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“Will you have a pony? Will I be able to come and ride the pony?” Arabelle asked.
I flashed a smile at her. “Maybe.”
Arabelle stuck her little nose up in the air. “All princesses have to have a pony and a prince.”
“I think I’ll stick with the pony,” I countered.
Arabelle cocked her head to the side. “Did you know you talk funny, Aria?”
“Ara, stop it!” Natalie scolded.
“It’s okay.” I chuckled a little and addressed Princess Ara, “I’m from a country called Australia, so that’s why I speak differently. We even have different words for some things.”
“Like what?”
“Well, we call swimsuits swimmers or bathers. We call French fries hot chips. The trunk of a car we call a boot and flip-flops . . . ahh—” I quickly cut myself off and giggled into my hand.
Arabelle laughed. “That’s silly.”
“I want to know about the flip-flops,” Natalie whispered.
My eyes danced with mirth. “Maybe later.”
“Do you have any plans for the rest of the day?”
I nodded. “I thought I might explore the oceanfront area over at Virginia Beach since Lily has gone to some museum and Zoey is sleeping off last night’s events.”
“You mean you’ll be all by yourself?” Natalie exclaimed.
“It’s alright, I’m used to it. It’s a great way for me to recharge. But first I need to finish building my castle with Arabelle, don’t I, little miss?” I nudged the little girl.
With a nod, she said, “It’s going to be the biggest and bestest princess castle in all the land!”
It was a delightful way to spend the morning. Arabelle and I built sandcastles while Natalie and I talked about our lives, both past and present. Her story about how she thought her now ex-husband died, so she moved on with his best friend, Liam, only to have Aaron come back a year later after being held hostage was insane. Natalie was one tough woman, and I found myself admiring her. She bore the kind of courage I could only dream about having.
After an hour or so, I stood and dusted the sand off my clothing. “This was fun, but I guess I’d better be going if I want to explore the oceanfront area.”
“I’d like to give you something before you go,” Natalie said. She picked up her son and took Arabelle by the hand. When I stayed where I was, she turned back to me. “Come on, Aria.”
I followed her into her house where she led me to the living room.
Natalie set Shane on the floor and took a couple of pamphlets from a messy bookcase. “This is a map of the oceanfront, and also a booklet about some of the sights along there. It might help you decide on what you want to see, and even if you decide to just wander around, at least with a map, you won’t get lost.”
I flipped through the booklet and glanced at the map. “This is so nice. Thank you, Natalie.”
“Please. All of my friends call me Lee,” she said as she placed her hand on my upper arm.
As I looked at her in mild surprise, she smiled at me. We’d known each other less than twenty-four hours and she considered me friendly enough to call her by her nickname?
“Don’t look so surprised. We’re friends now, sweetie,” Natalie— Lee assured me.
“Is everyone around here as nice as you are?” I joked.
“I’d like to think our circle of friends are,” Lee answered.
“Hey, you’re back. How was the beach?” Liam interrupted as he made his way into the living room. He pecked Lee on the lips and hugged her.
I shifted and averted my gaze. I didn’t want to pry on their intimate moment.
