though. He was something else. And that hat was just too much. Drew had been in a terrible mood, but he couldn't help but smile at the boy.
"I have something to give you," Drew said.
He held the ring in his hand, leaning over the edge of the boat, reaching for the woman. She was a little reluctant, but she stood up, got to the edge of the dock, and reached out for it.
"What is this?" she said, looking at it.
"It's a ring," Drew answered, even though that was obvious.
"I was wondering why you were handing it to me." She tried to hand the ring back to Drew, but he took a step back and gestured, insisting that she keep it.
"Wait, I can't take this," she said.
"Why not?" he asked.
"Because it's not mine."
"It is now. I'm giving it to you."
"Yeah, he's giving it to you," said Prince Lionheart.
"But it belongs to someone else," she said, still holding it out even though Drew had backed away and was too far from her to reach it.
"I can assure you it doesn't belong to anyone," Drew said.
"See? He said you could have it," the boy said.
"How do we know it's not stolen treasure?" she asked, looking at the boy.
"He said he was nice, Mama, he didn't steal it."
"Did you?" she asked, turning to look straight at Drew as if it was a serious question.
"No. Why would I… I bought it."
"Is it plastic?"
"I promise you it's not plastic," he said, shaking his head and wishing it was.
"This is big," she said, staring at it.
"I know."
"So, why are you handing it to me?" Her expression was confused, wary. She was gorgeous without a stitch of makeup. It registered to Drew that the boy had referred to her as his mother, but he didn't think much of it. She looked young, but she could be old enough to have a kid, he supposed.
Drew shrugged at her question. "Because my other option was to throw it in to the water. I almost did that. I tried to. But then I saw you, and I thought it was better for me to give it to you than to toss it overboard and let it sink."
"Yeah, but why are you getting rid of it?"
"Because I intended to give it to a woman, and now I'm not giving it to her. I'd rather just not see it anymore."
"Well, Captain Drew, I really do appreciate the kind offer of letting me keep someone else's priceless jewelry, but I couldn't possibly."
"Toss it then," Drew said nonchalantly.
"What?"
"Toss it. Just throw it in the water if you don't want it."
"I'll throw it!" the boy said, stepping up to the challenge, holding his hand out.
The woman clutched the ring in her fist and drew it away from the boy. "Just a minute," she said.
Drew shrugged. "You'd be better off selling it at a pawn shop than tossing it into the water, but it's up to you."
"Why don't you just give it to the person it was intended for?" she asked.
"That's out of the question."
"What if you change your mind?" she continued insistently.
He gave her a sardonic smile. "I won't." He moved to grab the pole again so that he could push the boat into deeper waters and lower the engine.
He loved meeting these two. They were both adorable. He had been in a terrible mood. He still was, but they had taken the edge off.
He smiled inwardly thinking he'd always secretly wanted to be a pirate.
"Wait," she said.
He hesitated, waiting to hear what she'd say.
"This is crazy."
He shrugged. "Not any crazier than meeting Prince Lionheart and Lady Gumdrop."
"Lady Lollipop," she said, absentmindedly glancing at the ring and then up at him.
"Keep it," he said. "Pawn it if you want. Use the money for something else. You're doing me a favor by taking it off my hands."
"Uh, I, I, I don't know what to say."
"You could tell me your real names."
"Mac and Lucy," she said, stiffly.
"I'm Mac," the boy clarified, making Drew smile. "We came out here on the dock, and right when my mama was telling me the story about the hedgehogs and Garden City, I fell asleep and took a nap because Pap taught me how to sleep outside under the stars because the stars are still up there even though you can't see them in the day."
The boy was speaking quickly, and Drew didn't quite get all of it, so he looked at the boy's mother for help with translation.
"He said he was taking