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“Do ye think that’s what it was showing ye?”

I shook my head slowly, letting myself remember. “No. I don’t think so. It felt… different. Darker. More… wet. If that makes sense.”

Peggy laughed darkly. “Och, well, as much as any vision makes sense, aye?”

“So that darkness? It’s still coming?”

She shrugged. “Dinna fash yerself too much about it. Magic isna all-powerful or perfect. The visions ye receive willna always make sense. Nor will they always come tae be. Sometimes ye might even interpret them all wrong, and ye willna ken until the thing comes tae pass. Ye canna let them dictate yer life any more than ye should let yer past dictate yer future.” She made a shooing motion with her hands toward the door. “Noo, away wi’ ye. Go get yer family. They’re waiting on ye.”

THIRTY

My heart pounded in my chest as I hurried down the stairs and across the street to the cobbled archway. What if I’d rejected him one too many times, and he couldn’t bring himself to forgive me? My gut and my heart teamed up to beat that fear into retreat. I’d seen his face through the window. That wasn’t the face of a man ready to walk away.

I clung to that thought as I reached the sand, a little grateful that I’d left home without my shoes. One less thing to slow me down as I raced to the spot where they’d been sitting.

When we walked along the surf, I often complained that the beach wasn’t long enough. Our walks ended too quickly. Running down it was another story altogether. I was breathless less than halfway to the small cluster of people who held my heart in their hands.

I was debating whether it would be better to slow to a walk or arrive gasping for breath when Merry spotted me. He jumped up and was flat-out running before his feet touched the sand.

Instead of slowing down, I sped up. We crashed into each other and tumbled to the ground in a tangle of arms, legs, and giggles.

“You came back! You came back!” Merry cried, wrapping his arms and legs around me like a tiny octopus. “Dad said we might not be living with you anymore, and I was so sad! He doesn’t do the voices as well as you when he reads to me. You’re never allowed to leave again!”

Releasing me as fast as he’d glommed on, he jumped up and grabbed my arm to help me to my feet. The instant I was upright, he was moving again, this time back toward his dad and sister, pulling me behind him, his little legs pumping as hard as they could.

Art met us halfway, his face a heartbreaking mix of hope and dread. Not wanting to drag his torment out any further, I threw my arms around his neck and crushed my lips to his. With a gasp that was part sob, he wrapped his arms around me and lifted me off my feet, spinning me around and around as he kissed me back, pouring his whole heart into it.

Reluctantly, I pulled back to say, “I’m so sorry I ran.” Caressing his cheek, I relished the familiar feel of his beard on my palm. “I should have stayed and talked it through with you. That was incredibly unfair of me.”

“No. It was unfair of me to hit you with that surprise after such a long day. Or to make you feel like it was honesty or nothing when I knew your background. But we can figure all of that out later. You came back. That’s all that matters right now. You came back.” He set me down and pulled me to his chest in a bear hug that left us both a little breathless.

Loath to be left out of the reunion for long, Merry threw himself at us, wrapping his arms around our legs and squeezing hard. As one, Art and I swooped down to pick him up and pull him into our embrace. Catching sight of Viv hovering on the edge, I held out my other arm. Art held his out and gestured for her to join us.

Rolling her eyes skyward and muttering something under her breath about adults, she stepped into our huddle and threw her arms around all of us, her lip twitching into a smile that not even the most jaded teen attitude could suppress.

Merry lasted all of ten seconds before he squirmed to be let down, which allowed Viv to jump away and pretend she hadn’t enjoyed the group hug.

We followed the kids down the beach as they chased each other at the water’s edge, my arm tucked into Art’s and my head resting on his shoulder, reveling in the feel of his body against mine.

“Meg! Meg!” Merry cried, racing back to us, holding out in front of him something cupped in his hands. “I found you a surprise!”

“Oh, you Winslow men and your surprises,” I joked to Art, who winced. “Too soon?” I teased.

“Give it an hour or so more,” he joked back, pulling me closer to kiss the top of my head. “Then I’ll be able to laugh about it.”

“Whatcha got there, buddy?” I asked, dropping to my knees as Merry approached, my heart beating a little faster as I recalled the frog incident. It wasn’t so much that I disliked amphibians, more that I wasn’t a fan of anything jumping out at me.

“No screaming, okay?” Merry said, giving me a stern look. “Or he might get scared.”

“No screaming. Got it,” I replied solemnly. Leaning into the comforting solidity of Art’s leg planted next to me and appreciating the weight of his hand on my shoulder, I braced myself, but nothing jumped out when Merry revealed his surprise. Instead, a beautiful hermit crab in a shimmering blue spiral shell sat still on his palm, its antennae tasting the air lazily.

“It’s so pretty, Merry! Look at that! What a beautiful shell,” I whispered. “Thank you for sharing him with me.”

“Can I keep him?” the little boy asked, looking at me with hopeful eyes as wide as saucers.

I shrugged and scrunched up my face in a sympathetic grimace. “That’s kinda up to your dad, but I think maybe he’d rather stay here with his family, don’t you think?”

Merry looked down at the crab thoughtfully for a moment, then nodded slowly. “Maybe it’s a she, and she’s someone’s Meg, and they’d miss her if she went away.”