In an instant, Ivy was right beside her, hugging her mother as well.
Sterling wrapped his arms around Ivy. “How’s my lovely middle daughter?”
“Dad, I can’t believe you’re here.” She tightened her arms around him, then her mother joined in the group hug. “What an amazing surprise. I thought you were in South Africa.”
Carlotta’s sun-kissed face lit up. “Surprise, darling! We were, but after seeing Honey and Gabe in Sydney—they send their love, by the way—we realized spending the holiday away from the rest of our children just didn’t seemright. As much fun as we’ve been having sailing the high seas, we were homesick for all of you. So we decided to take our break here.”
Grinning, Sterling rubbed his shoulder. “It turns out we need more rest between ports. So we thought, why not take turns hanging out with our kids through the new year? If you’ll have us, that is.”
“We’d all love that,” Ivy said, squeezing her arms around them. “I have a room for you right now. Do you have your luggage?”
“Sure do,” her father replied. “Reed picked us up from the airport.”
Carlotta’s silver bangles jingled as she raised her hands to her cheeks in surprise. “My goodness, is that Misty?”
Misty flew from the house to greet her grandparents, with Sunny right behind her. Caleb stood at the door, watching the scene with a smile.
“I’ll tell everyone you’re here,” Ivy said, leaving her parents. She paused next to Caleb. “This has certainly turned into an unusual day for you, hasn’t it?”
Caleb chuckled. “I hope you don’t think I was creeping around here to get close to Misty. I had no idea she was part of your family, or even from Summer Beach.”
“Technically, she’s never lived here. She wasn’t lying when she told you she’s from Boston. That’s where my daughters grew up. Misty moved out before I came here, and then she settled in Los Angeles.”
He cast a look of amazement toward Misty. “I keep asking myself, what were the chances we’d run into each other here? This blows my mind.”
“Have you worked out your differences now?”
Caleb nodded thoughtfully. “We had a very good talk on the beach. It was well overdue.”
A sense ofdéjà vucoursed through Ivy, as if she’d had this conversation before. She knew she hadn’t, but had something like this transpired before right here on this spot?
With the history of this house, that was entirely possible. How many people had fallen in love here? At that thought, a warm sense of nostalgia filled her.
Ivy was glad they’d had a chance to get to know Caleb before Misty arrived. She had witnessed his gentleness in caring for animals and heard Emilie speak highly of him. But what mattered more was that he and Misty seemed to have fallen for each other.
Ivy placed a hand on Caleb’s shoulder. “I’ve learned this old house brings people together in the most unusual ways.”
Maybe Misty and Caleb’s feelings would turn to love, but it was too soon to tell. Misty still had a dream to pursue; they both did. She wouldn’t push her daughters, yet she would welcome those they cared about, just as her parents had.
Someday, her family might expand. That possibility still seemed far away, but it could happen anytime.
Carlotta appeared behind her and hooked her arm through Ivy’s. “It’s wonderful to see you. We decided family matters more than adventure. Now, where’s your sister and that little Daisy? I imagine she’s grown since I saw her last.”
“Not only is she walking now, but she’s running. We can hardly keep up with her, and she’s parroting everything we say. Let’s go find them.”
As they wove through dim hallways, Ivy explained the situation with the electrical outage and the cookingchallenges. “We’ll have lanterns out shortly. And dinner by candlelight.”
“As long as we can see everyone, that’s all that matters. We can eat cold beans and tortillas for all I care.”
“You won’t have to. Mitch is firing up the grills.”
As they walked through the bustling activity at the inn, Carlotta surprised and hugged everyone in turn.
Ivy’s heart filled with love and appreciation as everything she’d hoped for had come to pass. Misty and her parents were here. Against all odds, most of her family was together again, except for her oldest sister. Honey and Gabe often visited their daughter, Elena, in Los Angeles, so Ivy hoped they could also reunite soon.
She drew a breath, wondering how many more twists and surprises this day might hold. She realized she could stress over the sudden change of plans the power outage had brought, or she could enjoy these rare moments of surprise.
She peeked into a room where Shelly was replacing batteries in flashlights. Her sister’s reaction to seeing their mother was instant, and her face lit with joy.
