Love, Unexpected. Virginia McCullough
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favorite coffee drinks and other treats.
A wave of nostalgia gently washed over her. Only recently had she fully accepted that the days when Brooke could be distracted with trips to the park or luscious cookies were fast disappearing. At ten years old, Brooke was growing up and asking hard questions. Like when was her mother going to get another job, and where were they going to live in their new town? At the moment, Andi didn’t have answers. No matter how hard she tried to keep up a cheerful and optimistic attitude about their move to Two Moon Bay, Andi still had regrets—and doubts—and they couldn’t help but spill over onto Brooke.
At least once a day, Brooke pointed out that she had no friends in Two Moon Bay. Andi gave her pat reassurances that she’d make new friends at riding camp and, later, in her new school. Brooke had already spent many weekends with her dad, who’d moved from Green Bay to Two Moon Bay late last summer. Miles and his new wife, Lark, had moved into a lakefront home. Her ex’s remarriage and move became the chief catalyst for Andi’s decision to relocate. For one thing, it would be so much easier to keep their shared custody agreement working smoothly—as it had for years. Those long drives involved in taking Brooke back and forth to each other’s houses in towns an hour away had grown old fast. Moving closer made a lot of sense, especially because Andi no longer had a job to anchor her in one place.
Andi pushed aside her job worries. Finding a place to live was a much bigger challenge. And she needed a house or an apartment right now. She and Brooke were staying in a cottage Lark owned and had lived in with her son, Evan. It was cozy and homey, but it was available for only another week, because Lark and Miles were expecting guests and were putting them up in the cottage.
Away from the lights and the party atmosphere of the marina now, Andi kept walking across the grass, alone with her bundles of mixed feelings. She ought to be grateful she could stay in Lark’s cottage. Well, she was grateful. But as much as she liked her ex’s new wife, Andi was embarrassed she needed to accept Lark’s offer.
At the moment, her daughter was spending an exciting weekend in Chicago with her dad and Lark, and Evan, Brooke’s stepbrother. For Brooke, the high point was the plan to ride the Ferris wheel at Navy Pier. She’d been talking about it for weeks.
Suddenly, the humidity on the hot evening seemed to trap her, and she brushed her hand across the back of her neck. The ground was soft under her feet as she slipped deeper into the darkness and approached the quiet docks. An isolated spot, it was peaceful and set apart from the marina, where people were always coming and going.
The docks belonging to Donovan Marine Supply were usually empty. She’d seen only one boat tied up there and it was gone by the time she and Brooke had passed by again on the way back to the cottage.
Tonight was different, though. Something had changed. Even in the dim light, she saw what looked like a large boat tied up with a row of fenders hanging from the rail to protect the hull from bumping against the wooden dock. The boat was closed up, with no light coming from inside. But even in the yellowish glow coming from the low light mounted at the end of the dock, Andi saw that the boat was amazing.
An amazing wreck.
The boat in front of her was unlike any yacht or runabout she’d seen at the Two Moon Bay docks—or anywhere else. This boat was a pile of ruined varnish and cracked or missing wood. From what she could see the boat was dying from neglect. Andi almost laughed out loud. Those were the exact words she’d used when she’d first seen the house she and Miles bought right after they were married. That house was such a wreck the cracks in the plaster had looked like roads and highways on a map. Someone had painted over the original oak woodwork, and the kitchen would have made a great exhibit in a Depression-era museum. But the previous owner’s estate had installed a new roof and repaired the foundation. Andi had instinctively known the house had strong bones, but badly needed a face-lift to restore its glory.
Staring at the boat, Andi had a feeling the yacht was a lot like her old house. For sure, the fixer-upper boat’s to-do list would be as long as the dock itself. What a huge undertaking. Then why was her heart beating a little faster? She immediately dismissed her own surprising reaction. Did she really want to clutch a scraper in her hand and get to work? As a matter of fact, yes, it was an appealing idea. She didn’t know a lot about large motor yachts, but something in her longed to brighten up this floating mass of wood.
Andi started when her phone vibrated in her pocket, but she guessed it would be Brooke and hurried to answer.
“Hi, Mom.”
Better than cheery, Brooke sounded excited.
“Well, hello. Are you enjoying yourself in the big city?” Her mood lifted at the sound of her daughter’s voice.
“We’re at Navy Pier eating fudge ice cream,” Brooke said. “We rode the Ferris wheel, and it was great. And we went to the aquarium today. You should see the sharks—and the dolphins.”
“Sounds like fun.” She walked away from the dock, but before she got too far, she pivoted and took another look at the boat. Nothing in the marina was as isolated as that lone yacht.
“Wait, Mom. Dad wants to talk to you a minute.”
“Okay, put him on,” Andi said, taking a few more steps away from the boat.
“Hey, Andi,” Miles said, “any news?”
“About a roof over my head, you mean? And Brooke’s.” Andi winced at the sarcastic tone coming out of her mouth. Where had it come from? Frustration? Misplaced resentment? Miles didn’t mean anything negative by the question.
“Oops, sorry, Miles,” she said quickly. “Don’t mind me. I’m mad at myself. Somehow, this move didn’t go at all the way I planned it.”
“It will work out. And like I told you, you can stay in the cottage another week or so, and then move back in when our guests leave.”
Andi knew exactly what was coming next. If she still hadn’t found a place to live, she and Brooke were welcome to stay with Miles and Lark. They had plenty of space, and Brooke had her own room fixed up exactly as she wanted it. She spent almost half her time in Miles’s house, anyway. Andi would be welcome to the guest room. It was a generous offer. Andi knew that. Just like she knew she couldn’t bring herself to stay there.
“We talked about that, and you know how I feel, Miles. It would be too odd for Brooke. She’s used to going between my house and your house. It’s been her life since she was a toddler. She adjusted well to being with you and Lark and Evan. But stay in your house? I don’t think so.”
“You wouldn’t be here for long. Only until things settle in for you in Two Moon Bay, Andi. It would only be for a week or two.”
“Look, I’ll get vacation rentals a week or two at a time, or we’ll stay in one of the residential hotels,” she said, annoyed by the turn of the conversation. “It’s not the best solution, but it’s better than being with Brooke in the same house with you and Lark and her son.” Such a nightmarish solution. Andi would do almost anything to avoid it.
“You make it sound like a punishment for something,” Miles said, uncharacteristic resentment seeping into his voice. “You’re telling me you’d rather be alone with Brooke in a hotel than with her in my house.”
“Yes, Miles, that’s precisely what I’m saying.” She paused. “Give me a minute to spell this out for you.” It was hard to gather her thoughts with the background noise coming from Miles’s phone. Between a loud blues band, a mix of voices and the wind producing a static sound, it was nearly impossible to hear him. She kicked her voice up a notch. “I’m on my way back to the cottage now. Can we talk later? I’d like you to understand.”
“Okay, I’ll call you in an hour or so.”
With the call ended, Andi retraced her steps back across the grass and through the marina and down a few blocks of the waterfront street. She was soon unlocking the front door to Lark’s cottage on Night Beach Road. She fixed herself a plate of cheese and crackers and made short