The Sea Glass Cottage

3

OLIVIA

“Only another hour now, Otis. Can you believe we made it this far? We got this, right?”

The little dog in his crate on the back seat snored, which she decided to take as his answer.

She was so tired. It had taken her several hours to make all the arrangements at work, tie up loose business ends and pack up her car. She hadn’t been able to hit the road until about ten the previous night and had been driving for twelve hours, stopping only to catch an hour or so of sleep in the parking lot of a twenty-four-hour grocery store.

She had stopped for gas and to let Otis out a few other times. Other than that, she had been behind the wheel.

The scenery here was lovely as she headed south along the coast toward home. Still, she couldn’t help wondering if she was making a terrible mistake.

Her mother was in an accredited hospital with trained caregivers. What exactly could Olivia provide that they couldn’t?

What could she do in Cape Sanctuary besides get in the way? She wasn’t good at dealing with sick people. The sight of blood made her queasy and she didn’t have a lot of patience for sitting around in a hospital room.

And heaven knew, she was helpless at the garden center. The last time she had tried to help out during a visit home shortly after graduating from college, she had ended up killing an entire table of vegetables by using the wrong fertilizer before one of the other workers stopped her.

“My mom is hurt and she wants me there. I owe her,” she said out loud. “You understand, don’t you, Otis?”

Her dog, awake now, gave his sweet bark, as if he fully agreed with her. That was yet another reason she adored his face. He had become her sounding board, her confessor, her personal secret keeper.

“You don’t think it’s crazy, do you? I mean, she’s my mom and she’s hurt. And I love her. And going home to help for a few days is the right thing to do.”

Otis thumped his tail and circled his crate a few times.

“Yeah. I’m glad you agree. Thanks, bud. Good talk.”

The dog scratched at the floor of his crate and circled again, a clear indication that he needed out for a bit. Though painfully close to her destination, Olivia decided she could use the break as well to stretch her legs.

She picked a well-lit convenience store just off the highway and used her credit card at the pump to fill up before walking Otis around the side of the building, one hand on the canister of pepper spray on her key chain and the other tightly gripping the dog’s leash. He wouldn’t be a lot of protection but she found comfort from his presence anyway.

So far on this trip, she had managed to avoid too much crowd anxiety by paying at the pump and hurrying in and out when she needed to refill her coffee or use the restroom. It helped that she was driving overnight, when most sane people were sleeping. The morning was well underway now, though, and the convenience store parking lot was quickly filling up with commuters. No one looked threatening, she told herself, lifting her face to the sun and rotating her shoulders to ease some of the tension there. She couldn’t spend her entire life in fear because of one moment she couldn’t take back.

After a quick trip inside, where she held on to her pepper spray the entire time and hurried back to the car as soon as possible, she and Otis hit the open road again. For the rest of the journey, they made good time. When they were about half an hour from Cape Sanctuary, she had stopped again to use the restroom from all the coffee she’d been drinking and to give Otis some water when she suddenly realized she should probably have a plan for the dog once she arrived in town.

She certainly couldn’t take him to the hospital with her, especially when she didn’t know how long she would be there. As he had never been to Sea Glass Cottage, she didn’t want to simply abandon him in a strange house.

On impulse, she dialed Melody.

“Hi. I was just thinking about you,” her friend said. “How’s your mom?”

“She had an okay night. I talked to her this morning and found out her surgery is scheduled for eleven. That’s why I’m calling. Any chance you could do me a favor?”

“Sure,” Melody said instantly. “Anything. Do you want me to go sit with her during the surgery?”

“Thank you, but what I actually need is a dogsitter for a few hours while I head to the hospital myself. I was going to drop Otis at Sea Glass Cottage, but Mom and Caitlin have cats and he can be kind of a wuss when it comes to felines. I’d like to give him the chance to get to know them first when I’m there to referee. Do you mind watching him while I check on her?”

“Like, right now? As in, you’re in town?”

“Almost. I’m about twenty minutes out.”

“Did you drive all night? You must be exhausted!”

She wasn’t as tired as she’d expected, fueled by caffeine and adrenaline, but she had a feeling that wouldn’t last.

“I’m okay for now.”

“After we spoke on the phone yesterday, I didn’t think you were going to be able to make it back.”

“My mom needs me,” she said simply. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, but I was so busy making arrangements I didn’t think about it until I was on the way. I didn’t want to call you at 3:00 a.m.”

“You know I would have taken your calls. Day or night, hon.”

Oh, she loved Melody. She had dear friends in Seattle but she wasn’t sure any of them were of the call-me-day-or-night variety. “Thank you.”

“We’re happy to dogsit. The other boys are in school, but I still have Charlie home with me and can promise you, he would love to play with a dog. Ours is kind of a party pooper.”

“Thank you. Otis is very well behaved and loves children, I promise. You’re a lifesaver. I have no idea how long I’ll be at the hospital. It might be several hours.”

“No problem. We don’t have anything on our schedule today.”

“I owe you. I’ll be there in about fifteen minutes.”

“Perfect. That gives me time to get out of my yoga pants and into some real clothes. See you then.”

Olivia ended the call, grateful all over again for the priceless gift of old and dear friends. Melody had been her rock during those difficult years after Steve Harper died and Natalie went off the rails.

Olivia wanted to think she had been the same to her in return when Melody’s mom had died after years of alcohol abuse, but she was almost certain the ledger would never be equal.

As she drove into town, her skin started to prickle, memories flashing across her mind like a fast slideshow.

Her dad used to love breakfast there at the Huckleberry Café on lazy summer mornings, always ordering pancakes with extra of their eponymous syrup.

The small beachside park reminded her of her father trying to teach her and Nat how to surf. She could almost taste the salt of the seawater, feel the cool Pacific surrounding her, hear the laughter of her older sister.

Those lush, abundant flowers hanging in baskets from the lampposts throughout town probably came from the Harper Hill nursery. Every year, her family would gather one evening and pick the most luxurious baskets from their vast selection then load them into one of the nursery delivery trucks to deliver to the city office for the seasonal display.

Her dad was always so delighted at being able to do a little something to beautify their community.

He had loved Cape Sanctuary. That was the main reason he had become a volunteer firefighter, so he could give back to the neighbors and friends he loved.

The sleepy little beach town hadn’t changed much. It was a bit out of the way for a huge tourist influx but visitors still managed to find it in the summertime, coming in droves to enjoy the towering rock formations offshore, the impossibly green forests, the fairy-tale cottages surrounded by gardens and wind chimes.

It really was a beautiful setting. Too bad her memories marred the serenity of it.

When she drove past the site of the old McComb building, long since rebuilt, she noticed a new restaurant sign hung out front.

Her father had died there. He had given his life for the town he loved, an event that had been the single defining moment of her life. She would never be able to bring herself to go into that restaurant, even if people told her it served the best food in town.

She pushed away the memory as she turned down a road and approached Melody’s trim house, several blocks from the ocean.

It was a two-story cottage, really, probably less than a thousand square feet on each level, but charming, like something out of a Disney movie or a fairy tale.

Rosebushes lined the walk and cheerful blue shutters provided a stark contrast against the pale, weathered shake siding.

She pulled into the drive and turned off the engine to her crossover hybrid. “Here we are, Otis. We made it in one piece.”

Her dog flopped his tail against the wall of the crate. He grew even more excited when she came to the back and opened the door of the vehicle to clip on his leash and let him out. She held the leash with one hand and carried the crate with the other, in case he needed to retreat inside his happy place while he was visiting strangers.

“I need you to behave yourself now,” she instructed him. “It will be okay. You’ll see.”

Otis looked doubtful and she picked him up for a quick hug. “I know how nervous you get around new people. But if I can come back to town and deal with my mom, you can spend a little time with people you don’t know. I’ll be back in a few hours to get you.”

The dog gazed at her with a trust she found humbling. In the three months since they had adopted each other, she was astonished at how important Otis had become to her.

Melody came to the door before she even had time to ring the doorbell.

“Oh. I’m so happy you’re here.” Her friend hugged her tightly, and for a few lovely moments, Olivia hugged her back, feeling some of the anxiety that had simmered just under her skin begin to ease.

She cherished her friends in Seattle, she thought again, a community of caring, intelligent, funny men and women. But there was something as comforting as warm socks about being with her childhood best friend, the woman who had always known her best. It seemed to settle something deep inside her.

Melody had lost weight since she’d seen her last and she had new circles under her eyes, but her smile was bright and genuine.

“You must be so tired.”

“I’m all right,” she said. “Juliet wanted me here. So I’m here.”

“I’m so sorry she’s going through this. Your mom is so fiercely independent. This must be torture for her.”

“I can only imagine. I’m sure she’s driving the doctors and nurses crazy.”

“You’re probably in a hurry to get to the hospital. Don’t worry. We’ll have a chance to catch up.”

“Thank you. This is Otis. He’s usually a sweetheart, though a little shy.”

“Excellent. Charlie and Thor, that’s our golden retriever, will be glad for the company. They’re playing in the back right now.”

“Otis can be a nervous Nellie. He might not want to even come out of his carrier,” she warned.

“We’ll be gentle, I promise. He’ll be okay, Liv. We don’t torture fur babies around here. My boys are careful.”

She was being ridiculous, she knew. Otis was just so dear to her, her first creature since she’d become an adult. She hadn’t had a dog in years, not since her dad’s beloved border collie died of old age a few months after Steve’s death. She’d forgotten how dogs could reach in and grab hold of a person’s heart.

“Thanks.” She hugged Melody again, wondering if the weight loss was from a diet or if she had stopped eating after her idiot husband walked out on her. “I love you tons. You know that, right?”

“Yes.” Melody eased away, her eyes suspiciously bright. “I’m really sorry about your mom. But on a purely selfish note, I’m so glad you’re home for a few days.”

She was the worst friend. She should have come home the moment she heard Rich Baker had walked out on his family. Melody hadn’t told her; she’d had to hear the news from Juliet, who had sounded heartbroken.

As soon as she hung up after hearing the news from her mother, Olivia had called Mel and they had cried together for a good hour on the phone. She had tried to stay in touch since then with video chats and funny texts and even a few care packages of things she thought might cheer her up.

In retrospect, she was ashamed she hadn’t done more. Squeezing even a weekend out of her schedule to fly down would have meant more than all the floral bouquets or bath baskets or luxury linens she could have sent.

“We’ll catch up. I promise. As soon as I get my mom settled, we’ll find a babysitter for your boys and we’ll head to The Sea Shanty, where we can drink margaritas all night and tell each other everything.”

“That sounds perfect,” Mel said with a rather watery smile. “I’ve missed you.”

“Same, times a million,” she said, giving Melody another hug.

“You’d better get out of here and head to the hospital so you can catch your mom before surgery.”

“Yeah.” She hugged her dog one more time then set him back in the safe zone of his carrier and headed for the door.

“I’ll call you as soon as I know anything,” she promised.

“I’ll be waiting.”

Melody stood at the top step of her cottage, waving as Olivia headed down the sidewalk.

She had just reached her vehicle and opened the door when a shiny blue pickup truck pulled up into the driveway next to her.

Not her business who else might be visiting Melody, she told herself as a man climbed out of the driver’s seat.

For just a moment, their gazes met, his curious and maybe a little suspicious, and Melody felt as if someone had dumped a bucket of salt water over her head.

It was Cooper Vance, Melody’s older brother.

Lean, tough, dangerous. Gorgeous.

A hundred memories suddenly chased each other across her mind, tumbling and rolling, leaving her off balance and feeling a little dizzy.

She was only tired and overcaffeinated, she told herself. That was the reason she felt that seismic jolt of awareness.

When she was barely a teenager she used to have such a crush on him. In one of those weird twists that often happened among neighbors close in age, his sister had been her best friend, while her sister, Natalie, had been his.

She used to think he was hotter than all the guys in her favorite boy band mixed together.

He gazed at her without any trace of recognition. Big surprise there. She had only been fourteen the last time she saw him, gawky and awkward, with an overbite, braces on her teeth, frizzy, overprocessed hair and no figure to speak of.

He had moved away from Cape Sanctuary, joining the military as an elite special forces pararescue trooper. When Natalie died of an overdose, he had been stationed overseas and hadn’t been able to make it back for her funeral.

Somehow their paths had not intersected in all the intervening years. If she were smart, she would figure out a way to keep them from ever intersecting.

The man was trouble.

She had known he was back in town. Melody had mentioned it a few months ago in an email, something Olivia had registered vaguely as one of those interesting details that wouldn’t have much impact in her life. Why would it? She was busy with her life in Seattle and rarely came back to Cape Sanctuary.

And then her mother had mentioned Cooper a few weeks ago, telling Olivia she had run into him at the grocery store. The conversation had been typical Juliet.

“He was so kind,” her mother had said, always looking for the good in people. “He insisted on loading all of my groceries into my trunk like I was some old lady. I always liked that boy. Your father did, too. It didn’t matter what his background was, how difficult his home life might have been, that his dad was in prison and his mom was a drunk. He always worked hard and looked out for his family.”

Yes, Cooper was perfect in Juliet’s eyes. Olivia had a sexy dream about him that night, she remembered now, and could feel her face heat at the memory.

She frowned and would have climbed into her car and driven away except this was Cape Sanctuary and that sort of rudeness just wasn’t acceptable.

He offered a polite smile. “Hi. I’m Cooper Vance, Melody’s brother.”

“I know.”

He looked apologetic. “Sorry. I haven’t been back in town very long and I’m still trying to remember faces and names.”

He gave her a closer look. “Olivia? Is that you? Good Lord. How long has it been?”

So long. And not long enough.

“A few years. Mel told me you had moved back to town.”

He shrugged. “The fire chief job opened up here and I was looking for a change. The timing seemed right. I can’t believe I didn’t recognize you. I obviously wasn’t looking closely enough. You look like your mom and…you have Nat’s eyes.”

Grief twisted across his features and she felt a pang of sympathy. She missed her sister, too.

People had been saying she resembled her mother and her sister most of her life. She didn’t see it. Natalie had been tall, willowy, gorgeous, with long wavy blond hair and compelling, classically lovely features.

Olivia felt like the awkward clone rendition of Natalie, as if the mold that created them had been slightly damaged by the forging progress and was starting to wear out. They shared the same high cheekbones, the same hazel eyes, but Olivia had never reached Nat’s height and her hair wasn’t quite as vibrantly blond. It was also annoyingly frizzy, until she’d grown tired of trying to straighten it and just adopted beach waves or messy buns.

Most important, Natalie had carried herself with an assurance Olivia had never felt.

Would Olivia have grown into her skin a little better if her father hadn’t died so abruptly and if Natalie’s life hadn’t spiraled out of control shortly after? She didn’t know. She only knew that by the time her sister died, Natalie had no longer looked like the classic beach beauty. Her hair was dry, falling out, and her weight had dwindled so much that her bones showed and her skin had become sallow and loose.

Cooper hadn’t been there to see it, of course. He had been off saving the world. He and Natalie had been best friends, but when she had needed him most, Cooper hadn’t been anywhere around. If he’d stayed, maybe he could have stopped that downward spiral. None of the rest of them could.

“I didn’t know you were back in town.”

“Yes. Barely.”

“Your mom and niece will be so happy to see you. Have you stopped by the hospital yet?”

“On my way now. I only stopped to see if Mel could babysit for me.”

He looked surprised. “You have kids? I had no idea! How many? How old?”