Aunt Ivy's Cottage: A totally gripping and emotional page turner
Page 28
It’s just like him to focus on external appearances—although he has a point. Zoey recalled the day Gabi assumed the photo of Captain Denny was Mark’s grandfather, probably because she’d subconsciously perceived a similarity between the two men. Still, Zoey thought Mark would have been more upset. Irate, even. Primarily because of the house.
“You don’t sound very surprised.”
“I’m relieved to find out.” Mark explained that when he visited Sylvia shortly before her death, she’d hinted that his father, Marcus Jr., wasn’t Marcus Sr.’s son. “She was incoherent during other parts of the conversation, so I thought she was having some kind of hallucination. But then after her funeral, when Mr. Witherell said what he said…”
Zoey’s mind jumped back to what Sylvia had written about Mr. Witherell in her journal. He’d undoubtedly seen Dennis and Sylvia going in and out of the empty beach cottage. So while he couldn’t have known for sure that Marcus Jr. was Dennis’s son, he may have suspected it. His remarks after the funeral could have been his way of trying to keep Mark from taking over Ivy’s house, just like he’d once tried to prevent Dennis from two-timing her with Sylvia.
“It’s ridiculous, but I’d heard rumors in school and I started to wonder if Mr. Witherell was my grandfather and that’s how he knew I wasn’t a Winslow. I became obsessed with finding out whether he was or not. I couldn’t sleep, couldn’t eat, kept losing weight—I was a wreck. I shouldn’t tell you this but I even took a strand of hair from Ivy’s brush. I was going to have someone run a DNA test but I lost the sample.”
You’re unbelievable, Zoey thought, as she recalled the day Ivy was so befuddled about where she’d left her brush. But since Zoey had gone to similar extremes trying to find answers, she said, “Not knowing your heritage must have been eating you up inside.”
“Yeah. I didn’t want to pour a ton of work and money into the house only to find out I had to hand it back over to you,” Mark unabashedly admitted. “When Mr. Witherell died, I called his niece to try to find out if I was his grandson, but she said he couldn’t have kids. So I figured I’d let my imagination run wild and it was time to put the matter to rest… Anyway, even though I’ll lose out on a lucrative leasing opportunity, I’m kind of glad I don’t have to deal with the house any more. It’s actually been more trouble than it’s worth. Besides, I just landed a new job and it’s going to keep me on the road a lot.”
Zoey earnestly congratulated him, adding, “It goes without saying that you’re welcome to visit any time. Just because we’re not blood relatives doesn’t mean we’re not family, you know.”
“Thanks.” There was a quiet pause before Mark chuckled and said, “But it does mean I’ve got a better smile—a Captain Denny smile.”
Zoey and Nick were standing side-by-side on the widow’s walk, alone. Scott and Kathleen, who had extended their stay on Dune Island, had taken Gabi to Captain Clark’s and then they were headed to Bleecker’s for a cone. The sun had already set, staining the sky orange and yellow, and now dusk was painting the glassy bay deep lavender and the sand black. A brackish breeze cooled the air and in the distance, the voices of summer vacationers rose and fell as they roasted marshmallows over their fire pits or called their children in for the evening.
“I want to tell you something,” Zoey said. “But please don’t share it with anyone, not even Aidan.”
“I won’t,” Nick promised, the blueness of his eyes darkening with the sky.
Zoey trusted him, even with a family secret like the one about Mark’s grandfather. But out of respect for her aunt’s privacy, she didn’t go into detail. She simply told him that Mark wasn’t a blood relative, so she was inheriting the house. However, she did clarify, “And just in case you’ve heard any rumors, Mr. Witherell wasn’t his grandfather.”
“Wow. That’s incredible… Have you told Mark yet?”
“Yes.”
“How did he take it?”
“A lot better than I thought he would.”
“So what are you going to do with the house?”
“Live in it, of course.” Since her housing costs were covered indefinitely, Zoey figured she could take a sizeable cut in salary. She hadn’t signed a contract with the library in Providence yet, so she could tell them she’d changed her mind and then she’d apply for the local library position, instead.
“Until the end of August?”
“Permanently.”
“Yes!” Nick squeezed her tightly before loosening his embrace.
Usually, Zoey relished the moment before a first kiss almost as much as she relished the moments after a sunset. But Nick didn’t pause long enough for her to anticipate what was coming next. There was no hesitation, stalling or shuffling before he cupped her face in his hands and pressed his warm, soft lips to hers. Zoey drew back in surprise and then she tilted her chin upward again and they kissed fervidly and repeatedly until they were both breathless.
“Does this mean you’re starting to like me now?” Nick asked.
“I may or may not be,” Zoey answered coyly as they intertwined their fingers, palm to palm. “And by that, I mean I definitely am.”
Sliding his other hand between her shoulder blades, Nick drew her close again. By then, the sky was twinkling with pinpoints of light. As they swayed ever so slightly, the words Sylvia had written in her journal as a young woman and repeated again at the end of her life came to Zoey’s mind, and she whispered, “I feel like I’m dancing in the stars.”
If you were totally swept away to Dune Island and fell in love with Zoey, Nick and especially Great-Aunt Ivy, you’ll adore visiting the island again in Summer at Hope Haven, another beautiful beach read by Kristin Harper. When Emily returns to the island after many years away, she discovers a family secret that will change everything…
Get it here!
Summer at Hope Haven
Get it here!
Making her way up the cedar-lined driveway, tears fill her eyes at the sight of the cottage’s faded trim and peeling turquoise shutters. Taking a deep breath, she grasps the heart-shaped iron door handle and steps inside the once-happy childhood home she’s been avoiding. It is time to face up to the past…
When Emily’s fiancé walks out on her while she’s still grieving the loss of her family in a terrible accident, she escapes back to Hope Haven on the remote Dune Island, where her family vacationed every summer. Emily hopes that fixing up the house will also mend her broken heart, but the cottage holds more than just bittersweet childhood memories. Emptying her father’s antique writing desk, Emily finds a letter that reveals a devastating secret about her parents.
With a head full of questions that can never be answered, it seems like returning to the island was the worst decision Emily ever made… until she meets Lucas Socorro, saltwater dripping from his dark curls after a surf session. As they take long walks on the soft sand, and talk late into the firefly-lit night, Emily wonders if Dr. Luke—as the kids in the hospital call him—could be the one to help her heal. With Luke holding her hand, delving into her family’s painful past is a little easier.
Painting the gloomy cottage walls the colour of seashells, and revamping her grandmother’s flea-market furniture, Emily starts to feel she might call Dune Island home for good—and that she could build that home right here with Luke. But when Emily’s family secret spreads through a network of local gossips, her fragile heart breaks all over again. Luke is the only one who could have started the rumours. Was she wrong to trust him so easily?
As the sun sets behind the dunes, Emily has a difficult decision to make. Does she pack her bags and leave the island for good? Or take a risk that Hope Haven has everything she’s been looking for?
A beautiful and emotional read that will make you long to feel the sand beneath your feet. Perfect for fans of Nancy Thayer, Tracy Brogan and Mary Alice Monroe.
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Books by Kristin Harper
Summer at Hope Haven
Aunt Ivy’s Cottage
A Letter from Kristin
I want to say a huge thank-you for choosing to read Aunt Ivy’s Cottage. If you enjoyed it and want to keep up to date with all my latest releases, just sign up at the following link. Your email address will never be shared and you can unsubscribe at any time:
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While I was writing much of Aunt Ivy’s Cottage, I stayed in a different town on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, than where I usually stay. There were new things to discover and fall in love with there, as well as some similarities between the two places. As usual, I drew inspiration from the setting and fictionalized bits and pieces of it so you could accompany my characters and me to a similar seascape.
I hope that if reading Aunt Ivy’s Cottage was a fantastic experience for you, you’ll share what you loved about it in a review. Your perspective means a lot to me and your enthusiasm makes a big difference in helping new readers discover one of my books for the first time.
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Thanks,
Kristin
Kristinharperauthor.com
Acknowledgments
As always, I’d like to thank my family and friends who cheered me on as I wrote this book. Special thanks to my mother and sisters for the brainstorms and breakthroughs.
Thank you to RD for discussing old houses and repairs; to GD for the flute music; and to LD for input on Moby.
I’m very grateful to AO for letting me stay at her (“little slice of heaven”) condo right next to the ocean. It was an inspiration and a respite.
And a big thank-you to my editor, Ellen Gleeson, for her patience, smarts and grace, and to my publisher, Bookouture, for having an all-around creative approach to publishing.
Published by Bookouture in 2020
An imprint of Storyfire Ltd.
Carmelite House
50 Victoria Embankment
London EC4Y 0DZ
www.bookouture.com
Copyright © Kristin Harper, 2020
Kristin Harper has asserted her right to be identified
as the author of this work.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers.
eBook ISBN: 978-1-83888-828-2
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places and events other than those clearly in the public domain, are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.