Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Faith smiled up at the clear blue sky, relishing the feeling of warmth that pervaded the air. Somewhere in the distance, she could hear the sound of children shouting and laughing, and very faintly she could hear the crash of the surf along the nearby shoreline.
There was a spring in her step as she made her to the McCormick Brewery. She felt full of energy, as if she could taste new promises in the air. Ever since Dean and Noelle’s wedding a couple of weeks prior, she’d been filled with more excitement for the future than ever before.
Rosewood Beach has finally fallen back into its usual rhythm, she thought with a smile. The majority of the damage caused by the storm is all repaired. Everyone’s moved back into their homes and businesses, and things are getting back to normal.
She strolled past the physical therapy office, glad to see that even its flower garden out front had been restored to its former glory.
A gift shop with a beautiful roof that had been damaged in the storm had gotten the necessary repairs done to its scalloped shingles, and the barbershop’s cracked windows had been replaced by new ones that were clean and sparkling, offering a view of all the people chatting with each other inside.
Even the beautiful old building that had originally been planned for Dean and Noelle’s wedding was well on its way to being fully repaired.
She sighed contentedly as she turned the last corner on her route to the brewery. She often thought about the party they’d held, and how well it had turned out for everyone. It had been a night of fun and good companionship that she knew she would remember for the rest of her life.
Across the street, she noticed Shannon and Weston walking with their little girl Camille.
She was skipping along between them, holding both of their hands at once.
The skirt of her pink striped dress swished around her knees in a way that she seemed to be doing on purpose.
Faith couldn’t help laughing when she heard Camille’s squeals of delight.
She waved to the Fishers and started to cross the street toward them. “Hi!” she said warmly, shaking their hands. “I’m Faith Talbot. You met me at the Rosewood Beach party at The Lighthouse Grill, although you probably don’t remember.”
“We definitely remember meeting you,” Shannon said, shaking her hand. “Thank you so much for planning that.”
“Oh, I had a blast,” Faith said, smiling.
“I’m surprised you remember us,” Weston said, shaking her hand in turn. “You must have met so many people that night.”
“I talked to a lot of people, but I didn’t meet very many,” she said with a laugh. “I’ve already met most of the people in town. We get a lot of tourists here, but the community itself is pretty small and close-knit. Soon this whole place is going to feel like one big family to you.”
“It’s starting to feel that way already,” Shannon said with a smile. “Jacob and Hazel Dorsey already feel like family.”
“And Sam,” Camille piped up, as if it were urgent that her good friend Samantha not be neglected in that list.
“Good.” Faith grinned. “They had a lot of positive things to say about you guys.”
The three adults chatted for a few minutes longer, discussing how well the town was doing with getting everything repaired after the storm, while Camille wrote invisible words on the sidewalk with a stick. Finally Faith excused herself and she and the Fishers went on their respective ways.
They’re such a great addition to our community, Faith thought, glancing over her shoulder at the little family with a smile. I’m so happy they moved here.
She was almost to the McCormick Brewery when she suddenly felt an urge to play hooky for a little while before starting her workday.
After all, there wasn’t all that much she needed to get done, so it wouldn’t matter if she showed up a little later in the day.
She had a hankering for coffee, as well as for the company of her family.
Her feet turned her around and took her in the direction of The Lighthouse Grill. She could smell the coffee and the pancakes while she was still a stone’s-throw away, and she chuckled, thinking to herself that she might grab a snack in addition to the coffee she was planning on.
I wonder who’s here? she thought as she tugged open the familiar front doors of the pub.
I’m sure Vivian is, and at least one other Owens probably is too.
If Alexis isn’t waitressing, then Julia’s probably working in the office, or Hazel’s probably here on her lunch break, or Grayson is here picking up a to-go order for himself and his work team.
That was something she loved about The Lighthouse Grill—in addition to the wonderful food and coffee, there was always great company.
She felt as though she would be guaranteed to see at least one of the people she loved most in the world whenever she went there.
It was a home away from home, and she knew that she wasn’t the only person in town who felt that way.
As soon as she stepped inside the cozy restaurant, she gasped with delight.
Dean and Noelle were there, having just returned from their honeymoon.
It was clear they’d just arrived back in town, since they were surrounded by Vivian, Alexis, and Julia, who were all hugging them and chattering excitedly.
“What was the best part of the honeymoon?” Julia asked. “You must have seen so many beautiful places in Ireland.”
“We should have an official viewing of all your honeymoon pictures at the next family movie night,” Alexis announced. Cash, strapped happily to her back, gurgled in agreement.
“I’m so happy you’re back,” Vivian said, squeezing Dean’s shoulder lovingly. “I can’t wait to hear all about your adventures.”
“Ireland was just amazing,” Noelle said, her eyes shining. “Your jaw is going to hit the floor when you see some of the pictures.” She turned to Dean. “That one of the hills, with the mist and the lights? I think it’s going to be my laptop background for ages.”
“What, not a picture of me?” Dean teased, his head getting closer to hers.
“You’re already on the background of my phone,” she said, closing in on the distance. “Don’t get greedy, Mr. Owens.”
“Okay, Mrs. Owens.”
They kissed, and the women said, “Aww!”
Julia wrapped her arms around Alexis and Faith at the same time, hugging them both sideways.
“Look at those cuties,” she said cheerfully. “Gosh, they’re acting sappy. You’d think they just got married or something.”
As Faith looked around at the faces of her family members, she noticed particularly the look of peace on Dean’s face. He looked serene in the midst of his joy, and Faith felt overjoyed that his days of struggling with pain and fatigue were over.
He so deserves this, she thought. I couldn’t be happier for his happy ending.
A rush of gladness filled her heart as she thought about her family and all of the good changes that had come into their lives during the past several months.
Life had its challenges and its ups and downs, but together, work turned into fun and sadness turned into joy.
Together, they were going to continue to forge lives of happiness for themselves and the people they cared about.
There was nothing like family, and Faith knew that her family was something incredibly special, as was their close-knit, open-hearted town.
They were all truly blessed, every single one of them.
Thank you so much for reading the Rosewood Beach series!