Epilogue
Six years later
Monica still believed in signs and omens.
The brochure from the Sugar Sands Hotel was tucked inside her memory box back in Louisiana, along with a tiny seashell to remind her of the first time she came to Florida on vacation.
She and Spencer had come back every year for a week at the end of summer.
Their son, Spencer Finn, was only three months old the first time they came back and got married at the same spot where they met one year before.
Jimmy and Linda always booked a room for part of the week they were there and brought Fiona and Stormy Lin with them every year. Monica and Spencer spent part of the holidays in New Mexico, and oftentimes his family went with them.
Fiona had hung up her fancy underwear and donned faded jeans, sometimes even bibbed overalls, and an old straw hat that her mother tried to put in the trash.
She never did go back to modeling or take the job in the library when they offered it to her.
She raised some of the best Angus cattle in the state of Texas and had secured a place on the board of the Texas and Southwestern Cattlemen’s Association.
Monica stepped out onto the balcony of room 414 and took in the sight. Ocean waves coming in hard enough to make a lot of noise. She smiled at Spencer and Finn’s laughter when Spencer played with a frisbee. Yellow flag hanging limp. Fiona and Stormy Lin picked up shells and put them in a bucket.
“I’m ready, Mama.” Her four-year-old, Gracie, came out of the bathroom in her aqua-colored swimsuit and blonde hair, the same color as Spencer’s, in a ponytail. “We need to hurry. Daddy is waiting for us.”
Monica picked up her beach bag and made it to the elevator just as the doors opened. “I pushed the down button,” Gracie announced.
“Good job,” Monica said.
When they reached the beach, Monica pulled out the familiar, old beach blanket that she always brought with her. When she tried to lay it down, a gust of wind almost took it from her hands. Spencer hurried over and grabbed two ends, and between them they got it laid flat on the white sand.
“History does repeat itself.” He grinned, planted a kiss on her cheek, and hurried back to help Finn work on a sandcastle.
“I’m going to build us a castle that’s even bigger than Finn’s is,” Gracie declared. “And you are going to tell me the story.”
Monica raised an eyebrow. “What’s the magic word?”
“Puh … leees,” Gracie begged.
“That’s better. A lonely lady …”
Gracie held up a palm. “No, Mama, you didn’t start the story right.”
“Okay,” Monica said with a smile. “Once upon a time, a princess lived in the very top of a castle and only saw a few people, but then a very handsome prince came along in his pickup truck and rescued her.” She went through the whole story while she and Gracie built a very lopsided castle.
Spencer eased down on the blanket beside Monica. “Fiona is taking Finn down the beach with Stormy to hunt for shells.”
“Mama is telling me the story.” Gracie beamed. “But she forgot the end.”
“Good stories have no end,” Spencer told her. “But they lived happily ever after because the princess was so beautiful and sweet that the prince went in search of her for many months. Know why?”
“Because they followed the signs and omens that were left for them,” Monica answered.
Gracie shook her head. “What’s a sign and omen, Daddy?”
“It’s what all smart princesses are born with the ability to see. I wouldn’t be surprised if you are able to see them, too, when you get older.”
“I don’t know if I want them,” Gracie declared. “Not if it takes all that time for the prince to find her. Why did you look so long for her anyway?”
Monica leaned over and whispered in his ear, “I’d like to know that answer, also.”
“Because she was unforgettable,” Spencer said.
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