“I am. But Sonia gave me two dollars for helping her pull weeds yesterday, so I put that in my piggy bank and took out six quarters.”
Skye reached into her pocket and pulled out change that jingled as she set it on the table. “I want to see if I can do better than last time we came.”
“It’s your money. If that’s the way you want to spend it, go for it.”
“Thanks.”
She shoved her chair back and hurried to the row of gaming machines along one wall of the pizzeria. This was an ideal setup, where she could keep an eye on her daughter but didn’t have to stand right over her shoulder.
“She seems like a sweet kid,” Eli said. “I know my dad thinks so, anyway.”
Melissa had made plenty of mistakes in her life—including a disastrous marriage—but her daughter was not among them.
“She’s amazing. Kind, compassionate, funny. I won the kid lottery.”
He smiled at that and sipped at the beer their server had brought him. “Does she see her father very often?”
All her frustrations from earlier in the day rushed back, and Melissa did her best not to tense.
“Not as often as she’d like. It’s been tough to have a relationship when he’s always heading to the next beach with the pro surf circuit.”
“Must have made it tough on a marriage.”
“You could say that.”
“How long have you and Cody been divorced?”
“We split up when Skye was three and officially divorced a year later.”
“And she’s, what, seven now?”
“Yes.”
The sense of failure never quite left Melissa, even after four years. She knew she had no reason to feel guilty, but somehow she couldn’t seem to help it.
She didn’t tell Eli how hard she had tried to salvage the marriage for her child or how even after it became clear that Cody wouldn’t stop cheating, she had chosen to stay in Hawaii, Cody’s surfing home base, so her daughter could still see her father.
“Where is he these days?”
“He’s coming back to Oregon. His new wife is expecting a baby, and he wants to be closer to his family in Portland so they can help her out.”
She wouldn’t let herself be bitter about that. When Melissa had been pregnant with Skye, Cody hadn’t been nearly as solicitous about her needs. He’d been training for a big wave competition, totally focused on it, and couldn’t take time away. Instead, they had lived in a crappy studio apartment on the North Shore. He had refused to come back to Oregon, even for her to deliver the baby close to her mom.
Maybe the fact that he was putting his new wife and unborn baby first for once was proof that her ex was finally growing up. She hoped so, but she didn’t think anyone could blame her for being skeptical.
“And how long have you been back in Cannon Beach?”
“About seven months. For the past few years, Cody’s home base has been Oahu. Last year he moved overseas, so I decided it was time Skye and I came back to be closer to family.”
“That’s nice. And you live in Brambleberry House.”
“For now. We love it there, but I’m saving up to buy a house.”
“And going to school, I understand. Carmen or Tiffany mentioned it today.”
“I’m working to become a family nurse practitioner,” she said as their server set down salads in front of the two of them.
“How’s that going?”
“Not going to lie, it’s been tough while juggling a full-time job and a child. I still have two years to go. I can do most of the work online, which helps.”
“That’s terrific. There’s such a need for well-trained nurse practitioners right now. Good for you.”
The approving look in his eyes sent warmth seeping through her. Going to school and working was tough work, and she had sacrificed sleep and a social life for it, but she was trying to build a solid future for her and her child. All the sacrifices were worthwhile, an investment toward security for Skye.
“What about you? I’m surprised you haven’t done the whole family thing yet.”
He shrugged, a hint of a shadow in his eyes. “You know how it is. Some guys can handle starting a family while they’re in med school, but I wasn’t one of them.”
“You’ve been out of med school—what?—five or six years now? There hasn’t been a chance in all those years to find somebody you want to make Mrs. Dr. Elias Sanderson?”
“No,” he said quickly. Too quickly. The shadows seemed to intensify. Eli Sanderson had secrets. What were they? She had the feeling he had lost someone close to him. Was it a woman?
She wanted to probe, but Skye came back before she could ask a follow-up question.
She was relieved, she told herself. Eli’s secrets were none of her business. He was her employer, at least for the next few weeks. Okay, he might also be becoming a friend. That didn’t mean she needed to know everything that had happened to him since the day he had left Cannon Beach for college.
“Your quarters are gone already?” she asked her daughter.
“Pinball is hard,” Skye complained. “Simon made it look so easy.”
Simon was the son of her friends Will and Julia Garrett, twin to Maddie, a girl who sometimes babysat Skye for her. The last time they had come to A Slice of Heaven, their family had been there, too, and Skye had been fascinated, watching the older boy.
“Simon is a teenager, honey. Almost eighteen. He’s probably had a lot of practice at it.”
She pouted but didn’t have time to fret more as their server fortuitously came by just then with their pizzas, fragrant and hot.
They were all too busy the next few moments savoring their meal, which didn’t leave a lot of room for talking.
In between bites, Skye kept looking back toward the billiards tables with a wistful look.
“You look like you’re wanting to try your hand at pool,” Eli said.
“Mom says I can’t. It’s too busy here on Friday nights. There are people waiting their turn to play.”
“My dad has a billiards table in the sunroom,” Eli said. “You’re welcome to come over and practice a little there before you try to play in the big leagues over here at A Slice of Heaven.”
“Thanks,” Skye said, eyes wide with excitement.
Melissa tried to hide her frown. She really wished he hadn’t said that. Eli would forget he made the offer, but Skye wouldn’t.
Her daughter had spent entirely too much time being disappointed by empty promises. She didn’t need more.
Maybe she was being too cynical. Maybe he wouldn’t forget.
She distracted Skye with their favorite game of I Spy for the rest of the meal, and Eli joined in willingly. He had a unique eye and stumped both her and Skye more than once with the things he observed.
“I’m totally stuffed now,” Skye said after two slices. She eased back in her chair and placed her hands over her belly.
Eli chuckled. “That was delicious, wasn’t it? The best pizza I’ve had in a long time. I forgot how delicious the crust here is.”
“They have a magic recipe,” Melissa said.
“They must, especially if they can make it calorie-free.”
His smile made her hormones sigh. Seriously, this was becoming ridiculous.
After they boxed up their leftover pizza, Eli insisted on paying the tab. She would have argued, but her friend Sage and her husband, Eben, part owners of Brambleberry House, came in at that moment and distracted her. By the time she waved goodbye to her friends, the server had already completed the bill.
“Next time is my treat,” she said.
“I’ll look forward to it,” he answered. His words had a ring of sincerity that again warmed her far more than they should.
They walked outside into a lovely April night, rich with t
he scent of the ocean, with flowers, with new life.
She could hear the low murmur of the waves along with the constant coastal wind that rustled the new leaves of the trees next to the restaurant.
Oh, she had missed it here. She had lived in many beautiful, exotic places since she’d left Cannon Beach, but none of them had been the same. She had lived here longer than anywhere, from the age of thirteen to eighteen. It was home to her.
“That was lovely,” he said when they reached their respective vehicles in the parking lot. “The most enjoyable meal I’ve had in a long time. Thank you for inviting me.”
“You’re welcome. Thank you for insisting on paying for it.”
“Yeah. Thanks,” Skye said cheerfully. “It was fun.”
Melissa couldn’t make a habit of it. She was far too drawn to him.
“Have a good evening, Eli.”
Their gazes met, and those shadows prompted her to do something completely uncharacteristic. She stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek, intending it only as a warm, friendly, welcome-home kind of gesture.
He smelled delicious, of soap and male skin, and it was all she could do not to stand there and inhale.
She forced herself to ease away, regretting the impulse with every passing moment.
“Good night, Melissa. Skye, it was a pleasure. Persuade your mom to take you to my dad’s place sometime soon so you can practice your pool game.”
“I will! Thanks.”
“See you Monday,” she said.
“Put some ice on that wrist,” he answered, his voice gruff.
She nodded and ushered her daughter to her vehicle. Though her wrist still ached, the injury seemed a lifetime ago.
Chapter Four
Melissa managed to make it through the rest of the weekend without obsessing too much about Eli, mainly because she and Skye spent Saturday running errands, then drove to Portland for the day on Sunday. By Sunday night, the prospect of going back to the clinic and spending the day in his company filled her with nerves.
She managed to push it away by baking strawberry shortcake Sunday evening and texting the other tenants of Brambleberry House, inviting them down to share after Skye was in bed.
Both Rosa and Sonia arrived at the same time, moments after her text went out. The three of them sat out in her screened porch, enjoying the evening breeze and the promise of rain.
“This is...delicious,” Sonia said in her slow, halting voice. She gave one of her rare smiles. “Thank you for inviting me.”
“You’re welcome.”
“What brought on your frenzy of baking?” Rosa asked. “Not that I would be complaining, only curious.”
Melissa couldn’t tell them she had been restless for two days, since leaving Eli at A Slice of Heaven. “We went to the farmers market in Portland yesterday, and the strawberries were so luscious I couldn’t resist buying four quarts of them. I have to do something with all those berries.”
“Shortcake...was a great choice,” Sonia said.
When Melissa offered the invitation, she hadn’t really thought their second-floor neighbor would join them, but every once in a while Sonia did the unexpected.
The woman was such a mystery to her. Melissa had tried to gently probe about what medical conditions she had, but Sonia was apparently an expert at the art of deflecting conversation away from herself.
Why did she keep to herself? What secrets lurked beneath her pretty features? Had she been abused? Was she in hiding?
Melissa didn’t feel darkness in Sonia’s past, only...sadness. She couldn’t explain it rationally, it was just a sense. There was a deep sorrow in Sonia. She wished she could get to the bottom of it.
Sometimes she thought becoming a nurse had heightened her compassion for others, giving her instincts she didn’t fully understand. Her hunches had been proved right too many times for her to question them any longer, though. Now she simply listened to them.
Fiona, who had trotted down from the third floor with Rosa, lifted her head at that moment and seemed to stare off at nothing in the corner, head cocked as if listening to something only she could hear.
A faint hint of roses seemed to stir in the air, subtle and sly, but that might have been her imagination.
She followed the dog’s gaze, then turned back to the other two women. “Do you ever get the feeling we’re not the only ones in this house?” she asked impulsively.
“What do you mean?” Sonia asked, brows furrowed. For one brief instant, she looked so panicked that Melissa regretted bringing it up.
“Just... I sometimes feel like the house is alive with memories of the past.”
“I know what you mean,” Rosa said with her slight Spanish accent. “I never feel like it is malicious or scary.”
“No,” Melissa said. “I find it comforting, actually. Like somebody is watching over the house and those who live here.”
“I don’t believe in guardian angels,” Sonia said flatly. “I wish I did. At times in my life, I could have used...a guardian angel...or two or twenty.”
Her eyes looked haunted, and Melissa wanted to hug her, but she sensed Sonia wouldn’t welcome the gesture.
“My grandmother used to say our family is always watching over you, whether you want them to or not.”
“Don’t you find that a little disturbing?” Melissa asked Rosa.
The other woman laughed and ate more of her strawberry shortcake. “Maybe. My mama’s Tio Juan Carlos was crazy. I don’t want him anywhere watching over me.”
“It’s not your crazy great-uncle. I get the feeling it’s someone kind. Does that make me as crazy as Juan Carlos?”
Rosa smiled. “A little. But I am crazy, too. Maybe Abigail, the woman who lived here all her life and died when she was in her nineties, didn’t want to leave. She’s the one who left the house to my aunt Anna and to Sage Spencer. It could be she’s sticking around to keep an eye on things.”
“I remember Abigail a little from when we first moved to Cannon Beach,” Melissa said. “I like the idea of a sweet older lady keeping watch over the house she loves.”
“I do, too,” Sonia said. “It’s comforting, somehow.”
While they finished their strawberry shortcake, they talked about the house and its history, what little Rosa knew from her aunt anyway. Eventually, the conversation drifted to men.
“How are things with the ex-husband?” Rosa asked. “Any updates after your frustration the other day?”
“No. I haven’t heard from him.”
At Sonia’s questioning look, she explained the situation with Cody to the other woman.
“Who was that...good-looking guy I saw you with...yesterday?”
So much for keeping Eli out of her head for five minutes. She fought down a sigh. “That’s my new boss. Dr. Sanderson’s son, Eli.”
“Oh! That’s Eli! Wendell...said he might be coming home.”
Melissa hadn’t realized her neighbor was such good friends with the elder Dr. Sanderson. As far as she knew, Sonia had only visited Dr. Sanderson once since she had been working there. It made sense, though, since he was the best doctor in town.
“If he’s that cute, maybe I need to schedule a physical or something,” Rosa teased.
“I think... I might be due for a follow-up appointment too,” Sonia said.
It was the first joke she had ever heard the other woman make. Rosa looked just as surprised, then grinned. “Maybe we should just drop by the clinic this week to take Melissa out to lunch. We can check him out then.”
“Good idea,” Sonia said with what could almost be considered a smile.
“You’re both terrible. Here. Have some more shortcake.”
The conversation drifted to Rosa’s work managing her aunt Anna’s gift store in town and then to Sonia’s plans for the garden.
“This was fun,” Rosa said a short time later, stifling a yawn. “But I have to run down to Lincoln City first thing tomorrow to pick up some pottery from one of our suppliers. I had better get to bed.”
“Same here,” Sonia said. “Thank you for the dessert...and the...conversation.”
She rose in her wobbly way.
“It was fun,” Melissa said. “We should get together more often. Maybe you two could come for pizza night on Friday. Skye would love hosting a dinner party.”
Sonia took on that secretive look she had sometimes. “I won’t be here this weekend. But maybe the week after that.”
Where do you go? she wanted to ask her secretive neighbor. And why are you so sad when you return?
“I’ll be gone, too,” Rosa said with regret in her eyes. “Fiona and I are going hiking with some friends next weekend.”
“No problem. We’ll do it another time. Maybe the week after that, then. Put it on your calendars.”
“Done,” Rosa said with a smile.
“I’ll have to look at my...schedule,” Sonia said.
She said goodbye to them both, then made her slow way out of the screened porch and to the entryway that led upstairs to her own apartment.
“I hate watching her make that climb,” Melissa said. “Why wouldn’t she take the ground-floor apartment? It would be so much easier.”
“I do not think that one wants the easy,” Rosa said, her Spanish accent more pronounced. She stood up, and her dog rose, as well.
“And you don’t know anything more about her...issues?” Melissa asked.
“No. She has been in town longer than I have, about four years. Anna said she showed up in town one day and started coming into the gift shop, mainly to pet Conan. That was the dog my aunt and Sage inherited from Abigail, who left them the house. Fiona’s sire. One day she asked if Anna knew of any place in town she could rent, and it happened the apartment she lives in now was available. My aunt said she knew of one but it was on the second floor of an old house, and Sonia said it would be perfect. She has been here ever since.”
One day Melissa wanted to get to the bottom of Sonia’s mystery, though she knew it really wasn’t any of her business.
A Soldier's Return ; The Daddy Makeover Page 5