Chapter 28
Ronni’s Michigander accent mingled with another woman’s voice. It was followed by the tinkle of laughter.
Curious to find out who it was, Morgan, with Tina by her side, dropped what they were doing and made their way to Locke Pointe’s foyer.
Morgan came to a quick stop when she realized who the voice belonged to. “Harlow.”
“Harlow booked a private jet to fly over.” Jax closed the door behind them. “Ronni and I hitched a ride with her.”
“You chartered a plane to come to Easton Island?”
“It took a smidgen of finagling, mainly because of the storm, but here we are,” Harlow beamed, reaching down to pat Chester’s head. “Hey, Chester. Mort asked me to tell you hello.”
It dawned on Morgan why the famous actor was there. “You’re here because of Tristan.”
“I felt so bad when I found out he was being picked on after telling his classmates I gave him the arrowhead, I decided to make an appearance.”
“Looking back, if we hadn’t been in such a hurry to get to the airport that day, we would have taken a picture of you two together,” Morgan said.
“I’ll confess, when I ran into Harlow, I asked her if she could do us a small favor and give Tristan a call to cheer him up.”
“I told Ronni and your friend, Jax, I would do one better,” Harlow said. “Ronni mentioned you typically pick Tristan up after school.”
“I do.”
“Can I tag along?”
“Tag along?” Morgan impulsively embraced her. This woman was the real deal. “You can drive my car if you want.”
Harlow laughed out loud. “I’ve been thinking about Tristan; what a sweetheart he is. He’s been through a lot. Maybe me showing up will help put him on the cool kid’s list.”
“Are you kidding? He’ll probably start signing autographs, too,” Morgan joked.
“Jax and I have another surprise.” Ronni stepped forward, holding out her left hand, proudly showing off the cluster of diamonds encircling a larger center stone.
Morgan’s eyes flew from Ronni to Jax. “You…”
“Got engaged.” A slow smile spread across Jax’s face. “I asked Ronni to marry me.”
“Congratulations.” Tina hugged them both. “It couldn’t have happened to a nicer couple.”
“I wholeheartedly agree.” Morgan hugged Ronni and then hugged Jax before hugging them both simultaneously. “I knew this day would come from the moment you caught Grandmother’s bridal bouquet. Have you picked a date?”
“Not yet,” Ronni said. “It will be small…just family and friends. Maybe we could have it here…if you don’t mind.”
“Mind? I would be honored.” Morgan clutched her chest, tears filling her eyes. Her mother’s best friend and her father’s best friend were engaged. If only Laura and Rhett could see them now. “This is a cause for celebration.”
Jax held a finger to his lips. “We would like to surprise the others.”
“I have an idea. I’ll invite everyone over for an impromptu pizza party.” She turned to Harlow. “Are you spending the night? I have an empty suite if you want to hang around.”
“As much as I would love to, I already have plans with the Mackies, my friends from Mackinac Island. Maybe next time. Although if you could give me a ride to the airport after we surprise Tristan, I would appreciate it.”
“Absolutely. He loves planes and flying. We’ll see you off, but you will have to come back and stay.”
Harlow made an “x” across her chest. “Absolutely.”
“Speaking of planes, we ran into a friend at the airport. He mentioned a seaplane crash earlier over by Stormbreaker Bay.” Ronni shivered involuntarily. “He said there weren’t any survivors.”
“There’s more to the story,” Morgan said. “A lot more.”
“You know who it was?” Jax studied her face, searching for clues.
“I do, but we can talk about it later, after we celebrate the wonderful news of your engagement.” Morgan promptly texted her grandmother, Gerard, Wyatt, Brett, Quinn, Mrs. Arnsby, and Ben, inviting them, along with Prissy, to a pizza party at Looking Glass Cottage.
She sent a separate text to Brett and Elizabeth, suggesting that they meet after dinner to go over the real estate group’s proposal.
The texts flew back and forth, fast and furious, quickly confirming a six o’clock pizza party. Morgan checked her watch. It was twenty ‘til three and almost time to head to the school. “Shall we?”
“Let’s roll.”
Falling into step, the women meandered across the yard and climbed in her SUV for the short jaunt to Easton Harbor.
“This is a nice school.” Harlow whistled loudly. “Let me guess. All the kids are in the same building, similar to the school on Mackinac Island.”
“From kindergarten up to twelfth grade.” Morgan pulled alongside the curb.
“Do you think we should get out?” Harlow asked. “If I’m making an appearance, we’ll want to get the most bang for our buck.”
“Duh. Of course we do.” Checking for traffic, Morgan steered her vehicle out of the pickup line and turned into the parking lot.
She and Harlow exited her vehicle and strolled along the sidewalk. Several other parents lingered near the benches and outdoor seating, some chatting while others stared at their phones.
Within moments, a hush fell over the crowd and all eyes turned toward them.
Morgan spun around, her back to the others, and mouthed the words, “It’s working.”
Harlow winked, a broad smile spreading across her face. She casually glanced at her watch.
Buzz. Buzz. Her cell phone rang. “Crud. It’s my publicist, Janice. I need to take this call.”
“We still have a few minutes before school lets out.”
“Be right back.” Harlow hurried off and stood a few feet away, talking in a low voice.
Morgan felt a light tug on her arm. She turned to find Anna-Marie, an islander who volunteered at the animal shelter, standing behind her. “Is that who I think it is?” she whispered in a loud voice.
Feeling mischievous, Morgan played dumb. “Who?”
“Harlow Wynn.”
“It can’t be,” another woman smugly replied. “Why would she be on Easton Island? I heard she bought a place over on Mackinac Island.”
“It’s Harlow. She popped over to surprise her young friend, Tristan Blakely.”
The murmurs grew louder.
Harlow returned. “Sorry about that.”
“Ms. Wynn.” A woman, in her thirties if Morgan had to guess, elbowed her way through the cluster of people who stood gawking at them. “Do you mind if I snap a selfie?”
“Not at all.” Harlow ran her fingers through her hair and leaned in, posing for the photo.
“Me next.”
The islanders lined up, snapping photos and chatting with Harlow. She graciously spoke to each of them, answering questions and repeating that she was there to surprise her young friend, Tristan.
The bell rang. Less than a minute later, the doors opened, and students began pouring out.
It didn’t take long for the parents to spread the word, and the crowd grew. Students began crowding around Harlow, peppering her with questions while others snapped photos.
Finally, Tristan shuffled out of the building, moving at a snail’s pace.
“Tristan!” Morgan lifted her arm, struggling to get her nephew’s attention. She called his name again. Finally, he heard her.
He looked up and then did a double take when he saw Harlow standing there. Wiggling his way through the throng of people, he hurried toward his aunt and the star. “Harlow.”
“Hello, Tristan.” She gave him a quick hug. “Morgan mentioned you were a little down in the dumps, so I thought I would stop by to say ‘hi’ and find out if my arrowhead is bringing you any luck.”
He looked around. “Did Mort come with you?”
“Not this time.” Harlow casually surveyed their audience, utterly unaffected by the fact that she was the center of attention. “Where are your friends?”
Tristan bobbed his head, searching for the brothers. “Over there.”
“Would it be okay if I met them?”
“Sure.” Tristan fought his way back through the crowd, returning moments later with two boys close to his own age. He introduced them to Harlow.
The younger of the boys stared at her in disbelief. “You’re even prettier than in the movies.”
“Thank you.”
“Can I take your picture?”
“Of course.”
Harlow posed with each of Tristan’s friends, and then she invited him to pose for a group photo.
Morgan snapped the picture before joining them for another selfie.
All the while, the onlookers crept closer, so close Morgan started to feel slightly claustrophobic.
Harlow, noticing her discomfort, stepped away. “We should get going.”
“Okay.” Tristan, on cloud nine, nearly floated down the sidewalk.
The megastar stopped him, gently tugging on his arm. “Are the two who have been picking on you here?”
He nodded and pointed toward a cluster of trees where Ruben and Kendra Renaud stood glaring at them.
Changing direction, Harlow placed her arm around Tristan’s shoulders, intentionally strolling past the tormentors while Morgan stepped in on the other side.
She could feel all eyes on the trio as they crossed the parking lot and climbed into her SUV.
“That was cool,” Tristan said in awe. “You came to see me?”
“I came to cheer you up and, like I said, find out if your arrowhead is bringing you any luck.”
“I won a ribbon at the science fair for my volcano.”
“So it’s working?”
“Yep.” Tristan began humming under his breath, staring out the window as they turned onto the street. “The other kids are gonna believe me now when I say I know you.”
“Not only know me, but that we’re friends.”
“This is the best day ever.”
At Harlow’s request, they drove straight to the airport. Morgan phoned ahead to give Denver a heads up. He met them on the curb, near the drop-off zone.
“Denver, meet Harlow Wynn.”
He shook her hand so hard her head wobbled. “I’m a huge fan, Ms. Wynn. Huge. I think I’ve watched every single one of your movies.”
“Thank you. Please, call me Harlow.”
“Morgan asked me to escort you to your plane.”
“We made a big splash at the school when we picked Tristan up,” Morgan explained. “I’m sure the news is already spreading like wildfire.”
“Without a doubt. You know the saying…small island, big talk,” Denver said. “I would be honored to walk you to your plane.”
Tristan fidgeted, standing on one foot and then the other.
“Maybe you’ll come back to Mackinac Island to visit Mort and me one of these days,” Harlow said.
“Can Chester come too?”
“Absolutely. Mort would be thrilled.” Harlow turned to Morgan. “By the way, Dad is still mulling over your offer.”
“I was going to ask. Either way, Brett and I understand,” Morgan said. “I owe you one.”
The woman turned her head so that her young friend wouldn’t hear. “The look on Tristan’s face is the only payment I need.” She gave her a high five. “Mission accomplished.”