by Susan Wiggs
It didn’t take her long to realize there was no love lost between the eagle and the other birds.
After she’d spent several minutes studying the eagle, it flew off and Beth reached for her robe and headed down the stairs. Not wanting to wake anyone else, she made as little sound as possible.
Her plans were to brew a pot of coffee and take a mug outside to the porch swing. Enjoy the luxury of early morning. She hadn’t done much of that, even with a two-year break from her career. During quiet times, when she allowed her mind to wander, it invariably went searching for memories of Jim. She could think of him now without the crushing burden of grief. Remember the good times and smile, grateful for the life they’d shared. Thank him for the incredible gift of her son. She’d loved her husband, and his death had badly shaken her world and her sense of self. Yet she’d known then and knew now that she had everything she needed to be happy.
She was halfway into the kitchen before she realized John was up and dressed. He sat at the table in a business suit, reading the Seattle morning paper.
“Oh,” she said before she could stop herself.
He lowered the newspaper and frowned. “Morning.”
“Good morning.” Self-consciously she brought her hand to her neckline and clutched the edges of her robe together. “I…I didn’t realize anyone was up.” Since she’d slept so lightly, it surprised her that she hadn’t heard him.
“There’s coffee,” he said, and gestured toward the pot.
“You’re going into work? So early?” She regretted the question as soon as she’d asked.
“I’ll be back late this afternoon.”
“Would you care for breakfast?” she asked, thinking he might want her to cook him something. That was their agreement, after all, and she fully intended to keep her end of the bargain.
“Nothing, thanks.” His gaze didn’t waver from the newspaper. He seemed to resent her intrusion.
“Have a good day, then,” she said, pouring herself a cup of coffee. She was almost out of the kitchen when he stopped her.
“I’ll leave a phone number where I can be reached if you need to get hold of me,” he said.
“Thanks.” But she stayed where she was, suspecting he intended to say something else.
“About Nikki…”
“Yes?” she encouraged. Beth could see she was going to need all the help and advice he had to offer.
He hesitated. “She’s got a chip on her shoulder about all of this.”
Beth smiled despite her effort to suppress any reaction.
“You might have noticed.”
“I did.”
“My daughter hasn’t adjusted very well to the divorce.”
“I’ll be patient with her,” Beth promised. “I won’t force her into anything she doesn’t want to do.”
His eyes revealed his gratitude. “She’s a little difficult.”
“Teenagers can be,” she said, forgetting that Nikki was only twelve and technically not a teenager. Then, because there didn’t seem to be anything left to say, she carried her coffee outside.
The morning was lovely beyond description. Beth sat on the porch swing and gazed out over Puget Sound. A green-and-white Washington State ferry could be seen in the distance. It intrigued her that this island, which seemed so remote, could be only an hour away from a huge metropolitan area like Seattle. Spruce Island was quiet and charming, almost untouched by the busy world bustling around it. That was, no doubt, due to the fact that the only access was by ferry—or, she supposed, by private boat or seaplane. It felt as though she’d stepped back ten or fifteen years the moment she’d walked onto the island.
The screen door opened and Beth turned, expecting John. Instead, it was Paul.
“What are you doing up so early?” she asked.
He rubbed both eyes with his fists and sat down on the porch step. “I woke up and it was morning.”
He sounded none too pleased by the discovery.
Beth leaned back and savored her coffee. If it wasn’t for Paul, she would have left on the first available ferry the minute she learned Mary Jane’s plans had fallen through. But Paul had been looking forward to this trip for months. She could accept the disappointment for herself, but not for her son. Not when he’d already experienced so many.
A part of her still said she should pack her bags and go. John was only being kind in letting her stay. If it was up to Nikki, they would’ve been booted off the property within the first ten minutes.
“What would you like to do today?” Beth asked, figuring he’d reel off a list of suggestions.
“You know what I think, Mom?”
“You’ll have to tell me, since my mind-reading skills aren’t up to par these days.”
He grinned. “I think we should spend the day getting to know Nikki. She isn’t so bad, you know, if you give her a chance.”
Four
Beth: This situation with Nikki just isn’t working out. I want to be her friend, but she won’t let me.
Mary Jane: Then don’t act like a friend—act like a mom.
“Paul and I are going to explore the island,” Beth told Nikki when the girl wandered downstairs shortly after ten o’clock. She wore bulky coveralls and combat boots and her green-tinted hair was pulled away from her face in a spiky ponytail. “Would you like to come?”
Nikki tossed her a defiant look. “Not on your life.”
“We found a tandem and a couple of old bikes in the carriage house,” Paul said with unbounded enthusiasm.
Nikki made a couple of lazy circles with her index finger. “Yippee-skippee.”
“Would you like some breakfast before we go?” Beth asked, wishing she knew how to reach this child. Otherwise, the month would be next to impossible. Beth had expected John’s daughter to turn down the invitation to explore the island. Nevertheless, she’d hoped the girl would warm to them a little—accept her offer of breakfast, maybe even agree to tag along. But she could see it was a lost cause.
“I’ll fix my own breakfast,” Nikki muttered, heading for the kitchen. “If there’s anything to eat in this place.” She cast a disparaging look around. “If I want salmon for dinner, I’ll probably have to catch it myself. Can’t expect much when…” She went on mumbling half under her breath.
Beth felt completely inadequate in dealing with this kid.
“Sure you don’t want to come?” Paul asked.
“Positive.” Nikki dumped cereal in a bowl, then hid behind the refrigerator door as she rummaged for the milk.
“Come on, Mom,” Paul said. “I’ll meet you outside.”
Beth badly wanted to make peace, but she could see it wasn’t going to be easy. Nikki had no incentive.
“I don’t know how long we’ll be,” Beth told her as she walked toward the kitchen door. “Probably not long.”
“Yeah, whatever.”
“Would you like me to pick something up for you while I’m in town?”
“Yeah, would you?”
Beth brightened. This was her first opportunity to prove she wasn’t the enemy. “Sure, what do you need?”
“How about a new life?”
“Oh, Nikki.” Beth stepped toward her, aching to give her a hug. She might have followed the impulse if Nikki hadn’t read her intention, stiffened and abruptly spun around.
“Mom,” Paul called impatiently from the yard. “Come on, let’s go.” He had the tandem out of the garage and was obviously excited about trying it out.
Still Beth hesitated, torn between making peace with John’s daughter and exploring the island with her son.
“Mom!”
“We won’t be long,” Beth said again as she headed out the door.
Paul frowned when he saw her. “Just leave Nikki alone for now,” he advised.
“I wish she’d come.”
“Why?” he asked with all the wisdom of his fifteen years. “She’d go out of her way to make us both miserable. Give her time. She’ll come around.” He
hopped onto the front of the bicycle as if it was understood that he should be the “driver.”
Beth had never ridden on a tandem before and wasn’t convinced it was such a good idea. She might have suggested they ride the other bikes if Paul hadn’t been so keen on trying this. Besides, she wasn’t sure how well she’d do. The last time she’d sat on a bike, it’d been stationary and inside a gym. And that was at least a decade ago.
Paul stood astride the tandem while she climbed on. “You ready?” he asked glancing over his shoulder.
“I…don’t know.” Now that she was actually in the seat, she knew this was a mistake.
“Here we go.”
Before she realized it, the bike was in motion. It wobbled a couple of times before Paul’s feet pumped the pedals, but then they were moving. Well, sort of moving.
“Mom,” Paul grunted. “Are you helping?”
Hard as she tried, her feet kept missing the pedals. “Not yet.”
Paul strained to carry both of them up the short incline in the driveway. Beth couldn’t help it; she found herself giggling. Here was her son, working up a sweat, while she was still struggling to get her feet in place in order to help him.
The bike swayed, and before either of them could react, it toppled onto its side. Luckily the grass cushioned their landing. Beth lay there for a moment, stunned, and then she started to laugh. Really laugh. What a sight they must have made.
“Mom, this isn’t funny,” Paul said, but she could tell from his voice that he was smiling.
Soon they were both sitting up on the lawn, laughing until Beth thought they’d never stop. Paul helped her back to her feet, and as she stood, Beth caught a flash of green. Sure enough, Nikki was staring at them from the window above the kitchen sink. It was the first time she’d seen the girl smile, and the transformation was miraculous.
“You aren’t giving up, are you?” Paul asked.
“Are you kidding?” Beth made a face at him. “I was just beginning to get the hang of this.” There were other things she was beginning to understand, as well.
John arrived back at Rainshadow Lodge at four o’clock. He wasn’t actually supposed to begin work until the following day, but he figured the sooner he got started on this project the better. Maybe he could even finish ahead of schedule and get out of here a week early. His temporary home was hardly going to be a haven of peace and quiet. If Nikki’s attitude wasn’t bad enough, he was stuck playing host to a widow and her teenage son.
He didn’t need the aggravation. Already he could see that he wouldn’t have a moment to himself. Mornings were his, and he liked it that way. Some people woke up cheerful and eager; not John. He eased into the day, accepted it gradually, without rushing. By habit he awoke early, showered, shaved, made coffee and took his time reading the paper.
One thing he didn’t want or need in the morning was a lot of chatter. Nor did he appreciate company. This was his hour alone and he preferred not to share it with anyone else. Including Beth. Yet not ten minutes after he sat down, she’d come into the kitchen, asking questions and making a general nuisance of herself. Well, to be fair, not exactly a nuisance. But he’d have to make sure she understood he didn’t want to be disturbed. If she was awake, fine, but she should stay in some other part of the house. He planned to tell her that at the first opportunity.
To John’s surprise the house was empty. The back door was open and the screen unlatched when he entered the kitchen. A salmon filet was marinating on the island inside a glass baking dish covered with clear wrap.
“Nikki?”
His daughter didn’t respond. Setting aside his briefcase, he worked his tie loose and wandered into the living room.
“Nikki?” he called again, and noticed the front door was wide-open. No one with a shred of self-preservation left a door unlocked in California. Unlocked was one thing, but unlocked and open was beyond comprehension.
He stepped onto the porch and saw his daughter sitting on a large rock that overlooked the beach.
“There you are,” he said, walking toward her.
“Hi, Dad,” she said, smiling at him.
He wasn’t accustomed to a warm greeting from her. “What did you do today?”
“Nothing.”
“I thought Beth and Paul were riding bikes into town.”
“They did.”
“You didn’t join them?”
She rolled her eyes, implying that was a stupid question. “No way.”
He wondered at her mood, which seemed to have improved vastly in the time he’d been away. Perhaps it was wishful thinking on his part. She’d been brooding for so long that anything even resembling a smile encouraged him.
“Where are Beth and Paul now?” he asked, certain he’d noticed the tandem and the two regular bikes when he pulled into the garage.
“There,” she said, and pointed toward the beach.
His gaze followed her gesture and he found mother and son walking along the beach side by side. The tide was out and they appeared to be beachcombing, stopping now and then to lean over and examine something the tide had left behind. Already Beth had a number of seashells cradled in her hands.
Then he heard her laugh. It’d been so long since he’d heard a woman laugh with such sheer pleasure that the sound took him aback for a moment, almost as though he had to identify its source. A brisk wind blew off the water, buffeting the pair.
Paul seemed to be enjoying himself, too. Every little while he’d race ahead of his mother, pick up a rock, stand back and hurl it into the water with all his might.
Beth removed her shoes and left them on the sand. She ventured toward the water and let it lap at her feet, then jumped back the instant the cold surf touched her toes. Her legs were long and white and slender. She really had lovely legs, although that wasn’t something he generally noticed in a woman.
Paul said something that made his mother laugh. Even without knowing what it was, John almost laughed, too. Watching Beth with her son had affected him the same way it had Nikki. That was what her small tentative smile had been about.
“Did you know Paul has his driver’s permit?” Nikki commented as though she found it hard to believe. “He’s fifteen.”
John’s only response was to arch his eyebrows. He wasn’t sure if Nikki’s tone meant the boy was that old or that young.
“Boys don’t mature as fast as girls,” she said, sounding like an expert on the subject of child development.
“Is that right?” he said, playing along. It was unusual to have a conversation with Nikki for more than a few minutes without some kind of conflict arising. He envied the camaraderie between Beth and her son. He would’ve given anything to share that kind of experience with Nikki—to explore the beach, to laugh with his daughter, to tease her and not have her react in anger.
When he first learned he’d been granted sole custody of Nikki, he’d felt relieved. Not for the important reasons; he understood that now. He simply hadn’t wanted to be alone. It’d been difficult enough to lose his wife, to have his marriage jerked out from under him. He hadn’t wanted to lose his daughter, too. Yet in many ways he had lost her.
“I don’t think Paul’s going to be much of a driver,” Nikki said.
“What makes you say that?”
“You should have seen him and his mom on the tandem. I’m telling you, Dad, it was one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen. I laughed so hard I had to hold my stomach.”
She relayed the scene for him, and John soon found himself grinning.
“Did they pick up the salmon while they were in town?” he asked casually.
“Yeah.”
“Did you ask her to?”
“Nope.”
Salmon was his daughter’s favorite dinner; she’d eat it seven nights a week if she could. If she had made some remark, it was considerate of Beth to notice.
Beth and Paul turned back toward the house and must have seen him and Nikki. With a smile as bright as a lighth
ouse beam, Beth raised her free hand above her head and waved.
Even from this distance, John was warmed by her welcome.
Five
Mary Jane: So how’s it going with you and John?
Beth: Going?
Mary Jane: Has he kissed you yet?
Beth: Good grief, no! It isn’t like that with us.
Mary Jane: Listen, girlfriend, this guy is wonderful. He’s smart, gainfully employed and decent. You two have a lot in common. He’s about as high on the food chain as you’re going to get.
“At least come down to the dock with us,” Paul urged Nikki the morning of their scheduled kayaking lesson. The first few days with Nikki had been rough, but Beth soon realized her most powerful ally was her own son. When Paul did the inviting, the chance that Nikki would tag along immediately increased. She’d joined them for a couple of outings, and while she laughed and goofed around with Paul, she kept a protective distance from Beth.
Beth acted as if it was understood that Nikki would be joining them in all their activities. As if this was how things had been planned from the very beginning.
“I’m not getting inside any boat that rolls over in the water,” Nikki protested.
“The least you can do is come down to the dock with us,” Paul said. “It’s better than sitting around the house all day by yourself.”
Nikki hesitated. “Oh, all right,” she muttered with ill grace. “But don’t expect me to change my mind.”
Beth tossed her son a triumphant smile, marveling anew at what an asset he’d turned out to be in this situation. It didn’t hurt any that Nikki and Paul were becoming friends.
Nikki raced upstairs and returned in shorts and tennis shoes—black, of course—with a backpack slung over one shoulder. Once she was ready, they headed toward the carriage house for the bicycles. Up to this point Beth had ridden on the tandem with Paul, but she’d seen Nikki glance enviously at the two of them.
“Nikki,” she whispered conspiratorially, “would you mind riding the tandem with Paul? I don’t seem to be able to get the knack of it and…well, frankly I’m a bit afraid to try it again. I’ll take one of the regular bikes.”