- -
- 100%
- +
No wonder she was surprised that night when Bill said he needed to talk. She’d only been mildly concerned when they sat down together at the kitchen table, because she’d assumed his mood had something to do with office politics. But, not wasting a second, Bill opened their conversation by saying, “I want a divorce.”
She froze in place, stunned and silent. When she at last found her voice the first words she uttered were, “But we’ve been talking about having a baby. A couple of weeks ago. In the car. It was Christmas Eve.”
Bill had run his fingers through his prematurely gray hair and did her the courtesy of confirming their conversation about a second child wasn’t a figment of her imagination. In fact, her desire to have another baby was why he considered it imperative to own up to what had happened. He’d fallen in love with Carla, a colleague at the insurance company where he worked as an actuary. He was sorry, he’d said. So sorry.
Right.
Dawn had descended into crushing grief, but ultimately worked through it and moved on with a vengeance, starting with her business. In the first twelve months of living as a single mom, she’d doubled her business income. In the second twelve months, she’d begun dating. Mixed results for sure, including with Chip, the man she’d hoped could be her second chance. At first, he’d claimed to be enthusiastic about having a child if their relationship blossomed, but he showed zero interest in Gordon. Not exactly stepdad material. She’d collected all the warning signs she needed, but it still hurt to give up on what at the beginning seemed like a promising relationship.
Sitting alone in the waiting room at the train station, she tried mightily to ignore those thoughts. For all her so-called adjustment to life after her difficult divorce, Dawn hadn’t allowed herself to think that Bill and Carla would have a baby of their own. Why had that been so difficult to accept?
As if she didn’t know.
Carla was living the life she’d wanted—expected—for herself. That was the heartbreaking truth. It was as if an imposter had stepped in and taken over Dawn’s life.
Tired of sitting, she stood and slung the attaché over her shoulder and left the waiting room. Still an hour to go. She needed to move, walk, observe, absorb. She wouldn’t lift her mood sitting alone, thinking about little teething Zinnie.
Chapter Three
HOLDING CARRIE’S HAND, Jerrod pointed to the boat tied up at the dock on the blustery April day. “See? Rob and Wyatt got here safe and sound.”
The two waved at Carrie from the stern of the Lucy Bee. Jerrod greeted Nelson White, the owner of the boatyard-marina, who he’d dealt with on the phone over a period of several weeks. Nelson stood at the end of the dock dressed for winter in a knit hat and heavy gloves. So far, Dawn’s weather prediction for the week had played out exactly as she’d described: cold and mostly rainy. Count on miserable, she’d warned Jerrod the day before he drove up and checked into the hotel. In his texted reply he’d teased her about being a meteorologist on the side. He enjoyed teasing her, maybe because she laughed so easily at even his lame remarks.
Nelson pointed to the Lucy Bee, a seventy-foot passenger ferry designed to take guests out on day tours along the coast and to the sites of wrecks. “Nice-looking,” he said. “We don’t have nearly enough of these excursion boats down our way. Most of them cluster up a little north of us in Sturgeon Bay. I’m glad to see you set up shop here in Two Moon Bay.”
Jerrod nodded, pleased at Nelson’s response. Lucy Bee had started her life as a ferry and later was converted to a tour boat on the Mississippi, but Jerrod liked to think he was giving the vessel a third incarnation on Lake Michigan. Rob suggested changing the boat’s name to something more distinguished, maybe, but Jerrod had nixed that idea. He didn’t consider himself a superstitious man, but as far back as he could remember he’d been warned that changing the name of a boat was asking for trouble. He couldn’t shake the notion that boats of any kind were alive in their way. That meant the Lucy Bee started her life with a name of her own, and that’s how it should stay.
“I’m eager to get the business moving,” Jerrod said, pulling the hood of his jacket up over his head to ward off the rising wind. At least the rain had stopped for the moment.
Nelson motioned with his chin at the water. “All well and good, but you still have a few weeks before it’s fit to take people out there. It’s only April, man. It can be raw up here even in May. Most folks won’t put their boats in the water ’til close to Memorial Day.”
“I know. Dawn Larsen, who’s doing some promotion for me, warned me that the weather can be iffy all the way to Memorial Day and into June.” At Dawn’s suggestion, Jerrod was adding an all-caps line to his brochure about bringing along jackets and hats. Dawn suggested taking one more step and keeping a backup supply of sweatshirts and caps in a storage bin.
Nelson gestured to the empty space behind the tour boat. “When we get your dive boat in the water this afternoon, we’ll dock her right there. You’ll have easy-on, easy-off for both boats. You need anything, you know where to find me.”
Jerrod had the feeling Nelson would be as good as his word. Something about the down-to-earth guy reminded him of people he’d grown up with.
“Rob, Wyatt!” Carrie shouted. “I’m going to a new school.”
“So I heard,” Rob called back in a loud voice. “Very exciting, Miss Carrie.”
Her giggles instantly turned Jerrod’s heart to butter. Rob and Wyatt called her Miss Carrie precisely because it brought on her little-girl laughter. But then, he’d been able to count on his two younger crew, both not much over thirty. They’d been with him through these last years, the darkest time of his life. Wyatt, in particular, had used her business savvy to patch together a viable, if scaled-down version of Adventure Dives & Water Tours when Jerrod barely cared anymore. Rob made sure their equipment stayed top-of-the-line and their boats in good repair. The two had been the glue that held the operation together. Even more important, they acted like older siblings or aunt and uncle to Carrie, who had lost her big sister when she was too young to understand why.
Jerrod was suddenly conscious of Rob looking past him and down the dock. Pivoting on his heel, he saw Dawn coming toward him, dressed in practical jeans, a jacket and sneakers. But she had that large handbag slung over her shoulder, looking like a woman on a mission—an organized mission at that. They’d been in touch by email and text throughout the week, sending a letter of agreement and priority lists back and forth. Watching her shade her eyes as she approached, looking beyond him to the boat, he once again had the strong feeling he’d found exactly who he needed to help him launch this phase of his business. He’d had a specialty food basket sent to Kym as his way to say thanks.
Although Dawn hadn’t yet been formally introduced to his crew, she waved at Rob and Wyatt. Jerrod would handle the social rituals later, but he couldn’t help but notice the way Rob stared at her. Even from a distance he was certain her distinctive reddish blonde curly hair had caught Rob’s eye. And his crew member didn’t even know Dawn had the clearest light brown eyes he’d ever seen. Or maybe her eyes were green. He couldn’t be sure, but they were unusual—and, he’d learned, unforgettable.
Throughout their initial meeting, Jerrod had tried not to focus too much on Dawn’s natural beauty, but even her teal blue reading glasses added to her unique look. All week he’d made a studied effort not to be too eager for their next meeting. Knowing she was single wasn’t helping that effort, but even hinting that he found her attractive was out of the question. To a T, he fit the description of what many women feared: unavailable. In every way. It hadn’t been that long since he’d become a fully present dad again to his little girl.
“Hey, Nelson,” Dawn said, playfully elbowing the boatyard owner. “How are you doing? I haven’t run into you in a long time.”
“Good, good. So, you’re part of the welcome wagon,” Nelson observed.
“I am, and you’ll be seeing a lot of me down here at the docks.”
“Oh, yeah?” Nelson smacked his hands together. “How did I get so lucky?”
Jerrod snorted a laugh. As if this pretty woman would ever date an old-timer like Nelson.
“Hey, Nelson and I go way back,” she explained, casting Jerrod a distinct look that said “cool off.” “His grandson goes to school with my son. They hang out with the brainy kids who started a chess club.”
Embarrassed by his own ridiculous assumption, Jerrod decided his best bet was to say nothing.
Dawn crouched down in front of his daughter. “Let me guess. Is your name Carrie?”
His little girl nodded, not a bit shy. She tugged on Melody’s hand. “This is Melody. She takes care of me. She took me to my new school.”
“I’m sorry,” Jerrod said, “I didn’t get to all the introductions.”
As if wanting to be in the know, Carrie said, “Daddy, is this the lady who’s going to help you get customers on your boats?”
“Yes, she is. This is Ms. Dawn Larsen. Like I told you, she’s what people call a public relations consultant.” Carrie had no idea how much he needed Ms. Dawn Larsen, the pro.
“It’s fine if she calls me Dawn.” She peered down at Carrie and said. “I bet you’re about five years old. Am I right?”
Carrie nodded.
Jerrod looked on as his daughter told her new friend about the other kids at her morning preschool. Carrie didn’t know Dawn helped him find it. Thanks to her, two houses would also be available the next week, so his stay at The Sleepy Moon Inn would be short. Nice as it was in his spacious room, he was looking forward to feeling at least a little like he actually lived somewhere.
Waving goodbye, Nelson said, “Well, Jerrod, I leave you in good hands. Dawn can show you every inch of this town.”
After Nelson left, Wyatt and Rob joined them on the deck and Jerrod made the introductions. For him, it was like bringing Dawn into his family. Besides Carrie, Melody, Wyatt and Rob were the most important people in his life.
“Let me give you a quick overview of the immediate area,” she said to the assembled group. She started by explaining that the town’s waterfront was divided into two main parts. “We’re in the heart of the working waterfront now.” She waved toward a multi-floor storefront building set in a cluster of trees farther down the shore. “That’s Donovan’s Marine, the closest marine supply store. They either stock everything you’ll need or they’ll special order it.” She grinned at Jerrod. “The other day, I stopped in to see Art and Zeke Donovan, the father and son who own the business. I told them all about you.”
Dawn pointed to an area beyond the boatyard. “The yacht club is down that way, and you’ll also find a food market, a couple of restaurants and the Silver Moon Winery over there. There’s a playground in the big lakeshore park that connects to our downtown. People gather in the center of town all summer for various things. Most important of all, it’s where you’ll find the Bean Grinder, the busiest coffeehouse for miles. You can’t miss it—it’s in an old but refurbished octagonal building painted red.”
“I don’t think we’ll get lost,” Wyatt said with a grin. “I like that we can walk to most everything we need.”
“A trolley comes around, too, and stops at all the major landmarks and will let riders off in front of stores on Bay Street.”
Speaking directly to Carrie, she said, “I have to be going now, but I’m sure I’ll see you again soon. It was so nice to meet you—all of you.” She nodded at Melody and then at his crew. “Let me know if you need anything. If I can’t answer the question, I can find someone who can.”
Whoosh...that’s what he thought of when he realized she was hurrying off in the same energetic manner in which she’d come down the dock. Before she had a chance to rush off, Jerrod moved to her side and walked with her to the marina parking lot. “Uh, I need to talk with you about the diving excursions and what I’d like highlighted in the brochures to add to their appeal. Make them sound exciting. I’m wondering if we can meet soon. Maybe grab some coffee?”
He was about to suggest getting together later that day, but she pointed out that Ian was due the next morning to take preliminary photos of the boats. “That’s fine. I wanted to go over brochure ideas with both of you and direct some shots, anyway,” she said. “So, maybe we can find time after Ian has finished.” She knit her brows in thought. “I don’t have other appointments scheduled for tomorrow afternoon.”
Her expression communicated that she’d already jumped ahead to her next stop of the day, probably another client meeting.
“That would be fine,” he said, resigned to wait.
“So, until tomorrow morning,” she said. “It’s sure to be a big day for your business.”
“Yes, thanks to you.”
“We’re a team,” she said, patting his upper arm, her face reddening a little. Her eyes softened when she added, “Before I forget to say this, Carrie is adorable—breathtaking, really.”
Thrown by her wistful tone, he muttered a quick thank you. But he doubted she’d heard him. She’d fixed her gaze on her car and was fidgeting with her keys. He stepped aside to give her space to get behind the wheel and start the engine. She quickly drove out of the spot without so much as a backward glance.
“See you tomorrow,” he murmured. He walked toward the office he’d rented in the square frame addition behind the marina. Her words about Carrie circled through his mind. Dawn wasn’t the first person to comment on his daughter’s charm, but usually the remarks were just part of casual social banter. Instead, real emotion had seeped into Dawn’s words about Carrie. In an instant, this woman he’d just met had touched his heart. Again. There was something wonderfully sunny about her. Even her hair, which brought to mind sunrises he’d seen all over the world, matched her personality.
Shaking his head, he whispered, “Not good, not good.”
* * *
DAWN TURNED DOWN Night Beach Road and pulled into Lark’s driveway. Not so long ago, Lark had lived in this compact cottage on the shore with her son, Evan. Not anymore. After marrying Miles last fall, what had been a small home for two was transformed into a large office—and a guest house when needed. Lark and Miles had bought a large waterfront home down the block, which led Lark to joke about her short commute. So many changes in her best friend’s life, Dawn thought, and she’d been right there with Lark personally and professionally.
She knocked on the cottage door before pushing it open and calling out, “Hey, Lark, I’m here.”
“Come on in,” Lark said. “Give me a second. I’m finishing up one last paragraph.”
Dawn spent much of her work life on the road seeing clients in their offices or shops or meeting with graphic artists, media professionals and visitors’ center staff throughout the region. On the other hand, Lark spent most of her days sitting at her computer writing articles on health care and parenting—and enjoying herself every bit as much as Dawn thrived on being on the go.
Dawn dropped her shoulder bag on the couch and shrugged out of her coat. Instantly at home in Lark’s cottage, she sniffed the air and immediately recognized the scent. Hazelnut. Lark knew it was one of her favorite coffee flavors. The pot and mugs were already on the coffee table.
“There,” Lark said. “The end... Well, not quite. It’s the end of the first draft, anyway.”
“The wordsmith is done for the day?”
“Not exactly. One interview to go. How about you?”
Dawn frowned, needing a minute to think. “Two strategy sessions on the phone.” She glanced at her watch. “I almost forgot.”
“Hmm... Is that because you’re preoccupied with your new client?” Lark asked in a light tone. “How did you describe him again? Good-looking, super fit, interesting, an adventurer. What more could a woman want?”
“Let’s put available at the top of that wish list.” Dawn made an effort to keep her voice light. “I met Melody today, who could be his much younger partner, as well as the little girl’s nanny. Hard to tell. And then there’s Wyatt.”
“Wyatt?”
“She’s one of his crew, but maybe she’s his girlfriend.” She threw up her hands. “I know next to nothing about the man’s private life. Matter of fact, I don’t know all that much about his business yet, either. We’re meeting tomorrow, so I expect to pick up more of the flavor of what he does.”
Lark came out from behind her desk, tablet in hand, and sat in one of the reading chairs in what had once been the living room.
“There’s something closed off about him, though,” Dawn said, thinking about his somber expressions. “He mentioned losing his wife, and that’s as far as it went.”
There was more to it than that, but she didn’t want to talk about it. Seeing Jerrod’s daughter only reminded Dawn of a recent painful memory. On Sunday, when she’d stopped to pick up Gordon, Bill had opened the front door and stepped back so she could come inside the entryway. Snug in his arms, Zinnie was happily gnawing a teething ring. Bill had shared a light laugh with Dawn when the baby shyly hid her face in Bill’s shoulder in the presence of a stranger. Then Carla came to the foyer. She nodded tersely and lifted the baby out of Bill’s arms and walked away. Fortunately, Gordon had been ready to leave, so she could escape Carla’s icy way of ignoring her.
Gordon had been unusually talkative on the drive home, telling her stories about bowling with his dad on Saturday. Just the two of them.
“Earth to Dawn.” Lark waved her hand. “Where did you go?”
“Sorry. I was thinking about the conference,” she lied. She quickly changed the subject to the appointment with Ian and the need for graphic design. All business, all the time. Much as she loved running her firm, she hadn’t planned to spend her thirties living quite like this.
“I’m looking forward to meeting Jerrod and his crew,” Lark said. “Aren’t you glad you and Bill did some diving years ago? You start off with a good understanding of what he does.”
Dawn nodded and fidgeted with the pages of her planner. “That was tropical diving.”
“I suppose you’ll go on a dive with him, so you can see the Franklin Stone and the other one. What is it again? The Alice Swann?”
“Listen to you,” Dawn teased. “Already up on the shipwrecks.”
“Just doing my job. I got the names from the notes you sent and I came up with a few ideas for the copy. How early do you think he’ll go for a trial run—trial dive, I should call it? In May?”
Dawn glanced down and consciously stopped her fingers from continuing to nervously ruffle the page of the planner. She looked up only to see Lark peering into her face. “What?”
“What, indeed,” Lark said. “What’s bothering you? I can see you’re not yourself.”
She couldn’t deny she was troubled. “I guess I’ll tell you my secret. I have to tell someone.”
Lark leaned forward in the chair. “You can trust me. You know that.”
In the past few years Dawn had almost no occasion to think about her bad experience. Even hearing about Jerrod’s business hadn’t brought it back, other than in an abstract way. Now that a diving business was not only in town, but the owner was her client, her fears had returned in a bigger way than she’d expected.
“Bill and I went to a diving class at the YMCA down in Bratton so we could have our certification when we visited St. Croix. Gordon was only three years old, and he stayed with Bill’s parents while we went away for a few days over Christmas break. Bill was still teaching math at the middle school then.” Was it really necessary to go into all that? Probably not, but she hadn’t known Lark then. “Anyway, we did some snorkeling and then we did two dives, which were okay.”
“Just okay?”
Dawn nodded. “Bill loved it, but I was a little afraid all along.” She pressed her fingertips to her temples as if she could massage away the memory of the rising fear. “On the third dive I panicked. I thought I didn’t have any air and couldn’t breathe. I lost sight of the guide, had no sense of where I was. We were well within the water depth that matched our certification, but I did everything wrong. I flailed around and held my breath. Bill saw what was happening and alerted the guide and the two of them surfaced with me.”
“Oh, that sounds awful. And you didn’t dive again?”
“Absolutely not, and I have no desire to. Zero. But I don’t like being afraid of anything. That’s what bothers me.” Even the aftermath hadn’t been pleasant. The panic hadn’t easily subsided once she knew she was safe. For weeks she’d had dreams of being suffocated. Irrational, crazy stuff. Bill would shake her awake, quick to reassure her she wasn’t drowning. It was all a bad dream, start to finish.
Lark frowned. “But Dawn, we had that weekend trip in Florida with the boys just three years ago. We took them snorkeling. You were fine. At least you seemed okay.”
“Oh, I was. Believe me, snorkeling is not diving. Big difference. With snorkeling you easily break the surface and tread water. But in my panic deep underwater, it felt like I had no control over anything, not even my breath.”
Lark’s expression seemed thoughtful. “Nothing says you have to see those shipwrecks or experience an excursion with Jerrod. You simply say it’s not your thing. Or you could tell him what happened. Maybe he’d have ideas about getting past your fears.”
Or, better yet, maybe she could sidestep the whole issue. “I’m a consultant, not his employee. I have nothing to do with the nuts and bolts.” She sat a little straighter in the chair. “Yeah, that’s right. Why am I even worrying about it?”
“Good. That’s the spirit,” Lark agreed, matching Dawn’s tone.
“Now that I’ve tabled that little problem, I suppose I should be on my way.” Dawn yawned and let her head fall back. “But it’s so comfortable here. I wish I didn’t have those phone meetings. I’d stretch out on this couch and take a nap.” She gave her thighs a light slap as she rose from the couch, feeling the shot of energy needed to keep her moving. “By the way,” she said, “I’m putting out some feelers for speaking gigs for Jerrod.”
“You seem to be supplying the whole of Northeast Wisconsin with all the speakers we can handle,” Lark said.
“I take him seriously. He’s so many things. Archeologist, environmentalist, historian and, of course, the big draw, international adventurer. I have a feeling he could make his mark here in Two Moon Bay—and the entire region—in any number of ways.”
Lark cocked her head. “You’ve got my attention. Knowing you as I do, I’m eager to see what kind of a campaign you put together for him.” She opened her front door. “Do you want me to bring Gordon home after practice?”
Dawn let her shoulders drop in relief. “That would be great.”
“Better yet, he can go to Lou’s for pizza with Evan and me. Miles is in Boston for a couple of days, so Evan and I are on our own. You can meet us for dinner there when you’re done with your calls.”
“Thanks so much. Now I don’t have to worry about fixing dinner.” She gave Lark a quick hug and hurried to her car.
As she drove through town, Dawn’s thoughts turned to Lark and the enormous changes in her friend’s life. It made Dawn’s head spin to think Lark was reunited with Miles, the father of a baby girl they’d given up for adoption when they were college students. Eighteen years later, they’d discovered their daughter was the rising figure skating star Perrie Lynn Olson. Dawn still found it remarkable that in working together to learn about their daughter, Lark and Miles had fallen deeply in love. Perrie Lynn had even come to their wedding. It was a matter of addition, not subtraction, Lark had said about how their family formed. She had become stepmom to Miles’s nine-year-old daughter, Brooke, and Lark’s son, Evan, gained a stepdad.
A miracle, Dawn thought, feeling the same surge of pleasure she always did when recalling Lark and Miles’s small but joyful wedding.