Talk about coincidence.
Maybe she shouldn’t read it? After all, when would she ever see him again?
She sat there a minute, pursing her lips, and finally she was just too curious to ignore him, so she opened the email.
And laughed. He’d sent a variety of pictures he must have taken on his phone, some seemed to have been taken on Bali.
He’d taken a close up of her, she suddenly realized. One had been taken before Emma had given her the makeover, and the other seemed to have been taken after. Funny how she hadn’t noticed.
His only message?
Was glad to hear you arrived home safely. Write me when you can. Jack.
Hmm. She wouldn’t write him back, since she had a meeting coming up in a few minutes, but she could send him some photos.
Quickly, she sifted through the best pictures from Bali, and pasted them into the return email, hitting send.
* * *
They continued to send emails, Jack writing a quick note, adding pics of his apartment and community.
She was surprised when he mentioned he would be moving and taking a new job in Crystal Rock in less than a couple weeks. It was funny how Ciara had never mentioned it, but then again, maybe it wasn’t since she was so wrapped up in Rand and had been distracted ever since Rand had left Bali for wherever he’d been reassigned. Janelle had finally recognized Rand as someone she’d met in the past on a mission and realized that his living on Bali was no coincidence, although no one else seemed to notice.
Apparently, Nick would be moving to Crystal Rock too, and Janelle grinned, wondering if Emma knew.
Let her be surprised, she decided. Undoubtedly, Emma and Nick would be a couple next time Janelle had a chance to visit Crystal Rock.
But when would that be?
Janelle heaved a sigh. It would soon be time for her to actually respond to Jack’s emails since she would be traveling next week.
Opening reply and adding some of the pictures she’d taken with friends on base along with a few of her favorite places in town, Janelle hit send.
Another five days later, Janelle was getting ready to ship out when she sat behind her laptop to finish some personal correspondence with her family and Emma before finally answering Jack.
This time, she included the photo which Emma had taken of the two of them in Bali, wrapped within each other’s arms.
Shipping out overseas tomorrow, she wrote, and I’ll most likely be incommunicado. J.
Jack must have been sending her emails from his phone, because another message was returned only a few moments later, and he’d reattached the picture of the two of them embracing.
I’ll be here when you need me. Jack. There was a heart emoji included with the message.
Not if – when.
The nerve of the guy.
Still, Janelle was smiling widely when she walked out of her office an hour later.
Chapter Twelve
Another week later, Nick drove into the town of Crystal Rock Wisconsin in his SUV with Jack as his passenger. Jack had finally sold the clunker he drove around Richmond, because Rand had promised him a company vehicle since he would be handling local realty deals and showing homes for sale. When Nick traveled, it would more than likely be long distance, so alternate arrangements would be made as needed.
Both Jack and Nick were surprised at how festive the town appeared. It was like visiting the inside of a snow globe, they decided as Nick drove along Main Street. Wreaths were hung high on old fashioned streetlight posts which were wrapped by lights, and every business they drove by appeared to take Christmas seriously, judging by the massive amount of decorations visible both inside and outside shop windows.
“I feel almost like we’re visiting the North Pole,” Jack murmured, with definite humor in his voice. “It’s a beautiful little town, Nick. Isn’t it?”
“It is,” Nick answered in agreement. “And according to the instructions, our place of business is coming up here to the left, across from the café.”
“Wow,” Jack muttered. “It’s nice. But the only place without any Christmas lights. We’ll have to do something about that right away.”
Nick could see that the brick, mortar and millwork had either been restored or replaced, glancing at the elegance of the exterior building. “Rand said the offices are all a blank slate. We can order desks, shelving and any kind of storage solutions we would like.”
“There are computers in each office?”
“Yes. Everything is wired and ready to go. Apparently, the computers are set up on some small desks he ordered, which can be used by the secretary or receptionist we hire.”
Nick pulled into a parking lot behind the building which led to a separate entrance belonging to the apartments upstairs. Apparently, there was another entrance inside the office leading up the staircase as well.
“With this ISIS threat hanging over him, I hope Rand doesn’t have to stay incommunicado for too long. I’m just glad that he was safe when he finally got a hold of us,” Nick said, turning into the parking lot, and parking near the back door.
“And the ladies too,” Jack murmured, giving him a side glance. “I was a little worried about all of them. I couldn’t understand why they didn’t evacuate, but it says a lot about each woman, the fact that they wanted to stick around and help with the aftermath.”
“Ciara and Janelle, yes, they’re trained. But not Emma,” Nick growled.
“Quit being so snarky.” Jack smirked. “You and Emma really seemed to click, despite your irritation with her, I could see the sparks. It’s a shame
