by Garcia, Rita
Mark had sat back down, and Carrie smiled at Sam. “We’d like that.” Wouldn’t we, hon?”
“You bet.” Mark nodded. “Give me a call and we’ll set something up, soon.”
We exchanged goodbyes and made our way down the stairs and to the parking lot. While we had dinner, haziness had settled over Serenity Cove. “Mark is Thelma’s son, we were buddies all through school.” I made a right on Shoreview Drive.
“They seem like a nice couple, I’d enjoy getting together with them.” Sam’s comment pleased me. She and Carrie would probably hit it off. They were both soft spoken and sweet—of course only one sent my pulse racing.
We pulled in behind the bookshop and I walked her to the door. “I need to get home.” I didn’t want to tell her my leg throbbed from being on it too long.
“Thanks for going with me to John’s.” She branded my cheek with a kiss.
I hugged her, wishing I didn’t have to let her go, now or ever. She lingered in my arms. I stepped back. “Do you realize how crazy I am about you?” I laced my fingers through her hair. “Isn’t it time we gave us a chance—see where it might lead?”
“Yes.” The word flowed breathlessly from her parted lips. She tilted her face up. I nipped her lower lip and explored the fullness of her smile. My hand caressed her back as I ravaged her mouth again. She moaned softly and with every ounce of willpower I owned—I pulled away.
She placed her hands on my chest. “See you tomorrow?”
I managed a nod and watched her go inside—the last thing I wanted was to leave.
My mind on autopilot, I drove the coastal road home. All I could think about was her kiss. Had this beautiful creature really said yes? Would she really stay? Would life really give us a chance?
Chapter Thirty-five
With eager anticipation, I envision being surrounded by lace, silk, and chiffon. And Maggie helping me plan a small eloquent ceremony on the bluff. I imagined the look on Logan’s face as I strolled toward him to say, I do. Oh, my, talk about fantasies. It’s not as though he asked me to marry him. ~Journal entry
Magnolia’s Antiques was the perfect place to find a friend and, with any luck, a cuppa. I stepped inside and looked up to see whether the brass ship bell had announced my arrival—it swung back and forth.
“For hundreds of years, mariners used a ship bell to regulate time.”
“I could spend hours in your shop hearing about the history of the pieces.” I followed Maggie to the table already laid for tea. An onlooker would have thought she’d been expecting me.
“These teacups are lovely.” I tilted the cup and inspected the design. “Makes me think romance is in the air.” Or was it my imagination working overtime.
“Arrived yesterday. They’re early nineteen hundreds, Doulton Watteau pattern. I adore the antique flow blue. Isn’t this Victorian courting scene exquisite?”
“Flow blue?”
“The blue glaze blurred or flowed during the firing process. They were first used around 1820. The blue and white china pieces are highly collectible.”
“I’m honored to use them. Shall I pour?” I chuckled at my attempt at sounding proper as I reached for the matching teapot.
Maggie placed berry crepes on two small plates. “Imagine the women who sat with friends drinking from these very cups more than a hundred years ago—sisterhood through time.” She held the delicate cup in her hand.
“Incredible. A story could be written following a tea set from generation to generation.” My mind started plotting, taking my excitement to the limit. I hadn’t entertained writing a novel since college.
“How was the visit to your grandparents?”
“Nothing changed.” I smiled teasingly at her.
“I’ll bite. What’s the glowing smile for?” Laughter filled her eyes. Had Logan already told her?
“Have you spoken with Logan?”
“Not since I saw the two of you yesterday.” She reached over and touched my arm. “Tell me, the suspense is killing me here.”
“Logan and I are official. We’re dating.”
She clapped a couple of times and grasped her hands against her chest. “I am thrilled for you. Does this mean you’re staying here in Serenity Cove?” The way her lips moved I felt the anticipation of her words.
“I’m not sure at this point what it means.”
The light in her eyes dulled, and the corners of her mouth turned down. “Sam. I couldn’t be happier about your news. I loved Anne, and I’ve come to admire you as well. But I’m concerned about Logan.” She ran a small silver dessert fork through the crumbs on her plate. “I’m going to be blunt.” Her frown bordered on irritation. “He’s in love with you. I see it in his eyes when he looks at you. I see it in his smile as he talks to you. I hear it in the way he speaks your name. If you’re intent on leaving and breaking his heart—it’s better you leave now.” She placed her napkin on the table—I followed her with my eyes as she walked over to help a customer.
The sting the slap her words had delivered left me spinning. She reached me as I pushed on the door. “I love you like a sister. He’s my brother.” She gave me a hug. “You’ll work it all out.” I loved Maggie like a sister, too. The last thing I wanted to do was to hurt her, or Logan.
Her remarks had merely buttressed what I already knew. Had I been too hasty in saying yes to Logan? In my apartment, I tossed suitcases on the bed. Tears welled up. Maggie had given me a reality check. She had come close to losing her brother, and now she feared I was going to hurt him, with a pain that cut deeper than a bullet.
I texted Logan and asked him to come by. Hopefully eyedrops would clear away the redness in my eyes—the last thing I wanted was to use womanly wiles to elicit his pity. Close to the time for him to arrive, Goldie nudged me.
I opened the door and Goldie wormed her way in front of me. He bent down, greeted her, stood back up and planted a light kiss on my lips. “What’s up?”
I inhaled the woodsy smell of his aftershave and my heart leaped to take the conversation in a different direction, like a student waving her hand and jumping up and down because she has the correct answer. But I held my ground. “Let’s sit in here.” I led him to the sofa.
I folded my shaking hands in my lap. “I want to be honest with you. I don’t want any misconceptions between us.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Why do I think my sister is behind this?”
“This is a conversation we need to have. I can’t deny there’s something special between us. My pulse races when you come into the room. When we’re together, my happiness meter breaks all records.” I took a deep breath before I delivered the next blow. “My life isn’t in a good place right now. As much as I want to tell you I’ll stay—I can’t make promises I might not keep.”
He wiped a tear from my face. “I haven’t asked for promises—I’ve only asked you to give us a chance.” He placed his head on mine. I fell under his spell as he pulled away and tilted my face up. “When I saw you in the hospital after your fall, I saw the world in your eyes—a world I wanted to be part of. I’d like to see where it takes us.”
My planned script had been shredded into tiny pieces. In answer, I raised my mouth and allowed the burn of his kiss to caress my senses. I pulled away. “I think Goldie needs to go out.” I desperately needed air.
We fell into line behind the little dog as she scampered down the stairs. While she ran around her routine course, I asked him to watch her for a minute.
I strolled through the back door of Maggie’s shop, where I found her opening cartons of merchandise. “Maggie?”
She rushed to me. “I’m so sorry.” I could tell from the pink rims of her eyes she’d been weeping.
“Don’t be. Logan and I talked—for now we’d like to see where our hearts take us.” I hugged her. “I promise to always be honest with Logan.” At the door I turned. “Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
I mirrored her actions and dashed a wayward t
ear with the back of my hand. “See you in a while.”
I returned and found Logan and Goldie hot into a ball game. Each time he threw the ball, wonder dog leaped into the air and caught it. “She had no intention of running after it.” I laughed and glanced at Logan. I had no urge to run, either.
Chapter Thirty-six
On my way out, I stopped by Hank’s desk. He glanced up from the computer screen. “Need something, sir?”
“Put me on the night shift. Tonight.” I hadn’t gotten the okay from Doc, but I needed my normal routine.
“Nicole’s already scheduled.” Hank clicked the correct spreadsheet in his computer.
“Take her off. Put me on.” I was being unfair to Nicole—I’d take it up with her later. Either this, or go mad from sitting at my desk for one more day.
I dashed home, arriving back at the station in time for my shift. Alec followed me out to the patrol car. “What are you doing?”
“Riding along.”
Friends. Gotta love ’em. The night was quiet as we destroyed all evidence of the coffee and donuts from our first stop. It wasn’t long until we received the expected Friday night call to break up a fight at Mick’s Bar, on the outskirts of town. A few hours later another call came in, a dog hit by a car near the cove. We headed to the location while Alec put in a call to Dr. Victoria Katz.
The veterinarian lived near the scene and arrived before we did. I walked to the side of the road where she knelt by the dog. “Hi, Tori. How’s it going?”
“He’ll need x-rays. But I think it’s only a fractured leg—he’s lucky. Will you get the carrier out of my van?”
“I’ll get it.” Alec returned from the van and set the carrier on the ground next to the dog. “Any tags?”
“None. The way his ribs protrude—definitely a stray.” Victoria continued her examination.
“Looks like a Husky,” I said. I knelt next to her, ignoring the cramp in my leg. I rubbed the dog’s head. The brown color on his jowls and the black around his eyes looked as if he’d dressed for a masquerade ball. “He’s a beauty.”
She finished wrapping gauze around the dog’s leg. “My guess is a Husky mix—he has markings of a Lab. One blue eye and one brown—not unusual in a Husky.”
“He’s friendly.” I pushed up off the ground. Alec grabbed my arm and assisted me. Then he helped load the dog into the van.
“Call me with an update.” I waved to Victoria as I climbed back into the cruiser.
I finished my shift, and headed home for a few hours sleep. Before going to bed, I texted Sam and invited her to breakfast later that morning—it was already past midnight.
I pulled up as she twisted the key in the lock of the shop door. She turned, the sweetness of her smile causing a pause in my breathing.
“Hi. We could walk to Rubi’s.” She pointed toward the diner as she climbed into the passenger seat.
I leaned across the seat and properly greeted her. “If you don’t mind tagging along, I want to follow up on a case from last night first.” A few minutes later, we knocked on the rear door of the vet’s office. Victoria let us in and I voiced appropriate introductions before getting down to business. “How’s the patient?”
“Getting ready to call the shelter in Mariner Bay. The bone in his leg is definitely fractured. Otherwise, he in good shape.” Victoria led the way to the dog’s cage and opened the door.
“Oh, he’s gorgeous.” Sam reached in and stroked the dog’s back.
“What’s the procedure to adopt him?” I looked at Sam still ruffling the dog’s fur.
“Normal procedure would be to wait a few days to see if anyone claims him. In this case, he is extremely undernourished—I’m confident he’s a stray. I checked and he doesn’t have a microchip. Know someone who might be interested?”
Uttering a sigh, I crawled out on the proverbial limb. “Yeah. I’ll take him.”
Sam laughed and hugged me. “Look—Goldie’s talking to him through the cage.”
“Is he neutered? Don’t want any Husky, Lab, and Sheltie mix pups.”
Sam giggled and grabbed my arm. “They’d be cute, but Goldie’s been spayed.”
Victoria smiled. “This one’s been taken care of, too. Are the dogs going to be together?” Her gaze bounced from Sam to me. “Just asking...” Her laughter followed us as we left with both dogs in tow.
I texted Maggie with a heads-up—two adults, two dogs for breakfast.”
As we pulled into her driveway Maggie came flying out of the house in shorts and a tee. “Let me see.” She tried to peer inside the cab.
“Hold on, let us get out first.” I went around to the passenger side and helped the Husky down to keep him from hurting his leg. Sam followed the two dogs to where Maggie waited.
“He’s something, isn’t he, sis?” The excitement in her smile spoke volumes. “He’s yours.”
Maggie and Sam both stared at me as amazement crept onto their faces. “Two speechless women—now that’s an accomplishment.”
Maggie threw her arms around me and gave me a bear hug. Her face lit up like a child’s on Christmas morning. “I love him. How did you know?”
“When you started referring to yourself as Goldie’s Aunt Maggie.”
She shot a sharp look beneath lowered brows, but failed to hold back a smile. “Breakfast is ready.” Maggie called the dogs to follow her. Goldie waited at the top of the steps for the Husky to limp up on the porch.
After eating, we waved goodbye to Maggie and Wolf—the moniker she’d decided on. “Goldie acts like she wanted to stay.” Sam reached in the back seat and comforted her. “Did you see the look on Maggie’s face?”
“She was pretty stoked.” As I turned in to the alley behind the bookshop, a paper was sticking out near the back door frame. I followed Sam and she slid it from the gap.
“It’s from John. ‘Leave us alone.’” She read the message scrawled across the note. “How dumb can I be? Elizabeth asked me not to return Anne’s writings and stupidly I wrote a thank-you note and Betsy delivered it.”
The defeated look on her face slammed my heart. I pulled her into my arms.
Sam leaned back and looked at me. “There comes a time when enough is enough. Should I respect John’s wishes and leave them alone? My grandfather’s right. We can’t turn back the years.”
“You can’t reverse time, but don’t give up hope—you’ll find a way to reach your grandfather.” I held her close as she laid her head on my shoulder. Lord, make it so.
Chapter Thirty-seven
Days come and go and the quandaries remain. My birth father—I need that piece of the puzzle, although I’m still unsure about meeting him. I long for my grandmother—the connection aches to take hold. My grandfather—I’m not so sure about. Logan—a blazing flame of hope, sweeping through my soul. ~ Journal entry
I’d hit a speed bump with selling the bookshop—me. I simply wasn’t ready to let go of it. Goldie brushed my leg with her paw and moved toward the door. Turning, I saw Audra. She wore jeans with a white tailored shirt tucked in, looking as professional as she did in her slim skirt. “Thanks for dropping by.”
“No problem.”
I squared my shoulders and took notice of my posture. “As I told you in my text, I’ve decided to lease the shop.”
“Great. I have all the necessary paperwork right here.” She pulled a folder from her Gucci bag.
All the forms were completed and signed. The shop would soon be transformed according to the lessee’s vision—it saddened me. In all probability, the bookshop was destined to become a thing of the past.
Audra hadn’t seen the apartment, so I gave her a tour. “What a beautifully decorated home. If you’re selling any of the furniture, give me a call.”
“I’ll let you know as soon as I do.” I laughed and walked her back downstairs. Outside the door, I watched her pull away in her sports car. Do we really resemble each other? I had an urge to dye my hair a raven color to match hers, just to
see.
I’d barely stepped back inside when Goldie demanded my attention—Betsy had entered the shop door. She wore the same blue floral dress as before, her soft brown curls highlighted with the first lacing of silver threads.
“Betsy. Hi. I’ve been so worried.”
“Have time for a break at Julia’s?”
“Definitely.” I called Goldie and we headed to the coffee shop.
The tantalizing smell of sugar and spice greeted us before we were even inside. Betsy chuckled. “My favorite part of coming into town—one of Julia’s heavenly pastries.”
We slid into a back booth. “I’m so sorry I involved you, asking you to deliver the note to Elizabeth. I guess John is upset with you?”
Julia brought two steamy mugs to the table. “Can I interest you in sticky buns?” We both agreed—enthusiastically.
“He never mentioned it to me. Elizabeth remembered leaving the card in her pocket. She didn’t tell him I was involved. Although I’m sure he figured it out. I’m the only one who spends time with her—besides John, of course.”
We both took a bite of the caramel, nutty goodness Julia had served. “If I keep eating Julia’s baking, I’m going to blow up like one of the balloons in Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.” I slipped a tiny bite to Goldie.
“Don’t I know it?” She patted her slim midriff. Her expression turned serious. “Elizabeth saw you from the window when you visited. She says since Anne’s death, the injustice of her daughter being forced to give you away haunts her.”
“Is John upset with her over the note?”
“Since her stroke, he’s tender with her. Told me he worries she’ll have another.” Her fingertips toyed with her pearl necklace. “Elizabeth blames herself. She believes if she’d stood up to John, he’d have given in and let Anne keep the baby.”
“You really think so?” It didn’t match the image I held in my mind—he wasn’t one to be easily swayed.
She shook her head. “Not for a minute. Growing up, I spent vacations with my grandmother, and often went with her to visit Elizabeth. The John I know now seems like a stubborn, older version of who he’s always been.”