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Bashfully I smiled. There had not been much to smile about. “I haven’t taken any photographs since Matt died.” I looked out the window as I finished that sentence.
“Then it’s time. To the garden we go.” She said, grabbing my hand in hers and giving it a squeeze. “Oh, how do you feel about lobster for dinner?”
“Sounds terrific,” I forced a smile. “You are going to fatten me up in no time.” I laughed.
“Impossible,” Cassie chuckled.
I was starting to feel better as time passed. I never realized how much I missed Cassie until today. Being home again wasn’t as bad as I thought.
As we stopped at a red light I said. “I really missed you, Cassie.” Then leaned over and hugged her.
“I missed you too. I’m glad to have you back.” She stretched her arm around me. “Oh, you get to meet Charlie tonight.”
“Who’s Charlie?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at her. Cassie dated frequently, but she hadn’t mentioned anyone prior to now.
“He’s my boyfriend,” she said joyfully. “You are going to love him.”
“How long have you been dating him?” I asked. Cassie never dated anyone for more than two weeks. She smiled and glanced over at me.
“About a month,” she replied. “He is gorgeous, different from anyone else I have ever dated.”
“A month, huh?” She noticed my surprised expression.
“What? You think you’re the only girl to find true love?” she snapped.
“No, it’s just you always told me your motto was to never get attached. Heartbreak was too painful,” I quoted.
“Well—I still believe that. It’s just that Charlie”—she swooned—“no words describe how I feel about him. He is completely devoted to me, and I couldn’t imagine my life without him.” It was good to see Cassie happy, for however long it lasted. This was a better look for her. Not to say she was never happy. She was just known as the female philanderer. Not the best reputation to have in this town.
“I’m happy for you,” I replied.
CHAPTER THREE
Later, at the garden , my camera didn’t stop snapping pictures even as I carried on a conversation with Cassie. The bright reds and oranges were incredible against the deep-green foliage that was late in transforming. An hour was spent just walking through a trail in the forest, leading us to a botanical garden with a large pond and amazing sculptures made out of bushes. The sculpted scenes were inventive. It was as though it was a scene from Alice in Wonderland and at any moment the Mad Hatter would jump out—because with my luck that’s who would greet me. I had to chuckle at the thought.
As we walked farther, Cassie pointed out a giant mermaid sculpture in the middle of the pond. The flowers of fall bloomed in reds and oranges, framing her face. It was an incredible sight.
“They call it mosaiculture. It has spread all over the world. It’s quite remarkable,” Cassie pointed out.
“To say the least,” I said, in awe of the beauty that engulfed us.
“There is a really beautiful waterfall around here too. Unless it’s too cold with the mist in the air.” She said.
“Not at all,” I replied, gesturing for her to lead the way. “Speaking of waterfalls,” I began, following her over the bridge through thick green and red foliage, “do the Fosters really own the land where we used to picnic as kids?”
“Yes,” Cassie replied. “The park closed and everything was torn down after another drowning happened. The people who owned it were sued, and they couldn’t afford to keep the park anymore.”
“Again?” I gasped.
“Yeah after you nearly drowned—”
“My what?” I stopped short, grabbing her arm, unable to get over the fact that she said I had nearly drowned.
“Yeah, after you almost drowned, it seemed to happen a lot.”
“I drowned?” I scanned my brain for this event but came up blank.
“Yes. Don’t you remember?” Cassie asked, confused.
