Chapter 22
CHAPTER 22
M aggie had only one day to check off items on her long to-do list. She figured the only way to get everything done was to get up before sunrise to bake a few batches of scones for the coming days.
I suppose I could freeze a bunch.
Two racks in the center of the island held a dozen scones. While they cooled, Maggie prepared the mixture for her mushroom and spinach quiche.
The hours passed, and with the sun rising in the sky, Chelsea tiptoed into the Key Lime Garden Inn’s kitchen.
“Hey, stranger,” she said, catching Maggie off-guard.
“Yikes! You scared me. Hey yourself. Nice to see you’re back to your usual breakfast morning routine. Can I pour you a cup?”
“Thank you, but I think I know where the coffee pot is. I haven’t been gone that long.”
Maggie couldn’t wait to hear the latest between Chelsea and her new beau. “So?”
“So?”
“Don’t play games…how are things with you and Mr. Wonderful?”
“You know his name is Steven. He’s not perfect, but he’s perfect for me. How’s that?”
It had been Chelsea and Maggie’s history to share every detail about their lives with each other, but Maggie could sense that this time, Chelsea wanted to say very little about Steven and her feelings for him.
Maggie poured herself a cup of coffee, and then sat across from Chelsea. Understanding how special Chelsea’s new relationship with Steven was, she wanted to honor her friend’s need for privacy. Something had changed between them, but Maggie didn’t worry. There would be plenty of time for gossip in the future. For now, she’d quietly celebrate her best friend’s new love from afar.
She raised her coffee cup. “To love.”
Chelsea smiled. “Indeed…to love.”
They sipped their coffee in silence for a few minutes, until Maggie chose to spill the details of life in her family’s latest drama.
“So…Lauren went into labor last night, and I could hardly sleep a wink waiting for Jeff to update us. I think I got about three hours at best. Anyway, all the kids have started the testing process for Emily’s kidney transplant…all except Sarah. She’s coming to Boston with us tomorrow. Michael is going to pick us up at Logan. We’re going to stay at Lauren and Jeff’s so I can help them with the kids.”
“She went in last night? Isn’t it unusual to be in labor this long? I mean, it’s her third baby. I thought the more you have, the easier it gets?”
Maggie laughed. “That wasn’t the case for me, and I had five. I expect to hear something any time now. I’ve got my phone on the charger.”
“Is there anything I can do for you while you’re gone?”
“Not really. I stopped over to Powell’s yesterday to ask Ciara to stop in occasionally and check on things. You could do the same if you have time.”
Chelsea nodded. “Sure. I can do that.”
Paolo came into the kitchen. “Good morning, Chelsea.”
“Hey, Paolo.”
“Any word from Jeff?”
Maggie shook her head. “Nothing yet. We’ve got warm scones, right out of the oven.”
He walked to the coffee pot, when suddenly Maggie’s phone vibrated on the table. “It’s Jeff,” she whispered. She pressed the button to connect to the video.
Paolo ran to Maggie and stood behind her.
“Jeff, how’s Lauren?”
“She’s great. Everything went fantastic. The baby is healthy and is perfect. It’s a boy. We have a son.”
“Congratulations!” they said in unison.
Maggie could hear laughter and screaming in the background, and then movement behind Jeff.
“Who is that? Is that Beth?”
Jeff laughed. “Yup, and Michael, Gabriel, Becca, and Chris. I called everyone last night and they all couldn’t wait to get here. Somehow, Lauren and I didn’t realize Emily would be in this hospital. If we did, we must have forgotten in all the excitement.”
“Hey Mom,” Beth, Christopher and Michael waved, and yelled toward the phone, “Hurry up and get here.”
“Yeah, we heard Sarah is coming up too?”
“That’s right. We’re flying up in the morning.”
“That’s great. Would you like to meet your new grandson?” Jeff asked.
Maggie was stunned that they all were in the room with Lauren and that she could see the baby so soon.
“Yes, of course. Chelsea is here, too.”
Jeff brought the phone close to Lauren and the baby.
“Hey Mom… Paolo… can you see him?”
Maggie tried not to cry, but it was no use.
“Yes, we see him. He’s beautiful.”
Lauren kissed her baby’s forehead, and holding him up in front of Jeff’s phone, she whispered, “Meet your new grandson…Daniel Christopher Phillips.”
At three o’clock that afternoon Maggie was surprised to see Kat sitting on the porch swing.
“Hey, I thought you’d be at work, or have you switched to the dinner shift already?”
Kat pushed the swing with her foot. “Nope. I quit.”
“You quit? Why?”
“Let’s just say I’m not as young as I once was, and my feet and back have suffered from all that standing. Plus, I don’t think the other workers liked me very much. I can’t prove it, but I don’t think I got all the tip money coming to me. Waitressing is hard.”
Maggie tried not to laugh but felt little sympathy for her sister’s situation.
“So, what’s next? Are you going to look for a new job?”
Kat shrugged. “I don’t know. I haven’t figured out what I’m good at yet. I guess I’ll have to look online and see if there’s something nearby. That’s the other thing…all there is on Captiva for jobs is hospitality stuff. I’m not sure I’m cut out for that. I do need to sit all day though, but if I want an office job, I’d have to go to Fort Myers and I don’t want to do that.”
“I hate to ask this, Kat, but aren’t you going to run out of money at some point? I mean, you and Nolan seem in limbo. I have no idea what your financial situation is, but you can’t spend the rest of your life hanging at the beach. If you’re leaving Nolan for good, you might need to consider if it’s financially viable to do so.”
If Kat was upset before Maggie’s timely advice, she now appeared downright depressed.
Maggie sat next to Kat and held her hand.
“Listen, I’m leaving in the morning to go to Boston. Lauren had the baby. She had a boy.”
Kat’s face brightened. “Oh, Maggie, that’s wonderful. The best news. What’s his name?”
Maggie smiled. “Daniel…Daniel Christopher.”
“Oh my, she named him after Daniel?”
Maggie nodded. “Yes, I think it was a lovely thing to do. Daniel would have been so proud to know that his grandson was named after him.”
“You’re really something, do you know that?” Kat said. “Even after everything that you’ve been through with Daniel…”
“What Daniel and I went through takes nothing away from the fact that he will always be my children’s father. I realize if he were alive today, we’d be divorced. I can accept that for myself. His death is hard to accept for my children. Naming the baby Daniel is Lauren’s way of holding on to her father. That makes me happy.”
Kat nodded. “I can understand that…I wish…”
Just then, a car pulled up in front of the carriage house.
Maggie got up from the swing.
“I wonder who…” She stopped when she saw him and turned to look at Kat. “It’s Nolan.”
“My Nolan?” Kat asked, as walked to the edge of the porch.
“Hello, Kat…Maggie.”
“Hey, Nolan,” Maggie said.
Kat froze in place and said nothing.
“Kat, why don’t you take Nolan down to the cottage? I think the two of you could use some privacy.”
“It’s good to see you, Nolan,” Maggie said before walking into the kitchen.
Kat walked down the stairs and toward Nolan. “Hello, Nolan. You should have called.”
He started to talk, but she stopped him. “Let’s go to the cottage. I don’t want everyone listening to us.”
Nolan followed Kat through the garden path to the cottage.
“This is quite the place,” he said. “I guess I can’t blame you for not wanting to come home.”
Not interested in small talk, Kat wanted to get to the point. As soon as they got inside, she pointed toward the beach. “We can sit out on the porch.”
Kat opened the sliding door and stepped out onto the porch. “Have a seat. Do you want something to drink? I have some lemonade if you want.”
He nodded. “Yes, that would be great.”
She left him sitting on the rocking chair, while she went inside.
What am I going to say to him? I’m not ready for this conversation.
She filled his glass and then carried it outside. “Here you go.”
Kat turned the other rocking chair so she could face him.
“Nolan, I don’t understand why you’re here.”
“I’m here because you’re my wife and I want you to come home. I know we have problems, but running away isn’t the answer.”
“I’m not running away. I’m searching for something else.”
“Something else? I don’t even know what that means.”
Kat sighed and tried not to lose patience with him.
“It means what I’m doing doesn’t have anything to do with you. Yes, we have problems, but I’m one half of what’s wrong with our marriage. I’m not blaming you…I’m saying that I’m lost, and you can’t fix that.”
“You think the answer is Captiva Island?”
She shook her head. “No. It’s just where my sister is, and I need her right now.”
He sipped his lemonade and looked out on the water.
“I miss you, Kat. Not because you cook and clean and take care of me…I miss you. Maybe you don’t know who you are, but I do. You can’t suddenly uproot your life this way.”
Trying to remain calm, she continued, “I’m not on vacation, Nolan. All of this might look like Paradise to you, but for me…it’s quiet. It’s just me and my thoughts out here, and when I need to think out loud and bounce ideas off someone, I want that someone to be Maggie, at least for now.”
He didn’t say anything for a bit, instead sipping his lemonade and looking at the horizon.
“I won’t fight you, Kat. I had hoped you might come home with me, or maybe we could spend some time together on the island.”
Although it wasn’t a question, she could see that he waited for her to answer.
She shook her head. “I’m not ready, Nolan. The best I can say is that I’m conflicted, and not as certain as I once was about divorcing. That’s something, isn’t it?”
Nolan smiled and nodded. “It is.”
She reached for him, placing her hand on his arm. “Give me a little time. That’s all I’m asking.”
“If that’s what you need, I’ll go back to the airport and fly home. Just remember I love you. I’ve never loved anyone else. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make you happy. Don’t forget our years together. Maybe we made mistakes, but it’s not too late to fix them.”
Kat smiled. “Thank you, Nolan. I won’t forget.”