The Rest of the Story(74)

He said this so easily I assumed the answer was company-dictated. “Well,” Tracy said, “it’s lovely. Although I guess I shouldn’t have expected any less, since it is Grace who planned all this.”

That would be Nana, who was already up in our suite, having been brought straight from the airport late the night before. She didn’t drive either, but with her declining eyesight, she at least had a good excuse.

“Welcome to the Tides,” the woman behind the desk said as we approached. “Checking in?”

“Yes,” my dad said. “The last name is Payne. I believe my mother is already here.”

“I can’t wait to go for a swim,” Tracy said to me. “And eat something. Are you hungry?”

I was, although I hadn’t been aware of this until right at that moment. “Yeah, actually. I am.”

“The Channel Marker, our restaurant, is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner,” the woman said, sliding some cards to my dad. “The hours are here on your keys. And room service is available twenty-four hours a day.”

“Room service it is,” my dad said, and Tracy grinned. He turned to face us. “Ready to go up?”

In the elevator, there was a screen showing a video, on repeat, of the highlights of the Tides. Here was the pool, blue and empty. The beach, with a clearly posed photo of a single child digging in the sand with a bucket. Even the lake, which I’d seen every day for weeks now, looked different in the sunset picture that appeared.

“Floor five,” the voice announced as the doors slid open. Like “Lake North,” it was all in the order you said it.

“Five fourteen,” my dad said, glancing at the key card in his hand. “So that’s—oh. Right here.”

It wasn’t hard to spot, as the door marked with these numbers was the only one on the short hallway where we were standing. On the other side of the elevators was 515. So we basically had half of an entire floor? Was that even possible?

My dad waved his card at the door, which clicked, and he pushed it open, standing back to hold it for Tracy and myself. “Hello?” Tracy called out as she stepped inside.

“In here,” I heard Nana say. At the sound of her voice, I smiled.

I loved my grandmother. With her, everything was always, effortlessly, Just So, from the thin teacup she drank her coffee from every morning—in a matching robe and slipper set, hair combed perfectly—to the simple, but perfect, bouquet of seasonal flowers that always stood on her dining room table. Everything outside Nana’s apartment might have felt fragile and already falling apart, but with her, there was always a sense that things were as they should be.

“Emma,” she said when she saw me, holding open her arms. After all the foot dragging of the morning, now I felt like I couldn’t move fast enough. “You are a sight for these sore eyes! How are you?”

“Good,” I said, giving her a tight squeeze before she gestured for me to sit in the chair next to hers. “How was the cruise?”

“Oh, it was wonderful,” she sighed. “The pyramids must be seen to be believed. Are you hungry? I have a few things here, but we can easily order more.”

This was an understatement: I saw a pot of coffee and a plate stacked with pastries, as well as fresh fruit and berries, arranged beautifully in a bowl. There was toast, too, four pieces perfectly browned, balls of butter dotted with salt beside them.

“Have some,” Nana said, seeing me notice this. She picked up the plate, putting it closer to me. “You look hungry.”

“Thanks,” I replied, reaching for a piece and putting it on the plate in front of me.

“It looks delicious,” Tracy said after also greeting Nana. “This place is amazing.”

“It’s lovely, I agree,” Nana said, looking around the room. Like the lobby, the floor was white tile, the room open, with a small kitchen tucked away in a corner and a living area to the right of where we were sitting. The real centerpiece, though, were the sliding doors, open now to let in the breeze, that framed both a patio and a gorgeous, wide view of the lake. “So,” she said. “How are Mimi and the rest of the family?”

“Good,” I said. “It was nice to get to know everyone. I just wish I’d had longer there.”

“I told her she’s only a couple of miles away,” my dad said. “Easy to visit while we’re here.”

“And we’ll have to have them, as well,” Nana said, picking up a piece of toast and putting in on her plate. “Matthew, let’s plan on that. A thank-you dinner. I’ll talk to the desk about booking a table at the Club.”

“Oh, you don’t have to do that,” I said quickly. While Bailey would lose her mind at the prospect, I could only imagine everyone else would be less than enthused.

“I think it’s the least we can do since they took such good care of you. Ask Mimi what night is good, will you? And how many will be coming. The more the merrier.”

My phone beeped, the sound distant in my purse, which was on the back of my chair. Nana, who hated screens at the table, gave it a pointed look, making it clear I should not check it. So I didn’t.

“I’ll talk to her,” I said instead. “But she’s really busy with the motel and everything.”

“All the more reason for a nice dinner out,” Nana replied as, outside, a large boat puttered across the water, pulling a float behind it. “Now, what’s the plan for today? Pool? Lake? A nap?”