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Before he knew it, there was a banging sound on his front door. Without waiting for an answer, Finn let himself in. He had a duffel bag slung over his shoulder.
“Hey, I need a place to crash for a while.”
“Define ‘a while,’” Declan said. This was typical Finn. He’d breeze into town for a few weeks, then disappear as soon as the mood struck him. It drove Declan nuts. Just once he would have liked to see his brother stay in one place long enough to connect.
“I’m thinking about moving back here for good,” Finn said. “Maybe find some work here in town and get a place to fix up and make my own.” He placed his bag down with a thud.
Declan let out a groan. “Finn. We’ve been down this road before. Each and every time, you bail on the plan.”
Finn scowled. “I knew you were going to be negative.”
“With good reason. If I had a dollar for every time you announced you were moving back here, I’d have enough money to buy another plane to replace Lucy.”
He hadn’t meant to bring up Lucy, but he was still smarting over the fact that she was gone forever. Nothing more than a pile of wreckage and ash.
“Have you contacted the insurance company yet?” Finn asked. “O’Rourke Charters is going to be in a bind if you don’t get a second plane. It’s really helped the company financially to have Willard making some runs for you.”
Willard Jones was a local pilot who was in Declan’s employ. Even though Willard had only gotten his pilot’s license last year, he demonstrated great skill and ability. Declan wasn’t looking forward to telling him about Lucy’s demise.
“I need to call them,” Declan said sheepishly. “There might be a slight hiccup since I lowered my premium last year. The payout from the insurance company won’t be enough to finance a new plane.”
“You did what?” Finn exploded. He began to grind his teeth noisily. “Why in the world did you do a thing like that?”
“Love was in a recession. O’Rourke Charters took a real beating,” he drawled. “Oh, I forgot. You didn’t stay in town long enough to experience the hardships firsthand.”
“We’ve both experienced tough times. There’s no need to compare battle scars,” Finn spit out.
An uneasy silence stretched between them. Things left unspoken pulsed in the air. It was always like this between them, Declan realized. Everything could be going swell until the past reared its head like a monster. He was beginning to think they would never be able to cross the divide that separated them.
“You’re just like him. You can never just stay put in one place. Even when Grandpa was sick, you couldn’t just plant roots here, could you?” Declan asked.
“I’m not like him!” Finn let out a snort. “You’re the one who flits from one woman to the next. Sound familiar?”
Declan felt as if he had been sucker punched in the gut. Finn really knew how to hit below the belt.
Finn raked his hands through his hair. “I shouldn’t have said that.”
Declan clenched his fists and moved toward his brother. All he could see was a red haze. Before he did something he regretted, he bent down and picked up Finn’s duffel bag and tossed it at him. “You can’t stay here!”
They locked gazes. It seemed like an eternity passed before Finn spoke. “Fine. I’ll go crash somewhere else. Maybe when you talk to the insurance company, you can blame me for everything, just like you always do.” Like a whirlwind, Finn left his house. The roaring sound of his motorcycle buzzed in Declan’s ears. He wanted to go after him to tell him he could stay, but a heavy weight on his chest prevented him from doing so. Too much stood between them.
Like always, the past had crept into his present, bringing along with it things he knew neither one of them was capable of facing.
Chapter Six
Annie was up at the crack of dawn, well before she needed to wake up. A feeling
of anticipation had been building inside her ever since her arrival in town a week earlier. For the past seven days, she had been working toward getting the library in shipshape condition, shelving and unpacking books.
She couldn’t have done it without the dedicated team who had helped her get the library in order. And even though there were still a few things that needed to be straightened out, the library was officially opening this morning with a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the grand achievement. Townsfolk would be able to come to the library, sign up for a library card and actually take books out. All the books from the original library had been moved to the site and shelved right alongside the new books.
She was filled with anticipation. It reminded her of how she had always felt the night before the first day of school—brimming with excitement. New beginnings are always ripe with possibilities. Hadn’t she just read that very phrase in Gram’s journal?
Even though she could have slept for another hour or so, Annie’s internal clock wouldn’t allow her to. She considered herself to be a very punctual person, and she didn’t want to run the risk of being late for the ceremony. In her position as librarian at the Whimsy Public Library, punctuality had been a necessity. It was her responsibility to open up the library each and every morning so patrons could have access. Not once had the library ever opened late. That was because she was an organized person. She was quite proud of her impeccable record with regard to the operating hours of the library. It was nothing to sneeze at. And she had every intention of continuing that legacy right here in Love.
Annie got up out of bed and walked into the living room. She pulled back the dark curtains and peered outside. “Hello, beautiful Alaska,” she gushed. Pink and purple ribbons of color streaked across the sky. Annie found herself transfixed by the sight of God’s wondrous creation. The sun was creeping over the horizon, its fiery brilliance heralding a new day. Mountains loomed majestically in the distance. She had done her research on Alaska. She knew that sunset would occur at around five o’clock later on today, a little bit later than she was used to back home. For now she would simply bask in the beautiful sunrise unfolding right outside her window.
Hazel wasn’t coming by to pick her up for another hour or so. She had declined breakfast at the Lodge due to the butterflies fluttering in her stomach. Who could eat when a new library was being celebrated? For the past week she had been assembling the library’s catalog with help from a group of townsfolk who were big supporters.
