“I can text you photos if you need proof,” she offered.
“That won’t be necessary,” he said with a chuckle. “I believe you, and I’m sure your aunt trusted you to honor her request.”
“I’ll text a photo anyway,” Caitlin insisted, and sent it to him, proud to show off Shane’s handiwork. “I’m very pleased with the way it turned out. Shane—the carpenter—did a fantastic job.”
The attorney seemed impressed, too. “If I could afford it,I’dbuy the cottage and windmill from you. Although, once my wife got there, she’d probably never want to come back home with me again,” he joked. Or maybe he was serious. “Are you sure you want to sell it?”
“Sometimes, I have my doubts,” she answered with a sigh. “But yes, I’m going to move forward with the sale.”
The attorney told her that his paralegal would send her e-copies and the original paperwork she’d need related to the deed of the cottage, as well as other legal documents and correspondence. “After you review everything, if you have questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to reach out. I’ll be out of the country for the holidays, starting tomorrow through the New Year, but my paralegal will be covering for me.”
I wonder if his paralegal would mind if I called just because I wanted to chat with someone, Caitlin thought drolly after thanking him and hanging up. For someone who supposedly treasured solitude, she was bothered by how much quieter the cottage was now that Shane had finished the remodel.If it weren’t for the wind howling outside, the silence in here would be deafening.
Since it was too cold to hike into town—it was even too cold to walk to the bus stop—she spent most of the day cleaning and packing, in preparation for her departure.This makes me feel like I’ve come full circle, she thought, because even though so much had changed, she was fundamentally alone again, just like when she’d first arrived.
Caitlin woke in the middle of the night again. It wasn’t that she was too cold—she’d left the heat turned up when she went to bed, and she’d worn a sweater over her pajamas. It was that she heard a dull, rhythmic knocking coming from the back of the house.
Puzzled, she padded into the kitchen, flicked on the outdoor lights and peered through the window. No one was there, but the thumping noise persisted. She opened the door and was met by a blast of arctic air that took her breath away.
No wonder there are frostbite warnings on TV!she thought, as she leaned halfway out the door and scanned the backyardand the windmill for the source of the noise. Relieved that she didn’t see any damage, she looked the other way and immediately noticed that the gutter above the kitchen window had come loose at one end and was thumping against the cottage.It’s too high for me to reach and even if I had a ladder, I wouldn’t know how to secure it in place again.
The banging noise kept her awake for hours, but she was too excited to sleep anyway, knowing that she’dhaveto ask Shane back one more time before she left Dune Island.
SIXTEEN
Because she was eager to hear Shane’s voice again, instead of texting, Caitlin phoned him first thing in the morning.
After exchanging greetings, she said, “I thought you should know that Marion loved the loft. She gave me a smug I-told-you-so about hiring you.”
“Glad she liked it, but I hope Pepper’s toenails didn’t scratch the floor.”
“No. She didn’t bring him because she was worried about that happening, too,” replied Caitlin with a chuckle. “So the floors are still in flawless condition, but there’s a small problem on the roof. I wondered if you’d be available to take care of it for me?”
“What kind of problem? Did someone TP it again?” he joked, making her smile.
“No, the gutter came detached. It banged against the house all night. It’s been quieter now that the wind is dying down, so there’s no rush to do it this week—as long as it’s fixed before the cottage goes on the market.” Swallowing, she screwed up the courage to add, “But if you have the time, it would be great to see you again before I leave. And if you come at the end of the day,when you’re finished, I’ll make dinner and we can eat in the loft. It’s so cozy I practically live up there now.”
Shane’s answer was swift and enthusiastic. “Sounds great. I’ll have to bring Sammy with me in case I need his help, but we’ll drive separately, and I’ll send him away as soon as we’re done rehanging the gutter.”
Feeling guilty, Caitlin haltingly offered, “He’s—he’s welcome to stay for supper, too.”
“No way!” Shane exclaimed. In a quieter voice, he said, “He might be on the skinny side, but believe me, that boy eats a ton. He’d clean you out. Let’s keep supper to just us.”
Caitlin was only too happy to agree. “Okay. Do you have any food preferences or aversions?”
There was a momentary pause before he answered. “Never thought I’d say this, but no clam chowder, please. I discovered this week that I can’t eat it for every meal after all. Anything else would be terrific. Thursday at three thirty okay?
Grinning from ear to ear, Caitlin said, “It’s perfect. See you then.”
As she hurriedly got dressed, she mentally planned the menu: steak, twice-baked potatoes, sauteed asparagus, and—just to try to dispel Shane’s bias—lobster stuffed mushrooms as an appetizer. For dessert, she’d make cranberry cheesecake using the recipe book she’d purchased from the farm.
It suddenly occurred to Caitlin that she’d have to brave the harsh wintry elements to get to the grocery store and the fish market. She supposed she could’ve asked to borrow Marion’s car, but she figured,If I can go outside my emotional comfort zone and invite Shane here for a pseudo date, then I can go outside my physical comfort zone, too…
Ironically, it was while she was waiting in line at the store, instead of while walking on the beach, that Caitlin discovered the harbor and a large section of the bay had frozen solid during the night.
“Supposedly, a couple of icebreaker ships are on their way, but until they get here, ferry service has been suspended,” the elderly gentleman in front of Caitlin told the cashier.
“Who needs ferry service?” the woman replied. “I just had a customer in here who said the ice is so thick on the beach near him that he could drive a car straight across Hope Haven Sound to Hyannis if he wanted to.”
