“What if Clara’s her teacher next year?”
“Aunt Clara,” Brian corrected in the rearview mirror.
“What if she’s your teacher?” Megan pointed out. “That’s how it is in Birch Harbor.” She let out a happy sigh and shook her head, returning her gaze to the view of the lake as they coasted down Harbor Ave.
From the back seat, Sarah spoke again. This time her voice had lost its edge, and if Megan didn’t know any better, she thought she detected a little trepidation in her otherwise self-assured daughter. “Mom, couldn’t that, I don’t know, be a problem?”
“Couldn’t what be a problem, Sarah?” Megan asked, her adrenaline slowing as she unfastened her seatbelt to walk Sarah inside.
Sarah grabbed her things and popped out of the second seat, joining her mother in the cool night breeze as they strode through the darkness toward Amelia’s front door. “If my cousin is my teacher, I mean,” Sarah answered, turning to Megan on the front porch.
Megan took a deep breath and let it out, reaching her hand to tuck a strand of her daughter’s hair behind her ears. Sarah reminded Megan of herself. Bold, dark, and typically serious. “Sarah, as far as this town knows, Clara is your aunt and we are one, nice big happy family. You have nothing to worry about.” She flicked a glance to the inky water of the lake. “Except for drowning. But don’t worry. Birch Harbor High is inland. Away from the water and away from all that drama. Everything is going to be fine.”
Epilogue
Amelia
Amelia sat at the table, the article clutched in her hands. Michael was tired of mulling it over, but she still had a desperate urge to reach out to this woman. This insufferable islander who was hell-bent on making sure everything was not fine for the Hannigans.
But then she got a text. From Clara. A reply to her earlier question.
Yes. She went to St. Mary’s. With Mom. I found the yearbook. It was in the hope chest…in the cottage.
Continue the Saga
Find out what happens next in Cottage by the Creek.
Ready for a change of scenery? Order Elizabeth Bromke’s standalone novel The Summer Society.
Also by Elizabeth Bromke
Birch Harbor
Hickory Grove
Maplewood
The Summer Society
About the Author
Elizabeth Bromke writes women’s fiction and small-town romance. When she’s not reading or writing, she’s working on a puzzle with her son and husband or taking long walks with her golden retriever, Winnie.
Elizabeth graduated from the University of Arizona where she studied English, theater, and Spanish. She now lives in the mountains with her family and among a chatty variety of woodland creatures. Learn more by visiting her website at elizabethbromke.com.
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