“How can I ever pay back the town for all the money?” Tessa asked.
“It’s not about the money to them. The house loves this town as much as they love it.” Crazy Kate adjusted the bag on her shoulder. “Give it to them.”
“Give what to them?”
“Honeysuckle Hollow. Give Honeysuckle Hollow to the town by letting it help them when they are in need. Let them continue to love it, like Matthias did.”
Give the town Honeysuckle Hollow? Tessa leaned against a streetlight. Pearl light highlighted the sidewalk at their feet. She nodded slowly as the realization of what she needed to do sunk in. “Let the doors be open to others. Not exactly a B&B, but a house for people who need an in-between place.”
One corner of Crazy Kate’s mouth rose, causing an expression of mischief to fill her face. “As long as you’re not cooking for them.” Crazy Kate and Tessa both laughed. Then Crazy Kate glanced behind her at a fifty-something couple talking with a tall young man. A young woman, raven-haired and with caramel-colored skin, stood off from them, staring toward the park at the end of the street. When she turned her face toward them, Tessa was struck by how much she looked like Crazy Kate but fifty years younger, with her dark, mysterious eyes and a solemn gaze. “My family would like to see the house when it’s all done.”
“That’s your family?”
“My son and his wife,” Crazy Kate answered. “And my grandchildren, Erik and Leilah.”
Tessa smiled and embraced Crazy Kate before she could stop herself. Crazy Kate stiffened in Tessa’s arms before she relaxed and laughed. “Of course,” Tessa said when she let go. “I wouldn’t have this house if it weren’t for you.”
Crazy Kate made a scoffing noise in her throat. “This was your path, even when you tried to refuse.”
Paul crossed the street and slipped his arm around Tessa’s waist. He nodded at Crazy Kate. “Mrs. Muir, can I steal Tessa away for a minute?”
Crazy Kate nodded and shifted the bag to her other shoulder. “We’re going to the library for the sale. I have a bag full of books to give away.” She walked down the sidewalk toward her family.
“She’s here with her son and grandkids,” Tessa said to Paul. “She’s not alone.”
“Neither are you.”
Paul led Tessa across the street to meet with people who were offering their services for the reconstruction. In between meeting people and discussing the house, Tessa told Paul about her plan to keep the doors to Honeysuckle Hollow open to the town while also living in it herself, and he’d hugged her so tightly that her laughter released as gasps of air. They spent the rest of the day wandering around town talking with people, thanking nearly everyone they saw, and making plans for how they would begin anew on Honeysuckle Hollow.
After the sun set and stretched deep-orange sunbeams across the apartment’s floor, Tessa dropped onto the couch beside Paul. She leaned her head back against the cushion and massaged her jaw. “So much smiling. I’m so exhausted that I’m not sure I can move again even if I need to.”
Paul dug folded papers and receipts out of his pockets and dropped them on the coffee table. “A lot of money was donated today. More than I could have hoped for.”
Tessa opened her eyes and looked at him. “Do you think we’ll have enough money to rehab the whole house?”
“There’s a lot to do,” he said. “And it’ll be a long haul for the rehab. The money will stretch far but not all the way. Don’t worry, though. We’ll get it completed eventually.” He leaned over and kissed her gently. “Just don’t quit your day job, and I won’t sell the hammer.”
His fingers wrapped around an object on the coffee table, and when he sagged against the couch cushions again, a red heart-shaped pushpin sat on his palm. He stared at it and pulled the speared mint leaf off the metal point. Then he rolled the pushpin between his fingers.
Tessa held out her hand. “Give it to me, and I’ll toss it in a drawer somewhere so you don’t have to throw it away again.”
“Not this time.” Paul stood and walked over to the wall map. “This time I know exactly where it goes.” He stared at the expanse of oceans and continents and patted the mint plant, causing its leaves to dance. Then he pushed the heart-shaped pin into the map and turned, showing Tessa where he’d pinned his heart.In Mystic Water.
Epilogue
Asoft-pinkandpale-orangeOctober sunrise painted the sky as Tessa drove toward Honeysuckle Hollow. The changing leaves on the dogwoods, maples, and sycamores were afire with color, framing Dogwood Lane with honey yellows, Braeburn-apple reds, and marmalade oranges.
Tessa parked in the garage and unpacked the few bags she’d brought with her. She slung the canvas bags over her shoulder and closed the car door with her hip.
“Good morning.”
Tessa jumped and spun around. Crazy Kate stood behind her on the driveway.
With her hand pressed to her heart, Tessa said, “You scared me half to death. What are you doing here so early? The wedding doesn’t start for hours.”
Crazy Kate gripped a long wooden stick. “I need to bury my wedding gift before everyone else arrives.”
Tessa eyed the spear. “You don’t hear that very often. ‘Hey, I got you a gift for your wedding, but I buried it.’”
