“When Savannah stops being useful.”
Rachel’s expression shifted.
“That is not how I would phrase it.”
“But it’s true.”
She did not argue.
Ellie looked between us.
Then she gently withdrew her hand.
“You should pack.”
“Will you come with me?”
The answer was already in her face.
“No.”
I nodded.
“I can’t stand in that cottage while you put everything back into a suitcase,” she said. “Not today.”
“I understand.”
“Do you?”
“I’m beginning to.”
“That’s irritatingly reasonable.”
“I have occasional moments.”
“Don’t get attached to them.”
A small smile appeared.
Tired.
Brief.
Real.
It made leaving much harder.
I bent to hug Captain Pancake.
He accepted the embrace with the confidence of someone who assumed all emotional scenes were eventually about him.
“You’re a terrible mediator,” I whispered.
He licked my ear.
Hank held out a Reef Rascal cap.
“For the road.”
