Chapter 7
CHAPTER 7
L uke Powell worked long hours at Powell Water Sports, and that was just the way he liked it. Unlike his brother Joshua, who, despite being a hard worker, preferred to spend his time with his girlfriend Jacqui Hutchins and cultivating a social life outside the family business, Luke was fully immersed in his work.
Taking after his father, Crawford Powell, Luke constantly thought about ways to expand the business. However, his ambitious goals were often undermined by his lack of thorough preparation.
Luke always moved quickly when he got a new idea. The moment inspiration struck, he would dive headfirst into action, barely taking the time to plan or consider potential obstacles.
His impulsive nature often led him to start projects with boundless enthusiasm, convinced that his drive alone would see him through. This approach had its perks—his energy and initiative often sparked exciting opportunities—but it also meant that many of his ventures fizzled out as quickly as they began, lacking the necessary groundwork to truly succeed.
Studying for hours, reading books on how to become a multi-millionaire, Luke wanted more. He’d explained that it was how he was wired and there was nothing wrong with wanting to be rich, but Meredith had finally grown tired of his obsession with money.
Everyone knew that Luke’s long hours were partly a way to forget about Meredith, but he’d never admit it. Keeping his feelings to himself, he trudged along, focusing on his work, books, and occasionally taking courses he often never finished.
Now, standing behind the counter at Powell Sports, he stared at the envelope in his hands. Stunned as he read the contents, he was shocked to find that Meredith had invited him and a plus one to her wedding.
The invitation had come the day before, and instead of reading it then, he stuffed it into his backpack and put off dealing with the inevitable anger. He’d finally come to terms with the relationship ending, but he wasn’t ready to accept that Meredith had moved on without him.
“Is that a wedding invitation?” Joshua asked, as he opened a box of snorkel equipment.
“You’re about 12 feet away from me, how do you know it’s a wedding invitation?”
Joshua shrugged. “I don’t know, invitation envelopes look sort of formal, that’s all.”
“If you must know, it’s an invitation from Meredith.”
Joshua stopped what he was doing, walked behind the register and grabbed the wedding invitation.
“You’re kidding me! Meredith is getting married?” Joshua asked, a mixture of shock and amusement on his face.
“It isn’t funny, Joshua,” Luke responded.
“Sorry, I know it isn’t, but you have to admit, it’s kind of weird. Who invites a fairly recent-ex to their wedding?”
Their stepmother, Ciara, overheard them talking as she walked into the front of the store.
“Meredith invited you to her wedding?” she asked.
“Hey Ciara, yeah, it looks like it,” Luke answered.
“What are you going to do?” she asked.
Luke shrugged. “I’m not sure. I’ve been trying not to think about it, but I guess there’s the RSVP to deal with so I’ve got to decide soon.”
“Hey, guys!” Maggie called out as she entered the store.
“Hey Maggie. This is a surprise. What brings you to Powell Water Sports? Are you renting a Jet Ski?” Joshua teased.
Maggie laughed. “Very funny. I don’t think anyone wants to see me on one of those. I’d probably run it into a boat or some large structure. No, I wanted to talk to Ciara about our book club.”
Luke dropped the invitation on the counter and went to help a customer, and Ciara picked it up.
“Another wedding?” Maggie asked.
Ciara shook her head and put the invitation back on top of the counter.
“Let’s go upstairs, and let the guys get back to work. How about a cup of coffee?” Ciara answered.
“No way. I’ve already had three, any more and I won’t need a Jet Ski, I’ll be able to run on top of the water.”
Maggie and Ciara left the store area and went upstairs to Ciara and Crawford’s apartment. Since marrying last year, Ciara had made the place cozy and welcoming.
“The place looks lovely, Ciara”
“Thank you, Maggie, please, let’s sit in the living room.”
“You decorated everything so beautifully. I love that there are touches of Gaeta here. You’ve managed to combine the island vibe with your Italian heritage.”
“Thank you so much. It was difficult to think about redecorating when Crawford hadn’t really made many changes after his wife died.”
“That’s not unusual. Lots of people leave things as they were when their loved one died. I think it makes them feel as if they’re still alive.”
Ciara nodded. “Crawford kept apologizing for the longest time, as if I’d be offended by his love for Julia.”
“Oh, that must have been a difficult discussion to have.”
“Not so much. I explained to him that loving Julia took nothing away from what we have. Besides, I wouldn’t have fallen in love with Crawford if he had stopped loving her just because she passed away. People can be so jealous and territorial about these things, but to me, that’s not love.”
“I agree. Speaking of love, I’m so sorry that Meredith has put Luke in such an awkward situation. What happened between them? They were together for so many years.”
“Yes, six years, and then she finally gave up waiting for him to propose, I think. But, it’s not all Meredith’s fault, and Luke knows that. I never thought Crawford’s boys would confide in me the way that they have. After all, they’re grown men now, and I’m the new stepmother. Luke and Meredith broke up seven months ago, and Luke initially tried to get her back, but it was too late.”
“What a shame, I liked Meredith,” Maggie added.
“So did everyone in this family, but when I talked to Luke about it, he shared that he’d put work and his desire for success above relationships. It wasn’t just Meredith who he ignored, his friends and family felt that he had lost sight of what’s important and told him so.”
“Still, it’s strange that Meredith is getting married so soon after their break-up. It makes me wonder if either she is rebounding or…”
Ciara nodded. “I’m sure Luke is asking that very same question. He said he doesn’t have a clue who her fiancé is and has looked him up on the internet. Apparently, he’s a stockbroker and a very successful one. It would be awful if she had been seeing this other man while she was with Luke. Regardless of why they broke up, he was faithful to her, that I know.”
Maggie suddenly had an idea. “Wait, Ciara, I have a thought. What if Luke goes to Meredith’s wedding after all?”
“What? Why would he want to do that?” Ciara asked.
“What if he went and didn’t go alone? What if he had a date, a very lovely date on his arm?”
“Maggie Moretti, what are you scheming?”
“You know Claire Wright?”
Ciara nodded, “The woman running the book club?”
“Yes, her daughter, Katie is joining our club as well. Last week, when we had the Christmas Parade, I noticed Katie checking out Luke when he drove Santa’s boat onto the beach. I’m not sure if Claire noticed it or not, but we did give each other a look right after Katie moved up to get a better look at Luke.”
Ciara laughed. “How do you know she wasn’t trying to get a better look at Santa?”
Maggie hadn’t thought of that, but she pressed forward with her idea, nonetheless.
“If I’m right, I think Katie would love to accompany Luke to Meredith’s wedding.”
“Oh, I don’t know. Just as I think Meredith is crazy for getting married so soon after Luke, I think Luke is still heartbroken and it’s too soon for him to start another relationship.”
Maggie shook her head. “No, I’m not talking about Luke and Katie getting serious, I’m just saying that it would be nice if Luke could hold his head up high and walk into that wedding with a lovely, intelligent woman, who just happens to be gorgeous. Maybe something will come of it, and maybe they’ll just be friends. Either way, Luke will feel better about the situation.”
Ciara seemed to consider Maggie’s proposal.
“Well, if we play match-maker, I best have a talk with Luke first. We’re talking about two people here. Katie shouldn’t be made to be the answer to Luke’s issues. He needs to step up and be a good guy. He needs to earn Katie’s interest and be someone who deserves her.”
Maggie nodded. “I agree completely. So, I’ll call Claire and run it by her too. After all, neither of us have a clue about Katie’s situation. There might already be a boyfriend in the picture. Your job will be to talk to Luke, and for heaven’s sake, don’t let him RSVP just yet.”
Maggie was about to leave when Ciara stopped her. “Wait! You said you wanted to talk to me about the book club.”
“Oh, right. I’m sorry, my head is in the clouds these days. I just wanted to make sure you got the book.”
“I sure did. I already started it. I’m loving it already, and I’m sure excited that we’re doing this. Has anyone been in touch with Linda? I know she’ll want to be a part of this.”
“That’s a diplomatic way of putting it. Something tells me that Linda won’t be very happy that Claire is the one who got us all on board. We’ve all been avoiding Linda every time she brings it up. Now, we’re all ready to participate because Claire asked us? You know that won’t go over very well.”
Ciara nodded. “You have a point. I wouldn’t want to be the person to break the news to Linda.”
“You and me both.”
Maggie loved her new match-making idea, and left Powell Water Sports in a better mood than she was in when she first walked through the shop’s front door. Now, driving over the Sanibel Bridge, she took a deep breath and tried to hold on to that positive feeling as she headed to her mother’s condo in Fort Myers.
Her mother’s condo was only thirty minutes away from the Key Lime Garden Inn, but that was because most of the travel was getting to the bridge. Just over the bridge, she had a little less than a mile to go.
She’d battled with herself over the last two days, wondering how she would tell her mother about the upcoming biopsy. The only reason she finally settled on telling her was because they both had made great strides in repairing their relationship.
Maggie’s childhood wasn’t fraught with tensions and trauma. No, her family didn’t air their troubles, preferring to keep a stiff upper lip through every challenge that came their way. It didn’t serve anyone in the Garrison home well to keep emotions at bay. Nonetheless, throughout her childhood and into her adult years, Maggie perpetuated the very same behaviors that contributed to the demise of her marriage.
Her sister Kat and brother Michael suffered the same affliction, and neither had a great marriage because of it. Her brother Michael was so removed from his feelings, that more than once, his wife, Michelle, reached out to Maggie for support.
Now, as Maggie pulled into her mother’s driveway, she looked in the rearview mirror to see if her face showed signs of tension or stress. She pinched her cheeks, smiled and got out of her car.
Her mother was standing at the front door, and as soon as Maggie reached her, she looked at Maggie and said, “What’s wrong?”
“What? Nothing…I’m fine, everything is fine.”
“Come in and let me look at you,” her mother insisted.
It was moments like this one that immediately made Maggie tense and on the defensive.
How does she do it? I feel like I’m six years old again.
“Mom, let me get in the door before you scrutinize me. Can we please talk about something other than how I am? How are your roses doing?”
It was a subject that excited and energized her mother. Gardening had always been her favorite hobby, and it was an easy topic to deflect talking about Maggie.
“Oh, come out and see. They are absolutely gorgeous. Look!” she said, pointing to her favorite pink roses. “Aren’t they something?”
Maggie smiled. “Oh, Mom, they are precious. Mind if I take a few pictures?”
“Go ahead, take as many as you like. I’m going back inside to make us a pot of tea.”
Maggie smiled. All through Maggie’s childhood, she’d watch her mother make her tea and sit alone at the kitchen table lost in thought. The teapot was Maggie’s grandmother’s and although they didn’t have much money or anything special, the teapot was carefully treasured for the memories it held.
Maggie shot several photos before joining her mother in the kitchen.
“So, I got that book we’re supposed to read,” her mother announced. “It looks pretty good, although I don’t understand why anyone would want to go off and live practically in a shack.”
“Did you ever want to do that when you were married to Daddy?” Maggie asked.
“What, live in a shack? Maggie dear, don’t you remember we practically lived in one when you were little.”
“Oh, that old house? I remember that, but we moved when I was four years old. My memory is pretty blurry. I guess we did live in rather humble conditions back then.”
Maggie’s mother chuckled, wiping her hands on a dish towel.
“Your father and I were just starting out, and money was tight. That old house might’ve been small, but it was full of love, maybe not much laughter, but there was love.”
Her mother looked down at her hands and Maggie could tell her mother missed her father.
“We didn’t have much, but we made do with what we had. I suppose it did feel like a bit of an adventure, looking back. Your father was a serious man, but there were moments when he allowed himself to feel the humor in things.”
Maggie leaned against the counter, lost in thought. “I wonder what it would be like now, going back to basics like that. It’s easy to romanticize, but I imagine it would be really challenging. The idea of disconnecting, though, does sound tempting sometimes.”
“Oh, I don’t know. Life has a way of teaching you that you don’t need much to be happy, but you also learn to appreciate the comforts you have now. Anyway, I have a question for you on this book club. Why do we have to wait until the end of January to have a meeting? Call it a get-together, maybe a Christmas book club introduction. Just so we can all say hello and get on the same page about the group.”
Maggie shrugged. “I hadn’t thought about it like that. I’m sure Claire just assumed that it’s too close to Christmas and everyone is busy. I can ask her if you’d like? We can all meet at the inn. I’ll have eggnog and festive holiday goodies to eat. We have a new chef now, and I’m sure he’ll put together something for a luncheon.”
Her mother carried the tray with tea into the living room.
“I thought we’d have our tea in here. That way, we can enjoy relaxing on the sofa and you can explain to me why you’re here, because I know there is something bothering you.”
Maggie chuckled and walked to the sofa. Taking her teacup in her hand, she turned to her mother.
“How do you do that?”
“Do what?”
“Get inside my head like that. I never said anything was wrong.”
Her mother smiled. “And yet?”
Forgetting the lessons of her childhood, Maggie ignored the stiff upper lip directive from her parents, and suddenly needed her mother.
“Oh, Mom. I’m going in for another biopsy tomorrow and I’m terrified. I found a lump and so we have to check it out.”
Her mother put down her teacup and took Maggie’s hands in hers.
“Sweet girl, you’ve always taken after me. Please don’t worry. I had a lump many years ago. All I needed was a lumpectomy and some radiation and then I was good as new. You’ll see, everything will work out.”
“Why didn’t you tell me when I went through this the first time?”
“Because dear, it wasn’t about me, it was about you.”
Maggie couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “Do me a favor?”
“What is it?”
“Will you please promise me not to keep anything from me ever again…especially something as important as this?”
Her mother sighed. “Fine, fine, whatever you want. It was really no big deal, and neither is this time for you. You’re strong, Maggie. You’re stronger than I am and that’s saying something.”
Maggie held back a giggle and smiled. It was the best compliment her mother had ever given her. More than that, they were typical words from a woman who valued strength above all else.
What her mother still hadn’t realized was that sometimes it was okay to feel weak and vulnerable, and needing a mother’s love.
Her mother reached for her and pulled her into a hug.
“You’ll always be my baby,” her mother said. It was music to Maggie’s ears.