“You’re not?” Masondidsound oddly disappointed.
“Wait, were youever?”I demanded.
“For your sake, I’m really glad you two have improved your communication skills recently,” Beale said, grinning at Mason and me. “Getting you two together has been a full-time job.”
My jaw dropped. “Pfft. I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Same,” Mason agreed. “We may have had some tiny, minor issues—”
Beale hooted. Young Rafe laughed out loud. Even Big Rafe shook his head and smiled.
“—but we’ve figured them out. I can’t wait to see howyourrelationship progresses.” Mason sat back in the chair and folded his arms over his chest smugly.
“Yeah, me neither,” Beale said, rolling his eyes.
“So, wait, speaking of secrets… Dad, how’d you get the money to fix up the island?” Gage asked. “The small-business loans, the road repair… Did you mortgage some of the land?”
This was an excellent question.
Rafe opened his mouth to answer when a voice called from the side yard, “Yoo-hoo! Afternoon, Goodmans! And Doc Bloom!”
Rafe closed his mouth with a smile. “Guess a man should get to keepsomesecrets, shouldn’t he?”
I wanted to protest, but before I could, nearly the entire population of Whispering Key invaded the backyard, and Mason jumped to his feet in surprise.
Max scurried in first, chasing after his soccer ball, which Marjorie leaped off the porch to run after. Taffy came next, smiling and shaking her head in apology for her son, carrying a tray of cupcakes she dropped on the table before giving Mason a hug. Lety arrived like a queen with her court, carrying a bouquet of flowers in her arms while Bubba and Juju hurried behind her carrying enormous platters of food in mismatched plastic containers. Lorenna and George McKetcham came next, followed by their granddaughter, Maddie, who held a rolled-up paper. Then more folks came, and more, andmore, each one walking up to Mason to shake his hand, or give him a hug, or say a word of thanks about some ache or pain or worry he’d soothed in just the few weeks he’d been there.
“What’s happening right now?” he whispered to me, wide-eyed, during a break in the greetings.
I smiled just a little at the stunned,happyexpression on his face and shrugged. “The other night, when I thought you might be leaving the key, I figured it might be easier to convince you to stay if I had a little help, so I asked Maddie McKetcham to call a few friends.” But honestly? EvenIwas stunned by just how many people she’d organized, just how many people Mason had touched.
And when Maddie unrolled a banner that saidWelcome Home, Mason Bloomand Mason got legit tears in his eyes and turned to wrap his arms around me, I knew my incredibly hokey, cheesy plan hadworked.
“I’m thebestat plans,” I whispered in his ear.
Mason laughed, just as I’d known he would, and lifted his green gaze to mine. “Unnecessary plans, maybe. I was already convinced.” But when he pulled my head down to his and slid his tongue against mine, all breathy and wanting andMason, I knew I was going to spend a little time every single day reconvincing him.
“Mason,chico!” Lety bustled up to us, wearing a bright orange dress and a happy smile. She grabbed Mason’s hand and patted it lovingly. “I’m so happy you’re staying! Just remember, my sweetheart,queel amor es ciego, pero los vecinos no, okay?”
“Okay.” Mason nodded solemnly. “That sounded… really beautiful.”
Lety smiled warmly and patted his cheek. “Don’t change, my Mason. Don’t change.”
Mason looked at me blankly, and I shrugged. Sometimes I felt like I’d understand Lety better if I spoke Spanish, and sometimes I was convinced it was better that I didn’t.
“Dr. Bloom!” Marius Wynott came over, wearing a three-piece blue suit and holding two arms full of fluff. “I’m so very relieved that you’re planning to make your sojourn on Whispering Key more of a permanent affair! And Topaz is very excited that you’ll be here to dog-sit.”
Mason patted the squirming furball.
“I also must congratulate you two, finding the treasure the way you did.” He sighed. “Like most mysteries, the answer seems soobviousnow that all has been revealed.”
I frowned. “You think? That wasneverwhere the treasure was meant to be. I figure there must have been an underground river that carried the treasure down from—”
Mr. Wynott’s jaw dropped. “Oh,no, my boy. Oh, no no no. Don’t you see? The answer was right there in Resolute Goodman’s papers all along. He buried the treasure inthe garden of dreams.”
“Yes,” I said patiently. “The dream garden he built his wife. But there was never anything in Sarah’s—” But looking at him in that moment, I realized the answer. “Not Sarah.”
Mr. Wynott shook his head.
