It was cooler downstairs, but Maddy knew the temperature hadn’t been the real reason she was tossing and turning in bed. She had a lot on her mind. It hadn’t been the slow easy summer of years past, and it wasn’t just because they were planning Emma’s wedding.
First there was that moment she’d witnessed between Nora and Jonathan a few weeks ago. Maddy hadn’t told anyone she’d found them in his room, talking so easily together. She’d told herself she was being stupid, and that worked most of the time. But at night, when she stilled, it niggled uncomfortably in the back of her mind.
Then there was Mama and Daddy. She couldn’t quite put her finger on what was amiss there. The other day she’d noticed that, though they carried on normal conversations with everyone else, they rarely talked directly to each other.
Ever since she’d noticed that, she’d been paying close attention. They hadn’t spoken to each other once, except for idle requests like “Please pass the salt” or “Where are the car keys?”
She’d almost brought it up to Emma, but her sister would just say Maddy was imagining things. Her sister had wedding on the brain, that much was for sure. It was all she and Mama and Gram ever talked about.
Maddy took a drink, enjoying the smooth flavor of Gram’s sun tea as it slid down her parched throat. She could hear the muted crash of waves hitting the shore, and the familiar sound drew her to the windows.
Outside starlight flickered against a black canvas, and the full moon looked like a big white ball, suspended in the night sky. It shot a beam of silvery light across the ocean’s surface.
A movement on the beach caught her attention. At first she thought it was just the waves washing ashore, but the motion had been nearer to the house than the shoreline. She cupped her hands against the window, and her eyes caught on a shadowy bundle just past the last low dune.
She squinted, going still, to see if it moved again. The bundle took more form as her eyes adjusted to the light. Someone was sitting out there. No, two people, she saw as they parted.
Emma and Jonathan, she realized. Who else would it be snuggled up on the beach? Their neighbors were old, and no one would be walking the beach at this late hour. But hadn’t Emma been in her bed? It hadn’t just been a lump. She was almost certain of it. Her chest tightened with dread.
Maddy watched a moment longer, but it was too dark to make out their identities. She had to know for sure. She was moving toward the kitchen door before she could have second thoughts.
As she took the deck’s steps to the sandy footpath, a cloud skittered over the moon, darkening the landscape. She made the trip down the path by memory. The wind was loud in her ears, and the crash of the surf was a lonely sound tonight.
The sparse lawn gave way to rolling hills of soft sand. She was nearly to the last dune when the clouds parted, casting a pale blue glow over the beach.
The couple was huddled beneath a blanket, merged into one shadow now. Maddy recognized Jonathan’s silhouetted profile, the brim of his ball cap, and the sharp slopes of his nose and chin. She must’ve been mistaken about seeing Emma in bed. The couple was kissing, sharing a rare private moment.
Maddy suddenly felt like an intruder. Her sisters were right. She had a big imagination, and she was snoopy to boot. She turned to go.
But as she did, her eyes caught on something she hadn’t noticed before. The woman’s hair waved in the wind, flying out behind her, much longer than Emma’s. It was well past the woman’s shoulders, and the red strands glistened in the moonlight.
Chapter 23
Present day
Maddy dipped her brush into the aqua-colored paint and slathered it on the Adirondack chair. The old paint had eroded to an ash gray, and the chair was in sore need of a fresh coat. The evening sun was low in the sky, though the temperature was still well into the eighties.
Emma worked beside her on another chair, a little sloppy with her strokes, in Maddy’s opinion.
“Where’s Nora?” Emma asked. “I thought she was going to finish the kitchen tonight.”
“She went to the grocery.” Apparently Nora hadn’t yet solved the credit card situation, as she’d borrowed forty dollars from Maddy. Was something more going on with Nora’s finances? Part of her wanted to ask. Another part wanted to let it go.
“I talked to Gram earlier when you were at the hardware store,” Maddy said.
“How’s she doing?”
“Having a fantastic time with her friends from the sound of it.”
“That’s good. When’s she coming home?”
“She’s very noncommittal, but I got the idea it would be at least another week or two.”
“Did she press you about Nora and me?”
Maddy slanted a look at Emma. “Of course. I told her the truce was holding up, but she’s not satisfied with that, as you well know.”
“Well, I don’t know what to tell her. I guess this is as good as it’s ever going to get.”
