“Ava, I’m not moving back home.”
“What?”
“I signed a lease for an apartment today.”
“But— Sarah, why? You’ve never lived anywhere else.”
“It wasn’t an easy decision to make. But I’ve been thinking a lot these past few weeks. When Mom died, you stepped in. And you were wonderful. I couldn’t have asked for a better caretaker.”
Ava winced. “Except for—” She waved her hand.
“The tea. That was a mistake. But you had good intentions, and I know how difficult that time must have been for you. You were grieving just as much as I was, and you had a ton of new additional responsibilities—me, the house, our finances.” Sarah added in a thoughtful tone, “You did all of that and you were barely more than a kid yourself.”
“If our situations were reversed, you’d have done the same for me.”
“I wouldn’t have done it half as well. I’ve come to realize that over the years, I’ve taken you for granted. I think just about everyone in this town has.”
Ava’s face grew warm. “I enjoy taking care of you.”
“You do it well, maybe too well. And that’s not always a good thing. Right now, we both need some space to live our own lives.”
Ava wanted to argue. She missed having her sister around. But she couldn’t help but realize that Sarah had changed over these past few weeks. She had a new air of confidence and maturity. Maybe, just maybe, she was right. Ava sighed. “I’m going to miss you.”
“How? I plan on having lunch in your tearoom every single day. Which reminds me, is there a friends-and-family discount?”
Ava had to laugh. “I hadn’t thought about it, but I’m sure we can work something out.”
“Good. I’m on a budget now, and it’s not pretty.” Sarah’s eyes twinkled as she reached over and gave Ava a huge hug. “I’m going to miss you, too. But I don’t mean for this to last forever. I’ll be moving back eventually.”
Ava only hoped that was true. “You have to do what’s best for you. And don’t worry about me. It appears that I’m going to have a roommate, at least for a while. Starting in April, Kristen is going to be staying with me during the week.”
“Wow! A teenager. It’ll be just like old times. I’m sure you’ll keep an eye on her.”
“Like a hawk. I’m surprised Ellen’s trusting me, but it’s nice. I’d like Kristen to be happy.”
“She will be.” Sarah glanced toward Kristen. “Uh-oh. People are starting to line up, and poor Kristen looks overwhelmed.”
Ava glanced at the bar. “Oof! You’re right. I’d better go help her. Catch you later?”
Sarah nodded. “You know it!”
Ava watched her sister join Zoe and Jess where they stood near the window, admiring the teapots on display. They welcomed Sarah with a loud, boisterous greeting, hugging her as if they hadn’t just seen her hours before.
Smiling, Ava slipped behind the counter and was soon helping Kristen serve tea, coffee, and desserts to an ever-changing line of friends and customers.
It had been a long, tiring day, but Ava didn’t want it to end. She wasn’t quite convinced that Sarah would ever move back home. After all, that was Sarah’s decision and not hers. But Ava knew one thing: they were sisters now, and forever.
That was the thing about love, Ava decided. Even when damaged by life’s uncertainties, if given enough care, effort, and sunlight, it could bloom again.
EPILOGUE
In an elegant apartment off Rue Saint-Rustique in the heart of the sophisticated Montmartre district of Paris, Ella Dove woke up, her legs tangled in the silk sheets of her massive, gilded, king-size bed. The large doors to the terrace off her bedroom were open, a sharp, unusually strong breeze billowing through the sheer white drapes and carrying in the marvelous scents and quiet chatter from the bakery below.
Ella sat up, her thick blond hair, darker than that of any of her sisters, tangled over one shoulder. Beside her on the pillow, sleeping deeply, was her current “friend.” Gabriel was a tall, handsome French chef and an expert lover. Sadly, he had the unfortunate tendency to use the word I far too often, which had doomed him to temporary status in Ella’s bed. He was not yet aware of this fact, but he soon would be.
For now, Ella closed her eyes and breathed in the smell of buttery croissants, sweet macarons, rich mille-feuilles, and fruit-laden tarte tatins. Her bakery was located below the apartment, and she’d made every tempting morsel now being served and on display in the glass windows. She shivered at the delicious smells and then slipped out of the bed, her bare feet whisper quiet on the thick rug as, draped in her silk sheet, she walked to the open balcony doors.
She paused there, closed her eyes, and let the breeze whip around her, teasing her hair and tugging at her sheet as if trying to persuade her to follow it outside, over the railing, and into the morning sun. The breeze grew stronger, and a murmur of protest came from the diners sitting at the tables in the little square below as their tablecloths danced around them.
Ella pulled her sheet over her shoulders, holding it like a great cloak, and stepped onto the balcony just as a gust, bigger than the last, swept through. Napkins flew from the diners’ laps, and shopping bags were blown over, while a newspaper, ripped from the top of a stack at the newsstand on the corner, tumbled across the cobblestones. The wind carried the newspaper through the maze of tables, going right, then left, then right again until it fell open right below Ella’s balcony.
The wind ceased with the same suddenness that it had started. Ella, standing at the edge of her balcony, looked down at the tumbled newspaper, which had opened to the “Monde” section. A picture of a handsome older man at the bottom left page made her gasp.
She bent down, trying to read the words in the article even though she was too far away.
Not that it mattered, because the second she saw it, she knew the time had come.
Ella Dove was going home.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
A big thanks to my agent, Nancy Yost, my light in the dark. Thank you for taking a chance on me and Dove Pond.
A special shout-out to fabulous editor Lauren McKenna, who started me on this magical venture. You were an inspiration from day one and continue to be so today.
And an equally big shout-out to my new editors, Sara Quaranta and Abby Zidle, for their exquisite patience when the uncertainty and stress of the pandemic affected my writing schedule. Thank you for being thorough, optimistic, and clear as a bell. My bruised soul needed exactly that.
a Cup of Silver Linings
KAREN HAWKINS
A Book Club Guide
When Ellen Foster is first introduced in chapter 1 at her daughter’s funeral, she isn’t the most likable character. What life circumstances make her this way? As the story progressed, did your opinion of her change? Why?
Ava Dove’s secret is determined to break free from its enchanted prison. Whose good opinion was Ava unwilling to risk by revealing her own mistakes? How does the revelation affect Ava’s relationship with that person? With herself?
Julie Foster calls her bipolar disorder “bipolar lite.” What benefits does it bring to her life? What frustrations? How does her condition affect her relationships with the people of Dove Pond? With her daughter, Kristen?
While growing up, Kristen asks to meet her dad only once, when she wants him to take her to a father-daughter dance at school, but she changes her mind when she realizes it would upset her mother. After her mother’s death, Kristen realizes that finding her dad could potentially make her life more complicated, not less. In what way was that so?
Sarah and Blake have a long, uncomfortable history mainly due to Sarah’s inability to simply be herself whenever he’s around. Have you ever known people who were unable to “be themselves” around someone they might be interested in romantically? Did they ever overcome it? How?
Much of A Cup of Silver Linings deals with grief and the different ways people navigate sorrow
. How does Ellen handle her grief compared with the way Kristen manages hers? How does this difference affect their relationship with each other?
Because of Ava’s tea, Ellen gets the chance to speak with her daughter again and say the things she should have said when Julie was alive. During these conversations, Ellen has to face some uncomfortable self-truths about her decisions as a parent. What does she learn that helps her become a better parent to her granddaughter?
Grief can be caused by more than death. Grief can also be caused by a betrayal. Once Ava’s secret breaks free, Sarah has a very good reason to be angry with Ava, as Ava well knows. We see in the final chapter that Sarah has found the strength to forgive Ava, although Sarah warns that it will take time for their relationship to return to normal. They both also realize that their relationship will be forever changed by it. Have you ever been betrayed? Did you experience a sort of grief, too? How did you overcome it?
More from this Series
Love in the Afternoon
The Book Charmer
Book 1
More from the Author
Caught by the Scot
Twelve Kisses to…
Mad for the Plaid
The Princess Wore Plaid
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
MICHAEL CAIRNS
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author KAREN HAWKINS is a native southerner who grew up in the mountains of East Tennessee and now lives in frosty New England with her beloved husband and foster dogs. The Dove Pond series is a nod to the thousands of books that opened doors to more adventures, places, and discoveries than she ever imagined possible. Check in with Karen at Facebook.com/KarenHawkinsWriter, KarenHawkins.com, and @KarenHawkinsAuthor on Instagram.
FOR MORE ON THIS AUTHOR:
SimonandSchuster.com/Authors/Karen-Hawkins
SimonandSchuster.com
@GalleryBooks
Also available from Karen Hawkins and Gallery Books
THE DOVE POND SERIES
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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2021 by Karen Hawkins
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First Gallery Books trade paperback edition July 2021
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Interior design by Jaime Putorti
Cover design by Laura Klynstra
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Hawkins, Karen, author.
Title: A cup of silver linings / Karen Hawkins.
Description: Gallery Books trade paperback edition. | New York : Gallery Books, 2021. | Series: Dove pond series ; 2
Identifiers: LCCN 2020052114 (print) | LCCN 2020052115 (ebook) | ISBN 9781982105563 (trade paperback) | ISBN 9781982141455 (library binding) | ISBN 9781982105570 (ebook)
Classification: LCC PS3558.A8231647 C87 2021 (print) | LCC PS3558.A8231647 (ebook) | DDC 813/.6—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020052114
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020052115
ISBN 978-1-9821-4145-5
ISBN 978-1-9821-0556-3 (pbk)
ISBN 978-1-9821-0557-0 (ebook)
A Cup of Silver Linings Page 34