The Sunset Cottages: A Willa Bay Novel

by Nicole Ellis

  Zoe buzzed around, making sure things were in their proper places.

  “Do you need any help?” Cassie asked. It looked like everything was good to go, but she wasn’t an events expert like Zoe.

  “Nope!” Zoe’s eyes gleamed, clearly in her element. “It’s almost time to eat. I think we’re just waiting on Gabe now.” As if he’d heard his name, Gabe ducked under the tent flaps just then, and Zoe clapped her hands. “Okay, everyone, find a seat.”

  The twelve of them dutifully sat down on either side of the long, rectangular table that had been created by pushing two shorter ones together.

  “Do you think she’s going to let us eat soon?” Cassie whispered to Meg, who sat next to her, across from Taylor. “I’m starving.”

  “Me too.” Meg giggled under her breath. “But I’m not sure what Zoe has planned. Hopefully something quick.”

  Zoe glared at them, then laughed. “I know we’re all ready to eat this delicious food, but I thought since it’s November and we’re not all going to be together for Thanksgiving, we could each say something we’re thankful for.” She looked at Shawn, who sat across from her. “Do you want to start?”

  He raised his eyebrows. “Do I have a choice?” He grinned at her and chuckled. “Okay, okay. I’m thankful for all the friends and family we have here.” He wrapped an arm around his grandmother, Celia, who was sitting next to him, and gave her a gentle squeeze.

  Celia beamed at his attention, and went next. “I’m grateful for everything that’s been done to restore the Inn. I never thought it would look so beautiful ever again.”

  They went around the table, with everyone sharing something. By the time Zoe released them to get food, the overall mood was light and joyful and Cassie had almost forgotten how upset she was at Kyle. She happily dug into some of her favorite dishes. Food always seemed to taste better when she didn’t have to cook it.

  After they’d cleaned up, most of the group decided to go on an evening beach walk to work up an appetite for dessert, but Cassie and Libby opted to stay behind. Gabe and Shawn stood in the corner having a lively discussion about power tools.

  Libby sidled up to Cassie. “Do you want to go out to the gazebo with me? I love seeing the bay at night, but I’m not going on the beach with these heels on.” She glanced ruefully at her feet.

  “Sure.” Cassie had considered joining the others, but had experienced the same doubts about wearing her good shoes in the sand.

  The two of them put their heavy winter jackets back on and walked across the lush lawn to the renovated gazebo. Cassie sat down on one of the flowered cushions on the far side, turning so she could look out at the bay. Libby seated herself next to Cassie, also facing sideways to view the water.

  “It’s so calm at night.” Libby’s voice held a note of awe.

  “I know. Sometimes I’m jealous of everyone who lives at the resort, because they get to see this every night.” Cassie relaxed, soaking up the magic of the beams of moonlight dancing on the waves, and the glittering lights of the island across the bay. The bracingly cool air gave her some clarity, but the urge to ask Libby about her marriage still took her by surprise. “Libby? How have you and Gabe been married for so long?”

  “Um.” The question jolted Libby away from her focus on the water, and it took her a while to answer. “What do you mean?”

  “Like how have you made it work for so long?” Cassie bit her lip. “I thought Kyle and I had what it took, but we’ve already failed once.”

  Libby regarded her thoughtfully. “I honestly don’t know. Marriage isn’t always easy. I could say good communication is the key, but Gabe and I haven’t always been stellar communicators with each other.” She quieted for a moment. “Maybe it’s remembering that the other person in the relationship is human too, and that everyone has flaws. Also, trying to remember what things were like when it was just the two of us – before being overwhelmed with kids and everyday life made us forget.”

  “Oh yeah,” Cassie said. “You guys took that trip to Boise a few weeks ago, right? How was that?” Maybe that was the secret. If she and Kyle could get his parents to watch the kids for another weekend, they could go on a couples vacation.

  “Uh.” Libby hesitated. “It was good.” She blew out her breath and locked eyes with Cassie. “If I tell you something, will you promise not to tell my sisters or anyone else?”

  Cassie nodded, wondering why Libby was being so secretive. Were things not as good in her marriage as they appeared? She knew Libby and Gabe had gone through some problems over the summer, but their marriage seemed to have come out of those trials stronger than ever.

  “Gabe’s company is thinking about transferring him to Idaho,” Libby blurted out.

  Cassie’s eyes widened. “Oh.” It was all she could think of to say. Libby was so involved with everything in Willa Bay that Cassie couldn’t imagine her not being there.

  “Yeah.” Libby stared down at her lap, where she was twisting her fingers together. “Mom suspected something earlier today, so I had to tell her. I don’t want my sisters to find out until things are more definite, but I wanted to share it with someone else.” She looked up at Cassie, her eyes glistening. “And you’ve always been like another little sister to me.”

  Cassie’s heart warmed. She’d been an only child, but she and Meg had been best friends growing up, and Debbie Briggs had always treated her like she was one of the family. “Thank you for trusting me.”

  Libby looked like she was about to burst into tears and Cassie leaned forward to hug her. “It’s all going to work out. Even if you have to move, at least you’ll be with Gabe and the kids. Your little family will still be together.” Inadvertently, Cassie’s thoughts flashed to her own family – Jace, Amanda…and Kyle.

  Libby seemed to catch Cassie’s train of thought. “You and Kyle are going to be okay too.”

  “How do you know?” Cassie pressed her lips together. Every time she thought things were going well, something happened to make her doubt him.

  Libby stared at her for a long moment, as if assessing what she should say. “Don’t be so hard on Kyle. He’s trying to do the right thing.”

  Cassie bristled at her friend’s words. Kyle had left her hanging for the Wedding Crashers potluck after he’d committed to going with her. In what crazy world was that someone’s best effort?

  Libby offered her a comforting smile. “Look, something I’ve learned over the last year is to not make assumptions about my partner’s behavior. Remember how Gabe was so secretive with me last summer?” She shook her head. “I was so convinced that he was having an affair, but it turned out he was worried about getting laid off from his job and how I’d react to the news. If we’d communicated better instead of making assumptions, we could have saved each other a lot of pain.”

  Cassie knew what Libby was trying to say, but she wasn’t sure it applied to her relationship with Kyle. He’d known he was supposed to go with her tonight, but had pushed it from his mind in favor of work.

  Libby stood and put her hand on Cassie’s shoulder. “Kyle loves you. I can see it in how he looks at you – how happy he is to be with you and the kids. Don’t let one minor transgression ruin everything.” She inclined her head toward the tents, where the rest of their group had returned from the beach. “Do you feel like some dessert?”

  Cassie smiled faintly. “You go ahead. I’ll be there in a minute.”

  Libby nodded and walked away, leaving Cassie alone in the dimly lit gazebo. Cassie drew her knees up to her chest and leaned against the back of the bench, letting her gaze drift toward the bay again. Libby had a point. Kyle had been trying to be a better father and partner – and, deep down, she knew he loved her. The questions remained though: was he relapsing into old habits, or was this an isolated incident? And to take Libby’s advice, was there anything she could do to make the situation better?

  From within the tent came the sound of Christmas music and some loud groans from a few of the men
, followed by laughter from the women. The music stayed on, and Cassie grinned. She unfolded her legs and stood, taking one last look at the peaceful waters of Willa Bay before walking toward the party tent. She was lucky to have so many good friends in her life. Even when things with Kyle felt uncertain, she knew she’d always have their support.

  8

  Tia

  Tia dipped the toe of her hot-pink rain boot into the shallows of a giant mud puddle that had formed on the gravel lane outside Zoe’s cottage. The rain had started falling the night before and only let up about an hour ago, leaving the ground saturated. She still wasn’t used to the unpredictable Pacific Northwest downpours, but she’d gone to the thrift store last spring and outfitted herself with a pair of rubber boots, a long yellow rain jacket, and a pink polka-dotted umbrella that never failed to make her smile.

  She looked around and saw no one, so she jumped into the pool of water, splashing waves of mud out of the puddle, where it quickly absorbed into the soil. She laughed out loud, feeling like a carefree child.

  A man’s voice called out to her, “My sisters and I used to do that.”

  Unfortunately, she’d been too busy playing to notice the tall man approaching from the resort’s parking lot. She leapt backward until she was about a foot away from the puddle, her face heating up despite the chill in the air.

  Cal smiled at her, his mouth twitching as though he were trying to hold back laughter. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you. You looked like you were having fun.”

  “I never really had a chance to do it when I was a kid because we didn’t have much rain where I grew up.” She thought for a second and amended her statement. “Well, it rained once in a while, but I’m sure my mom felt it wasn’t ladylike for me to jump in puddles.” She stared defiantly at the pool of brown water in front of her.

  Cal raised his eyebrows. “I’ll have to remember to inform my sisters that puddle-jumping is considered unladylike.” He flashed her an easy grin. “Anyway, I was hoping to run into you.”

  Her cheeks warmed even further. He’d been looking for her? No. That hadn’t been quite what he said.

  He opened his jacket as though he were a street salesman with a coat full of watches for sale. Tucked against his side, safe from the rain, was the cigar box Tia had found in Cottage Twenty last Friday. “I managed to get it open without damaging the box or the lock.”

  “You did?” Her interest piqued, but she forced her gaze upward to avoid staring at his chest. “What was in it?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t open it.”

  “Really? Why not?” If the tables had been turned and she’d been in possession of the box, there was no way she could have avoided peeking at its contents.

  He shrugged again. “It wasn’t mine to open.” He glanced skyward and a few errant drops of rain fell off the tree branch above him, splattering his face.

  Now it was Tia’s turn to laugh.

  He spluttered a little and wiped off the water with the back of his hand. “Okay, I suppose I deserved that for kidding you about the puddle.” He held out the box. “Is now a good time to give this to you?”

  “Sure.” She reached for it, and he handed it over as carefully as if its contents were made of glass. For all she knew, the box could contain fragile items, but she doubted that to be the case. She’d turned it over several times while examining it in the cottage and hadn’t heard more than a dull thunk from within.

  As they made the exchange, her hand grazed his. His fingers were warm and callused, those of a man who worked with his hands. The unexpected touch caused goosebumps to erupt on her arms, and she looked up at him. His eyes registered a faint trace of surprise and he quickly let go. He’d felt it too.

  To distract herself, she ran her hand over the rough wooden exterior of the cigar box and inspected the lid. True to his word, the lock was unlatched, hanging loosely on the hasp. She tucked the box safely under her jacket in case the rain started up again, then looked up at him.

  “Thank you for doing this for me. You didn’t have to.”

  He gave her an aw-shucks grin and said, “No problem.” He glanced at his watch. “I’d better get out to Cottage Twenty though. I promised Shawn I’d be there by eight-thirty this morning.”

  “Oh, of course,” she said. “Thank you again for helping me with this.”

  “You’re very welcome.” He smiled at her again, then turned and walked jauntily down the lane. She watched him for a few seconds, then turned her attention back to the mystery box. Seriously, how had he resisted opening it?

  She badly wanted to find out what was inside, but it felt almost sacrilegious to do so out here in the elements. She needed someplace where she could keep the box and its contents safe and dry. It had been hidden for who knew how many years, and she supposed it could wait until she wasn’t standing in the middle of a muddy road.

  She looked around to determine the perfect spot to set the box down, her gaze landing on the wide front porch of the historic Inn. It seemed to beckon to her, convincing her it was a fitting place to discover the box’s contents, since it had watched over everything else at the resort for over a century.

  Tia settled into the plump floral cushions of one of the white wicker chairs on the front porch. With trembling fingers, she slipped the lock from the hasp – then paused for a few seconds. What if there was nothing of importance in it? Although she tried not to, she’d been building the contents up in her mind since she’d found it. In truth, it may hold little more than a teenaged boy’s prize cigar collection, or, worse yet, a nest of dead spiders.

  Something told her that wasn’t the case though. She flipped up the hasp and lifted the box lid in the same movement, then stared at the contents. These weren’t cigars.

  The largest item in the box was a medium-sized book bound in brown leather. Tia ran her hand over its smooth grain. Poking out from below the book were a couple of black-and-white photographs.

  She eased them out and looked at the first one, which featured a young woman in her late teens and a male about the same age. They stood next to each other in front of the gazebo. At first, it appeared that they weren’t even touching, but she spotted their pinky fingers interlocked in an almost hidden embrace – the bond between them unmistakable.

  Tia turned the photo over and read the inscription on the back: Davina Carlsen and Matthias Jensen, July, 1927.

  Tia sucked in her breath. This was Davina, the same girl who’d written in the journal Meg had found while cleaning out the old barn on the property. Tia glanced at the other photos, which showed the same couple in slightly different poses. A few other trinkets lay in the box, but now that she knew Davina was involved, she couldn’t wait to open the leatherbound book.

  Sure enough, much like the journal Meg had shown her, the first page read, “Property of Davina Carlsen”. Tia leaned back in the chair. She and Meg had wondered what had become of Davina after the last entry in the other journal. Now they may have the chance to find out.

  The woman had been the eldest daughter of the original family that had founded the Inn at Willa Bay. In fact, Davina’s younger sister, Lorraine, had been the second owner of the resort. She and her husband had taken a young Celia into their home and given her both a place to live and a sense of family. Oddly enough, although she’d lived with Lorraine for many years, Celia hadn’t known about Davina’s existence until Meg had discovered the first journal back in August.

  Tia knew Davina must have died long ago, but it still felt like an invasion of her privacy. However, the desire to learn more about the young woman won out, and Tia sat upright to turn to the next page. The first line dripped with teenage enthusiasm: I think I’m in love.

  The corners of Tia’s mouth turned up in a smile and she clapped the book shut, knowing that Meg would want to see it too. She gathered the photos and slipped them between two pages, then left the cigar box and her umbrella in the office she shared with Zoe. She tucked the journal under
her jacket and took off at a brisk pace toward the barn, where Meg could usually be found in the mornings.

  Tia poked her head into the dark, cavernous building. While the tall wooden doors on either side had been propped wide, the opening did little to let in much light. “Meg?” she called out, scanning what she could see of the main floor.

  “I’m in here,” came a muffled voice from inside one of the old horse stalls, along with an odd rustling sound.

  Tia headed toward Meg’s voice, but Meg surprised her by stepping into the walkway before Tia reached the stalls.

  Tia wrinkled her nose. “What’s that smell?” A noxious, chemical odor similar to paint permeated the air, but they were nowhere near the point where they could paint the barn’s interior. A month or so ago, Meg’s boyfriend, Taylor, had gathered a crew of friends and family to help clear out the barn, but likely they would need a few more work parties before starting any type of remodeling, much less painting.

  Meg glanced back toward the stall she’d just exited. “Oh. It must be from when I accidentally knocked over a can of paint thinner. Someone had left it out and I didn’t see it in the dark until it was too late.”

  Tia nodded. That made sense. She didn’t know how Meg could stand being in the poorly lit interior of the barn so frequently, but her friend didn’t seem to mind.

  Tia noticed a brand-new blue tarp covering a tall item in the corner and pointed at it. “What’s that?”

  Meg grinned. “That’s a surprise I’m keeping for someone.”

  “Like for Christmas?” Tia blurted out.

  “I can’t tell you,” Meg said, turning and guiding Tia away from the stall. “It’s a secret.”

  Tia really wanted to know, but she’d never been any good at secrets. She’d always been awful at keeping them, especially in regard to gifts – a trait her family liked to tease her about. “Nevermind, don’t tell me. I wouldn’t be able to keep my mouth shut.” She blushed, but Meg only laughed. “Anyway, speaking of secrets, I found something in the closet in my bedroom at the cottage.” She pulled the journal from her jacket and and held it out to Meg.