After All (Cape Harbor 1)

“Do you think I would’ve lived here if my dad hadn’t died?”

Carly hugged her granddaughter tighter. “I don’t know. Your mom wanted to be a nurse, and sometimes I think she would’ve convinced your dad to move, but sometimes I think that they would’ve stayed here.”

“I want to stay,” Brystol said. “I don’t want to move around anymore.”

She leaned forward and kissed the top of her head. “I know, sweetie. We’ll talk to your mom about staying. I know she’s been thinking about it, but she has a very successful business, so she has to think about that and your future as well.”

Brystol snuggled into her grandma’s embrace. “Nonnie, can I sleep with you?”

“Of course, my sweet baby girl.”

Carly closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep with her granddaughter held tightly in her arms and thoughts of Skip and Austin running through her mind.

TWENTY-THREE

Brooklyn woke to the sound of birds chirping and the sun shining, but the night before still weighed heavily on her mind. She had to find Grady and ask him what he was talking about. She needed to clear the air because his outburst had left her with a horrible feeling. She also wanted to spend more time with Bowie, but away from the inn, where people could interrupt them. They needed quality time to figure things out. When he had sat down with her and Brystol for the fireworks, she had been tempted to ask him to go back to his friends and to his wife. She had also wanted him to stay. She hated being torn in half when it came to him. Regardless of whether she stayed, she wanted Bowie and Brystol to have a relationship. He’d be able to fill in where Austin couldn’t. She liked the idea of him being a part of Brystol’s life, and maybe even hers, even though she knew their friendship would never be what it once was. She wasn’t even sure she could go there again with him.

She thought about staying in bed all morning. Listening to the waves crash against the shore and hearing the laughter from the beachgoers soothed her. Since her return to Cape Harbor, she had found herself going to bed later, almost as if she were going to miss something important. And as much as she wanted to leave and go back to the life she’d been living, the thought of not watching the sunset over the ocean every night was weighing heavily on her mind. Despite leaving on bad terms after Austin passed away, she felt as if she could make amends and really make a home in Cape Harbor or somewhere nearby. Doing so would make Brystol happy. Being with her grandparents all the time would be a good thing for her daughter.

After making her bed, showering, and brushing her teeth, she finally made her way downstairs, shocked to find the kitchen and living room full of people. All her friends, or the ones she used to call her friends, smiled and told her good morning as she came into view. Brooklyn was looking around, trying to figure out what was going on, when Carly came into the room.

“Good morning, Brooklyn.”

“Morning. What’s everyone doing here, Carly?” she asked quietly.

“I invited them.” Carly shrugged as if this were an everyday occurrence. She walked back into the kitchen, singing a song Brooklyn wasn’t familiar with.

“I see that, but why?” she asked, following her.

“Last night I realized life’s too short to not be surrounded by the people you love.”

Brooklyn had a list of reasons why Carly shouldn’t have these people at her house, feeding them breakfast, with the most glaring being they had all abandoned her after her son died. Brooklyn knew Carly would blame herself and say something about how she could’ve reached out to Austin’s friends. The argument would be futile, so she left it alone.

She poured herself a cup of coffee and went into the living room. She expected awkward silence, but it was like nothing had ever changed. Monroe moved the blanket she used to keep warm, inviting Brooklyn to sit next to her on the love seat. She sat and pulled the blanket over her lap, as if she were back in time, as if they had been doing this all along.

Jason, Graham, and Bowie were lounging around the room, with their feet dangling over the sides of the sofa and overstuffed chair. Brooklyn giggled. Nothing had changed. It didn’t matter that they hadn’t been together for the last fifteen years; they were comfortable and back in the home where they had all grown up. Rennie, Grady, and Mila were the only ones missing. Rennie had left before the fireworks to drive back to Seattle, and it wasn’t odd for Mila to skip out—she always had bigger plans—but Brooklyn felt the absence of Grady.