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Know that the purest, kindest part of your soul is safe in my memory. Now and for always.
My last letter to you, my past love,
Dove
Sarah closed the book with a small sigh. Their love story had ended with Dove’s final journal entry.
Now what did she do with the journal? Putting it back on the bookshelf in the den didn’t seem right when she was planning to sell the B&B. And she wasn’t sure it was something she wanted to keep.
What would her grandmother have wanted her to do?
The blown-glass bulb—the gift from Marissa and Wes—hanging in her window reflecting the glow of the moonlight, a kaleidoscope of color shooting across the hardwood floor, gave Sarah her answer.
…
“Are you and Sarah fighting?” Marissa’s voice drifted over the changing room door the next day as she tried on new clothing for school starting the following week.
Marissa’s question was a good one. One Wes wasn’t sure the answer to as he paced outside, waiting for her to emerge. They weren’t exactly fighting; that would require communicating. He hadn’t spoken to her since the day before, when he’d been so angry about the app being hacked and Marissa’s safety being put at risk that he couldn’t even remember the conversation clearly. All he remembered was the anger and the hurt. Her driving away and the instant remorse he’d felt.
“No, we’re not fighting,” he said. Catching his reflection in the mirror, he almost did a double take. That day, he was feeling every one of his thirty-two years. The stress and the pressure of his new love-life conflict had dark circles appearing under tired-looking eyes. And the gray strands appearing along his temple hadn’t been there six months ago. They were no doubt courtesy of CyberStud480.
“We just haven’t seen her in a few days,” Marissa said, emerging from the changing room in a pair of jeans and hoodie that had cat ears on the hood and a tail hanging down the back.
“That’s cute,” he said. “What do you think?”
She shrugged. “It’s fine. Don’t change the subject.”
He sighed. Marissa had been incessant the last two days, wondering where Sarah was, asking if they should bring her a surprise at the B&B…flowers, a coffee… His little girl had a million suggestions. But Wes insisted that Sarah was too busy to hang out.
He still hadn’t manned up and told her about his accusing Sarah of exposing his daughter to the dangers of technology. “We will see her at the reunion,” he said casually. Truthfully, the idea terrified him. He had no idea where they stood now or where he wanted them to stand. Inviting someone into his and Marissa’s life hadn’t been easy. Trusting hadn’t been easy. And then to have things turn out the way they did…
“So things are okay?” Marissa asked, still looking unconvinced as she studied him.
He sighed, sitting in a chair outside the changing room and pulling her closer. The day before, he’d asked her about the messages and luckily she’d only received one…mildly inappropriate text from the guy. She’d been too nervous to tell him about it, knowing he’d shut down her access to the online app store. But it had definitely been one of those teachable moments parents always talked about, even if it was uncomfortable.
“Look, Sarah came by yesterday,” he said.
“Our house?”
“Camp. She came back from L.A. in time, but I’d just found out about the hacking, and things didn’t go so well.” He ran a hand through his hair.
Marissa frowned. “She made it back in time but didn’t come? What did you say to piss her off?” She clamped her lips together at her slip of inappropriate words.
Wes let it slide. He had in fact said some hurtful things. “I may have suggested that it was her fault. For putting you at risk online like that.” His chest heaved as he sighed. “Sarah just doesn’t have kids, so she doesn’t get it.”
Marissa was looking at him like he was the bad guy. She folded her little arms across her chest and glared at him. “You blamed Sarah?”
He nodded. “There was no parental controls or anything…”
“Dad, it’s the internet. It’s not safe even if you do everything right.”
“That’s why I didn’t like you using it,” he said. This incident should be illustrating his point perfectly.
“It was just pictures, Dad, and I would have talked to you about it, but I knew this was how you’d react. I knew you’d take this one example of the internet being evil and use it to stop me from making new apps.”
“Marissa, there are predators online…”
“There are predators everywhere,” she said, touching his shoulder. “This wasn’t Sarah’s fault. Blaming her wasn’t the right thing to do.”
