I hiccupped on a half-sob, half-laugh. “All he said was good-bye.”
“He must be hiding something,” Katie suggested, frowning.
“You think?” Coco muttered sarcastically.
They ran through a couple scenarios, all ones I’d entertained myself. “As far as I can find out, he isn’t in legal trouble or anything like that.”
“Is he a spy?” Coco joked.
I laughed. “Not likely. Mark is unconventional, cranky most of the time, yet probably one of the most generous men I’ve ever known. He enjoys woodwork and would often build the most beautiful, intricate furniture. Not long ago he gave away a cradle he built to a couple he barely knew who are expecting their third child.” It continued to boggle my mind when he could have set his own price for that cradle. He’d carved intricate forest scenes into the headboard. Without question, it was a piece of art.
“Do you know where he went?” Katie asked.
“I don’t have a clue.”
“He just up and left?” Coco repeated, as if she had as much trouble understanding Mark as I did.
I nodded helplessly.
Both women seemed to find this as baffling as I did.
“He would have left sooner if I hadn’t convinced him to stay long enough to finish the gazebo.”
“He built that?” Katie said, sounding awed.
I nodded.
“Wow, he is talented.”
Saddened, I slowly exhaled. “I’m going to miss him so much.”
“Do you…think you’re in love with him, too?” This came from Katie.
It was the same question that had haunted me for the last three weeks. What I felt for Mark was completely different from what I’d experienced when I fell in love with Paul. With my husband the attraction had been immediate and explosive. We were crazy in love almost from first sight. We married in a fever, and within a matter of weeks Paul had shipped out to Afghanistan. Within the first year of our marriage he’d been killed.
Even now I was unsure about my feelings for Mark. Under any circumstances I would have been afraid to fall in love again, afraid to risk my heart. But considering that question in light of Mark’s announcement that he was leaving anyway made it all the more confusing.
Until this afternoon when I’d overheard him speaking to Bob Beldon, I’d assumed Mark intended to return at some point. But he’d made it clear that wasn’t in his plans.
Coco looked as puzzled as I felt. “But he told you he was in love with you and then he left town?”
I shrugged. Whatever demons were after him were apparently greater than any feelings he held for me. “Strange as it sounds, I think falling in love with me might be why he’s leaving.”
It seemed Katie was about to say something more when the front door burst open and Finn and Carrie Dalton returned from dinner. They were flushed with laughter and excitement. They paused in the foyer with their arms locked around each other when they noticed the three of us intently watching them.
“Oh hi,” Carrie said, looking a bit embarrassed. “I didn’t realize we had an audience.”
“No problem,” I assured her. “Did you have a good dinner?”
“It was wonderful.” From the way she looked at her husband, I guessed she wasn’t talking about the food.
“Where’d you go?” Coco asked, and then she added under her breath, “I want to order whatever it was they had.”
Finn kept Carrie close to his side and answered, “A place just down the street. DD’s on the Cove.”
“Good choice,” I said.
Finn glanced longingly up the staircase. “Now, if you’ll excuse us.”
“Oh sure.”
“Finn,” Carrie warned, as her husband started to lift her to carry her up. “Not again.”
“It keeps me in shape.”
“I know better ways for you to get a workout,” Carrie whispered, and started racing up the stairs with Finn right behind her. Their laughter echoed up the stairwell, their joy contagious.
Silence filled the room after the two disappeared.
“Honeymooners,” I explained, although it probably wasn’t necessary. “They’re only here for the one night and leave for Alaska in the morning.”
Katie cocked her head to one side and frowned as if deep in thought. “I read a book about Alaska and the author’s first name was Finn. It’s not a common name…it wouldn’t be possible—I mean, what are the odds? But do you think it might be him?”
I didn’t have a clue, although Carrie had mentioned that she and her husband were both writers, but really what were the chances? “I have no idea if that’s him or not.”
“Really a great book; made me want to visit Alaska.”
“Like you said, Finn isn’t a common name.”
“Probably not him,” Katie said. “From what I remember he was something of a recluse, didn’t give interviews and kept himself out of the public eye.”
Coco looked at her watch. “You ready?” she asked Katie.
“Ready for what?”
“To go out. A couple of the girls from swim team want us to meet up with them at the Pancake Palace. We have a bet on whether Goldie is still there. She must be close to eighty if she’s a day.”
Katie shook her head. “I don’t really feel like going out.”
“Oh no you don’t,” Coco said with conviction. “I am not going to let you go to your room and sulk and feel sorry for yourself. We are here to par-tay.”
Katie looked as if she wanted to argue. “I’ll be a drag. Besides, I barely know the other girls.”
“Wrong,” Coco insisted. “Stef specially asked me to make sure you joined us, and I told her you would.”
“All right, all right,” Katie agreed reluctantly.
“Being with friends is exactly what the doctor ordered,” Coco said, and then laughed. “That was something my mother used to say.”
Together my two reunion guests headed out the door. It was barely nine, but I was tired. It’d been an emotional day.
Rover stood when I did and followed me into the kitchen when I carried in the tray. I let him out the back door and then stood on the top step while he did his business.
The moon was full and cast golden beams over my garden, the very one Mark had created for me. I looked toward the gazebo, wondering where Mark was this night and if he was thinking of me. I hoped he was.
I closed my eyes and blew him a kiss.
It was nearly one in the morning before Coco and Katie returned to the inn. Katie had at least made an effort to enjoy herself, Coco thought. It’d been great to reminisce with their friends, although her own mind continued to wander back to the man she’d bumped into earlier that evening. For no particular reason she could explain, he’d piqued her interest. He had looked vaguely familiar, but she’d been racking her brain, and if they’d ever shared a class she didn’t remember him. Once or twice she’d noticed him glance her way, and when he did he held her gaze for several seconds before she grew flustered and her heart pounded. It’d been a long time since any man had interested her to this extent. What bothered her most was her inability to understand why. He was completely unlike the urbane, polished professionals she usually dated.
Men often told her they found her attractive, as he had. She was accustomed to flattery. What struck her was how sincere he had been. And the word he’d used: pretty. It wasn’t one she’d heard in a long while. He made her feel that way, as if she was the most beautiful girl in the world. Who didn’t like that feeling?
Following their instructions from Jo Marie, Coco locked the front door behind them when they came in. The inn was still and quiet, and she had to assume Jo Marie and the other guests were asleep.
“That was fun,” Katie admitted, as they walked toward the stairs. A night-light softly illuminated the staircase.
“Told you,” Coco said, unable to resist. “Going out was far better than stewing away the rest of the evening in your room by yourself.”
&
nbsp; Katie muttered under her breath and then said, “I knew you couldn’t let the ‘I told you so’ pass.”
“I’m not right that often.”
“Oh hardly,” Katie muttered good-naturedly as they climbed up the steps, doing their best to make the least amount of noise.
Now was Coco’s chance to ask Katie: “Did you happen to notice the guy I was talking to earlier at the social?”
Katie paused, her hand on the railing. “No. Should I have?”
Coco hesitated, uncertain how much to say. “I spilled his drink and tried to buy him another, but he wouldn’t let me.”
“What did his name tag say?”
“He wasn’t wearing one.”
“Figures,” Katie murmured, and yawned. “A tall, dark, and mysterious man shows up at the reunion. Naturally, you’re curious; who wouldn’t be?”
“I won’t sleep until I figure out who he is.” While packing, at the last minute Coco had thrown the yearbook from their senior class into her bag. Now she couldn’t wait to look through it and find the guy’s photo the minute she was in her room.
As they reached the top of the staircase, Katie muffled another yawn. “I’m headed straight to bed.”
“I won’t be far behind.”
“Night,” Katie said. “It might not seem like it, but I’m glad I came. Thank you for making it impossible for me to refuse.” Her smile was huge. “Guess that’s another ‘I told you so’ moment.”
Coco had the key in her lock. “ ’Night, Katie. See you in the morning, and I won’t say ‘I told you so.’ One a day is my limit.”
Once inside her room, Coco undressed, removed her makeup, and slipped on her jammies before she climbed into bed. Sitting with her legs folded beneath her, she flipped through the pages of her yearbook, studying each face, unwilling to give up until she discovered the identity of the mystery man.
She paused any number of times as she came upon several who’d come to the party that evening. It surprised her how much the boys had changed in ten years. Other than hairstyles, the girls seemed to have remained much the same.
She was all the way to the H’s before she found him. As soon as she came upon his photo and name, she gasped.
Hudson Hamilton.
The mystery man at the social was Hudson Hamilton?
Coco had trouble believing it. They’d had two classes together the last semester of their senior year. He had rarely said a word in class, but aced every quiz and every test.
Hudson was an eccentric nerd. It wasn’t unusual for him to wear a plaid shirt with suspenders, like an old man. Hudson was completely oblivious to fashion.
He wasn’t weird or anything, just different. She remembered he was incredibly shy and every time he talked to her, he seemed incapable of getting the words out. It was almost painful to listen to him.
And he’d asked her to Homecoming. He’d hemmed and hawed and shuffled his feet and it’d taken forever for him to get to the point.
In retrospect, Coco would give just about anything to have gone with him. Imagine if she had and the whole sick thing with Ryan had never happened.
Just recently she’d told the teenage daughter of a coworker and friend, “Pay attention to the smart ones, not the good-looking ones. The smart ones make for better husbands.”
This seemed prophetic now, although she didn’t know where Hudson was in life or what he’d done following graduation.
His Homecoming invite came to mind as if it’d happened just recently. Hudson had approached her after English literature class. She’d been ready to head out the door when he stopped her.
“Coco.”
“Yes,” she returned impatiently. She’d been on her way to swim practice and couldn’t be late.
“There’s this dance.” He studied the floor tile as if the design was a treasure map.
“Dance? Do you mean Homecoming?” she asked, wanting him to get to the point.
“Yes. That dance. I’d really like…it would be an honor…I mean, would you consider…I know it’s—”
“Hudson,” she’d blurted out impatiently. “If you’re asking me to the dance, I—”
“I am,” he interrupted, looking up, his eyes bright with hope.
Coco couldn’t imagine attending any social function with Hudson. Anyone but Hudson. “I’m going with friends. Thanks anyway.” She hadn’t meant to be rude, but in retrospect she probably had been abrupt and dismissive. His timing couldn’t have been worse. She was in danger of being late to practice. It pained her to admit that she had thought of him as far beneath her on the social scale.
Hudson nodded as if he’d expected a refusal. “Have a good time.”
“I will,” she’d told him, brightening in hopes of taking away the sting of her refusal. She added, “But thanks for thinking of me.” And with that, she was off.
Coco leaned back against the headboard and closed her eyes. She’d kept the draperies over her windows open and bright moonlight skidded over the surface of the cove.
After the utter humiliation following Homecoming, it had taken raw courage to return to school. Most everyone avoided her, which is exactly how Coco wanted it. The one person she was most comfortable with was Katie.
Hudson apparently hadn’t read the memo, though. Once again he approached her after class one afternoon.
“Coco,” he said, stopping her.
At first she pretended not to hear and she started out the door, weaving her way among classmates in an effort to escape. It did her no good. Hudson caught up with her in the hallway.
“Coco…wait,” he said, rushing to catch up with her.
Heaving an exasperated sigh, she stopped but refused to look at him.
“I want you to know…Ryan is an idiot…I’m sorry.”
All Coco hoped to do was get away. The last thing she wanted or needed was Hudson calling attention to her humiliation, especially in front of their classmates flowing through the busy hallway.
“Hudson,” she said with exaggerated patience, “I appreciate what you’re trying to say. But can’t you talk in complete sentences like everyone else?” she demanded. Then she added, “And more important, why can’t you just leave me alone?” With that, she rushed out of the building.
To the best of her memory, Hudson never spoke to her again.
—
Katie knocked softly against Coco’s bedroom door. Shaken from her memories, Coco sat up straighter and called out, “It’s open.”
Dressed in her fleece robe and slippers, Katie let herself into Coco’s room. “I saw that your light was on. You couldn’t sleep, either?” she asked.
“I wanted to see if I could find the mystery man.” She closed their yearbook and set it aside.
“Who is he?” Katie sat at the edge of the bed.
“Hudson Hamilton. Do you remember him?”
Katie shook her head.
“Until this weekend I don’t think I’ve thought of him even once since we left high school. I didn’t recognize him.”
“Has he changed that much?”
“He’s nothing like I remember, that’s for sure, but then we’ve all changed, haven’t we?” she said, rather than answer the question directly. Coco was disappointed that she hadn’t had more of an opportunity to talk to him. Since their brief encounter he’d been on her mind, and she realized she wanted to know more about him.
He’d appeared to be at the event alone. Of course, he could be married with a wife who’d just opted to stay home. Even as the thought went through her mind, Coco discounted it. Hudson wasn’t married and he wasn’t involved with anyone. The vibes she got from him said as much.
“Why are you so curious about him?” Katie asked, and reached for the yearbook. She flipped the pages until she found Hudson’s photo. She looked up when she did and frowned. “This is him? He was in our class? I don’t remember him.”
The fact was Hudson wasn’t one of the guys a girl would remember. “He had a crush on me and I treate
d him badly,” Coco said, shamed by her memories. Regret filled her. “I was rude and heartless.” By all that was right, she should apologize. If nothing else, it would give her an excuse to talk to him again. She needed to know what it was about him that attracted her so strongly now, when she hadn’t had the time of day for him ten years earlier.
“Coco, you were never heartless,” Katie insisted.
“I was a complete witch. I considered Hudson beneath me. I wouldn’t consider going to Homecoming, or for that matter, even the movies, with Hudson. I’m mortified at the way I treated him.”
Katie shook her head. “You just weren’t mean like that.”
It humbled her to admit the truth. “I was with Hudson.”
“You were young; we all did stupid stuff like that,” Katie told her.
“Don’t try to minimize what I did, Katie.” Coco leaned forward and took the yearbook out of her friend’s hands. “Really, I’m no better than Ryan. I embarrassed Hudson in front of everyone when he tried to tell me that Ryan was a jerk. All he wanted to do was tell me how sorry he was for what had happened to me. I laid into him because I didn’t want to be reminded of anything having to do with that night. I’m going to let him know how sorry I am.” Actually, now that she’d said the words aloud, Coco realized how much she wanted to get to know him.
“You’ll see him again,” Katie assured her.
“I hope he’s planning on going to the dinner and dance,” she said.
“It will be easy enough to find out tomorrow afternoon,” Katie reminded her. “Angie has all that information, and she’ll be helping with the decorations for the gym.”
“Right. So what’s keeping you up, Katie? You still thinking about James?” Coco asked, eager now to steer the subject away from herself.
“I can’t stop thinking about him.” She bit into her lower lip. “Do you honestly think he might have been looking for me after I left the party?”
Coco didn’t want to mislead her friend or raise Katie’s hopes when it wasn’t warranted. “I can’t really say for sure, but I did see him scanning the room. I’m sure seeing you again had an impact on him.”
Her friend’s eyes revealed such hopeful expectation. “It was so much harder than I ever thought it would be.”