Summer by the Sea Read online

  Sarah would send the video and then text Gregory right away, first thing in the morning, in order to set the process in motion. “I estimate that we should hear from the committee shortly after the deadline of July fifth.”

  “That soon?”

  To her, it wouldn’t be soon enough. “Yes.”

  He nodded, taking a drink from the longneck bottle. “And then what happens?”

  “And then...” She took a sip of her own beer. This one was crisp, with a bite of summer lemon. “And then...” She wiped a bead of lemony beer from her lip. “And then Lucy gets an email.”

  “Why not me? Why not the parent?”

  Because Colleen was the parent of record, and Colleen hadn’t given an email address when she’d filled out her part of the application, so Lucy had copied down her own. “I’m sure Lucy will tell you the moment it comes in, Sam. You’ll hear her screams of happiness from one end of the beach to the other.”

  “Yeah. Yeah, of course.” He looked at her. “If Lucy’s not accepted, it will be hell around here. You know that, right?”

  Sarah was silent. She had no doubt Lucy would be accepted. Sarah wouldn’t have stayed and gone through any of this work otherwise.

  “And if Lucy is accepted...” Sam scrunched his brows. “I take it that’s when the app development begins in earnest?”

  “Yes. She’s done a bit of the upfront legwork, but I counseled her to wait on doing too much more. Sometimes the committee give directives or advice on what she should do differently from her plan.”

  Sam nodded. “That makes sense.”

  “But, yes, there is a lot of effort involved in developing an app.” He didn’t know the half of it. And she wasn’t going to discuss that now. She fully planned to conduct the rest of the mentorship remotely, from her office in California.

  “And the prize for us is scholarship money?” he said.

  In a nutshell, the answer was yes, so Sarah answered, “Yes.”

  “Well, I won’t lie,” Sam said. “That is very welcome to me. The more scholarship money she can win, the more thrilled I’ll be.”

  “Right,” Sarah murmured noncommittally.

  “So.” Sam slapped his hands to his knees. “We’re set, then.”

  She nodded.

  “I’ll go tell Lucy to go ahead with the application.”

  Sarah nodded again, sitting still as Sam headed upstairs.

  When he was gone she leaned her head back against the couch. I just want to go home, she reminded herself.

  And Lucy’s admission to Future Tech Scholars would make it happen that much sooner.

  CHAPTER NINE

  ON JULY FOURTH—her fortieth birthday, Sarah was trying hard not to remind herself—she begged off her meditation session with Sam and didn’t rise until late morning.

  She tried to relax by taking a walk on the beach in the pleasant sea breeze. But when she stepped outside, she saw Lucy and Sam sneaking across the sand toward the front of Cassandra’s cottage. They were carrying something between them in a brown grocery bag. Lucy was wearing a sparkly Happy Birthday cap.

  Oh, no. Was Sarah going to regret giving Lucy that key? The two of them obviously had something planned for her birthday.

  Sighing, Sarah sat on the back deck and waited with dread. In the past, she would have stormed in and stopped them, but shockingly, she found she cared too much about their feelings to hurt them that way.

  What was happening to her?

  It could be worse, she supposed. Sam and Lucy could have thrown her a surprise party with lots of people. This was probably just a small cake they’d brought over for her. She should just chill out and bear it for their sake.

  Sarah leaned back and closed her eyes. All of a sudden, she felt a pair of small hands close over her eyes. “Surprise!” she heard Lucy say.

  “I’ll kill you later,” Sarah couldn’t help muttering. In good humor, of course.

  The hands came off her eyes. Sarah blinked at the bright sun. Lucy loomed before her, wearing a birthday-girl cap on her head. “Happy Birthday, Sarah!” she cried.

  “Happy Birthday to you,” Sarah said in return, attempting to sound a bit more upbeat and pleasant.

  “I love that we share a birthday week. Please come inside and see what I did to celebrate.” Lucy held out a matching birthday-girl cap for Sarah. “This is for you to wear. You can wear it on my birthday, too.”

  “Fine.” Sarah sighed. “Lay it on me.”

  Lucy grinned and looped the elastic chin strap around Sarah’s ears. The pointy cardboard cone felt strange on Sarah’s head.

  It could have been much worse. Lucy could have also asked Sarah how old she was. Thankfully, she hadn’t. Sarah couldn’t help glancing over at Sam, hands in his pockets, as he lounged against the door to Cassandra’s house.

  Her heart skipped a beat. He was just so damn handsome.

  “I made you a birthday cake,” Lucy said. “Will you come inside and blow out the candles with us?”

  “Only if you share the cake with me,” Sarah stipulated.

  “Okay. But I’m still making myself another one on the morning of my birthday.”

  “Right. Of course.” Sarah hoisted herself to her feet, because...she couldn’t disappoint her mentee. Lucy clasped her hand in hers and they walked barefoot, hand in hand, to join Sam.

  He leaned in close to Sarah. “Nice hat,” he murmured in her ear.

  So, so appealing. She gritted her teeth. “Don’t pretend you had nothing to do with this,” she breathed.

  He gifted her a grin with one of his signature dimples. “I’ve got you a special present for later,” he said in a low voice.

  She sucked in a little breath. What did he mean by that?

  He grinned again, and as he passed by her, he brushed his hand against her hip, ostensibly to nudge her aside.

  His touch was protective. It was...intimate. No one she worked with would ever think or dare to touch her, never mind to touch her like that. Her blood seemed to hum with awareness of Sam. Dimly, she blinked as Lucy led her into the house.

  The two cats sat, both looking irritated, with little blue Happy Birthday caps perched between their little cat ears. A beautiful round double-tiered cake with pink-and-white frosting and a circle of five blazing candles met her on the table.

  Sarah put her hand to heart, blinking away the moisture in her eyes. Nobody had made a cake for her since her parents had died. “I’m touched. I’m really—” Her voice cracked, but she cleared her throat. “I haven’t had a birthday party since I was...” She glanced at Lucy. “Your age.”

  It was true. Not even at work did anyone do this, mostly because she was hostile to birthdays. Also, Sarah was one of those lucky (or unlucky) people who shared their birthday with a holiday, when coworkers weren’t in the office.

  Outside, a homemade bottle rocket screeched through the air. The people of Wallis Point loved their fireworks. All legal in New Hampshire, of course.

  “Shall we sing?” Sam asked Lucy.

  “Wait.” Sarah pointed at the cake. “What do the five candles mean?” Yes, she risked feeling bad at the answer, but she was genuinely curious. “Do they mean that if you’d put the proper number of candles on it, then the house would’ve burned down?”

  “No.” Lucy looked horrified. “There is one candle for you, me, Dad, Becker and Simmonds. Five of us, all together.”

  “Oh,” was all Sarah could seem to say, in a small voice.

  Damn, she was going to cry again. What was wrong with her?

  “Do you have a wish all lined up and ready?” Sam asked Sarah. “Because I’m thinking we should get the singing going so you can blow those things out and we really can avoid a house fire.”

  She laughed, a teary, happy laugh. The thing was, she wasn’t sure what to wish for. What s
he wanted so badly seemed perfectly obvious. It was the same wish she’d had since she’d been banished to Wallis Point. Please, may Richard Lee let me go home to my job soon.

  But the sooner that happened, the sooner she would have to say goodbye to Sam Logan.

  What should she do? “Um, please give me a minute. I need to consider my options.”

  “Certainly.” Sam sat at the table. “But let me just remind you that the wax is melting into the frosting.”

  “And I’m hungry,” Lucy added.

  “Well, in that case, let’s get this show on the road. Sing away, please.” Sarah waved her hands at them.

  Sam stood. On a count of three, he and Lucy began the Happy Birthday song. Sam sang in a deep rich voice that seemed to resonate in Sarah’s bones, and Lucy in a soft, girlish accompaniment. When they got to the end, Sam clapped and directed Lucy to get out plates and forks—just in case, Sarah supposed, the girl had designs on singing, “How old are you now?”

  It still felt raw to actually be in a new, older decade of life, but it stung a lot less than it had two weeks ago when she’d first arrived here.

  “Make a wish,” Sam said softly.

  Sarah leaned over the candles. Her mind felt uncharacteristically empty and her heart much too full in her chest. She bent her head and softly blew out the candles without even making a silent wish for anything to be different than it was at this moment.

  Lucy and Sam cheered. Sarah sat and cut everybody—except for the cats—a piece of cake.

  “Now it’s time for the presents,” Lucy announced.

  “Presents? This is a surprise.” Sarah licked vanilla cream frosting off her finger. It really was the best birthday she’d had in years, even if it was her fortieth.

  “It’s my own personal recipe,” Lucy said.

  “Not a bakery cake?” Sarah asked.

  “No.”

  “A box-mix cake, right?”

  “Nope.”

  “Come on. You two did not make this from scratch for me.” Sarah gazed at Sam for the pleasure of watching his expression.

  He lifted his hands and smiled at her. “Don’t look at me. Lucy is the talented baker.” He shook his head in wonder. “She had me fooled all these years that she only likes peanut butter.”

  “I’m a person with many deep talents and desires,” Lucy said.

  “You certainly are.” Sarah tasted the cake. The cake itself was spongy and chocolate. The vanilla buttercream frosting was a perfect complement. “Oh, this is so good.” She licked her lips. “What are you making for your birthday, Lucy?”

  “Well, I’m considering a classic lemon layer cake. But I reserve the right to change my mind at any time.”

  Sam did a double take. “A lemon layer cake? Where do you get these recipes?”

  “Off the internet. Where else?”

  “Where else?” Sam repeated.

  “Give Sarah credit, too,” Lucy said. “She drives me to the grocery store every day.”

  It was true. Sarah liked to eat good food and that meant she needed fresh ingredients, which she trusted Lucy to select while she waited in the car until the credit card was needed. It was the perfect arrangement.

  They ate in silent togetherness for a moment. Despite the sugary dessert and her new advanced age, Sarah felt better about herself than she had in quite some time. Sam had her out walking to their meditation spot almost every morning at the crack of dawn. And while she still wasn’t doing it properly—still couldn’t see what she was supposed to do, besides sit with Sam and enjoy the ocean air—she was giving it a go and showing patience.

  “I’ll be right back.” Lucy ran out and then reappeared after a quick run next door. The screen door slammed behind her. With a shy smile, she held out a package to Sarah. Instead of store-bought wrapping paper, the gift was wrapped with what looked like a piece of printer paper decorated in a colorful inkjet design of pink and red hearts and birthday cakes.

  Sarah hadn’t expected this. “Why, thank you, Lucy.” Sarah had the beginnings of another lump in her throat. She put down her fork and opened the card first.

  Lucy had illustrated it with magic marker and colored pencils. She’d even written a personal note inside.

  Dear Sarah,

  I hope you have a Happy Birthday! I’m so glad you came into my life and are helping me become a woman of substance, just like you.

  Your friend, Lucy.

  Sarah swallowed and fanned her face. She was getting much too emotional over this. Must be those midlife hormones. Blinking fast, she stood and gave Lucy a hug.

  A hug? Seriously?

  “Honestly, I never do that,” she murmured apologetically, stepping back. “I am not a hugger. I usually don’t even like to touch people.”

  “You don’t have to explain yourself to us,” Sam said, struggling to keep a straight face, probably for Lucy’s benefit. “I totally believe you.”

  “I don’t hug people that much, either,” Lucy commiserated with Sarah. She clasped her hands together and appealed to her. “Now open my present, please.”

  This means I have to remember to get something for Lucy’s birthday, too, Sarah thought. Which was a strange thought in and of itself. When was the last time she’d gotten anybody a present? Unless it had to do with work and she was sucking up to them, of course.

  She glanced at Sam’s daughter. Lucy wasn’t sucking up to her, was she?

  Not with that sweet, guileless face. Sarah shot her a guilty smile and tore open the wrapping paper all at once, like she couldn’t remember doing since she was a young girl at Christmas.

  Her present was a beach rock, painted beautifully and personalized just for her, to commemorate their summer project. To Sarah, Love Lucy. The words Wallis Point were embellished over the face of the design.

  Sarah sat motionless, emotion welling in her chest.

  “Do you like it?” Lucy asked in a small voice.

  Like it? The word like was inadequate. Lucy’s keepsake would make a beautiful paperweight back home in Sarah’s office, and every time she looked at it, she would remember her weeks with Lucy Logan and her father Sam.

  Wordlessly, because her throat couldn’t seem to work, Sarah nodded at Lucy. Then she shook her head and wiped her eyes. “I’ll treasure it forever,” she somehow managed to say.

  “Oh, I’m glad you like it. I hoped you would.” Lucy turned to Sam. “Dad, where is your present for Sarah?”

  “There’s no rush. We can do it later. After the fireworks tonight.” Sam gave her a secret smile.

  Sarah swallowed. There was meaning in his words. She saw it in his intense blue eyes, gazing directly into hers.

  “Okay.” Lucy bought his explanation. “Um, Dad,” she said, staring out the side window. “People are here now for the Fourth of July party. I’m going to put some food out for them, okay?”

  “Sure,” Sam agreed. “But if you could help me first by directing our guests where to park, then that would be most helpful right now. Do you remember where I showed you?”

  “Yes.” Lucy made a little skip. “What time are the fireworks starting again?”

  “It’s her first year with me during the Fourth of July holiday,” Sam explained to Sarah. “And I’m sorry I didn’t mention it earlier, but there’s a party today, followed by firework-viewing tonight.” To Lucy he answered, “Ten o’clock.”

  “Oh. I’m supposed to call Mom at eleven. I want to show her the video that Sarah sent, and it will be eight o’clock her time. She told me to Skype her then.”

  “Sounds good. You can certainly do both the fireworks and call your mom tonight.”

  Sarah waited to talk with Sam until Lucy left. “You’re having a Fourth of July party?” she repeated.

  “Yes.” Sam gave her his “buck up” smile. “You’re invited, of course.”
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br />   “To a lifeguard party?” she said incredulously.

  “Yeah. And I hope you come.” He paused. “My original idea for tonight was to host a small party for you, Lucy and my friend Duke and his family. But it turns out that traditions die hard.” He held up his hands in a sign of surrender. “I’m the guy with a beach house during the fireworks on the Fourth. I floated cancelling it this year, but there was a general uproar, and I was overruled.”

  “I’m not a hugely social person, Sam.”

  “Really?” he asked drily. She had to laugh.

  “So will you come over anyway?” Sam showed her his killer dimples. “I’ll make it as easy for you as possible. You won’t be left alone with any Neanderthals, and I’ll be the perfect escort. Close by, but not smothering. Does that suit you?”

  How could she say no to him? He and his daughter had just done the nicest thing for her that she could remember anyone doing in quite a long time. And she had a soft spot in her heart for him, which was growing stronger by the day...

  Shaking with emotion, she stood. The problem was, she didn’t want to say no to him. She wanted her present from him, later on. After the fireworks...

  But she must have seemed hesitant—and she was, because she was so nervous—because Sam said quietly, “I’m not going to force you to do something you don’t want to do.”

  “Maybe I’ll find a book to read and then join you for the fireworks,” she said.

  He stood silently for a moment. Quieter still, he said, “You know, that sounds really good.” He abruptly turned and headed for the door.

  “Wait!” she called to him. “Please don’t go away mad. I just...” She paused. Her heart was thumping. “You’ll introduce me to people at the party as your neighbor, right?”

  Slowly he shook his head at her.

  “Then...what?” She swallowed. She had to get this out on the table. And what did his double meaning about his present for her equate to, really?

  “You’re my date,” he said calmly.

  “I thought you didn’t date.”