by Sarah Morgan
If a place could keep secrets, then this beach knew all of hers.
She ached for those carefree nights. She ached to be that woman again. She ached for him.
“Great house.” Mack craned her neck to get a better look. “There are balconies on the upstairs bedroom and it has its own staircase down to the beach. How cool is that? Is it a holiday place? Who owns it?”
“Right now, no one,” Scott said. “It’s for sale.”
Lauren tried not to think about a bunch of strangers walking on their beach, trampling on the memories. “I always loved this place.” She was looking at the house but she could feel Scott looking at her.
“I know.”
She turned to look at him and saw all of her memories reflected in his eyes.
“Who wouldn’t love it? It’s a pretty house. Pretty perfect in fact.” Mack gazed at it dreamily. “I wonder what sort of person is going to buy it.”
Scott’s gaze didn’t shift from Lauren’s face. “A guy who loves the ocean, but has decided that the time has come to live near it and not on it. A guy who needs space because although right now it’s just him and his dog, they’re both hoping that’s going to change.” He paused, taking in Lauren’s shocked expression. “A guy who made a big mistake once in his life, but believes in second chances.”
Lauren felt her heart miss a beat. “You’ve bought this house?”
“Not yet. I wanted your opinion first. It’s important that you love it, too. That’s why I brought you here today. To check if this place works for you. It’s close to your sister and not far from the Sail Loft.” He tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “What do you think?”
What did she think?
“I thought—I thought—” She looked into his eyes, and then at his mouth. She wished she could see into his heart. “I thought you were going to tell me you couldn’t do this anymore and were going sailing for the winter. I thought you were leaving again.”
Her knees were shaking and she closed her hands around his biceps to steady herself.
Scott gave a rough exclamation and pulled her close, this time ignoring Mack.
“I’m not leaving you.” He held her tightly, kissing first her head, then her cheek and finally her mouth. “Never again.” He breathed the promise against her lips. “Never again. Not unless you send me away and probably not even then.”
She felt herself come alive under his hands and mouth. The present and the past melted together and her anxiety fell away.
“Hello! Teenager present.” Mack’s voice cut through the clouds of excitement. “Embarrassing public displays of affection are discouraged. You’re supposed to wait until I’m not around to kiss my mom.”
Scott lifted his head slowly. “You’re not the public.” Keeping one arm round Lauren he held the other out to Mack. “You’re my daughter. And I intend to kiss your mom a lot, so you might as well get used to it.”
Mack muttered something about living permanently in the Sail Loft with her grandmother, but Lauren saw her eyes mist and after a moment’s hesitation she slipped into the circle of security Scott was offering.
“So does this mean you’re thinking of sticking around?”
Lauren detected the insecurity under the casual tone and it made her heart ache all over again. One day, perhaps, Mack would stop thinking she was going to lose everything she loved.
Scott obviously heard the same note of insecurity because he nodded.
“I’m sticking.”
“Are you sure? I mean, you don’t know how annoying I can be. You might change your mind when we’ve had our first fight.”
Scott’s eyes gleamed. “I think I can handle it.”
“That’s good to know because I might have told a few of my friends that you’re my dad so it would be kind of awkward if you walked away now.”
Scott tightened his grip and Mack flushed pink with pleasure.
They stood, the three of them, feeling the boat move gently with the water, looking at the shore.
Mack broke the silence first. “Are you asking us to live there with you?”
“One day I hope you will, but I know it’s early days and you might rather wait a little while. The house will be here when you’re ready. And I’ll be here, too. Whether you take a week, a year or ten years, I’ll be here.”
Lauren felt the strength of his arm around her.
She hadn’t asked for her marriage to end, but it had ended anyway and the fact that she had chosen to keep living didn’t make her a bad person. Ed would have wanted her to be happy.
Scott was right that they needed time, but she didn’t think she was going to need much time. Time, she’d discovered, was precious. It didn’t do to waste a moment of it.
Mack nudged Scott. “Do I get to call you Dad or is that freaky?”
“You can call me what you like.”
“Cool. And when we move in, do we get a puppy?”
“She never gives up, does she?” Scott looked at Lauren.
Her head was spinning and her emotions were so close to the surface she didn’t know whether to cry or smile. “She never gives up. Welcome to parenthood. It’s a type of erosion. Gradually, over time, you’re worn down like the rocks on the beach.”
Scott winced. “Sounds tough. You’re going to have to share your secrets with me.”
“The secret,” Mack said helpfully, “is to say yes to everything. It makes life simpler. Yes, Mack, of course you can stay out late and drink and take drugs. Have fun. You’d like a car? Yes, Mack. Which make and model? A new laptop? Great idea. See? It’s easy. If I ask you a question, the answer is yes.”
“I think that’s called cupboard love.” Scott was smiling, and they watched as Mack walked across the boat to stop Captain from hurling himself into the water.
When Mack was out of earshot, he turned back to Lauren. “And how about you?” His voice was soft and for her alone. “Maybe it’s the wrong time for you to hear this, but I love you, Laurie.”
It was never the wrong time to hear those words.
“I love you, too.” She felt his arms tighten around her.
“We’ll take this at whatever pace you want, but one day, at some point in the future, I’m going to ask you a question. Do you think your answer will be yes?”
“You’re going to ask me if I want a puppy?”
He laughed and she laughed, too, and leaned her head against his chest.
She was going to be fine. Maybe not right away, but gradually, over time she’d piece herself together.
Her old life had gone, but there was a new one waiting for her. All she had to do was take that step...
36
Sisters
Bond: a force or feeling that unites people
“I can’t believe we’re doing this.”
“I thought you wanted me to be more adventurous. More like my old self.” She grabbed her sister’s hand and pulled her to the railing.
“You want me to jump, too? No way. I’m the one who stays on shore ready to rescue you. I’m your lifeline.”
“Not this time. This time we jump together.”
“Who will rescue us if we both get into trouble?”
“We’ll rescue each other.” She climbed over the rail and poised, ready to jump. It was an island tradition, but one she hadn’t followed in years.
She remembered all the times she’d leaped without even thinking about what might be underneath. With the naivety of youth, she hadn’t once thought about all the things that could go wrong. When you were young you thought you were invincible.
Was she too old for this?
No. You were never too old to leap, especially when you had someone you trusted by your side.
Her sister climbed over the railing and clung tightly. “Jaws is just a movie, right?” She st
ared down into the water. “It never actually happened.”
“If a shark appears, I promise to distract it.”
“What are you going to do? Tempt it with salted caramel ice cream?”
“Who said anything about ice cream? If it’s between you and salted caramel ice cream, the shark gets you.”
“Great. Of all the sisters I could have had, I got you.”
“It was your lucky day.”
“That’s not how I see it. I really can’t believe I’m actually going to do this. Does this mean you’re going to be dragging me into trouble at every available opportunity like you used to?”
“No, but it might happen occasionally.” She felt a stab of guilt. “You don’t have to jump if you don’t want to.” She felt her sister’s hand tighten on hers.
“I’ll go wherever you go. We’re sisters. Sisters always stick together. I made a promise.”
Most people wouldn’t have made a promise like that, Lauren thought, which was why she was lucky to have a sister like hers.
“If I could have chosen my sister, I would have chosen you. We’ll go on three. One, two—”
* * * * *
Acknowledgments
This book was a departure for me. Bigger in scope, with more characters, breadth and depth. I probably wouldn’t have written it were it not for the encouragement of my wonderful agent Susan Ginsburg and the support of Dianne Moggy, Susan Swinwood and Lisa Milton. I’m grateful for the faith they have shown in me throughout my career and for their insightful editorial comments as this book developed.
People often assume that a book, even a work of fiction, is autobiographical in some way, but one of the many great things about being a writer is that you can invent families and problems that are entirely unlike your own. Fortunately for me, my family is much less complicated than the ones I write about. They give me very little fodder for a juicy story, but they give me no end of loving support and I’m massively grateful for that.
Writing the book is only the beginning, and it’s the collective effort of so many hardworking people on the publishing teams that help each book find an audience. To everyone at HQN in the US and HQ Stories in the UK, thank you for everything you do.
Particular thanks go to my wonderful editor Flo Nicoll for her insight and patience in reading multiple drafts. Without her exceptional skills, this book wouldn’t exist. We have worked together for five years and I feel very lucky. No author could have a more brilliant editor.
To my nonwriter friends who listen while I talk about characters who don’t exist, and who patiently reschedule lunches and coffee dates when I’m on a deadline, thank you.
To my writer friends, particularly Nicola Cornick, Jill Shalvis and RaeAnne Thayne, without your cheerleading, understanding and humour I doubt I’d write anything at all. With you in my life, writing never feels like a lonely profession.
Last but not least I thank my readers, many of whom have followed me through all the various stages of my writing career. So many of you take the time to message me and write reviews, and I’m eternally grateful for that. Without you I wouldn’t be doing this job, so thank you for helping to make my dream come true. I hope you enjoy this book.
ISBN-13: 9781488095375
How to Keep a Secret
Copyright © 2018 by Sarah Morgan
With thanks to Collins Dictionary for permission to use their dictionary definitions.
All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this ebook on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 22 Adelaide St. West, 40th Floor, Toronto, Ontario M5H 4E3, Canada.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
® and ™ are trademarks of the publisher. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office and in other countries.
www.Harlequin.com