Sunrise on Cedar Key

by Terri DuLong

  “Yup.”

  “Do you find them to be as interesting as mine were?”

  I nodded. “Sometimes I can’t figure out exactly what they’re supposed to mean, but if I slow down and take more quiet time, the answers usually arrive. Not to say I always like the answers.”

  Chloe smiled. “Well, thanks. Thanks for reading them for me. You know ... I was ... kind of wondering ...”

  I waited to hear what she was obviously having a hard time saying.

  She cleared her throat and picked up the cards, forming them back into a single deck. “Well, you know how I’d mentioned Cameron earlier this evening? I was wondering if you thought it might be okay if I invited him to dinner.”

  My sister was asking my advice? For the first time I could remember, it appeared that she was.

  “Ah, yeah, sure. What did you have in mind?”

  “Well, that’s where I’d need your help. When I was in his shop this afternoon, he seemed overly attentive to me. I mean ... I haven’t dated in years, but I haven’t forgotten what it felt like to know when a man was showing some interest.” She took another sip of wine. “And I think he was. So ... I just thought it might be nice to invite him here for dinner. But I don’t want to appear ... forward ... so I thought maybe you and Lucas and Aunt Maude could be at the dinner also. I’d do the cooking.” She paused for a moment. “Oh, maybe I should just forget it. It’s probably a silly idea.”

  I reached across the table for Chloe’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “No, no. It’s not silly in the least. I think it’s a great idea, and I happen to know that Cameron isn’t seeing anybody at the moment. He lives alone. I think he’d be flattered if you invited him.”

  “Really?” The look on my sister’s face reminded me of an excited teenager.

  “Really,” I said. “And yes, of course we’ll all be here to share the dinner with you and make it a little easier.”

  That huge smile I’d seen earlier covered my sister’s face again. “Oh, Gracie, thanks. Okay, then. I’ll go down and see him tomorrow and extend that invitation.”

  I had a feeling that card had been correct—some interesting possibilities were around the corner for Chloe.

  After she went back downstairs, I settled myself on the sofa with my knitting. The soft strains of Mozart’s Symphony no. 40 filled the room, causing me to relax and let my mind wander as I knitted.

  I must have dozed off, because suddenly my eyes flew open and I had a feeling I wasn’t alone. The same kind of feeling that I’d had when I first moved in. My glance scanned the room. Nothing out of place, but the room felt exceptionally cold. Nobody here except me and Annie, and she was sound asleep at the foot of the sofa. It was then that I recalled what must have been a dream. Two little girls, unfamiliar to me, had been running down a road, holding hands, laughing. They came to an abrupt stop when they encountered a long brick wall. The laughing turned to crying—and that was when I woke up.

  I sat up and placed my knitting on the table. What the heck was that all about, I wondered. Did the two little girls represent Chloe and me? I was a firm believer that dreams sent us messages while our mind rested. I shivered and got up to close the windows.

  Overtired, I thought. You’re overtired, Grace, and need to call it a night.

  When I returned from helping Lucas at the coffee shop the following afternoon, I headed up to the loft in the carriage house. Walking up the stairs, I recalled my tumble from the week before and how concerned Lucas had been.

  I’d now opened my heart to him by sharing a part of myself that I’d shared with no other man since leaving Beau. The surprising fact was that it hadn’t seemed to diminish Lucas’s feelings for me in the least.

  I sat down at the computer and smiled as I checked for any e-mail inquiries on bookings. Two more. One from a woman in Boston saying she was interested in booking the last week in January and another from a woman in Tampa, requesting the same weekend.

  If they decided to book, we’d have our six reservations. It had definitely paid off for me to do all the advertising that I’d done.

  I called the first one, Tara Lesley in Boston.

  “Oh, my cousin and I would love to come,” she gushed. “I’ll give you my credit card information now and we’ll be confirmed. My cousin is flying over from England. We only recently found each other in the family tree, and we’re so excited about getting together. Especially since we’re both avid knitters. This will be a great celebration for us. Somebody will be doing that class on intarsia, right?”

  I smiled. Another great story for two of the women attending. “Yes. Eudora Foster will be doing that all day Saturday. You’d like to sign up for that?”

  “Yes and also my cousin, Julia Beecham. Put us both down for the class.”

  I took all of the information. “Any other questions?”

  “I’ll be coming with my dog. Can you recommend a place to stay?”

  “The Faraway Inn is pet friendly and it’s only a short walk from there to the carriage house.”

  “Great,” she said. “I’ll call them when we hang up.”

  Next I dialed the number for Riley Jackson in Tampa.

  “Oh, yes, my friend and I love Cedar Key and we want to come for a Blue Moon Knitting Retreat. I’m afraid neither one of us are expert knitters though. Will that be a problem?”

  “Not at all. We are offering an advanced class on Saturday, but you can just join the group and knit whatever you’d like.”

  “Oh, good, then we’d like to confirm. My friend’s name is Devon Hall.”

  After taking the rest of her information, I hung up the phone and smiled. Well, I thought. Not bad. Not bad at all. And I had a feeling that before long we’d be fully booked for months at a time.

  I was about to enter all the information into our Day Runner when the phone rang and I answered to hear Suellen’s voice.

  “Hey, girlfriend,” I said. “How’d ya know I needed a break right about now?”

  “I didn’t, but I’m glad you’re not busy.”

  Her voice lacked the usual animation. “What’s up?”

  Before she got any more words out, Suellen was sobbing across the line.

  “My God, what’s wrong? Are you okay? Is it Ashley?” I gripped the phone tighter.

  “No, no ... Ashley’s fine. It’s Miss Dixie ... she passed away about an hour ago. There she was doing just fine since her heart attack last year, and boom, she had another one... .”

  Suellen began crying again.

  “Oh, no!” I said. “I’m so sorry. Another heart attack?”

  “Yup, and this one took her off to the pearly gates. I’m the one that called nine one one. She called me around five, said she wasn’t feeling so good, so I rushed right over to her house. The ambulance came, and I followed them to the hospital. Within an hour she was gone. The doctor came out and told me there wasn’t anything they could do. He said her heart was just worn out ... and she’s gone.”

  I could hear the sadness and shock in my friend’s voice. “Gosh, I’m so sorry, Suellen.” Why were words always so inadequate at a time like this? “Is there anything I can do? Do you want me to come up there to be with you?” I knew how close Suellen was to Miss Dixie. The woman had been more like a grandmother to her.

  I heard a hiccup come across the line and then she said, “You’d do that for me? You’d really come back to Brunswick?”

  Without hesitating, I said, “Of course I would! That’s what best friends are for. I could drive up tomorrow.”

  Her crying had subsided and I heard a smile in her tone. “No wonder you’ve always been my best friend, but no, sugar, you’re busy enough there. I’ll be okay. Really. Besides, Miss Dixie had no family, and she’d always told me she didn’t want a service or anything like that. She used to say, ‘Once the good Lord decides it’s time for me to join Him, there ain’t no need to prolong my time here on Earth.’ I knew her heart was bad, but gee, I didn’t think her time here was that limited
.”

  I knew Miss Dixie was in her early eighties, and Aunt Maude was a young and healthy seventy-two, but I was still uncomfortable with the fact that my aunt wouldn’t always be with me either.

  “I know,” I told Suellen. “Gosh, are you sure you don’t want me to drive up there?” And then another thought occurred to me. Her job. Where did that leave her position at the bed and breakfast?

  As if reading my thoughts, she said, “No, really. There isn’t anything you can do, but thank you for offering. I’m just wondering when I’ll have to close the bed and breakfast. Miss Dixie had told me that since she had no family to leave it to, it would go up for sale as part of her estate and she wanted the money donated to a charity.”

  “Oh, cripe! So that means that you’ll soon be out of a job?”

  “I’m afraid so, but ... I have experience running the Magnolia Inn, so hopefully it won’t take too long before I find something else.”

  My thought was, In this economy? But I stayed positive. “Oh, I’m sure you’re right.”

  “Everything okay with you? Has Chloe settled in all right?”

  “Yeah, everything is fine here, and I think my sister is making an attempt to turn her life around. We’re now fully booked for the first retreat in late January, and I’m really excited about all of it.”

  “That’s great. Especially about Chloe. I still can’t get over what Parker did to her. I mean, she could be difficult, but still ... she gave him the best years of her life, and look what he did in return—she’s left completely alone. Sometimes life’s a bitch, huh?”

  “Yup, it sure can be. But it also beats the alternative,” I said, thinking of Miss Dixie.

  As I hung up the phone, a brilliant idea occurred to me and I hoped I could make it happen.

  16

  I flipped the page of the calendar on the desk to November. I had been spending more and more time in my loft office, but Blue Moon Knitting Retreats was now booked through the end of May. I got up and walked to the coffeemaker to pour myself another cup, glancing at the clock. Just after five. Lucas would be arriving shortly.

  I had continued helping him at the coffee café on weekends because he still hadn’t found anybody to replace me. I loved spending time with him, but my own time was becoming more limited due to the increase in the knitting retreat business.

  “I’m here,” I heard him say, and looked over the railing to see him enter the carriage house. The excitement I always felt when I saw him hadn’t declined at all in the past two months.

  “Thanks for coming over. Come on up. Would you like some coffee?”

  He laughed as he bounded up the stairs. “I think I’ve had my quota for today, but thanks. You said you wanted to speak with me about something?”

  “Yeah,” I said, sitting on the daybed and gesturing for him to join me. “I had an idea. Now I want you to be honest with me if you don’t think it’s a good one.”

  “Okay,” Lucas said, his expression showing he was clearly interested.

  “Well, you know my friend Suellen in Brunswick ...”

  “Yes. I met her a few times when she dropped by my bookshop there.”

  Right, I thought. She was there checking you out so she could decide if you were suitable for me, but of course I refrained from telling him this.

  I nodded. “Well, I’m afraid Suellen is out of a job.” I went on to explain her situation.

  “So you’d like me to consider her as your replacement?”

  “Yeah, and of course I’ll be the one to train her with the coffee machines and everything. She’s very dependable and a good worker. I don’t think you’ll be sorry.”

  “I trust your recommendation,” he said, and then that slow, sexy smile crossed his face. “But I won’t lie—I’ll miss you there.”

  I leaned forward to place a kiss on his lips. “I’ll miss you, too, but we’ll just have to spend more time together away from the bookshop.”

  “It’s a deal,” he said, running his hand down the side of my face. “So she’s planning to move to Cedar Key?”

  I laughed. “Well, Suellen doesn’t know it yet, but yes. She’s single, her one daughter is off to college, she loves visiting here—I don’t think it’ll be a problem at all for her to relocate.”

  “That’s great. Seems you’ve worked it all out.”

  “Thanks so much, Lucas. I think Suellen will be pretty excited about this.”

  And I was right.

  “You’re kidding me! You want me to come and work at Lucas’s coffee café? I could live on Cedar Key? Be there all the time with you? We could be best friends again like when we were kids? No more just seeing each other once a year? We could share each other’s secrets and we wouldn’t have to ...”

  “Whoa! Hold on and slow down, Suellen,” I told her, laughing into the phone. “Let me get this straight—you think you might be interested?”

  I heard her laughter matching mine.

  “Gosh, no, whatever gave you that idea? Of course, I’m interested! I can hardly believe this is happening. It was bad enough with Miss Dixie dying, then I lost my job, and in the past week I’ve had no luck at all trying to find a new one.”

  “Well, girlfriend, you have one now if you want it.”

  “I accept. When can I start?”

  “That’s entirely up to you, but the sooner the better. I’m getting swamped with work for the knitting retreats.”

  “Well, let’s see ... Miss Dixie’s attorney told me to honor only the bookings through the middle of the month. I’ve called all the others, explained the circumstances, and the attorney is refunding their deposits. So it looks like I’ll be free to leave here in about two weeks. How’s that sound?”

  “Perfect! You’ll be here in time to share Thanksgiving with us. I can’t wait. Oh, and you can share my apartment until you find your own place. I have the extra bedroom.”

  “That would be fun and one continuous pajama party, but I can afford to get my own place. Nothing fancy. Just a small cottage to rent. So ya think you could find me something before I get there? Then I could arrange to have my furniture delivered and wouldn’t have to put it in storage. I’ll take you up on your offer, though, and spend a night or two at your place till I get settled in.”

  “Sure. I’ll start looking around for you. Aunt Maude will be so happy that you’re coming.”

  “Wait till I tell Ashley about this. She won’t believe it, and she’ll be so excited for both of us.”

  I smiled. “And now she’ll have to come here to visit you, which means I’ll also get to see my goddaughter.”

  “Oh, hey, what’s the latest update with Lucas? Anything new to report? And how’s Chloe doing?”

  “You sure you’re not just coming here to get all the current updates on my love life?”

  Suellen laughed. “Well, you have to admit, it’s a hell of a lot more interesting than mine is.”

  “Not much to report, but maybe by the time you arrive I’ll have something new to share with you. And I do believe Chloe has a new male interest in her life.”

  “Get outta here! Chloe?”

  “Yup, and you should see the transformation she’s made—lost some weight, new hairstyle ... she’s looking pretty chic.”

  “I’ll be damned. Gee, maybe there’s hope for me after all. Who’s the new guy?”

  I laughed and went on to explain about Cameron Marshall. “Thing is, I think she’s a bit shy. She’s wanted to invite him for dinner but hasn’t done so yet. He takes her out for coffee, and she drops by his jewelry shop, but so far it hasn’t progressed beyond that.”

  “Well, I hope that goes well for her. After what Parker did, she deserves a little pleasure in life—may he rot in hell.”

  That was one of the things I loved about Suellen. She told it like it was.

  “I know. Listen, I’ve gotta run. I’ll share the great news about you coming with Lucas and I’ll tell Aunt Maude. I’ll give you a call when I find a rental I think yo
u might like.”

  “Sounds great. Love you. Oh, and Grace ... thank you.”

  “The pleasure’s all mine. Love you too,” I said.

  Suellen arrived on Cedar Key two days before Thanksgiving. The day before her arrival I was sitting in my great room attempting to finish up the baby sweater for Monica. A knock on the door preceded my sister calling out, “Are you home, Grace?”

  “Come on in,” I answered back.

  Chloe walked in and bent down to pat Annie before settling herself in the chair across from me.

  “What’s up?” I asked.

  “Well ... I ... I asked Cameron if he’d like to join us for Thanksgiving dinner. You said Lucas was also coming, so I thought it might be a good time to have him here.”

  My sister had finally decided to take some action. “Great. That’ll be fun, and I’m sure Cameron was grateful for the invitation, rather than be alone.”

  “He was. Well, he seemed to be, but mine wasn’t the only invitation. He said a few other people had told him to come by for dinner and then he said he was confirming mine.”

  “Right. That’s just what people do on this island. Nobody lets anybody be alone on Thanksgiving, so dinner invitations are offered. Since he quickly accepted yours, I’d say he likes you, Chloe.” I noticed a doubtful expression cross her face. “You don’t seem convinced.”

  “Oh, yeah, he probably does. That isn’t what I’m concerned about though,” she said, leaning over to run her hands through Annie’s fur.

  “Then what is it?”

  She continued patting Annie, avoiding eye contact with me. “Well, I was ... wondering ... if maybe ... you could help me decide what I should wear that day. This seems like a date to me, and I haven’t been on one of those in many years. I’m not sure what’s appropriate.”

  I stifled a giggle. My forty-eight-year-old sister was stressing about what to wear for a simple Thanksgiving dinner? But then it occurred to me that she was actually asking for my advice. Something she’d not done my entire life.