Driftwood Lane (Nantucket #4)(25)

“You have enough on your plate.” Rita set her can of Diet Coke in the sand and brushed the crumbs from her hands. “How are the kids doing? Noelle seemed distracted Friday, but she was probably worried about Ben.”

“I think they’re okay, all things considered. Noelle’s a little sassy, but that’s typical teenager behavior, right?”

Rita chuckled. “If mine are anything to go by.”

Meridith finished the chicken salad sandwich, washed it down with a sip of Diet Coke, and leaned back on her elbows. “The sun feels heavenly.” She’d spent too many hours cooped up in that house.

With Jake.

“Wait until summer. It’s a different island come July.”

Meridith didn’t mention that she wouldn’t be around then. Rita might not understand her reasons for returning, and she didn’t want to spoil the day with conflict.

“Tell me about your life in—St. Louis, is it?”

Meridith nodded. “I’m a health inspector for restaurants and hotels. Well, I was. My boss wasn’t happy about my leave of absence, so I’ll be looking for another job when I return.”

Three seagulls flew overhead, their cries piercing the air.

“You’d think he’d be more sympathetic. Any family back home?”

She remembered the last time she’d seen her mom. Buzzing around the bedroom on a cleaning spree, her auburn hair awry.

Meridith shook away the thought. “No, there was just my mom, and she passed away a couple years ago.”

“I’m so sorry. You’re awful young to lose both parents. But you have your siblings.”

“That I do, though I’d never met them until now.”

“Wow. This must’ve been quite a shock. I can’t help but notice you have a man in your life.” Rita tapped Meridith’s ring with the pad of her index finger. “That is some ring.”

“Stephen’s an accountant. We met four years ago at one of the restaurants I was inspecting.”

A seagull set down at the shoreline.

“Love at first sight? Oh, I love a good story.”

Meridith smiled. “Not really. We sort of—grew into love. He proposed on Christmas Day.”

“What a great present! When’s the big day? Getting custody of the kids must’ve thrown a real kink into the works.”

“We haven’t set a date yet. I never was one for a big wedding, but Stephen and his family want one. And now we—need time to sort things out.” She needed to change the subject. “Are you a stay-at-home mom?”

“Oh, heavens no, our mortgage doesn’t allow that. I own the Broad Street Gallery.”

“You’re an artist?”

She laughed. “Uh, no. I just appreciate fine art and buy the pieces I like, mostly from local artists. In fact, that’s how I met your father.”

“He was an artist?”

“You didn’t know?”

“We weren’t very close. In fact, I hadn’t seen him in years.”

“Hmm. Well, boat repair work kept him busy during the warm months, but in the winter he created driftwood sculptures. He was good, one of my more popular artists.”

“The sculptures at the house must be his, then. They’re very unusual.”

“I asked him once what inspired him to take up such a unique craft. He said he enjoyed taking something so carelessly uprooted and making it into a thing of beauty. That really stuck with me.”

“Hmm.”

“He must’ve trusted you a great deal to leave the kiddos in your care. Has Eva’s brother been reached yet? I know they were close.”

“We haven’t heard from him. Do you know him?”

“Our paths haven’t crossed, but Eva talked about him a lot.” The wind caught Rita’s hair, and she shook it from her face.

“I was surprised he wasn’t their first choice for guardian, frankly,” Meridith said.

“Well, they must’ve had their reasons. He seems to travel a lot and, well, he’s a bachelor. If he hasn’t called home in all these weeks, that tells you a lot. I’m sure T. J. and Eva knew what was best for the kids.”

“Most days I don’t feel like I have a clue.”

Rita chortled. “Welcome to parenthood.”

Meridith returned her smile. Maybe that’s just the way it was. The thought was liberating and daunting at the same time. Would things never settle down? Would she always feel powerless to help Ben and Max, unable to handle Noelle?

No, her life would calm down when she was back in St. Louis where she belonged. The children would settle in and make friends. It would be fine. Meridith tilted her head back and closed her eyes and let the sun warm her face. The sounds of the rippling water disquieted her. The wind tugged her hair this way, then that. Was it ever quiet and still here?

“Things will be easier once you and the kids get familiar,” Rita said, echoing her thoughts. “Plus you’re learning to run a new business, honey. And Noelle said you were having work done on the house?”

Meridith opened her eyes, watched the seagull hop down the shoreline into the foamy water’s edge. “I hired a guy to fix a few things, trying to get the place up to code.”

An image of Jake formed. Jake on the ladder, thick arms stretched overhead. Jake on the kitchen floor fixing the leak, his long legs extended. Jake carrying Ben into the hospital, cradling him against his chest.