A Curve in the Road(77)

Now I am with Zack, driving home from the airport along the picturesque Lighthouse Route, past countless coves and inlets and sandy beaches where the ocean plays upon the rugged coastline. Winston is riding in the back seat, and I’m listening to Zack speak passionately about his classes and potential career plans. I notice that he’s wearing his father’s watch, which makes me happy.

Then he brings up a girl he has just started dating. “You’d like her, Mom. She’s gorgeous and smart and confident, and she loves dogs.”

I glance across at him and can see how smitten he is. It’s written all over his face. “I hope I’ll get to meet her sometime.”

Zack never had much time for girls in high school. For the most part, he thought they were silly and frivolous, but he tells me there’s something different about this girl. Her name is Sarah, and his eyes light up when he talks about her.

Soon we approach Hubbards Beach, and I flick the blinker.

“Where are we going?” Zack asks, confused by this unexpected detour.

I keep my eyes focused on the turn. “There’s someone I’d like you to say hello to. A friend of mine.”

“Who is it?”

“Do you remember Dr. Payne? The veterinarian who took care of Winston last year?”

“Of course.”

I follow the narrow road to the beach entrance and continue to explain. “Well, he’s here today with his family and their new golden retriever, Dorothy. Although she’s not really new. She’s a senior dog they adopted. She and Winston have become great pals.”

I pull to a halt in the empty parking lot, and we get out of the vehicle. Zack lets Winston out of the back seat, and I lead the way down to the sandy beach, where Nathan is picnicking on this chilly November afternoon with his parents and daughters, and Dorothy of course, who is galloping down the beach, chasing a tennis ball.

Zack and I approach their blanket, and Zack recognizes Nathan as he gets up and walks to meet us.

“Dr. Payne, it’s nice to see you again,” Zack says. “It’s been a while. How have you been?”

They shake hands. “Good, thanks. How about you?”

“Can’t complain.”

Nathan nods. “Your mom tells me you’re at Western this year. How has that been so far?”

“Great. Loving every minute.” Zack gestures toward Dorothy, who’s chasing the ball again. “Mom was just telling me about your new dog.”

Nathan turns to watch her too. “Yes, her name is Dorothy. She’s old but still young at heart, as you can see.”

We all watch Dorothy kick up sand as she fetches the ball. Then she and Winston greet each other with gusto.

Soon, Zack, Nathan, and I are walking together to the water’s edge, where Jen and Marie are making a big fuss over Winston.

“These are my two daughters,” Nathan says to Zack. “Jen and Marie, say hello to Abbie’s son, Zack. He just flew in from Ontario. He’s going to school there.”

Zack kneels down. “Hey. I love your dog. She looks just like mine.”

“They could be twins, right?” Marie replies.

The three of them pat and stroke Dorothy and Winston, and they laugh as Winston flops over and rolls in the sand like a big show-off.

Without saying a word, Nathan reaches for my hand. Love courses through me as I turn my head to gaze into his eyes.

Then I glance back at Zack, and I realize he’s watching us as he scratches behind Dorothy’s ears.

I’m uncertain for a second, but my grown-up son smiles and nods his head at me, as if to say, It’s all good, Mom. I’m glad you’re happy.

In that moment, I believe with all my heart that everything is going to be okay for all of us. Just like the waves that keep rolling onto the beach, happiness may recede sometimes, but then it comes back. It always comes back.





BOOK CLUB DISCUSSION QUESTIONS





The novel opens with the following passage: “Intuition is a funny thing. Sometimes it’s a gut feeling, and you look around and just know something bad is about to happen. Other times, it’s elusive, and later you find yourself looking back on certain events and wondering how in the world you missed all the signals.” Discuss Abbie’s state of denial in the first chapter, before she is run off the road. How effective, or ineffective, was her intuition?



In chapter 12, do you feel that Abbie should have taken Zack’s phone away from him to shield him from the news coverage about his father’s accident? What would you have done in that situation? Discuss how this approach differs from her later approach, when she wants to shield him from his father’s extramarital affair. Why is this different? Or is it? If you were in Abbie’s shoes, would you have told your son about your husband’s infidelity? Why or why not?



In chapter 20, Paula says, “I’m sorry I kept this from you, but Alan made me promise never to tell you, and after the accident, I felt so guilty . . . that it was my fault he was on the road that night. And then I figured . . . what would be the point in telling you? It couldn’t change anything, and you’d only be in more pain.” Then Abbie thinks, But would I have preferred to live the rest of my life in ignorance? I honestly don’t know the answer to that question. Maybe I would have. Do you believe Abbie would have been better off never knowing about Alan’s affair? Where might she have been a year later, or twenty years later, if she’d never found out? How would her life have been different?