The Guestbook

by Andrea Hurst

  Over the years, she’d never thought much about how it might have affected Grandma Maggie, who’d just recently become a widow herself, to have her son take off. How alone her grandmother must have felt after Katherine swooped them off to California to make sure Lily’s father never found them, and then cut off contact with her grandmother just to be sure. Maggie lost her only grandchild at the same time as her only son. The last picture showed her grandmother wearing her classic and radiant smile. No matter how much pain she had been through, her grandmother had put on a smile and managed to start a successful bed and breakfast, and help others too.

  She sifted through some of the pages, and her eye caught on a particular entry written before the B&B closed.

  Dear Innkeeper,

  You will never know how much my stay here has meant to me, and how it has changed my life. I arrived so very depressed, having just been told of my diagnosis. Yes, I know I did not tell you. But, Margaret, you seemed to sense my need, and I did not want to burden you. The cool breezes, the gentle serenity of this island, and this cozy Inn soothed my aching heart. Your special brand of kindness, generosity of spirit, and contagious smile helped open my heart. You gave so much. I felt encouraged by your words. You helped me to find the courage to trust my instincts and have the strength to pursue my course of treatments. A healing does not come close to describing the magic I experienced here in this enchanted place. Many blessings to you, my Innkeeper Angel,

  Marie

  Lily closed the book abruptly. She felt like she was trespassing in someone else’s world. Always, there was someone with problems greater than her own to remind her to be grateful. The woman’s courage shone brightly and sent a surge of strength to Lily’s own spirit. Surely this place would work its magic on her too—actually, if she were honest, it already had.

  Her mind drifted again to Ian, as it did so often these days. He seemed too good to be true, and the timing could not be more wrong. She needed all her energy and focus just to deal with Brad and their divorce, not to mention figuring out her financial situation. Perhaps someday she would feel safe enough to think about love again, but not now. She had no idea what she really wanted, but she was determined to figure it out. Cooking and baking had always been a passion, so it was a natural place to start. And get a dog…or two. A trip to the local animal shelter was definitely in her future.

  She skimmed through the Guestbook pages and caught a neatly folded letter as it fell out from the back of the book. It was addressed to her grandmother. She was about to slip it back into the book when her eyes caught on the first line.

  Dear Margaret,

  I’m kind of rusty in the love letter department, but I know I have to tell you how I feel. After my wife Carol died, I never thought that I would find love again in this life. But I have been blessed twice. You’ve always been there, waving across the field with that big smile, bringing me dinner so I wouldn’t starve after Carol’s stroke, taking care of me. Your heart was big enough to weather my stormy moods and despair after her death.

  Sometimes I feel like a silly old man falling in love this way. My heart skips a beat whenever I see you, and at my age that might be dangerous! I don’t know quite why you love me, but I thank God you do.

  When the Heavens see fit to send love your way, only a darn fool would turn down a gift like that. Margaret, you are my light, my reason each day for waking, and my last thought when I turn off the light to sleep. I give you all my heart, all my soul, for as long as I’m here on this Earth.

  I love you,

  John

  John? John McPherson next door? It had to be. Lily laughed with delight. Her grandmother had not been all alone after all. Relief lightened her heart. She liked the idea that love was a gift. Could be she was more like her grandmother than she knew. They sure had the same taste in men. John was a bit old for her, but Ian…

  Lily jumped out of bed, ran a brush through her hair, and bundled up to head into town. The nasty weather accounted for all the empty parking spaces on Front Street, so she was able to park right in front of the café.

  A few tables were filled with people finishing what looked to be a late lunch, and a couple of men were drinking beers at the bar. Jude looked up from some paperwork and waved Lily over to a table by the picture window.

  “Beautiful view today of gray and more gray!” Jude said.

  “Nothing one of your Grande Mochas won’t fix.”

  Jude raised an eyebrow. “One of those sorts of days?”

  Lily nodded. “When you have time to talk…”

  “Be right back,” Jude said.

  Lily sat and looked out the window. It was about zero visibility today. No rain, but dense grayness and light fog put her in the mood for a nap, one that lasted all day. She checked her watch: two o’clock. She’d better not stay too long and have to drive home in this weather once it got dark. Which, in February, was still around five-ish in the afternoon.

  Jude placed the steaming mocha in front of her and joined Lily at the table. “So give, what’s up?”

  Lily took a few sips and savored the warm foamy drink before answering. “Same old thing. My lawyer called today, and it’s just more bad news.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” Jude said with genuine sympathy. “Drink up, let the marvelous mixture of chocolate and sugar do its work.”

  The mocha and the good company were definitely soothing Lily’s frayed nerves. She would find a way to work things out. Brad was not going to intimidate her anymore.

  “So, tell me about your dinner with Ian,” Jude whispered, making sure no one else heard.

  “Oh right, I forgot.”

  “You forgot! That bad?”

  Lily broke a smile, “No, it was good, fun and…”

  “And what?”

  “I don’t know what I think about Ian. He offered me some work catering his art opening.”

  “That’s great news,” Jude said.

  “Is it?”

  “Lily, Ian’s a great guy. If he offers you work, trust me, he is not looking for something in return.”

  Lily lowered her eyes. In Los Angeles, anyone that gave anything expected to get something in return. She was not used to someone just being kind with no hidden agenda. “I just don’t want to get involved with another man right now.”

  She could feel Jude’s eyes boring into her and looked up.

  “What?” Lily asked.

  “Just take your time. You’ll know what do to,” Jude said.

  It had been a long time since someone trusted her to know what to do. She hoped Jude was right.

  Jude stood and started clearing off the table. “So, shall we dress up and go to Ian’s art opening together? I’ll invite Kyla to join us too.”

  “Sounds great.” Lily laid some cash on the table for the coffee and waved goodbye, feeling a lot better than when she had arrived.

  Outside, the sun was doing its best to break through the thick, dark clouds, and Lily wasn’t ready to go home and be alone just yet. Why not wander over to the art gallery and peek through the window at Ian’s work? After all, she did have to know what kind of event she was catering for. She walked around the corner and located the Raven Gallery.

  Resting her forehead and hands on the glass, she could make out the large paintings being mounted on the walls by gallery staff. The front door was locked when she tried to go in.

  “Lily, is that you?”

  She turned quickly, almost stumbling into the handsome man standing before her. “Ian…”

  He laughed. Was he laughing at her? Did she look foolish?

  “Couldn’t wait for the show, I see,” Ian said. “Did you want your own private viewing?”

  She felt her face flush and heat rise to her already restricted throat. “Well, I, yes, no, I mean, yes, I was curious. And I was trying to get a sense of your work before I finalize the menu for you opening.”

  “I see.” He just stood there with what she hoped was a friendly grin on h
is face. “Ok, well, come on in.”

  Her breath released. “Thanks, just for a minute, I have lots of planning and shopping to do this afternoon for your event.” She was glad she could think of something to say. It wasn’t like she had nothing better to do than seek him out.

  He pulled the key from his pocket and opened the door. Motioning for Lily to step inside, he said, “I’m not usually on the island on Thursdays, but I came early this week to set up the show. Hope you’ll stay after you drop off the desserts.”

  Lily nodded. “Of course.”

  “Only a few of the paintings are unwrapped and some are still being mounted, but I’ll show you one of my favorites.” He walked over to a brick wall and he pointed to a painting under a spotlight of a Kingfisher suspended in outer space overlooking the Earth.

  “The detail is amazing on this one, the eye looks right through me,” Lily said.

  “I named this one ‘Eye on the World.’ In ancient China, the Kingfisher was thought to be a symbol of beauty and it is generally seen as an omen for peace and good fortune.”

  He showed her a few more paintings and then escorted her to the door. “Don’t want to spoil the show for you.”

  “Right,” she said. “I look forward to seeing more of your work.”

  She felt his eyes on her as she walked down the sidewalk back to her car. She hoped she could keep steady footing with her head so giddy. If she could run, she would, but what would he think then? What in the world did he think now?

  Chapter Seventeen

  Lily finished blowing her hair dry and studied her face in the bathroom mirror, then applied a little more color to her eyes and a touch more blush. “That’s as good as it gets,” she said, heading to the bedroom. She rifled through her closet, trying to decide what to wear. “Saved by the bell,” she said, picking up the ringing phone.

  Jude’s voice came through loud and clear. “It’s going to be a girls’ night out, so dress up, for God’s sake. Put on some of those fancy city clothes left from your old life.”

  “Actually, Jude, I dumped most of the clothes in the same place I dumped my soon-to-be-ex-husband!”

  Jude’s robust laughter filled the room through the phone. “Good call, Lily. I’ll be right over with some of my skinny clothes I have stuffed in the back of my closet. Get out your shoes and jewelry, and we’ll get you all fixed up. Be there in a jiff.”

  When she’d dropped off the perfectly constructed desserts earlier today, wardrobe had been no problem…she wore sweats. Ian had written her a check, all business. But now, she wanted to look good. And not just for Ian, she told herself.

  Lily hung up the phone and wandered over to her dresser to review her meager jewelry collection. All she had brought with her when she fled Brentwood were some freshwater black pearl earrings, a hand-crafted hummingbird necklace she had bought at an art fair in Santa Barbara, and the new watch her mother had given her for Christmas. The hummingbird was delicately crafted in silver, and the wings were filled with iridescent moonstones and purple tanzanite. All of the Stella McCartney and Armani dress shoes were definitely left behind. She did have the sense to keep her black Stuart Weitzman knee-high boots, and they looked great with everything.

  The rumble of Jude’s little MGB sports car in the driveway prompted Lily to head for the door. Jude’s arms were overflowing with clothes as she made a dramatic entrance, dressed from head to toe in varying shades of red silk with a black satin, full-length opera coat. “Here, let me help you,” Lily said as she hopped down the steps and relieved Jude of some of the load. “Just drop everything on the bed for now.”

  Jude picked out a long black silk skirt with a handkerchief hem and a periwinkle-colored chenille sweater and handed them to Lily. “Okay, let the fashion show begin. Hurry up, girl, we haven’t got all night.”

  Lily pulled the sweater on then discarded her jeans and slid on the skirt. It landed perfectly mid-shin and had a nice swing to it. She added her boots and twirled around to face Jude. “What d’ya think?”

  “Absolutely gorgeous. Your eyes really jump out with that periwinkle blue. I think the first outfit is the charm.”

  Lily smiled at her reflection in the mirror. She added the black pearl earrings and held up the silver necklace against the sweater. Perfect. “I love it, Jude. Hardly a trace of California Barbie left.”

  “Out with the old and hello Pacific Northwest, artfully independent woman!”

  “Thank you, Jude. It’s so nice to have a friend like you.” Lily spontaneously gave Jude a ferocious hug.

  “Enough stalling. It’s time to head into town and hook up with Kyla. She’s meeting us at the gallery. And looking like that, you had better watch out for the artsy, single island men that hang out at these things.”

  Lily grabbed her purse and wool coat. “Thanks for the words of encouragement. Do you want me to drive?”

  Jude finished buttoning up her dazzling, floor-length velvet coat and wrapped a colorful scarf around her neck. “Why don’t you follow me? I want you to have a good time there, drink some wine, have some fun. I’ll be the designated driver home if you need me to. If I weaken and have a cocktail or two, we can have a slumber party at my house.”

  ✦✦✦✦

  When they entered the art studio, Jude, waving to everyone she passed, headed straight to the wine bar. Lily scanned the room for Ian and located him across the room talking to an attractive woman. He had a glass of wine in one hand and was making animated gestures with the other. Her heart skipped a beat, and the blast of heat on her face was not from the warmth of the room. She was jealous. She could not believe it. One dinner, one very small kiss, and she was jealous! He looked up and met her eyes gazing at him. Embarrassment caused her to turn away and head for the wine bar near the window.

  Kyla was just leaving the bar and had two glasses of Chardonnay in hand. “There you are,” she said. “Jude told me you were here somewhere. I thought I’d save you the wait and bring you a glass as well.”

  Lily took a large sip and then another. “Thank you. Shall we look at the paintings?” She could hear Jude’s distinctive laugh over in a corner, and they followed the sound.

  “Lily, come here, I want you to meet someone,” said Jude waving her hand. “Lily this is Cherise. She owns the Raven Gallery.”

  The woman was dazzling, dressed in hand-painted silk and strands of saltwater pearls. Lily shook Cherise’s hand. “Nice to meet you.”

  “Love the desserts you made, Lily. I must get your number. Do you have a card?”

  “Not yet,” Lily stumbled for a moment. “I’ll give you a call next week.”

  Cherise was off as fast as she had appeared. Another attractive woman, no wonder Ian has a show here, Lily thought. She watched the well-coiffed woman as she worked the room. Eclectic, was the first word that came to mind. Cherise was so elegant and seemed comfortable in her own skin.

  Lily saw Ian walking toward her, but just steps away, he was intercepted by Cherise leading a well-dressed couple. Lily leaned over discreetly to listen to the conversation.

  “Ian, darling,” drawled Cherise, “I want you to meet Bob and Helen Cosby. They came over all the way here from Mercer Island.” Lily couldn’t believe she was actually eavesdropping. She downed her wine and sought out Jude, determined to forget about Ian and have a good time with her woman friends.

  Lily joined Jude and Kyla as they moved from painting to painting. “Some of his best work I’ve seen,” commented Kyla.

  “Really?” said Lily, moving into their conversation. “I haven’t seen his work before. It’s very distinctive, blending a bit of Native American and Asian influence together in a unique style.”

  “Somewhere on his mother’s side is quite a bit of Native American heritage. He definitely taps into that with his work,” Jude added.

  Kyla continued, “And you know he traveled with his mother through Japan for several years as a teen.”

  “No, I didn’t know,” answered Lily.
“I really don’t much about him.” But Kyla sure did, she noticed. Her eyes drifted involuntarily around the room again, looking for Ian just as he turned a corner and headed right for them.

  “Ladies,” he said, approaching with a big smile and a hug for each of them. “Welcome and thank you for coming. Grandpa John just left, he’ll be sorry he missed you.” He put his arm around Lily’s shoulder. “So, which is your favorite?”

  Lily was still recovering from her reaction to his touch and did not realize he was looking right at her. Flustered, she turned to see Kyla and Jude eying her as well. “The one with the misty sunset really moved me.”

  “Hmm,” he said, shaking his head up and down slowly. “That is a recent one inspired after a walk along Crescent Bay.”

  To her dismay, she felt the top of her lip break out in a sweat. Did he mean their walk on the beach? She could hardly breathe and fanned her face with her hand. “The crowd,” she gestured. “It’s a bit hot in here. I think I’ll step outside for some cool air.”

  Jude followed her to the door. “Are you nuts? It’s thirty degrees out there tonight.”

  Lily opened the door, stepped outside, and then jumped back in. “You’re not kidding.” She stood by the door, calming herself. “I think I need another glass of wine. What about you, Jude?”

  Jude contemplated the question for about three seconds. “Twist my arm, I’d love one too. And some more of the crab puffs and cheesy things they’re walking around with on those trays.”

  At the bar, both women ordered another drink. A large boisterous man swept over and wrapped Jude in his arms. “My lady, how nice to see you,” he said in a mock old English accent.

  Jude looked delighted. “Lily, this is Stanton, he does Shakespeare in the Park here in the summer.”

  Lily shook his rather sweaty hand and forced a smile. Stanton gave her a quick once-over, then turned and continued his conversation with Jude.