Chapter Twenty-Five
Rosemary and Tug finished assembling the lasagna, and he carried the heavy casserole pans over to the oven and slid them inside.
They started tidying the kitchen, and Rosemary washed the pots, pans, and bowls while Tug dried them and set them on a towel on the counter.
“You’re an excellent helper,” he said.
“Thank you. It’s nice being in the kitchen again.”
“You don’t cook at your daughter’s?”
“No. They are really finicky and prefer to order in.” She shrugged. “I think it’s a waste of money, but it’s not my household.” She turned and folded the dish towels neatly on the counter as Tug made quick work of putting things away.
He dropped wooden spoons and other large utensils in a drawer and then paused. He lifted something from the drawer and turned toward her. “Did you put this in here?”
He held a shell in his hand. Puzzled, she stepped closer to look. “No. That’s not the one I found. Mine is much larger. Is there a message in it?”
“I just opened the drawer and here it was.”
“Interesting. May I?” She held out her hand, and he placed it in her palm. She pulled her glasses from the top of her head and eyed it closely. The message in his shell was specifically for him, by name.
Don’t look back.
Tug, open and lift your heart in this final season.
“That’s a timely message.” She handed it back to him with aplomb.
“You really didn’t bring this with you?”
“I most certainly did not. It would be inappropriate to imitate a shell like that. Wouldn’t that be mocking something that is special to this town?”
“I don’t know.” His voice was quiet, his gaze locked on her. “I…”
“Are you okay?”
He sat on a stool. “Sort of blown away.”
“Is that a hurricane joke?”
“No. Well, yes, but not on purpose.” He smiled. “You see, only one other person knows this, but…”
She had to fight the urge to prompt him to go on.
“These shells, they have been a mystery on Whelk’s Island for years. People swear they show up at the perfect time in their lives.”
“Right. That’s what Amanda told me too. That’s very special.”
“Like the one you found. Did it touch you in a special way?”
“Curiosity more at first, but yes, as I held on to it and the phrase rolled over in my mind, it resonated with me.” It had taken hold of her, giving her the motivation to seek answers. “Deeply.”
“Right. My friend Maeve. The last time I spoke to her, she admitted she’d been making them all those years. Now, she denied planting them. Some she’d thrown in the ocean, only for them to resurface at the appropriate time for the right person.”
“Wow. I can’t imagine how it must have felt to hear about their discovery. To be a tool, the hands and feet…”
“I’d wondered all along if she had a hand in it. She was a wise woman, so caring, so real. To the point, and a pistol for sure!”
“She was very dear to you.”
He pressed a hand to his heart. “She was my everything.”
Rosemary stepped over and hugged him. “Tug, I’m so sorry I didn’t get to meet her. She touched a lot of people in this town.”
“How could Maeve have left this for me? And how has it been here all along for me to find it today?”
She shrugged.
“I’m in and out of these drawers all the time. It doesn’t make sense.”
“Honey, there are a million things each day I can’t figure out, but I’ll say this: When it’s something as special as that, you don’t question it. Hold it dear, let it steer your path.”
He sat there looking at her sort of blankly and then drew in a deep breath.
“This brings the pastor’s words back to me,” she continued. “Do you remember when he was talking about trusting there is light when things seem the darkest? We both sort of looked at each other at that moment.”
“Yes, it was like he was talking to me,” Tug said flatly.
She found that humorous. “Well, I thought he was talking to me.”
“How do they do that?”
“I have no idea. Happens to me a lot. I guess I have a lot of lessons to learn.”
“Or you’re just very in tune,” he said. “You are a wise woman. I gathered that pretty quickly when we first met.”
“You did? Thanks. That’s really nice of you to say.”
“Not nice. Just an honest observation.” He paused, looking down. “I hope you take this as a compliment, but you remind me of Maeve. Although, really, you’re nothing like her. Well, not nothing like her. That doesn’t even make sense. I meant it better than it came out.” He glanced her way, the hesitation in his voice mirrored in his expression, as if he worried about her response to what he’d said.
“I’ll take it as a compliment. Thank you.” She wanted to ask him what he thought the words in the shell meant, but sometimes it was better to let things happen on their own rather than push. Something she wasn’t all that good at.
Tug kept staring at the shell, then finally slid it back into the drawer where he’d found it.
The air was thick with the aroma of spices, but even the heavenly scent couldn’t distract from the look on Tug’s face. “Tug, you seem upset. Do you need some time? Would you like me to leave?”
“No. I’m okay. A little befuddled by it, but I’d really prefer you stayed.”
“Good. I’m enjoying myself. So, change of subject?”
“Absolutely.”
“Any word from the insurance carrier about the diner?”
“Yes. They started the assessment yesterday. Not sure how long it will take since they are working in disaster mode and all, but at least they are making progress.”
“Well, that’s good news.”
“It is. Still don’t know what I’m going to do, though.”
“Well, you have some time. This is a lot to take in. You’ll figure it out.” Tug captivated Rosemary. The sadness in his blue eyes compelled her to draw closer, and she wanted to help him through this difficult time.
With no one in her life and no timetable, why not stay awhile and help a new friend in need? Is this why I was meant to be here on Whelk’s Island? Is this my purpose?
There was no divine answer hanging in the air, but she knew one thing. She hadn’t felt this alive in a long time. Not since Kai passed, and maybe it was because, for once, she wasn’t the one with the biggest problem. Whatever it was, she liked the way it felt. Being near the water had brought her some peace that living inland hadn’t.
Maybe helping Tug would help her find light to her own path. Do unto others and all that. It made sense.
“I was thinking,” she said. “Our tomorrows may look nothing like our yesterdays, but God has a plan, and if we embrace each day for what it offers, we find that both are equally beautiful. I feel like even though things haven’t been going well for me, I’ve been gathering these tiny glimmering moments of hope, memories so fond I never want to let go of them. Somehow I suppose it all braids together to increase our empathy, awareness, and understanding. We are wiser for each of those hard steps.”
“Everything looks dark. I feel hopelessly lost,” Tug said. “What Pastor Qualls was saying today, it really spoke to me.”
“He lights our way, even in the dark. You are not lost. You just have to do your part.”
“What’s my part? There’s nothing left. You’ve seen where the diner was. There’s nothing.”
“It’s okay if you’re too tired to reopen. You don’t have to do what you’ve always done. You’ve had a good run, and I’m pretty sure you’ll get enough money selling oceanfront property to see you well into your golden years.”
“I’ve never thought of not owning the diner.” He sat there contemplating. “You know we’re in the golden years, right?”
“Guess we are, aren’t we?”
“I’ve always worked. I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t. I sure can’t sit around here doing nothing.”
“No one says you can’t continue to have the diner. You can rebuild and do things as you always have. Or I can help you explore some ideas. I’m a wonderful planner. Remember that bucket list I was talking about? I told you I’d come in handy.”
“The bucket list again. I’m not a material guy.”
“Yes, but this should be right up your alley. A bucket list is not about things, it’s about moments. I picked up some brochures from the travel agent. I’ve got them in my purse. We’re gonna work on that together, because, Tug, that diner is just coordinates on a map.” She lifted a hand. “I know it meant the world to you, but you are so much more than that building. There is so much light left in you, Tug. I see it in your eyes, and if there’s one thing I’m confident in, it’s that God will light the way.”
“I don’t know where you’re seeing that.” He held out his arms and looked at himself. “Doesn’t feel like there’s much left to me. I’ve been praying. I just don’t see it.”
She got up, pulled the brochures out of her purse, and laid them on the butcher block in front of him.
“Look at these. Just let your mind go.”
Tug looked at her but didn’t argue. He picked up a pair of readers and put them on. Leaning in, he shuffled through the brochures, pausing on a few before turning to the next. Some of them definitely intrigued him.
“You could do some of those things, you know.”
He took in a breath. “Perhaps. Well, if I was just dreaming, this one looks appealing.” His eyes remained trained on a picture of a man in a stream fly-fishing, surrounded by mountains and the most serene waters.
The way his smile curled at the corners of his lips sent a flutter through her chest. “I want someone to look at me the way you’re looking at that travel brochure,” she teased.
He lifted his chin in surprise. “I think I look at you with so much more than that. This brochure might give my hopes for adventure wings, but you? You bring out butterflies and feelings I haven’t had in a long time. When I look at you, I see someone incredible.”
“You do?”
“Yes, ma’am, I do. But things are a mess in my life right now. I’ve got nothing to offer.” He took off his readers and set them aside. “I’m not as fun or as put together as you deserve.”
“You are plenty fun, Tug. I love spending time with you.”
“Maybe I just need time.”
“I know, I know. I’ve been where you are. Sure, you may not have been married to Maeve, but losing her and that special bond you two had is like losing a spouse. It’s impossible to prepare a heart for that. You don’t even want to hear what a mess I was when I lost Kai, but I have a pretty good idea how you’re feeling about losing her. And losing the diner, too, is right up there with it. You are a good man, Tug. There is so much ahead of you.”
He sat quietly, but he wasn’t arguing the point either.
Rosemary saw that as a win. “How about you walk me down this beach you know so well?” she suggested. “Let’s just listen to nature. The waves, the wind, the rustling sea oats, and even those pesky seagulls The Wife seems to love to imitate, and I promise I won’t say another word.”
He sputtered, making that noise you hear when someone lets go of a balloon and it flies across the room. “You can’t promise that.”
“You’re probably right. I can if you tape my mouth shut.” She pressed her lips together. “I won’t say anything until we get back. I can do that. It’ll be nice and grounding.”
“I think it’ll be more fun to watch you try to stay quiet.”
She playfully slugged him in the belly, which was surprisingly firm.
“I deserved that.” Tug laughed. He stood and reached for her hand. “You are an absolute delight. Come on. I’d love to show you my beach, but there’s not quite enough time left on the timer to go.”
Had that much time already passed? “Only ten more minutes.”
“Let’s set the table, and then it should be done. Would you like to go out on the beach for a little bit and eat when we get back?”
“Sounds good.”
“I hope you don’t mind, but I invited Paul and Amanda and the kids to join us for supper.”
“Mind? I’m thrilled. Lord knows we made enough to feed all of us and then some.”
“I didn’t think you’d mind.”
“Get me started setting the table. Just tell me which plates, and I can handle the rest.”
He steered her to a set of old china in the hutch. It was a sweet feminine pattern, stacked next to some lovely milk glass and a very ornate silver setting.
“You have some beautiful things in here.”
“They were my mom’s. She loved pretty things.”
The love with which he spoke about his mother touched her.
The timer sounded from the kitchen. “I’ve got this under control,” she said. “You get the lasagna.”
She finished setting the table. “The aroma is mouthwatering,” she called out.
“Comfort food.”
“Can never have too much of that.”
“You got that right. Come on. Let’s take that walk,” Tug said, entering the dining room.
“When are they supposed to be here?” she asked.
“I texted Paul. They’ll let themselves in and entertain The Wife if we’re not back when they get here. We can take our time, or not, if it’s killing you to be quiet.”
“I think I might surprise you.” They left their shoes on the stairs, rolled up their pant legs, and walked over to the beach.