“Let’s not talk about this anymore,” Scarlet said. “Your wedding is supposed to be a happy occasion. Let’s not ruin it with sad old memories.”
Scarlet had never been able to talk about their parents. For her sake especially, it was essential to unravel the secrets that had kept them in the dark for so long. Harper needed to find a way to do that. If there was one thing she’d learned in the last few weeks, it was that healing could only begin if secrets and lies were brought out into the light.
“You’re right. My wedding is a very happy occasion. And it’s also a happy occasion that the three of us are together.”
“It’s good to be home.” Scarlet kissed her hair. “It’s getting late. Time to head back.”
Harper nodded and turned around to walk back down the dock to the shore. She glanced over her shoulder, needing one last look at the lake. A yellow canoe glistened in the sun, two people paddling toward the opposite shore. She grasped Maggie’s arm, her heart in her throat. “Look!”
“What?” Maggie turned in the direction Harper pointed, shading her eyes from the sun’s glare. “What do you see?”
The canoe was gone. Harper blinked into the sun and then shook her head. “Nothing. A trick of the light.”
But she knew what she saw. Harper sent a silent prayer out over the lake as she’d done so many times in the past. I love you, Mom and Daddy. I hope you’re both at peace.
“Let’s go back to the cottage,” she said. “Ethan is waiting for me.”
Hand in hand, they walked the length of the dock back to the shore.
The End
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Next in the Love at Solace Lake series…
Secrets and Solace
PROLOGUE
Angry voices hung on the humid summer air, as heavy as the scent of the pine trees in the forest surrounding her. Scarlet Lindquist tiptoed along the well-worn path, the soft earth muffling her steps. If Mom and Daddy caught her following them, they’d be mad. They’d told her to stay with Grandma at the lodge because they had things they needed to talk about. Adult things.
Her older sister Harper said Daddy’s unexpected arrival at their grandparents’ fishing lodge meant he was taking them home. He wouldn’t have come all the way from Minneapolis if that wasn’t his plan. Didn’t he tell them how much he’d missed them since he went away?
Scarlet wasn’t so sure. Harper hadn’t heard the fighting between Mom and Grandma Dorothy. But she had. They thought she didn’t understand, but she understood plenty; she was eight, not a baby like her sister Maggie. Mom said the marriage was over, and she was never going back. She was going to start a new life. Grandma said she’d be a fool to throw away her marriage. That she had a good life with Daddy, a secure life, and surely there could be forgiveness. Mom said Grandma didn’t understand, that she’d never understood.
She hoped that didn’t mean her parents were getting a divorce. Her friend Becca’s parents got a divorce and she had to move between their houses every week, and they were constantly telling her how much they hated each other. Scarlet wished Daddy would come home, so things could be the way they were before.
She stopped and crouched behind a clump of trees. Her parents had arrived at The Point, a finger of land that stuck out into Solace Lake. Her mom kept her canoe here because it was easy to launch from the small sand beach on the very tip of the point, but today Scarlet saw that her mom’s yellow canoe was tied to the dock. Grampa had built the dock at The Point for the use of his customers, the fishermen who came up to the lodge to catch the fish that lived in the lake. There was another dock closer to the lodge, but Grampa said fishers liked this one because the deep water at the end of the dock was the best spot on the lake to fish.
When she peeked between the branches, she saw that her parents had stopped walking and were facing each other on the beach. Scarlet held her breath, afraid they’d hear her and make her go away.
“I know what I said before, but I can’t give you up. I don’t want a divorce. We can try again. We can work this out.” Daddy’s voice sounded funny, as if he was crying. “You know I love you, don’t you? I’ve always loved you. That hasn’t changed.”
“I know,” Mom said. “But I can’t go on like this, living a lie.”
“It’s not a lie! We have a family! The girls need us. Can’t we try again? At least for them?”
“It’s too late, Rob! You know it is!” She shook her head. “I’ll never keep Harper and Scarlet away from you, no matter what happens between us. They need you.”
“I can’t bear it, Miranda! I can’t lose you. I’m sorry I wasn’t the husband you needed. I’m sorry I put my work first too often, but I can change. Can’t you give me another chance?” He covered his face with his hands. “If you leave me and take the girls, I have no reason to live. I’d rather be dead.”
She’d never seen her daddy cry before and it frightened her. She couldn’t stop her own tears from streaking down her cheeks. She put both hands over her mouth so her sobs couldn’t escape.
“Don’t talk like that, Rob. It’s not fair. You know as well as I do, we’re no good together. I’m sorry, but it’s the truth. You deserve someone who loves you to distraction, and that’s not me.”
They stopped talking and Scarlet heard only the birds singing in the trees. Then daddy sighed, his voice sounding tired and sad. “Do you love him?”
“Yes.” Scarlet heard the hitch in her mother’s voice. “I always have.”
Who were they talking about? Did this mean they were never going home again? She didn’t want to stay here forever with Grandma Dorothy and Grampa Bill. She hated the fishing lodge. She hated the bugs and the crawly things. She wanted to go back to their big house in Minneapolis and play with her friends. She wanted her daddy.
A sob escaped despite her hands covering her mouth. She curled into a ball and made herself as tiny as possible.
The branches parted and her mom peered down at her. “Scarlet, honey, what are you doing here? Didn’t we tell you not to follow us?”
“Why can’t we go home with Daddy?” Fear and anger made her shout.
“I’m sorry, honey. For now, we’re going to stay here.”
“I don’t want to stay with Grandma and Grampa! I want to go home!”
Her mom pulled her up and gave her a hug, her arms so tight Scarlet could barely breathe. “We won’t be here much longer. We’re going to have a new home soon.”
“Will Daddy be there?”
“No, honey, he won’t. But you can visit him, and you can talk to him on the phone anytime you want to.”
“Will Harper and Maggie come to our new home, too?”
“Yes, of course. We’ll all be together.”
Except for Daddy.
Mom kissed her cheek. “Go back to the lodge now. Daddy and I will be along in a little while.”
Scarlet nodded. Over Mom’s shoulder she saw her daddy. His hands were in the pockets of his jeans and his head was down. He looked sad, like he was going to cry again.
She scrambled out of her mom’s arms and down the path to fling her arms around his waist. He sank to his knees and hugged her back. Then, he grasped her shoulders in his hands and looked into her face.
“I love you, Scarlet.” He kissed her cheek. “No matter what happens, always remember that, okay?”
“Okay.”
He gave her a brief, sad smile. “Good girl. Now listen to your mother and run back to lo
dge. We’ll see you in a few minutes.”
Tears ran down Scarlet’s cheeks. “I don’t want to leave you.”
He kissed her again and then gave her one of his goofy grins. For a moment he was the Daddy she’d always known, the one who laughed a lot and told them funny stories. “Are Mom and I going to have to go out into the middle of the lake to have a private conversation? C’mon, go back to the lodge now, pumpkin.”
She wanted to argue. She wanted to cry and scream and tell him not to leave her. But the sadness was back in his eyes, and she knew it wouldn’t do any good.
Scarlet looked to her mom, hoping to appeal to her, but she’d stepped onto the dock and jumped into her yellow canoe. In the weeks since they’d been at the lodge, Scarlet had seen her on the lake lots, drifting around on the water.
Her father straightened to his full height, his movements stiff and angry. “Miranda, we haven’t finished talking. Don’t turn your back on me.”
“I think we’ve said everything there is to say.”
“That’s your solution for everything, isn’t it? Walking away and shutting me out. That’s not going to work anymore.”
With a sigh, Mom climbed back onto the deck. “Fine. Say whatever it is you need to say.”
Scarlet turned and ran back the way she’d come, not wanting to hear them fight any more. She heard her mom call after her, but she ignored her and kept running. Partway back to the lodge, she saw Willy, Grampa’s handyman, running in the opposite direction on another path toward her mom and daddy. They wouldn’t like him listening to their conversation either.
Instead of going back into the lodge, she stumbled her way to the little fort in the trees that she and Harper had built by piling together sticks and branches. Even though it was next to the path between the lodge and Grampa Bill’s shed, it was hard to see unless you knew where to look. She pushed aside the branches at the opening and went inside. She didn’t want to go back to the lodge and face Grandma’s questions about where she’d been.
Scarlet curled up on the dried leaves lining the floor of the fort and tugged on her ponytail, twisting her hair between her fingers. Where was this new home Mommy was talking about? Was it here in the country, close to Grandma and Grampa’s fishing lodge, or someplace else? It was scary not knowing. Would she have friends there? When would she get to see her daddy again?
She fell asleep and was awakened with a start when she heard someone running along the path, sobbing. She stuck her head out of the fort in time to see Harper trip over a root on the path and skin her knees. Her sister was two years older and Scarlet had rarely seen her cry, even when she’d fallen out of the tree in their backyard and broken her arm. It scared her to see her crying now.
“They’re in the water!” Tears streamed down Harper’s face. “Willy said Mom and Daddy are in the water, and they didn’t come back up. We have to tell Grandma!”
Scarlet ran behind Harper, her heart racing. Did Mommy and Daddy go out on the lake because she’d followed them? Because they didn’t want her to listen?
If something bad happened to them, it was all her fault.
CHAPTER ONE
Twenty-Two Years later
Scarlet Lindquist struggled to hold back tears as she lifted her champagne flute in a salute to her sister and her fiancé. She hated public displays of emotion, especially when she was the one whose emotions were on display. But as maid of honor, she was expected to give a toast to the bride and groom at their rehearsal dinner and welcome Ethan Hainstock into her family.
“Please join me in toasting the happy couple. I wish you many years of love and wedded bliss. To Harper and Ethan.”
The small gathering of family and friends of both the bride and groom rose together and lifted their glasses. “To Harper and Ethan.”
She clinked her glass against her sister Maggie’s and then turned to her left to touch Ethan’s brother’s flute, though she noticed the best man had passed on the champagne. A shiver trembled down her spine when her gaze locked with Cameron Hainstock’s. His dark eyes openly assessed her. She was used to men’s scrutiny; males had been staring at her since she was fourteen and developed breasts. But she sensed more in Cameron’s gaze than simple sexual appreciation. It was as if he was trying to look inside her soul to determine what kind of person she was. She wondered what conclusions he’d made.
With the toast over, Scarlet tore her gaze away from Cameron’s and gratefully resumed her seat. Her thoughts returned to the reason they were all gathered at Miller’s, the resort down the road from their fishing lodge on Solace Lake in north central Minnesota. She and her sisters had inherited the lodge from their grandparents and were currently renovating it. Harper’s relationship and subsequent engagement to Ethan Hainstock had happened so quickly. At first, Scarlet been suspicious of Ethan, but she’d come to like him, mainly because she could see how much he loved her sister. She was happy for Harper, she really was.
But to marry so soon? Scarlet hoped she was doing the right thing. Nobody deserved happiness more than Harper.
When they’d announced their engagement and said they wanted to get married right away, she’d been pleased, but cautious. They didn’t have to rush into marriage. They’d only met a few months ago. It wouldn’t hurt to wait. She had no doubt they loved each other, but was it enough? It certainly hadn’t been enough for her parents. And she wasn’t exactly a shining example of the power of love. She prayed Harper and Ethan would be the exception to the rule.
Ethan’s sister Lydia got to her feet. “It’s been a lovely evening, but it’s time for us to go. Tomorrow’s a big day, isn’t it, Tessa?”
Cameron’s five-year-old daughter nodded solemnly. “I get to be flower girl tomorrow.”
Cameron leaned over to kiss his daughter’s hair, the color the same deep chocolate brown as his own. An unwelcome emotion caused a lump to form in Scarlet’s throat at the tenderness in his touch. “You’re going to be the best flower girl ever.”
“I know.”
Everyone laughed at Tessa’s earnest reply. Cameron lifted her out the booster seat and held her in his arms. “Come on, pumpkin. Time for this flower girl to hit the sack.”
Pumpkin. Scarlet had a sudden flashback of being carried in her father’s arms in the same way, her head resting against his shoulder in complete trust.
She swallowed and pushed the memory from her mind.
Cameron turned to face her. “Ethan said you needed help decorating the wedding tent tomorrow. What time did you want me to be there?”
She blinked in surprise. “I didn’t know you’d volunteered to help.”
Harper touched her arm. “I know you, Scarlet. You’re planning some decorating extravaganza, aren’t you?”
“Maybe.” Her sister really did know her. She wanted Harper’s wedding to be beautiful, and very special. Besides, she loved decorating.
Ethan put his arm around Harper’s shoulders. “I thought maybe Cam and Drew could give you a hand.”
Scarlet glanced over at Drew, Ethan’s twenty-one-year-old nephew. He was acting as Ethan’s groomsman and had been paired with Maggie in the wedding party. He flashed her a smile and a thumbs-up, and she smiled back. She enjoyed working alone, liked making the ideas in her head come to life. But there was a lot to do and, though she hated to admit it, she could use some help. She only wished Cameron’s presence didn’t make her feel so…unsettled.
She forced a smile. “I appreciate the help. I’ll be at the tent around nine a.m. The tables and chairs we’re renting are supposed to be delivered between ten and eleven, and I’d like to get most of the decorating finished before then.”
Cameron nodded. “We’ll be at the lodge at nine.”
“Thanks. I’ll see you then.”
Ethan clapped his brother on the back. “Good. Thanks, Cam.”
Scarlet smiled as she watched her sister and her soon-to-be husband cross the room. He was dark to her fair, tall to her petite, brown eyed to her blue. But
in every way that was important, Harper and Ethan were a match. A perfect team. Ethan had made Harper’s dream to bring the fishing lodge back to life his dream as well. Together, they were turning the old lodge into an eco-friendly resort the whole family could be proud of.
To have someone to share her dreams, someone to have her back and love her no matter what seemed like a fairy tale to Scarlet.
“They’re a good-looking couple, aren’t they?”
Cameron’s deep voice broke into her thoughts, chasing away her fanciful notions. Nothing but wishful thinking.
“Yes, they are.”
He adjusted a limp, nearly asleep Tessa in his arms. Her head lay against his broad shoulder, while one hand rested on his chest, as if she wanted to feel the beat of her father’s heart. For some reason, the thought made her heart ache.
“Is Harper pregnant?”
She jerked her head up at his whispered question. “What? No, of course not!” In her surprise, her voice was louder than she’d intended.
“I had to ask. They’re getting married in a hell of a hurry.”
At least, she didn’t think Harper was pregnant. She and her sisters often withheld the truth about their lives from each other, especially when the truth was unpleasant, but she’d hoped they’d put those days behind them. Surely if Harper was pregnant, she would have shared the news with her and Maggie.
Harper had turned to give her a puzzled stare, alerted by sound of her raised voice. Scarlet flashed her a phony smile before speaking to Cameron again, this time in a lowered tone. “Do you think that’s the only reason he’d marry her? Call me sentimental, but I believe they’re marrying for love.”
“They barely know each other. What would be the harm in waiting a few months? I don’t want Ethan to get hurt.”
She, too, had concerns, but she was too insulted on behalf of her sister to admit to them. He better not be suggesting Harper was only marrying Ethan for his money. Five years ago, Ethan won over a hundred and seventy-five million dollars in a lottery, though Harper hadn’t been aware of that when they first met. Because of painful past experiences, he’d kept the secret far longer than he should have, afraid it would alter the way she saw him.
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