Silver Linings (18 page)

I walked into the living room to find Coco had returned from the mix and mingle and was pacing the area in front of the fireplace, her movements rapid and agitated.

“Oh hi,” I said, surprised to see her. “I didn't realize you were back.”

The instant she saw me she blurted out, “Have you seen Katie?”

“No. Is everything all right?” Coco looked more than a little concerned.

“I don't know.” She rubbed her palms together as if she was seeking warmth. “She left before me. And then I thought she probably shouldn't be alone, so I decided to head back myself. But now she isn't here.”

“Did she say she was coming back to the inn?”

“Yes.” Coco continued to pace, with frequent stops to look out the window.

“Have you tried calling her?”

“I texted her twice and called, too, and she's not responding.”

“I'm sure there's no need for worry,” I said, and I believed that. “It's such a lovely evening, my guess is that she decided to take a walk along the waterfront. I often do that myself.”

Coco didn't look reassured.

“Why don't I brew a pot of tea, and if she hasn't shown up by the time we've had a cup the two of us can go look for her.”

Coco hesitated and then nodded. “Okay, good idea. The tea might help calm me down.”

I went into the kitchen and put the water on. I'd been in my office, checking online for spin classes. If I was going to broaden my horizons, make new friends, then there was no better place to start than by joining a class. For now it was easier to focus on the physical aspect of this new page in my life.

The water had just started to boil when I heard the front door open.

“Katie, where have you been?” I heard Coco ask, her relief obvious.

“Walking.”

“You left forty minutes ago. I was worried. I tried to call you and was freaking out when you didn't respond.”

“It's okay. I'm fine…really. I couldn't fit my phone in my clutch, so I left it in my room.”

In my humble opinion, she didn't sound fine. I put the tea leaves into the pot, set it on the tray with two cups, and carried it into the living room area.

“How does hot tea sound?” I asked, as I set the tray down on the coffee table.

“Sounds great.”

Katie sat on the sofa next to her friend. “Please, join us,” she said to me.

I thought the two might prefer time alone and didn't want to intrude. I looked from one to the other to make sure the invite was sincere, and it seemed like it was. “I will, thank you.” After the topsy-turvy emotional day I'd had, I would appreciate the company and the conversation. Mark hadn't been gone twenty-four hours and I already missed him, missed our times together.

Rover wandered in from where he'd been asleep in my office and curled up in front of the fireplace, resting his chin on his paws.

I brought out another cup from the kitchen and sat in the chair across from the sofa.

“So how's the reunion so far?” I asked. One look at Katie told me it hadn't gone so well.

Coco looked at Katie and then spoke first. “I got a real shock,” she said. “I came intending to confront a boy who broke my heart and humiliated me. I was going to call him out as the scumbag he was, but before I could say a word, he apologized to me.”

“Sounds like a guy who has done a bit of maturing,” I said, as I leaned forward and reached for the teapot, filling each of our cups. Steam rose from the hot liquid.

“I've despised Ryan all these years and now I have to learn not to hate him.” She appeared to find this amusing and laughed. “Actually, it was a bit of a letdown, you know? Everything I wanted to say was on the tip of my tongue. I was ready to beat him down to the ground and then he took the wind out of my sails.”

“Is that a bad thing?” I asked.

“No, but I'll admit it takes some getting used to. The truth is I'm happy. I know it sounds odd, but I actually feel like something heavy has lifted off my back. For years I had to keep feeding that hate for Ryan and now…now it's out of my hands.” She laughed a little, as if at a loss to explain this transformation. “I wasn't ready to accept his apology, but I could see that he was sincere. I realized it couldn't have been easy for him to talk to me, but afterward we both felt better. I know
I
did. Does that make sense?”

“It does,” Katie assured her.

“I agree,” I chimed in.

I tasted the tea, which had steeped beautifully. It was one of my personal favorites, a blend sold in the Seattle area called Market Spice, named after the Pike Place Market.

“What about you, Katie?” I asked, raising the cup to my lips and blowing into the hot tea to cool it down before taking my first sip.

“The party didn't go as well for me as it did Coco,” she said, holding her own tea with both hands and peering into its depths as if looking for some prediction from the leaves. “I saw an old boyfriend with the hopes that we might be able to reconnect. But that, unfortunately, isn't going to work.”

“Give James time,” Coco urged.

“It's useless,” Katie whispered. She sat back on the sofa, cradling the cup. “He could barely stand to look at me.”

“Don't be so sure,” Coco said. “After you left, I watched James.”

Katie's head came up. “And?”

“He looked for you.”

“He did not,” Katie insisted.

“Okay, fine, I don't know for sure, but a couple of times I saw him searching the room. I really think he was hoping to see you. Don't get me wrong, he wasn't blatant about it, but I got the feeling James isn't as immune to you as you think.”

Katie's shoulders sank with defeat. “I doubt that's true.”

“When did you become such a pessimist?” Coco asked.

Katie's smile lacked any real amusement. “Tonight.”

I leaned back in my chair, too. “I've had a pretty rotten day myself,” I told them, knowing misery loves company.

Both Katie and Coco turned their attention to me.

“I lost a friend today,” I elaborated.

“
Lost
as in died?” Katie asked, her voice gentle and full of compassion. Sensing her genuine concern made me realize what an excellent social worker she must be.

“No, he didn't die,” I clarified. “Mark was my handyman and my friend. Over the last couple of years we've become close…but not in a romantic way,” I explained, and then added, “Well, not until recently.”

“Did you have a misunderstanding?” Coco asked. “I don't mean to pry, if you'd rather not talk about it.”

“Actually, I don't know why I'm telling you this, but it's nice to be able to unload a little.”

“Please,” Katie urged. “Hearing about your troubles will help take my mind off my own.”

I clung to my teacup and looked into the amber liquid. “My husband died in Afghanistan almost two years ago, and Mark and I became friends, good friends. Then, out of the blue about a month ago, he announced that he'd fallen in love with me.”

“Did you know how he felt about you?”

“No, although in retrospect there were signs. But I was caught up in my grief and oblivious to his feelings. What's so strange is that right after he told me how he felt about me he said he was leaving Cedar Cove.”

“Leaving?” Katie echoed.

I nodded.

“Did he say why?”

“Not a word. It's all very odd.”

“Today is the day he left?” Coco wanted to know.

A deep sense of loss settled over me. “He headed out this afternoon. He's never given me any indication of where he's going or why.”

“What did he say when he left?”

I hiccupped on a half-sob, half-laugh. “All he said was good-bye.”

“He must be hiding something,” Katie suggested, frowning.

“You think?” Coco muttered sarcastically.

They ran through a couple scenarios, all ones I'd entertained myself. “As far as I can find out, he isn't in legal trouble or anything like that.”

“Is he a spy?” Coco joked.

I laughed. “Not likely. Mark is unconventional, cranky most of the time, yet probably one of the most generous men I've ever known. He enjoys woodwork and would often build the most beautiful, intricate furniture. Not long ago he gave away a cradle he built to a couple he barely knew who are expecting their third child.” It continued to boggle my mind when he could have set his own price for that cradle. He'd carved intricate forest scenes into the headboard. Without question, it was a piece of art.

“Do you know where he went?” Katie asked.

“I don't have a clue.”

“He just up and left?” Coco repeated, as if she had as much trouble understanding Mark as I did.

I nodded helplessly.

Both women seemed to find this as baffling as I did.

“He would have left sooner if I hadn't convinced him to stay long enough to finish the gazebo.”

“He built that?” Katie said, sounding awed.

I nodded.

“Wow, he is talented.”

Saddened, I slowly exhaled. “I'm going to miss him so much.”

“Do you…think you're in love with him, too?” This came from Katie.

It was the same question that had haunted me for the last three weeks. What I felt for Mark was completely different from what I'd experienced when I fell in love with Paul. With my husband the attraction had been immediate and explosive. We were crazy in love almost from first sight. We married in a fever, and within a matter of weeks Paul had shipped out to Afghanistan. Within the first year of our marriage he'd been killed.

Even now I was unsure about my feelings for Mark. Under any circumstances I would have been afraid to fall in love again, afraid to risk my heart. But considering that question in light of Mark's announcement that he was leaving anyway made it all the more confusing.

Until this afternoon when I'd overheard him speaking to Bob Beldon, I'd assumed Mark intended to return at some point. But he'd made it clear that wasn't in his plans.

Coco looked as puzzled as I felt. “But he told you he was in love with you and then he left town?”

I shrugged. Whatever demons were after him were apparently greater than any feelings he held for me. “Strange as it sounds, I think falling in love with me might be
why
he's leaving.”

It seemed Katie was about to say something more when the front door burst open and Finn and Carrie Dalton returned from dinner. They were flushed with laughter and excitement. They paused in the foyer with their arms locked around each other when they noticed the three of us intently watching them.

“Oh hi,” Carrie said, looking a bit embarrassed. “I didn't realize we had an audience.”

“No problem,” I assured her. “Did you have a good dinner?”

“It was wonderful.” From the way she looked at her husband, I guessed she wasn't talking about the food.

“Where'd you go?” Coco asked, and then she added under her breath, “I want to order whatever it was they had.”

Finn kept Carrie close to his side and answered, “A place just down the street. DD's on the Cove.”

“Good choice,” I said.

Finn glanced longingly up the staircase. “Now, if you'll excuse us.”

“Oh sure.”

“Finn,” Carrie warned, as her husband started to lift her to carry her up. “Not again.”

“It keeps me in shape.”

“I know better ways for you to get a workout,” Carrie whispered, and started racing up the stairs with Finn right behind her. Their laughter echoed up the stairwell, their joy contagious.

Silence filled the room after the two disappeared.

“Honeymooners,” I explained, although it probably wasn't necessary. “They're only here for the one night and leave for Alaska in the morning.”

Katie cocked her head to one side and frowned as if deep in thought. “I read a book about Alaska and the author's first name was Finn. It's not a common name…it wouldn't be possible—I mean, what are the odds? But do you think it might be him?”