by Kay Correll
Surprise jolted through her. “She left in the middle of your cancer treatment?”
“She did. Said it was too hard to watch. But to be honest, we weren’t really that close by then. We’d been living almost separate lives. But it still was a lousy time to decide to call it quits.”
She’d spent too much time being unsure and a little bit awkward, so now she was getting right to the point—she was all in with this man and he was going to know it. “I’m not afraid of the hard stuff, David. I’ve dealt with hard stuff. I want to be there for you.”
“I can’t ask you to do that.”
She stood with her hands on her hips, facing him. “You’re not asking. I’m telling you that I’m staying by your side. And it would be nice if you’d stay here on Belle Island to make that a bit easier on me. If you think you can just tell me to turn off my heart now, you better think again.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’ve never been more sure of anything.” She stood on tiptoe and kissed him, and he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close.
She finally pulled back. “And now we have something we have to do.”
“What’s that?”
“We’re going to Lighthouse Point to make a wish.”
He looked at her skeptically. “Really?”
“Really. I firmly believe when we put our wishes and dreams and hopes out there to the universe, that’s when they can come true.”
He reached out and gently touched her face. “I think you are the strongest woman I have ever met.”
Chapter 23
Ruby and David walked slowly to Lighthouse Point. It had been a long, emotionally exhausting day, but she was strangely content. They stood on the shoreline, silent, while the gentle waves rolled toward them, one after another after another in a soothing symphony of whispers.
“It’s peaceful, isn’t it?”
“It is.” He tucked her hand in the crook of his elbow and settled his hand over hers. “Sometimes when I look at the gulf, that spills into the oceans, one ocean after the next… it’s all so vast and we seem like such a small part of the world.”
“I feel like that when I look up at the stars. They go on forever and ever. And I’m just a tiny speck on earth.”
“Well, I’m glad you’re a speck next to me on earth.” He smiled at her.
“Ready to make a wish?”
“I guess so.”
“So pick up a shell that calls to you, make your wish, and toss the shell out into the sea.”
He let go of her and walked a few paces, looking down at the sand. He paused and picked up a shell, then turned and looked at her for a moment. She nodded to him. He turned back toward the water and after a few seconds, tossed the shell out into the waves.
She walked up to his side. “It’s as easy as that.”
“We’ll have to see if your legend holds true.” There was more hope than doubt in his eyes.
She smiled at him encouragingly. “It will.” Sometimes wishes were answered in unexpected ways, but she firmly believed that if a person believed, then their wish would come true. Or something even better.
They stood and watched while the sun began to set and brilliant colors burst across the sky. He tucked her hand back on his arm, connecting them, and they slowly headed back to her house. As they passed by a thick hedge of sea oats they heard a noise.
David stopped. “What was that?”
“I don’t know. It sounded like… a whimper?”
David headed up to the foliage, peering into its depths. “Oh, hey there little buddy. What are you doing all huddled in there?”
She watched and David came out holding a dog in his arms. “Look, she’s hurt her leg.”
“Oh no, let’s get her back to my house and get her fixed up. The poor thing.”
They hurried back to the house. Mischief met them at the door and sniffed the dog when they put her down. The dog froze.
“It’s okay, girl. Mischief won’t hurt you, we won’t hurt you. Let’s get you all fixed up.” David said in a soothing tone.
Ruby hurried for bandages and first aid supplies. David carefully cleaned the wound while the puppy looked at him with soulful eyes. “Sh, it’s okay. Everything is fine. Just fine. That’s a good girl.” He talked nonstop to her, comforting the animal.
She handed him a bandage and he wrapped the pup’s leg. “There we go. It’s not as bad as I thought.” The puppy leaned against him and he scratched her head. “She doesn’t have a collar.”
“Let me open my computer and we’ll see if there are any notices about lost dogs. And I have a neighborhood app on my phone. I’ll check that too.” She studied the dog for a moment. Tan and white with a white slash of fur between her eyes and going up her forehead. She busied herself checking all the places she could think where someone might have put up a notice about a lost puppy.
“Any luck?”
“No, but I’ll keep checking.”
The puppy hadn’t gotten an inch away from David. He petted her again.
“Looks like you have a friend.” Ruby nodded to the puppy.
“What are we going to do with her tonight?”
“She can stay here with Mischief and me.”
“Perfect.”
“I have some ham in the fridge. How about I make us some sandwiches? You could feed her some of Mischief’s food and give her water.”
“Good idea.”
They ate and then sat on the couch with the new dog curled up beside David, pressed against him. She worked on her knitting for a bit while they sat and talked and the dog got used to being around them. Every once in a while the pup would look up at David adoringly.
“Well, I should go. It’s been a long day.” He winked at her. “Oh, and I need to cancel my flight home for tomorrow.”
She set her knitting down and stood. “It is late and it has been a very long day. Though we did find a friend, so that part was good.”
He walked to the door and the puppy followed at his heels. He leaned to pet her. “You stay with Ruby. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He turned to her and brushed her cheek with his fingertips in the lightest of touches. “And you, too.”
He slipped out the door and the second the door was closed, the puppy began wailing. “Oh, no, pup, it’s okay.” The wailing got louder and she bent down to comfort the dog.
David popped his head back in the door. “I could hear that from down on the beach.”
The dog rushed to David, wagging her tail and pressing against his legs. “Well, this is a problem. We can’t have her crying all night.”
“She’s just frightened. Who knows how long she was out there alone. She’s just skin and bones. And you rescued her. She’s obviously attached to you.”
“I have no clue if Lillian allows pets at the inn.”
“Let’s just call her.” Ruby got her phone and explained the situation to Lillian, who assured her it was fine for David to bring the puppy back with him.
“See? We’re all set.”
“But what am I going to do with a dog? Everything in my life is so uncertain. I don’t want her to get attached to me and then…”
Ruby rested her hand on his arm. “It will be fine. The universe isn’t going to give you a dog if you’re not going to be here to take care of her. We’ll put up lost dog signs, but I have a feeling that she’s yours.”
“You think?”
“I think. I have an old collar of Mischief’s and a leash. Let me get them for you.”
She smiled at the gentle way he placed the collar on the puppy. She and Mischief stood on the top step and watched as David and the puppy walked down the sidewalk, headed back to Charming Inn. She could see David talking to the puppy as they walked and she smiled again. That puppy was just what he needed.
And David was just what she herself needed. And she’d be there for him, no matter what life had planned for him.
Chapter 24
The next day David and Ruby walked into t
own with the puppy and Mischief, planning on putting up flyers about the lost puppy. “Let’s stop in the vet’s office and see if they might know who the owner is.” Ruby pointed to the veterinarian’s office across the street.
The vet came out and took a look at the pup. “You know, I’ll scan her for a chip but I’m pretty sure she’s another one of the litter of puppies that got dumped on the island about a week and a half ago.”
“How can someone do that? That’s horrible.” She reached down and petted the pup. “No wonder the poor thing was starving. She’s been out there fending for herself for all that time.” She turned to David. “Looks like she’s yours.”
“I’ll think about it.” David didn’t look convinced.
They stopped at the pet shop and bought a new collar for her. “How about a pink one?” Ruby held one up thinking David would say no.
“Pink it is for the little lady.” They fastened the collar on her and she wagged her tail, turning her head to one side as if showing off her new collar.
They got a food bowl and water bowl for her, along with some puppy food.
“Have you thought of a name for her yet?” Ruby spun around on the street, untangling Mischief’s leash from the puppy’s. Who knew walking two dogs could be so complicated?
“I wasn’t going to name her, you know, in case we found her real owner.”
“I’m pretty sure the real owner is you…”
David grinned. “I’m pretty sure it might be, too.”
They headed back home with pet supplies. They fed the puppy some more food and settled down at the kitchen table with glasses of iced tea. The puppy finally got up and played with Mischief a little, though she kept watching David and racing back over to be petted.
They sat and talked while the dogs played. Finally Ruby looked around. “Where did the dogs go?”
They got up quickly and went to the front room. Mischief and the puppy were happily chewing on one of Ruby’s shoes, and they’d unrolled an entire ball of yarn.
“How did they do that so fast?” David shook his head.
“Puppies. You have to keep your eyes on them all the time. I know that. My mistake. How do you think Mischief got his name?”
David grinned. “You know, I think I know the new pup’s name.”
“Really? What?”
“I’m going to call her May… short for Mayhem.”
Ruby laughed out loud. “Mischief and Mayhem… what in the world are we getting ourselves into?”
Chapter 25
The next night, Ben and Jay wandered around the Festival of Lights. They grabbed cookies and coffee from the refreshment table and walked along Oak Street, headed toward the gazebo. Noah and his festival committee had decorated the gazebo with white lights that illuminated the whole area around the gazebo. White lights were wound around the live oak, too.
“Noah did a great job with this.” Jay took a tentative bite of the cookie. “Hey, this is pretty good.”
“I heard they used your recipes.” Ben rolled his eyes.
“There is that.” Jay nodded in the direction of the gazebo. “Look, Robin and Charlotte. Let’s go say hi.”
“I don’t know…”
“Come on. The festival always puts people in… a festive mood.” Jay grinned and led him over by the gazebo.
“Hey, Robin, Charlotte,” Jay said as they walked up.
Ben didn’t miss that Robin’s eyes lit up when Jay walked up. Too bad Charlotte’s didn’t do the same when he walked up. Her eyes looked… conflicted. There was no other way to describe them. “Hey, Charlotte.”
“Ben.” She nodded.
“You two want to walk around with us?”
Robin looked at Charlotte who shrugged. “Sure, why not?”
Not the enthusiastic reply he’d hoped for, but at least it was a yes. Robin and Jay headed over to the live oak and he and Charlotte followed. “Listen, Charlotte…”
“The answer is yes.”
“I didn’t ask a question.” He stared at her for a moment, confused.
“Yes, we should give it a try again. Date again.” A small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.
“Really?” He swung her off of her feet and twirled around in a circle.
She laughed as he put her down. “So, I’m guessing you still want to date me?”
“I do. And we’re going to get it right this time. I promise.” He was going to get it right. He wasn’t going to chance messing this relationship up again. Ever.
She tucked her hand in his, where it belonged, and they walked over to the gazebo to join their friends.
And suddenly everything felt right in his world.
Ruby and David threaded their way through the crowd at the Festival of Lights. Mischief and May walked by their side, occasionally tangling leashes while she and David laughed and untangled them.
“Oh, David, let me introduce you.” She tugged on his hand and led him up to a group of people standing by a shop window. “David, you know Julie from The Sweet Shoppe. And this is Tally. She owns Magic Cafe. And Susan, she runs Belle Island Inn.”
“Hi, ladies, good to meet you.”
“Ah, the famous David that we’ve been hearing about. Dorothy’s been talking about you and Ruby.” Susan smiled. When David looked confused, she continued. “Dorothy works at the inn with me. She’s been there forever.”
“Dorothy from The Yarn Society,” Ruby explained.
He still looked slightly dazed and she laughed. “Don’t worry. You’ll soon get to know everyone… and they’ll get to know you.”
“It’s nice to meet you, David. Come by Magic Cafe soon and dinner’s on me.” Tally smiled.
She tucked her hand back on David’s arm as they left the three friends and continued on their way. “Those three have been friends forever. Tally took in Julie to work at Magic Cafe when Julie first came to the island and… well, all three are the best of friends.”
David grinned. “I’m meeting a lot of new people. I’m not sure I’ll keep them all straight.”
“I promise there won’t be a pop quiz tonight.” She smiled back at him. “Oh, David, look.” She pointed toward the gazebo. “There’s Ben and Charlotte. Look, they’re together. I mean they must be, they’re holding hands.” She grinned. “I guess that means they made up. I’m so happy. Let’s go see them.”
They started to head that direction, but she paused when she saw Dr. Harden threading her way through the crowd and heading their way, a determined look on her face. She took a deep breath, steeled herself, and held firmly onto David’s hand.
“There you are. David, may I talk to you privately?” Dr. Harden asked.
“If it’s okay with David, I want to stay with him when you talk to him.” She squeezed David’s hand giving him her silent support. Willing him courage to face the news. Willing herself courage to face it.
Dr. Harden looked at David. He nodded.
“Okay, well, I had to go to the office today and logged in and saw your test results. You’re just fine. It looks like you might have had an infection but you fought it off without antibiotics, which is good. It means you’re getting stronger, but hence the swollen lymph nodes and tiredness. There is nothing in the tests that show any signs of cancer. There was also a message from your oncologist. He’d reviewed the results himself and said things looked fine and just keep up with your annual checkups. Oh, and he said he was glad you were finally taking a vacation and that your slight weight loss is probably from all the exercise you’re getting now.” She grinned and her eyes twinkled. “I love giving good news. Just love it.”
Ruby twirled around and jumped into David’s arms. “Best. Day. Ever.”
He held her close. “You can say that again.”
She grinned. “Best. Day. Ever.”
He laughed a laugh that warmed her heart and brought such joy. Her heart swelled with happiness for David and for herself.
“I’ve got to run. Going to meet up with Willie if
I can find him in this crowd, but I didn’t want you to have to wait any longer to hear the good news. I know the waiting is difficult.” Dr. Harden smiled and disappeared into the crowd.
Ruby stood, held close in David’s arms, oblivious to the crowds around them and the pups waiting not so patiently at their feet for their walk to continue. She pressed her cheek against his chest feeling his heart beat strongly. They stood like that for long minutes and let the people just walk around them, some giving them curious looks, some smiling at them.
Finally Mischief let out a small bark of impatience. “Okay, okay.” She pulled away from David but he kept one arm wrapped around her waist. “Let’s go see Ben and Charlotte and tell them the good news. I think they have some good news for us, too.”
Chapter 26
Lillian smiled with the secret she was keeping. She did love surprises. And this one was a doozy. She looked up as a young man and woman walked into the inn and came up to the desk.
“Are you Lillian? Lillian Charm?”
“I am. I’ve been waiting for you. Are you all set?”
“I think so. A little nervous. I’m not usually one to surprise people.”
“I’m sure it will be a wonderful surprise. Come with me.” She grabbed her jacket and they headed out to the Festival of Lights. They were stopped frequently by her friends and acquaintances as she led the way through the crowd, searching.
Finally she spied them in the lights of the old live oak. Perfect. “Come on. This way.”
Time for the surprise. And she hoped it went as well as she’d planned.
David turned around at the sound of the familiar voice.
“Dad?”
“Corey?”
“Yep.” His son smiled.
“What are you doing here? How did you find me?”
“I got some help from Miss Charm.”
“Lillian, everyone calls me Lillian,” Lil interrupted, then motioned for him to go on.
“I called to see if you were still at the inn. I got your message and I wanted to come see you.”
