The Sea Wolf's Mate (Hideaway Cove 2)

“Hello?” she called out. Her voice carried on the chill air. “Is there anyone there? It’s okay, you can come out. Your friend called me, he wanted me to come check up on you.”

There was no reply.

A gull cried in the distance. Jacqueline shivered. The sea breeze was growing stronger, filling her lungs with the taste of brine, and now that the sun had set, the already brisk air was becoming chilly. It wasn’t raining, but… Jacqueline looked up. Clouds. Which meant rain might still be on the agenda.

Wrapping her arms around herself, she walked out into the middle of the parking area.

“If there’s anyone out there… your friend asked me to come look for you. I’ve got food, and blankets back in the car—I work for the sheriff, I’m here to help you.”

She bit her tongue. Come to think of it, that might not be the best tactic to take with a group of runaway-or-lost kids. Hey, kids! I’m with the sheriff! You’re all sure in trouble now!

Again, there was no reply. Jacqueline looked around, uncertain. There was no sign of any children.

Maybe it was a prank after all, she thought. Ha, ha. Very funny.

Thank God.

She tipped her head back and closed her eyes. Her car was stuck in a muddy ditch, she’d ruined her shoes, and the news that she’d got herself into a tizz over some prank caller was going to be headline news in the office come Monday… but just for a moment, she stood and enjoyed the cool, fresh air on her face.

What with the storm, she’d been cooped up inside all week. And even if she hadn’t been—when was the last time she’d been up the coast?

I used to love the water, she thought with a sigh. Swimming, fishing, going out on a boat or body board, even if I had to wear a head-to-toe wetsuit to keep from freezing. What happened?

She absently rubbed the empty spot on her ring finger.

It was beautiful. Peaceful. The clouds above made the night sky look soft and endless, like a huge ink-blue blanket over the world. There was the soft shush of the waves in the distance, and—

A shout echoed through the air and was suddenly cut off.

Jacqueline’s eyes shot open. She spun on the spot, ears straining as she faced the direction she thought the shout had come from.

The boardwalk.

She broke into a sprint, the light from her flashlight zig-zagging madly ahead of her as she ran. The boardwalk was slick with seawater and she almost skidded over, grabbing the railing just in time. Panting, she swung the flashlight around, trying desperately to find the source of whoever had shouted.

Or whatever. No. The voice had been human. High-pitched, almost a yelp—but human.

She was sure of it.

Jacqueline squinted, forcing herself to search the area thoroughly, and not just whip the flashlight randomly around. Light glittered off the waves and the water swirling through the

rockpools at the edge of the coast, and off a pair of dark eyes half-hidden in a pile of boulders.

Jacqueline froze. Then she blinked, and the dark shadow around the gleaming eyes solidified into a small seal, hiding in the rocks.

“Oh, shoot. I am such an idiot,” she muttered.

That short, cut-off yelp—it could have been a seal, couldn’t it?

She let the flashlight swing sideways, not wanting to disturb the seal any more than she already had. Just a seal. The call had been a prank after all, just as she—

“Oh no,” she gasped, the blood in her veins turning to ice.

The beam of her flashlight was illuminating the rocks right at the edge of the water, where the rockpools turned into open water. Perched on the top of one of the rocks, with waves breaking over her head, was a little girl.

Jacqueline gaped. The girl was butt naked, with a tangle of curly hair that looked white-blonde in the light from her flashlight.

The girl waved and grinned when she saw Jacqueline staring at her. Then she yelped as another wave broke behind her, swamping her with salt spray.