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Ruby swallowed hard. “I like writing. I . . . thinkIm good at it. Lately, Ive been thinking about writing a book. ”
“You should give it a try. ”
Ruby bit her lower lip, worrying it, and Nora knew shed overstepped. “Im sorry. I didnt mean to suggest-”
“Its okay, Mom. Its just that I almost did write something, but it was too personal. About us, our family. I didnt want to hurt . . . anyone. ”
Ruby looked heartbreakingly young and earnest right then. “Sometimes people get hurt, Ruby. Its never something you should seek out, or do on purpose, but you cant live a life that hurts no one. If you try, youll end up touching no one. ”
“I wouldnt want to hurt you,” Ruby said quietly.
Before Nora could respond, she heard the sound of a car driving up. It parked, and the engine fell silent. A door slammed shut.
Ruby glanced toward the garden. “Are we expecting someone?”
“No. ”
Footsteps rattled on gravel. A rusty gate creaked open and clattered shut.
Someone thumped up the sagging porch steps and walked into the light.
Chapter Twenty-one
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Nora stared up at her elder daughter in shock.
“Caroline?” she whispered, setting her tea down on the table beside her.
“I dont believe it!” Ruby ran across the porch and pulled her sister into a fierce hug.
Nora drank in the sight of it, her girls, back together on Summer Island. In the old days, she would have joined them, thrown her arms around both girls for a “family hug. ” But now a lifetimes worth of poor choices left her on the outside, looking at her own daughters through a pane of glass as thick as a childs broken heart.
Nora got awkwardly to her feet and limped forward. "Hey, Caro. Its good to see you. Caroline drew back from Rubys embrace.
“Hello, Mother. ” Her smile seemed forced; it wasnt surprising. Even as a child, shed been able to smile when her heart was breaking.
“This is great,” Ruby said. “My big sis is home for a slumber party. We havent done that since Miranda Moores birthday party. ”
In the soft, orange light, Nora studied her elder daughter. Caroline was flawlessly dressed in a pair of creased white linen pants and a rose-colored silk blouse with ruffles that fell around her thin wrists. Not a strand of silvery-blond hair was out of place, not a fleck of mascara marred the pale flesh beneath her eyes. Nora had the feeling it wouldnt dare.
And yet, in all that perfection, there was a strange undercurrent of fragility. As if she were hiding some tiny, hairline crack. Her gray eyes seemed suffused with a silent sadness.
Nora wondered suddenly what had brought Caroline here. It was unlike her daughter to do anything spontaneously-she planned her grocery-shopping days and marked them down on a planner. An unannounced trip to the island was startlingly out of character. Ruby peered past her sisters shoulder. “Where are kids?”
“I left them with Jeres mom for the night. ” She glanced nervously at Nora. “Its just me. I hope thats okay. I know I should have called. ”
“Are you kidding? I begged you to come,” Ruby said, laughing.
Ruby looped an arm around her sisters narrow shoulders. The two women moved into the house, their heads tilted together.
As she limped along behind them, Nora heard Ruby say softly, “Is everything okay at home?” but Carolines answer was too hushed to be overheard.
Nora felt like a third wheel. She stopped at the kitchen table and cleared her throat. “Maybe I should leave you two alone for a while. You know, for a sisterly chat. ”
Caro and Ruby were almost to the living room. Together they turned around.
