With that, she slid into the driver’s seat, her eyes suspiciously bright. “I love you all. Take care of each other until I get back.”
“We will,” Kathleen assured her, stepping forward to rest her hand on the car door. “Drive safely to the airport.”
“And text us when you land,” Lynda added.
“And don’t forget about November,” Isabel reminded her, trying to keep her voice steady.
Susan nodded, unable to speak as tears finally spilled over. She blew them a kiss, started the engine, and with a final wave, pulled away from the house.
The three remaining friends stood side by side in silence, watching until the car disappeared around the bend in the road. Isabel felt Kathleen’s arm slip around her waist, and Lynda’s hand found hers, squeezing gently.
“Well,” Kathleen said after a long moment, her own voice thick with emotion, “I suppose we should finish our coffee before it gets cold.”
Isabel nodded but didn’t move right away. She was savoring this moment—the bittersweet feeling of saying goodbye to one friend while standing firmly supported by two others—the sense of endings and beginnings all wrapped up together.
“Do you think she’s right?” Lynda asked quietly as they finally turned to head back inside. “About not letting fear stop us?”
Isabel thought about the bookstore waiting for her in town, about Frank and his gentle concern for her, and the life she was building here.
“I think,” she said slowly, “that Susan has always been the wisest of us all, even if she pretends otherwise.”
Kathleen laughed, a genuine sound this time. “Remember when she convinced us to sneak out of camp to go stargazing? She had an entire speech prepared about how experiencing the night sky was an essential part of our education.”
“And then promptly got us all lost on the way back,” Lynda added, the memory bringing a smile to her tear-stained face.
Isabel chuckled. “Mrs. Matthews was so angry she made us clean all the canoes the next day.”
“It was worth it, though,” Kathleen said, holding the front door open for them.
As they settled back in the kitchen, Isabel realized that though her heart ached at Susan’s departure, there was also a quiet certainty growing within her. This place, these people—it all felt right in a way she couldn’t describe.
Susan’s words echoed in her mind:Don’t let fear stop you from embracing whatever comes next.
Looking at her two remaining friends, Isabel made a silent promise to herself. She’d do her best to enjoy whatever came next. Whether it was the bookstore, this new chapter of her life, or the chance to be brave again after losing James.
After all, as Susan had reminded them, life was too short for anything less.
CHAPTER 17
The morning sun glinted off the surface of Flathead Lake, distracting Frank from the fishing rod in his hands. Tommy sat beside him on the weathered dock, his face a picture of concentration as he watched his bobber drift with the gentle current.
“Do you think we’ll catch anything today, Grandpa?” Tommy asked, not taking his eyes off the water.
Frank smiled at his grandson’s unwavering optimism. They’d been out for nearly two hours with nothing to show for it except a small trout Tommy had deemed “too cute to keep” and promptly released.
“Sometimes the joy is in the waiting,” Frank replied, recalling his own father’s words from fishing trips long ago. “And in the company,” he added, nudging Tommy’s shoulder affectionately.
Tommy grinned up at him. “I like fishing with you even when we don’t catch anything.”
The simple declaration warmed Frank’s heart. These were the moments he’d sought when he’d left Seattle—peaceful, ordinary, precious moments that Tommy would remember for the rest of his life.
His phone vibrated in his pocket, shattering the tranquility. Frank checked the screen and immediately recognized Marcus’s number.
“Tommy, I need to take this call. Keep an eye on both rods, okay?”
“Sure, Grandpa,” Tommy agreed, already reaching for Frank’s abandoned fishing rod.
Frank walked a few paces down the dock, far enough that Tommy wouldn’t overhear him but close enough to keep him in sight.
