by Annie Rains
Trisha was grateful that Petey was occupied. She needed time. She needed an update on Vi. She needed…something.
Just when this lake was starting to feel like home, it felt like the sky was falling, piece by painful piece.
Her cell phone lit up with another text from Jake. She’d lost count of how many he’d sent. She’d returned maybe one for every five. And all she could say or ask about was Vi’s condition. She couldn’t talk to Jake about anything else. She still wasn’t sure how to feel about yesterday’s revelations.
Jake knew that Peter had been Vi’s financial planner. He knew there was a ticking time bomb waiting to explode on her and Petey’s new life. That was the part that hurt the most. She didn’t want to uproot Petey. She didn’t want him to be hurt again. Her heart couldn’t take watching him cry himself to sleep for weeks on end again.
“Mom?”
She turned to Petey, who was now standing in the doorway. “Yeah?”
Petey closed the door behind him and walked out on the deck. He sat in the chair beside hers. “Is Vi going to die?” he asked in a small voice.
“No.” Trisha shook her head, and then she thought better of her answer. “I mean, I don’t think so. Jake took her to the hospital, and I’m sure the doctors are taking good care of her.”
“Can we go see her?” Petey asked.
Trisha reached for his hand and squeezed it. “She has her family there with her right now. And even the family isn’t allowed inside her room for a while. The best thing we can do for Vi is to continue working on the cottages and pray for her.”
Petey leaned back in his chair and sighed. “Okay.”
“So I guess we should get up and back to work.” It was a lot easier to do that when she realized that Petey was moping too.
“The cottages are done, aren’t they?” Petey asked. “Jake fixed the holes in the roofs. The kids from the youth center helped clean. Deputy Bruno too,” he added. “You and Jake painted, and Mrs. Moira made that website for you, which is really cool. What else is there?”
Trisha brought up her mental list. Petey was right. For the most part, everything was checked off. “I want to hang the pictures I took on the living room walls. Decorating is the fun part. You can help me.”
Petey didn’t look enthused.
“And when we’re done, we’ll go to Choco-Lovers for a treat. I’ve been wanting to try that place out.”
Now his eyes lit up. “Can we stop at Tess’s bookstore too?”
“I guess so.” Trisha needed a distraction as much as Petey.
“We can get Vi a get-well present and bring it to the hospital,” Petey added. “Wouldn’t she like that?”
Trisha patted Petey’s hand. “I’m sure she would.” She wasn’t sure she was ready to face Vi yet. It had crossed her mind that Vi might have read Reva’s blog yesterday too. And that maybe that contributed to her being in the hospital again. Trisha knew Vi had underlying health conditions that were in no way her fault, but she couldn’t help blaming herself anyway.
Petey hopped off his chair with renewed spirit at the mention of chocolate and a new book. “I’ll get your camera for you in case you want to take more pictures. Be right back.” He disappeared inside.
Trisha stood, wishing her mood could swing back to high so easily. Instead, her insides seemed to throb. She felt emotionally sucker-punched, and her body was having sympathy pains.
Petey returned a minute later, handed her the camera, and headed down the steps with Bailey trailing behind him. “Come on, Mom!”
“I’m right behind you.” Her spirit and body were heavy as she went down the steps. What if Vi died? What then?
“Good morning.”
Trisha looked up, surprised to see Tim walking toward them. “Morning,” she said. It certainly wasn’t a good one. She was actually surprised to see Tim smiling so brightly, considering that his mother was in the hospital. “Why are you here?”
Tim gave a quick head shake, looking completely baffled by Trisha’s question.
“Why aren’t you at the hospital?” she clarified.
Tim narrowed his eyes. “What are you talking about?”
“You don’t know? Jake rushed Vi to the emergency room a couple hours ago.”
Tim reached into his pocket, coming out empty-handed. “I must have left my phone in my truck.” He looked a shade paler. “Is she okay?”
“Jake said they’re running tests,” Trisha said. “There’s nothing definitive yet, but it might have been another stroke. That’s all I know.”
Tim massaged a hand over his face, a few choice words rolling off his tongue.
Trisha glanced at Petey to make sure he couldn’t hear. He was occupied with Bailey though.
Tim rubbed a hand across the back of his neck. “This is all that financial planner’s fault. That caused her first stroke,” Tim said, looking up at Trisha. “At least in part. After that guy, I vowed I’d research anyone my mom hired again. I would know everything about them, to make sure they had Mom’s best interests at heart.”
The way he was looking at her told Trisha that Tim had done just that in her case. He was a lawyer just like the rest of the Fletchers. He knew how to dig into a person’s background. He’d dug into hers, and it was probable that he’d been the one to leak her past to Reva for the town’s blog.
Trisha looked at Petey again. She didn’t want him to witness what might be a messy conversation. Then she looked back up at Tim. “I would never hurt Vi. I’m grateful to her for all that she’s done for me.”
Tim looked at Trisha for a long second. “You know, I believe that might be true. But the best thing for Mom is to put that guy and everything associated with him in the past.” Tim gestured back to the cottage where his truck was parked. “I’m gonna grab my phone and call Jake to check on my mom.”
“Of course. You should be there.” And she wanted to be as far away from him as possible.
Tim started to walk away and then turned back. “If you truly mean it when you say you’d never hurt Vi, and if you want what’s best for her, then you’d walk away.”
Trisha swallowed. She didn’t speak. What could she say? Tim was a man who was looking out for his family. She couldn’t fault him for that. She would do anything for her family as well. She’d do whatever it took to spare Petey pain. That’s why they’d moved here. And it was why they might need to move again.
“Mom?” Petey asked as Tim walked away. “What did he mean that you should walk away?”
Trisha usually encouraged Petey’s inquisitive nature, but right now she didn’t have any answers. She lifted the camera off her chest and handed it to Petey. “Why don’t you take the pictures today?” she said, distracting him instead.
Petey’s face lit up. “Really?”
“Mm-hmm. I’ll teach you how.” Anything to change his viewpoint for the day, which hadn’t been that good so far. Trisha’s camera didn’t have a rose-colored lens, but she could really use one right now.
* * *
Jake’s senses were accosted as he stepped into his grandmother’s hospital room. The harsh smells and sounds were abrasive enough on his already fragile senses. Seeing Vi lying there was too much.
“Stop it,” she said with a drooped smile, a result of her CVA—cerebrovascular accident. The doctor said that this one was bigger than the last. “I’m not dead,” she said with a thick slur. “I thought I was a goner for a moment there.”
“I’m glad you’re still here.” Jake took a seat in the chair beside her bed. “You worried me.” He was still worried.
Vi reached for his hand. “Jake, it’s over. I’ve turned the Somerset Cottages over to my kids. They’re going to sell.”
Jake wasn’t surprised. He’d heard Tim in the waiting room talking to his parents half an hour ago. “We don’t need to discuss this right now.”
“We do. I want you to hear it from me. I’m sorry, Jake.”
“You’re moving to Florida?” he asked. “E
ven though that’s not what you want.”
“Life is full of things you don’t want. You know that as well as I do. We just have to take our lemons and sweeten them up as best we can.”
“No.” Jake shook his head. “You don’t have to do that, Grandma. I’ll stay and run the property for you. I’ll move into your house so you won’t be alone. I’ll—”
Vi rested a hand over his. “The property in the trust is a financial mess. Your parents and uncles were right about it being time to sell. It’s theirs now. I’m tired, Jake. This is what’s best for everyone involved.”
Jake wanted to argue, but all the arguments fizzled out inside him. Along with hope. Vi couldn’t manage the properties. She couldn’t even manage her own health right now.
“You don’t need to be caring for an old woman anyway. You need to be finding the right person to care for you. And you for her. You need to start your own family.” Her words were slow, and they stumbled over each other. He understood everything she said though.
“Trisha,” Vi finally said. “She’s the one for you, Jake. I could tell the first time I saw you together.”
“We’re, uh…Trisha isn’t talking to me right now.”
Vi’s expression was serious, but her eyes were warm. She held his gaze, silently urging him to continue.
“She found out that I kept something from her. Something kind of important.”
Vi’s eyes narrowed now. “That her ex-husband stole money from me and from the family’s trust?” she asked in a quiet voice.
Jake blinked as his lips parted. “You know?”
“Of course I do. I learned my lesson after Peter Lewis.” She spoke slowly, sucking in deep breaths between every few slurred words.
“You knew, and you hired her anyway?” Jake asked, and then nodded. “Of course you did.”
“We needed each other.”
Trisha needed a home. And Vi needed someone to help her save hers.
Jake sighed. “I’m not sure if she’s mad at me for not telling her the truth or if she’s just blaming herself now that she knows. A little of both, I guess. Anyway, I should probably cut my losses and bury that heartache in Lost Love Cemetery.” Jake massaged a hand over his face. “Before it gets sold right along with everything else.” He blew out a breath. “I can’t believe this is happening. Just when I was ready to come home again.”
Vi’s hand squeezed his. Tears glimmered in her eyes as she looked up at him. “Home isn’t as much a place as a feeling. You can have that anywhere.”
A doctor walked in the room, knocking only as an afterthought. Vi turned to look at him, giving him her full attention. The conversation was over. For now.
“I’ll be back later, Grandma.” Jake had been here since he’d brought her in early this morning. He needed a little fresh air to clear his head and to think about everything Vi had told him.
They were selling the cottages.
She was moving to Florida.
Trisha was the one.
He loved Trisha. He was in love with her, but he didn’t know how to mend things between them other than to give her time and space. There was no time or space to give right now though. He needed to find her. The least he could do was make sure she heard the latest news from him. If the cottages were being sold, Trisha would be out of a job. She’d be out of a place to live too. Her life would be upheaved, and there was nothing he could do about it.
He walked out of the hospital and toward his truck. Once he was inside, he slammed the door behind him. He was on his way to see Trisha, rehearsing every word he’d say. If he could just convince Trisha that his heart had been in the right place. Then what? It was still over, right? There was no reason for either of them to stay in Somerset Lake after Vi left and the cottages were sold. He could ask Trisha to come to Florida with him. He could follow her to wherever she went—if she’d let him.
A half hour later, he pulled behind Peony Cottage and sat in his truck for a long moment. Trisha’s car was still here. That was a good sign. He’d just go up those steps, knock on her door, and they’d sit down and talk.
Jake blew out a breath, got out of his truck, and did just that. Except no one answered the door. Trisha and Petey weren’t inside, even though their car was parked below the cottage.
Jake turned and looked down the lakeshore to see if he could spot them. Since he couldn’t, he decided to head down the lake. He needed to clear his thoughts. He needed to find Trisha. He needed this day to never have happened.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The sun was going down. It had been one of the longest days that Trisha could remember. At least since the day the FBI had stormed her home and taken Peter away in handcuffs. That day might have been longer than this one by a few perceived hours.
Trisha had gone on today, completing the duties that her job required. Thankfully, Petey was with Della Rose and her boys again. Della Rose seemed to be filling a void for her boys with Petey, and right now Trisha was grateful that Petey had his friends to keep him occupied as well.
Trisha was finishing up one last item on the afternoon’s checklist before she would return home for the evening. Mrs. McLauren was a widow who stayed in Orange Blossom Cottage. She’d called earlier because her home was being invaded by tiny ants.
“Oh, thank you so much, sweetheart,” Mrs. McLauren said as Trisha prepared to leave. “You’re so kind to handle this for me.”
“Just doing my job,” Trisha told her. Maybe she’d only been in this job for a brief time, but she loved doing it.
“You go above and beyond your duties as property manager, in my opinion. Can I get you a glass of lemonade?” Mrs. McLauren asked.
“No, thank you. Maybe next time. Let me know if the ants return, okay?” But Trisha might not be here if the older woman had problems again. “I’ll see myself out.”
Trisha opened the back door and stepped onto the deck. She took the steps but instead of turning toward Juniper Cottage, she headed in the other direction, stepping into the woods and following the path toward the Lost Love Cemetery.
She still had her camera around her neck, and she thought maybe she would take a few pictures since this might be the last time she saw this place. Depending on who purchased the property, this might become collateral damage.
The thought of that broke Trisha’s heart as she stepped past the sign that read: FOR ROMANTICS ONLY. CYNICS TURN BACK.
Trisha was leaning toward the latter these days, but she continued forward anyway until she reached the clearing in the woods. She stood for a moment and looked at the place. Then she lifted her camera to her eyes and snapped a few pictures. There was something special about this makeshift memorial for the brokenhearted.
She started moving again and opened the gate. As she walked inside, she stayed between the narrow rows, stopping periodically to take a few pictures.
A plastic rose—click.
A WORLD’S BEST HUSBAND coffee mug—click. She wondered what the story behind that mug was. Maybe it belonged to Della Rose’s soon-to-be ex.
Trisha found an empty space in the Lost Love Cemetery and stared down at it for a heartbeat. This place was for lost love. She was in love with Jake, and she’d lost him.
Squatting over the empty spot, she wondered what she could leave here to symbolize their relationship. She reached into her pockets, finding them empty. She lifted the flap of the bag she wore draped across her body and went through the contents. There was only one item that would do. The photography book he’d given her at Sunset Over Somerset on Friday night.
She didn’t want to part with it, but she guessed that was the point. It was hard to let go of something, someone, you cared about so deeply. But it was necessary in order to move on.
Trisha pulled the book out and laid it down on the empty spot. She was more of a learn-by-experience than a learn-by-studying kind of girl anyway. And now that she and Jake were parting ways—it was inevitable—she wouldn’t be able to read this manual anyway. I
t would only remind her of him.
She blew out a breath and released the book to the ground. It wasn’t weatherproof. Rain and time, especially being near the lake air, would wear on this book. Trisha looked around at the other items, some of which were rusting and breaking down. If whoever purchased this property wasn’t from Somerset Lake, they might just see this place as a small junkyard.
Trisha stood and turned to leave, stopping short at the sound of something approaching through the woods. She heard sticks break beneath something heavy. A bear? Her heart stopped for just a moment as Jake came into view. She’d rather confront a bear right now.
She swiped at a lock of hair as butterflies fluttered in her belly. Didn’t they know the romance was over? “Hi.”
“Hey.” He continued walking toward her, stopping just shy of the gate. His gaze fell on the book at her feet for a moment. Then he looked back up and met her gaze. Her heart sped up. Leaving the book on the ground here in the Lost Love Cemetery said more than she’d intended to in this moment.
It said that she loved him. And it said that she was saying goodbye.
Jake’s gaze was serious. “You were supposed to read that.”
She folded her arms, applying pressure to her achy heart. “I’m going to be busy moving and finding a new job. I’m guessing that’s what you’re going to tell me.”
He gave her a steady look. “You wouldn’t know because you haven’t answered your phone to talk to me.”
Even so, Jake had still texted Trisha reports on Vi throughout the day. She knew the rest. Selling the cottages was inevitable. Firing her and kicking her and Petey out of their home was too.
Jake opened the gate and stepped inside, walking inside the rows of lost things and lost loves. When he made his way to her, he bent and picked up the book. He held it out to her. “This doesn’t belong here.”
She swallowed painfully, trying not to cry. “It does. This thing between you and me…” She shook her head as a tear slid down her cheek. “You and I can’t do this anymore.”
“This?”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “We can’t date. Can’t kiss. Can’t…”
