is the only thing we never have to worry about." It just came out. I could have said it in a hundred different ways that would have come out better. I couldn't believe I just let on that my money was her money. I might as well have asked her to marry me. Mia stopped moving. When she lifted up her watery eyes, I got scared.

"There are things you don't know about me." She wasn't looking at me. She was looking at the wall behind me. "I'm not a good person and certainly don't deserve any of this." Tears were flowing and my heart was hurting. "I won't ever tell you, because I couldn't stand you hating me." Her head dropped back to the floor, and her hand covered her eyes. I dropped my naked ass to the floor, and my head fell forward in a slump.

"I didn't want to say it that way. It just came out." I was blubbering more, chastising myself. "I don't know how to talk to girls. I've never known how to talk to anyone." I was trying desperately not to start crying myself. "I'm sorry if I like you too much. I just don't know what to do or say." I was sure I just screwed everything up. Mia started crying harder. I looked up at her, "I don't care about your secrets; I just don't want you to go away." She looked down to me.

"We are two sorry fucked-up individuals." It came out between her sobs. It sounded so much better than "get the fuck out of here!" but I started sympathetically tearing anyway.

"I want to buy clothes and stuff." It sounded stupid when it came out, but out it came none the less. I was trying not to start sobbing. Mia dropped to the floor with me, still crying, and hugged me close.

"Okay," she half cried into my ear. Thank God I didn't scare her off. We stayed on the floor for what seemed like forever. We just hugged until we could face each other again without tearing up.

"I don't feel like shaving now." I said as a matter of fact.

"I don't care if you do or not." She said as she stood up and pulled me up with her. She led me to the bed and dropped the robe and climbed in. I shut off the lights and tucked my naked body next to hers. We didn't say a word. We just held each other until we fell asleep.

I woke before Mia. I felt much better than I did when I crawled into bed. Mia was still there, and she had slept all night. I carefully pulled my tingling arm from under her neck. She smiled in her sleep, but the even breathing continued. I rose slowly, quietly donned some boxers, and left the room. What I needed was some coffee and space to think. Mia thought her secrets were going to come between us. She could have raped and murdered the pope for all I cared, but it was her thoughts that counted, not mine. The only way past this was to find out what her secrets were and prove to her that I didn't give a shit. It was past eight so I grabbed my phone and headed outside out of earshot.

"Hi this is Dale Drake. I would like to talk with whoever handles my account." The receptionist sounded pleasant enough.

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This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"No, I am sure Monica is fine. I just need to know who handles my account." I guess letting Monica handle everything was a bit extreme.

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"Then Bob Farring is who I need to speak with please." This type of conversation used to piss me off. Today I empathized with the receptionist's confusion.

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"Hi Bob, this is Dale Drake." Finally I had the right person.

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"No, Monica is just fine." I guess Monica was pretty ingrained into my business.

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"You guys use investigators, right?" Now we were moving in the right direction.

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"Good! I want you to do a discreet background check on someone for me. Her name is Mia Perez, and I believe she lives somewhere in downtown Capersfield. I know she used to be an RN." I waited for Bob to write it all down.

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"No, not a whole life history. Just her current address, employment, what she's done for the last few years, etc." Her long past was probably cleaner than mine. I just needed the more current data.

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"Bob, no one but you and the investigator will know about this. Bill it any way you want, but keep it private." I wasn't shocked by his next question.

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"No, Monica doesn't need to know about this either. Send me a text when you have what I need, and I will call when I can." Bob was still a little surprised to deal with me directly.

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"Thanks, Bob! You have a good day too." I wasn't sure why I felt the need to be pleasant. I went back in the house and started to make some coffee. I knew I had to keep this from Mia. I was betraying her trust and digging into what she wanted hidden. Love makes you do some really fucked-up things.

Mia followed the smell of the coffee into the kitchen. She was again wearing my robe. I was beginning to hate that robe. "Would you like a cup of coffee?" I asked as I sipped from my cup. She thought about it for a moment, then shook her head no.

"I don't think I'm ready for java just yet. Maybe tomorrow." She pulled up a stool and sat across the counter from me.

"You slept the whole night. Got to be a good sign." I gave her a small smile. I was still a little nervous that I might have pushed the envelope too far last night.

"I do feel better." She smiled back. "Do we have any cereal?" I almost jumped out of my skin. I didn't think she even knew she used the word "we." I started looking through the cabinets, trying not to look too ecstatic, not wanting a replay of last night.

"Here! I found Raisin Bran and Cinnamon Chex." I felt like I had found gold.

"Oh, Chex please." I went to the fridge, praying that Monica had stocked milk. I found 2%, well under the expiration date. I placed milk and Chex in front of Mia and fished out a bowl and spoon. Why had cereal suddenly become so exciting? Dr. Williams's conversation came back to me, and I grabbed the vitamins from behind me and placed them in front of Mia.

"Doctor's orders." I think I sounded a little motherly. She just smiled and popped the cap and dumped one into her hand. It was the size of a VW. She frowned a bit.

"I'm going to need some water." She rolled it around in her hand. I quickly retrieved a glass and filled it with water. It struck me that the last person I had ever served anything to was my Grandma. Here I was, grabbing items on command for Mia. I kept the revelation to myself as I watched Mia struggle to swallow the horse pill. She made a horrendous face.

"Do they dip these in poison before they bottle them?" She gagged a couple of times before she took another sip of the water. I laughed at her reaction, which I quickly realized was the wrong thing to do. She pushed the bottle toward me smiling.

"You need your vitamins too, Dale." It was an obvious challenge. I had no intention of wimping out in front of Mia. I grabbed the bottle with bravado and spilled a pill into my hand. I tossed it to the back of my throat where it immediately got stuck. The flavor began to spread from

the back of my tongue to the front. "Poison" was a kind description of the flavor. I guess my expression told the story because Mia burst into laughter. I grabbed her glass of water and drank with gusto. Anything to get that rancid flavor out of my mouth.

"That was horrible!" I exclaimed as Mia covered her mouth trying to hide more laughter. I loved her laughter. It brightened the whole room. I had to find a less disgusting way to generate more. "You have some breakfast. I'm going to clean up and shave so we can go shopping." I walked around the counter and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. It felt good to share a bit of affection on a whim.

"Aren't you going to eat?" She seemed a little concerned.

"Naw, never been a breakfast person." I kept going toward the bathroom. It took about 20 minutes to clean up and locate some sweats that might not make Mia look like a complete fool. I had some T-shirts that had shrunk a while ago. I had no idea why I didn't throw them away years ago. Good thing I didn't. They might be the only things that would come close to fitting Mia.

My nose grabbed hold of pleasant scent. I was suddenly hungry, and I smiled my way back to the kitchen. Mia was stirring a pot of SpaghettiOs and heard me walking up behind her. "I have no idea why you and Adrian like this stuff." I could feel her smile through the back of her head. I sat at the counter.

"It's packed with memories. I grew up on the stuff." I waited patiently why Mia filled a bowl and served me.

"Your mom make it for you too?" She leaned on her elbows as I ate the first spoonful. It was as good as ever.

"My grandmother raised me actually." I smiled, remembering coming home from school with the same scent lofting through the air.

"Tell me about her." Mia settled on a stool and waited for me to respond. I did. I told her about the most special woman I had ever known. I had never really talked to anyone about my Grandma. Mia listened intently to my words. I left out some of the reasons why I thought of my Grandma's place as sanctuary. They seemed trivial now. It was so important a week ago, but today, right now, they were just history.

"Is that her on the wall?" Mia was pointing to the small picture hanging above the credenza in the hall.

"Yes, that's her." I felt proud pointing it out to someone. She was such a wonderful woman. Mia walked up to the picture and looked at it more closely. It pleased me that someone else would notice the picture.

"I love the butterfly broach she's wearing." Mia was touching it with her finger like it was real.

"It was her favorite." I realized I kind of missed that broach. "Whenever she wore it, I knew she was happy. I think my Grandpa gave it to her." I wondered where it was now. "I bet it's in storage somewhere, Monica would know. She is the one who set up the hospice and the funeral and took care of everything." I had forgotten about that. "That's when I first met Monica."

"Your Grandma must have loved you a lot." Mia stated the obvious as she returned to the kitchen.

"And I her." I added as I spooned another bit of heaven in my mouth. "It was hard when I lost her." I didn't know why I added the last part. I never really shared my feelings about her death with anyone.

"I hope our memories never die." Mia was staring off into space.

"They never will as long as SpaghettiOs exist." I smiled and took another spoonful. I could see that Mia liked that thought, stupid as it was. She reached out and caressed my cheek.

"I like the sound of that." She smiled and started toward the bedroom. "I am going to get cleaned up." I finished my SpaghettiOs.

Mia returned wearing sweat pants obviously too big for her, cinched tight at the waist. She was wearing a pair of my flip flops, the only footwear that even came close to

fitting. The T-shirt would never work. It was quite evident that she wasn't wearing a bra. She went back and returned with two T-shirts on. That was much better. At least her nipples weren't advertising. Mia thought my concern was silly, but she humored me with the additional shirt.

For someone so concerned with what I thought of her, she had no inhibitions with other people. The poor guy at the cash register at the clothing store was left in a terrible state.

"Ma'am, these panties are short a pair." He thought he was being helpful by pointing out the missing merchandise.

"That's because I'm wearing one." She said it with a straight face, never offering any reason as to why. He was a little flustered but kept ringing up the other items. He ran through a couple of bras and then found an unattached bra tag.

"Ma'am, there's no ..." Mia just smiled and winked at him. He rang up the missing bra and continued through other missing items, never asking again. Mia was looking good in a new pair of khaki shorts and a light blue pullover shirt. She had on a nice pair of sneakers that made her look a bit energetic. I liked the new Mia. The clerk rattled off some total, and I handed him my card.

"Horrible suitcase accident." I said with a smile. I think he believed me. Mia was snickering. We moved to the pharmacy down the street. Mia embarrassingly told me she was going to get me a new toothbrush too. Seems she had been secretly using mine. I laughed. It was kind of sexy to me. She thought she was being gross. I had no idea why sticking her tongue in my mouth was okay, but using my toothbrush was gross.

It took us two trips to bring all the booty inside the house. I was pleased when she started to put it all away in the master bedroom. I was afraid she might try and claim her own bedroom. I was relegated to the bottom shelf in the medicine cabinet. I just sat on the bed and watched her continue to mark her territory in the closet and dresser drawers. I remembered that she must have done it before with Carlos. It was just natural for her. I simply loved the idea of her becoming part of my life.

We ordered in Chinese and spent the evening watching movies. Mia ate a lot of rice, and I scarfed down most of the meat and veggies. I wanted to pop a bottle of wine but thought better of it. Any drug right now would be a bad drug. To me, Mia looked fully recovered, but I knew the effects of heroin would be with her for a long time.

When the last movie ended, Mia grabbed my hand and took me to the bedroom. I was grateful that she didn't purchase any pajamas. She disrobed to all her glory. We cuddled ourselves to sleep again. She was my ocean.

The morning brought Dr. Wally Williams back. He examined Mia in the bedroom and returned with her about twenty minutes later. "I've got to say Dale, you're a hell of a nurse." He was smiling at me. "Mia is in much better shape than should be expected. Her vitals are back to normal, and she seems to have skipped of few days of ugliness." Mia was obviously pleased with results. "I have to say Mia, you look a lot happier than most of my detox patients at this stage."

"Dale has been taking good care of me." Mia and I shared a smile that was not lost on the doctor.

"Mia was telling me about your beach. Mind taking me for tour?" I saw Mia fold her hands across her chest, and she seemed to lose a bit of confidence. She sensed she wasn't invited. The doctor was already heading toward the sliding glass door, not waiting for my agreement.

"Sure Doc, it's a quick walk." I gave Mia a reassuring look and followed the doctor to the door. He waited until he was sure he was out of earshot of Mia.

"Dale, it looks like you two are living together." He made it sound like it was bad thing. I wasn't really concerned about his moral opinions. I just wanted him to make sure Mia was physically okay.

"And it's done both of us a world of good." I was sporting a relaxed smile. I was committed to my course of action and

I wasn't even sure convincing him was worth the time. He paused for a moment considering my response.

"How smitten are you?" He wasn't beating around the bush. I could almost hear the gears moving in his head as he analyzed the situation. I saw no need to hide the obvious since he suspected anyway.

"Fully and completely." I gave him the same confident smile.

"How do you think she feels?" I didn't expect that question. I thought he was going to just lecture me on how foolish I was. I had to think a second.

"She's terrified that I will find out about her past." I didn't add that I thought she was falling in love with me albeit a bit slower than I was. He stopped walking and thought deeply.

"This can go badly for her. Alhough she doesn't look it, yet she's fragile right now. If for any reason she thinks you are rejecting her, she will return to her old habits." He sounded like he didn't like the whole situation. "You don't even really know Mia. What if you don't like what's in her past?"

"I'm pretty sure I won't like it. I won't let it stop us though." I stopped smiling as the doctor tried to put doubts in my head. "In fact, I think me knowing is absolutely necessary." I had already started on this train of thought. This

conversation was just solidifying it. Wally shook his head and smiled.

"This was not what I was expecting at all." He wrapped his arm around my shoulders. "You are an insane man, Dale. I truly hope this works out for the both of you." We started walking again down towards the beach. "She's not going to want to tell you everything, you know."

"I'm working on finding out myself. I have some people looking into things." I wasn't sure why I was confiding in him, but he seemed to have Mia's health and well-being on top of his list. He just chuckled.

"Damn, you live dangerously." He was shaking his head again. "I wouldn't want to be anywhere near her when she finds out. You really love her, don't you?"

"With all my heart." I stopped walking. I just admitted it out loud again.

"I did not expect this at all." He looked at me. "You know a lot of people aren't going to understand this." I laughed.

"Wally, I am very practiced at ignoring people. I couldn't care less what anyone thinks about Mia and me. They will just have to get over it." It felt good to think that my past isolation had a purpose. We continued down to the beach.

"This is actually pretty nice. Kind of peaceful." Wally was admiring the view as the waves gently crashed at the

breakers. "You're going to have to find out why she tried to kill herself." I didn't like hearing it put that way. I knew it was true, but I wished he would use more tactful language.

"I know, and I will." I wasn't looking forward to that part. I didn't want to think about it right now. I felt my phone buzz in my pocket. I didn't have any friends, so it could only be one reason. I pulled it out and saw a text from Bob Farring that contained only a phone number. "I have to make a phone call, Wally. Meet you back at the house?" He agreed and headed back up. I tapped the number.

A gruff voice I didn't recognize answered the phone. "This is Dale Drake; I'm looking for Bob Farring." I kind of expected a receptionist or Bob.

"Mr. Drake, I'm Frank Talbot. I was hired by Bob to look into some issues for you. Due to the direction the investigation took, I felt I should talk to you directly." He was speaking rather quickly. "I felt some discretion may be required. Are you related to Ms. Perez?"

"Ah, no, Frank. I am just concerned about her." I was quite sure I wanted him ignorant of my desired relationship.

"I want to warn you that you may not like what you hear. If she means anything to you, you can't un-hear it later." What the hell is he preparing me for?

"Just give me the report, Frank." I braced myself.

"Ms. Perez was an RN about 3 years ago at St. Vincent's. She was the sole survivor of a car accident that killed her family on March 23rd, 3 years ago."

Survivor? I thought she said she was at home. I interrupted, "She was in the car?" I had to know everything.

"She was driving, Mr. Drake." Good God! She's blaming herself. "The report listed distracted driving as the cause." He paused for a moment, then continued when I didn't interject again. "Ms. Perez stopped showing up for work after the accident and was terminated about four months after the accident. She had refused counseling, and the hospital had to let her go." Another pause, then he continued, "In October of that year her home was repossessed by the bank. I was unable to find where she went next. About six months ago she surfaced at the Causeway Apartments. Suite Number 224. The "suites" are basically one room apartments paid weekly. The Causeway Apartments are in a seedy part of town." Frank paused again. "Do you still want me to continue, Mr. Drake?"

"Yes." I wasn't feeling very well anymore.

"By the time she arrived there, she was addicted to heroin." He paused again, then continued into my silence. "She earned money for her habit through prostitution." He spoke the last sentence quickly and moved on. My hands

were shaking. "She is currently two weeks in arrears for the apartment. Her belongings are now in storage on site, and no one knows her current location." I wasn't really prepared for this much. I now knew why she hated herself. I knew why she would never tell me everything. Fuck me! I still loved her. I had to find the out the rest.

"Frank, I really appreciate your discretion." I paused while I collected my thoughts. "I just purchased a small boat to replace one Ms. Perez wrecked. Bob will have the owner information. I need to know what happened four nights ago when the boat was wrecked."

"I can look into it, Mr. Drake, but it's my experience that these things never seem to get better." He was a bit hesitant to continue. I think he sensed that I was more than just concerned.

"Just do it, Frank. Double your normal rate and contact me only." The rest of the world will just have to guess.

"It will take me a day or two. I'll get back to you when I have something." He was all business.

"Thank you, Frank." I hung up the phone. I wasn't sure any more about confronting Mia. There was a bit more pain than I was expecting. I wiped my eyes dry, put on a smile, and headed back to the house.

Mia was laughing with Bob when I entered. I caught a quick imitation of my expression attempting to swallow a

vitamin on Mia's face. New clothes, nice house, and normal conversation. She didn't look like she belonged to her past anymore. I wasn't looking forward to disturbing her new image. Wally saw me walking in.

"Thanks for the tour, Dale." He was all smiles. "I've got to get back to the grind. It takes everything I've got to keep that clinic going." He patted Mia on the shoulder and headed toward the door. "I am so happy you're doing so well." Mia kissed his cheek and sent him on his way. As soon as the door closed her expression turned darker and she turned to me.

"Am I allowed to know what you two were talking about on the beach?" She had a determined look on her face, and I could sense a little fear behind it.

"Wally thinks it's a bad idea that I've gotten so close to you." I felt a little honesty would be best. I may keep things from her, but lying wasn't a good option. She sighed.

"He's right, you know. I'm not really a good person to get close to." She looked at me with a sad expression.

"He wasn't worried about me, he was worried about you. He was afraid I might change my mind and cause you to relapse." I saw a shiver run up her spine, and a little fear appear in her eyes. I felt a little more honesty was necessary. I caught her eyes with mine. "I told him I was fully committed to you." Mia dropped her guard and moved quickly into my arms.

"I don't deserve you." She was holding me very tight. I smiled inside, knowing it was I who didn't deserve her. I pissed on the world for so long that I should have died a lonely old man. I now saw a shared future. I had to get her to drop her past like she has gotten me to forget mine. I didn't care who she used to be, I only cared who she was now.

"I have to go out and take care of some business this morning. Can I leave you alone for a few hours?" I smiled and gave her a quick kiss. She kissed me back a bit longer.

"I'm not going anywhere." She was getting more comfortable with me. I could feel it in the way she caressed the back of my neck and the look in her eyes. God, I didn't want to see her in tears again.