More Than Just Us Two

Chapter 1: Collision Course

By ten in the morning, the sand was already hot enough to sting through her flip-flops. Hannah juggled a cooler in one hand, a folded beach chair under her arm, and her daughter's sunscreen sticky fingers tangled in her free hand. Ava tugged her forward, eyes wide at the sight of the glittering Pacific.

"Mommy, it's so big!" she squealed, already wriggling like she could break free and sprint toward the water.

"Not without sunscreen," Hannah said, tightening her grip. She shot her sister a look over the pile of towels and umbrellas she was carrying. "A little help here?"

Her sister only laughed. "You're the one who insists on packing like we're settling in for a weeklong expedition. It's a few hours, Hannah."

"A few hours with a four-year-old who burns like paper," Hannah countered, shifting the cooler higher on her hip.

Ava giggled at the exchange, then pointed toward a group of men down the beach. They were tossing a football, their voices carrying over the crash of the waves. Tan, broad-shouldered, laughing like they didn't have a care in the world.

"Look, Mommy! They're playing catch!"

"Uh huh," Hannah said, not bothering to glance twice.

She knew San Diego was a military town. With six or seven bases in the greater San Diego area between the Navy, Marines, and Coast Guard. She'd grown up around that kind of swagger: loud, competitive, trouble. She knew the type. And those kind of men were not her problem. Not anymore.

They staked out a spot near the waterline, spreading towels and wrestling with the umbrella until it stood at a stubborn angle. Hannah slathered sunscreen across Ava's cheeks and shoulders while her daughter squirmed and complained about the smell.

"Hold still or I'll do your ears twice," Hannah warned, trying not to laugh when Ava yelped dramatically.

Her sister stretched out on her towel with a sigh of contentment. "See? Isn't this better than unpacking boxes?"

Hannah adjusted her sunglasses, scanning the waves. Better? Maybe. But the weight of everything...the new house, the new job, the new routine...sat heavy on her shoulders. She'd come to the beach to make memories for Ava, not to relax. Relaxing wasn't really in her vocabulary anymore.

Still, when Ava darted toward the wet sand with her bucket and shovel, squealing with joy, Hannah admitted, albeit silently to herself, that maybe this was the right place to start over after all.

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A few hours later the sun was high and bright. The football arched high against the cloudless sky, a perfect spiral launched from one end of the beach to the other. Jake narrowed his eyes, tracking it as he sprinted across the sand. The guys were already hollering behind him, Rooster shouting for him to "drop it, Hangman!" but Jake wasn't about to miss.

He lengthened his stride, sand spraying behind him, focus sharp as the ball dipped lower.

At the same time, Hannah was jogging up the beach, sunglasses slipping down her nose, cursing herself for forgetting the cooler's extra water bottle. Ava's chatter had been endless, and Hannah had tuned it out just long enough to miss her daughter asking for a drink. Rookie mistake. Now she was racing the heat to get back before her sister started in with I-told-you-sos.

Her head was turned toward their umbrella, her hand adjusting the strap of her bag, when the world slammed into her.

"Whoa!"

The impact knocked her off balance, sand giving way under her feet. She let out a startled gasp as she hit the ground hard enough to feel grit stick to her skin.