Cottage by the Creek

by Elizabeth Bromke

  As far as Matt figured, no doubt.

  He shook his head and left no sooner than he’d arrived. She grabbed her phone and reopened the text message Megan had sent just a half hour earlier.

  Suddenly, her reply that there was nothing to worry about had turned into the biggest untruth of the week. She didn’t mean to lie. She just hadn’t known what was going on.

  She should have, however.

  Kate had felt it in her very being that something would come to a head with Vivi. But she thought that something would take shape between them—the would-be stepmother and the edgy teen girl. Not others.

  Of course, that went out the window if Vivi knew about Clara. If she knew about Clara and Kate and Matt, then what would she do? What would she think? How would she respond?

  Could children snap?

  Of course they could.

  Kate tried her hardest to put herself in the girl’s shoes. She thought about everything she knew of Viviana Fiorillo.

  Vivi was a troubled girl. Her mother left the Island for greener pastures. She was stuck with her dad in a small town. Took the ferry to school as a matter of independence, despite the fact her father had his own boat. Attended St. Mary’s, a private Catholic school. Sank her fangs into the sweetest and prettiest girl at the public school—Mercy. Staked her claim to the status of most popular freshman within record time. Tried to take ownership over the new, also pretty, older girl but failed. Learned, at some point, that there was something fishy going on with her father’s new girlfriend’s family. Had no other family herself.

  The most alarming feature of the life of Viviana Fiorillo, however, was how she was highly dependent on very, very few relationships. Just two, in fact.

  The one with her father.

  The one with her new best friend.

  And that was it.

  Even the recent reunion between Sarah and the popular clique of Birch Harbor High hadn’t redrawn the boundaries. Even if Sarah had spent half the beach party with Vivi, she’d lost her footing in that relationship. Kate was grateful for as much now, for her niece. It was perhaps best they kept a little distance, after all. Depending, of course, on what exactly Vivi had done that warranted a parent visit to the school.

  Kate thought hard about what a child like Vivi wanted in her little life. What she needed.

  Probably to ensure that she didn’t lose either of those two relationships that perhaps felt so delicate to her.

  Even though Vivi had a loving dad, three square meals, and extra cash for shopping, a pretty face and a capable mind… she was missing the one thing every young woman needed in life. Someone to call “Mom.”

  It didn’t escape Kate that Clara had no shortage in the Mother Department. Even so, Vivi and Clara (apparently) had hit it off after all. Clara said so herself when she told them all that things had settled in and that Vivi was listening in class, doing her work, and generally contributing to Clara’s warm welcome at the high school.

  But something else niggled at Kate’s brain. Something that didn’t sit well with her. Something irrelevant to the Hannigans, it would appear.

  Vivi’s interest in boys.

  Vivi didn’t display the usual teenage girl behavior when it came to boys, which was surprising for a girl who had everything she needed to own the boys of Birch Harbor. Absent was that run-of-the-mill squealing about cute passersby or the gushing over a crush. Mercy Hennings had moments of it. Even Sarah had once mentioned some cute local. Not Vivi, though.

  It was as if she was saving her energy for something else. Something greater than a high school fling. All her emotion was pent up inside, boiling.

  And despite everything Vivi had going for her—her looks, her brain, her good father, and her best friend—her blue eyes sometimes glowed green.

  Kate could see it. The jealousy. But she wasn’t sure the focus of it.

  Was she jealous that her father had a new woman in his life—Kate?

  Possibly.

  Jealous that her best friend was on the brink of losing the one thing she shared in common with Vivi?

  That’s what drew Vivi and Mercy together—neither one had a mother to speak of. If Vivi knew that Mercy’s dad was dating, it would change their dynamic. Maybe, in Vivi’s mind, it would ruin everything.

  Particularly, if Vivi also happened to have a crush on her best friend’s father.

  At least, Kate thought to herself, Vivi had no idea that Jake Hennings was dating none other than her very own sister. Half though she may be.

  Chapter 28—Clara

  When Brian asked to talk to Jake, Clara nearly lost it. She’d respected her brother-in-law for a very long time, but for him to take things to the next level would mean a fissure in their relationship and in Clara’s relationship with Megan.

  Anyway, his request had nothing to do with the school. If he wanted to talk to Jake, then he could do that on his own time. Clara prayed that he didn’t. And she prayed that none of it was true, but Sarah didn’t so much as glance at Clara the whole meeting. Something was fishy. There was no doubt of that. Even so, would Jake really stoop to that sort of a level?

  No way. For starters, he was interested in Clara. And after that, he wasn’t some weirdo sleaze. He was a good person. Not the sort who would pick up his daughter’s friends. No way. No how. Clara had a gut feeling it was nothing more than a mean-girl rumor, like Megan said. But the problem with Clara was that she hadn’t often practiced acting on her gut feeling. Rarely had she trusted it. That was the danger of having lived with Nora for all her childhood and most of her adult life: she’d never been tested. Never taken a real risk. Now, everything felt like a risk. Negating Vivi’s report was a professional risk. Trusting it was a personal risk and an affront to her own niece. Not dating Jake risked her ability to ever find another man she held even one ounce of interest in. Dating Jake meant that perhaps she was ignoring the fact that Sarah was a victim and Jake was a two-timer. It was a mess. Plain and simple.

  When Megan, Brian, and Sarah left, Clara fell to the brink of tears. But she was a professional and somehow held it together in the lone presence of her boss.

  After Mrs. Adamski had ushered the others out, she closed the door and returned to her seat, falling into it and all but breaking character.

  Principals were people, too, after all.

  “I don’t even know what to do next,” the woman admitted.

  Clara swallowed, then spilled everything she knew. Which was nothing. “With all due respect, Mrs. Adamski, I never once suspected anything. Anything at all. Not regarding Sarah—her behavior has been normal. And not regarding Vivi or her behavior toward Sarah, either. I see these girls out of school, you know. I see Sarah, and I would know, you know? If something was wrong, I would know.

  “Teenagers are the best secret-keepers, Clara,” Mrs. Adamski replied. “And if it really is Mercy Hennings’ father, wouldn’t Vivi know better than you? They are best friends, and Mercy is so meek. It would make sense she’d put Vivi up to telling someone.”

  Clara shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut. “Mrs. Adamski,” she went on, “I know Jake Hennings.”

  “As your student’s father, yes but—”

  “No,” Clara interrupted. “I know him personally, too.”

  Mrs. Adamski’s mouth snapped shut, and her eyes danced up and down Clara as though the young teacher before her had transformed altogether. Then, she frowned. “How? He’s not a local. Surely not a family connection, although that would explain access to Sarah—”

  “I’m dating him.”

  Four days later, and nothing was resolved. Feelings were hurt. Questions were raised. Relationships were skimming along thin ice.

  So, of course, Kate texted every last one of the involved parties and demanded they show up to a family intervention. She declared that she refused to brush whatever happened under the rug. They would face it. Head on. Every last one of them, including the non-family members implicated in the events of the week prio
r.

  When Clara found the audacity to inquire about where, exactly, this so-called intervention would be held, Kate replied that the cottage would be the perfect location, please and thank you.

  Clara wanted to say no. She wanted to say Leave me and my house out of it!

  It would be too full of people. And in too close of quarters.

  Clara tried to convince Kate to host at the Inn. Or the lighthouse. Or even out in the open at Megan’s field.

  If they were all getting together as one big, happy family, to hash out everything that had unfolded, they needed a safe place. Kate could see that.

  A cozy, quiet place. Free from distractions, and above all: private. The Hannigans already had dirty laundry airing out around town. It was time to get things under control, lest ol’ Nora roll over in her grave.

  The only place that ticked off all the boxes was Clara’s cottage by the creek, of course. And when Kate begged that they host the meeting there, Clara feared another thing: she’d have to see Jake. She couldn’t ignore his texts any longer. Or her feelings.

  And as much as Clara feared that, she prayed for it, too.

  On the day in question, she took care to dress in a comfortable, approachable-but-pretty dress—an apricot-colored tunic. She slipped into beige loafers—the perfect early fall shoe. Kept her makeup simple and sweet and her hair loose and wavy about her neck.

  She cleaned the cottage and added a chunky knit blanket to the rocking chair for whichever poor sap got stuck in that seat.

  And when the doorbell rang fifteen minutes early, she silently hoped it was a wayward Girl Scout, seven months late and loaded down with a surplus of Trefoils.

  But it wasn’t.

  It was Jake.

  Behind him, Mercy.

  “Hi,” he said through a kind smile.

  “Hi,” Clara replied. Her face and neck were glowing red, she knew. And her heart raced in her chest. To anchor herself, she stared past Jake at his sweet daughter. The one who didn’t deserve to be caught up in all the theatrics that the Hannigan family seemed incapable of escaping lately. Clara offered a small wave to Mercy, who remained beside her dad’s car.

  “She’s nervous,” Jake said. “I wasn’t sure if I should bring her, but she told me she wanted to defend us.”

  Clara frowned at him. “You two don’t need any defense. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

  He dropped his voice. “No, she wants to defend you and me.”

  In the time since Vivi made her fateful report, Clara and Jake hadn’t spoken a word to each other directly. He’d texted her, but she had no clue how to respond. Not after the allegations. Not now.

  Neither did Clara see or directly speak with Megan or Sarah, who in some way held her accountable for the indecent events. It was just as well, since Clara had started to wonder if there really may be some truth to the whole thing. Did Sarah like Jake? Did she think she had a chance with him? If so, what did that mean? About Sarah and about Clara? And about Jake?

  After all, rumors often were hatched from reality, rather than out of thin air. No, Clara didn’t suspect Jake of any foul play, but she didn’t like to be caught up in bad business. And her sisters and her niece, and her student—they were all just a bubbling batch of bad business, if you asked Clara.

  But that was days ago, now, and in the time that had passed, so too had other things. Other changes. Clara only knew as much because of the family group chat and her own inside scoop as a teacher.

  Matt Fiorillo kept Vivi home from school, for starters. At least, that was how Kate professed to describe her suspension. Clara knew from the principal what the disciplinary action turned out to be. It wasn’t a parental decision. It was a school one.

  Jake forbade Mercy from talking to Vivi or Sarah.

  Megan and Brian rethought everything from Love at the Lake to building a house to sending Sarah to Birch Harbor High.

  Less dramatically, the Inn was booked through the weekend, and Kate made some vague references to a special guest. Clara didn’t care.

  Then there was Amelia, who—for once in her life—was the least interesting person in the family, having nothing much to add to the drama except for a few tidbits she hoped to share about the yearbook discovery. No one cared about that, either, though, which all but turned her irrelevant.

  And all the while, Clara had navigated the waters of high schoolers, becoming acutely aware of their new teacher’s personal life—dating life, specifically. Surprisingly, however, the whole thing did wonders for her popularity as a faculty member. That’s what happened when a pretty young teacher found herself as fodder in the teenage grapevine. That she had a romantic affair in the works was big news. That it was with one of the students’ fathers was bigger. And finally, that one of the senior girls was mixed up in all the action sealed the deal. Suddenly, Miss Hannigan was the most exciting teacher in the history of Birch Harbor High.

  Vivi was to return to school on Wednesday, and that was the event that triggered Kate’s insistence that they “get together and hash things out.”

  Clara wasn’t a hashing-out type of person. And she really was nervous to see Jake again. Especially now that he had suggested that both she and he needed some form of defense… and that even Mercy knew it and was offering her help, the poor thing.

  “Did we do something wrong?” Clara asked him.

  He shook his head. “I hope not.”

  She nodded. Clara hadn’t done anything wrong. Even if Megan, Brian, and Sarah seemed to think so. Had Jake? Her gut said no. Her family loyalty said yes. And the moment Clara realized that—that it was her family who was inadvertently wedging themselves between her and what might be someone special—she let out a breath. And smiled.

  “Is she going to come in?” Clara gestured past Jake to Mercy.

  “In a bit,” he replied. She wanted us to speak alone. Or, maybe, I guess, she wanted to be alone while you and I spoke. I’m still not sure which.”

  Clara inhaled and exhaled, worrying her fingers together until she managed to meet Jake’s stare. “We have a little while until the others are due. Should we walk and talk?”

  Jake agreed, and Clara pushed the door open. “Mercy,” she said, lifting her voice across the short distance. “Come in and make yourself at home. We’ll be back soon, okay?”

  Once Mercy shuffled in, Clara and Jake stepped off the porch and headed past the small clearing, toward the creek.

  For some moments, they were quiet. A sigh escaped Clara’s mouth every few paces, though, as if she couldn’t get her breath.

  Soon, they found themselves standing at the edge of the running water.

  “Do you come out here often?” Jake asked.

  A chilly breeze curled through the trees and whipped a strand of her hair across her mouth. Clara slid a finger between her lips to free it and shook her hair back. She rubbed her hands up her arms. “Not really. I suppose I should.”

  “It’s beautiful,” he replied, turning to her. “Oh, you’re cold. Here.” He pulled her into his body, less out of affection and more out of service. The gesture had the same effect as if they were on their third date. The break in tension. The physical contact. Clara couldn’t tell if it made her colder or hotter, and she regretted everything about the past few days. Ignoring his messages. Holing up in the cottage yet again, like a recluse.

  She considered what she might say to turn the tide back now, but nothing appropriate came to mind. Instead, she pointed across the creek to an iron fence line. “See that?”

  He nodded, squeezing her again. “Is that the edge of Birch Harbor or something? Are we caged in here?” He laughed lightly, and she did too.

  “It’s Harbor Hills. That’s where the country club is. It’s a gated community.”

  “Oh, right,” Jake replied.

  “I never even knew how close the cottage was to it,” Clara remarked, her body temperature evening out with the mundaneness of their conversation. “My mom went to the country club alm
ost every day. It was, like, her safe haven or something.”

  “Then how did you not know you were close to it?” he asked.

  She nodded, as though she’d been waiting for the chance to explain herself. “I only went once or twice. When she made me go, you know? And we drove out down our drive and onto Maple Wood Boulevard then over to Harbor Ave. and then of course, we cut up Cherry Tree Lane and through the gate and turned right… It was a long way to get to the entrance, and the country club is on the far side of the community. This is just the very back of it. You never would know how close you were, especially if you’re like me.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Clara grinned, more at herself than at the question. “I don’t go outside much, and I have no sense of direction.” Even as she said it, she realized those were two things she wasn’t proud of. Things she might like to change about herself.

  He squeezed her again, and then his hand slipped down her back as he turned to face her. “Clara,” he whispered. She kept her gaze down, but Jake brought his thumb and forefinger to rest beneath her chin, lifting it up. Her pulse stilled at his touch. She didn’t realize they were this close to some form of reconciliation. A second chance when they hadn’t even seen through their first chance. Jake went on, his voice quiet but firm. “What happened with Vivi and Sarah at the school—that has nothing to do with you and me. You do know that, right?”

  She shook her head. “That’s not true,” she protested, knitting her eyebrows together and looking up at him. “Maybe they didn’t name you directly, if that’s what you’re talking about, but I was there. Sarah is my niece. Those girls are my students. It has everything to do with me. I have to go to school now like a teenager rather than a teacher. The kids look at me like I’m Vivi’s competition or something. Or the person who tattled on the new girl. My own sisters seem to hate me.”

  “They don’t hate you. It’s an awkward situation, that’s all. Time will heal it. Today is a good start. We can clear the air, and we can move on.”