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“Thank you,” I answered quietly.
I gave Martha’s hands a gentle squeeze before releasing them. “As soon as Jensen gets back from sea, I know he’ll want to stop by,” she said, her expression showing concern.
David might not know what happened between me and Jensen, but I had a feeling Martha had an idea. My heart raced as I nodded in response.
“That’s fine. He’s more than welcome.” And I was nowhere near ready to see him.
David and Martha moved across the room to speak with my parents while I moved out of the way to stand alone in front of my grandmother’s photo. I picked it up and it felt heavy in my hands as I held it against my chest and closed my eyes, wishing she was here to tell me what to do with all her things. Of course, taking it all back to Massachusetts would be impossible, but getting rid of her belongings didn’t feel right either.
So many decisions were left for me alone to make.
A lump formed in my throat as I whispered to myself. “I’m going to miss you, Grammy.” I clutched the photo tighter. “So much.”
* * *
Moments after the church emptied,Sandy rushed to her car and drove away. She left without a goodbye or a promise to return. The money my grandmother had left her would be in her bank account in a few weeks; that was all she wanted.Greedy bitch.I may have been a surgeon with a decent salary, but I enjoyed a modest lifestyle. I did not need a fancy house or car to be content; I worked too many hours to enjoy them anyway. My mother drove me back to my grandmother’s house as I had left my car there.
“Are you sure you don’t want to come home with me and your dad?” she asked as we climbed the steps up to the door.
I looked out at the ocean before gazing back at her. “I’m going to stay here tonight,” I said. “I need some time to clear my head.”
She worriedly touched her forehead with her fingers. “Have you decided what you’re going to do with this place?”
I’ve already decided to keep the time off from work and stay in Oak Island for the two-month vacation I requested, or at least until I decide what to do. What happens after that? I have no idea.
Shaking my head, I blew out a sigh. “I don’t know, Mom. For now, I’m going to stay so I can be close to you.”
Her eyes watered. “You don’t have to stay here just because of me, but if you want to, I would be more than happy to spend every day with my baby girl. Your father would, too. You can always help him at the medical office if you need something to do.”
I had always wondered what working full-time with my dad in his clinic would be like. I’d help out occasionally when I visited home, but never for long stretches.
“Real subtle, Mom,” I joked with a laugh.
She waved off my comment. “What can I say? I want you to stay. It could be good for you; a slower pace of life might be what you need this summer. Then, when things die down, you can figure out what you want to do about the house.”
My gaze went through the glass door that led to the living room, where all my grandmother’s trinkets and souvenirs were displayed in various places. My heart was heavy at the thought of getting rid of them all.
“It’s hard to believe that it’s all mine,” I mumbled dejectedly as I looked away from the old home toward the sea. A part of me wanted everything to remain unchanged forever, but I knew realistically that I couldn’t manage the upkeep being so far away in Boston—my grandmother wouldn’t forgive me if I didn’t take proper care of her beloved house.
“Everleigh,” my mother murmured. “Look at me.”
With a heavy sigh, I met her gaze. There was so much regret plaguing me that it was hard to breathe. I wished I had spent the time with my family when it mattered. No one was promised tomorrow, and I’d learned that the hard way. I would never get back the time I lost with my grandmother.
My mother gently placed her hands on my face. “If you decide to sell the house, just know I support you no matter what, okay? I know that’s what’s weighing on your mind right now.”
“That’s not the only thing,” I confessed.
Her brows furrowed. “What else is there?”
Her hands slid from my face, her expression concerned.My stomach clenched as I tried to ignore the rock forming in my stomach.
“I feel guilty about the house, Mom, but I have so much regret building within me that I honestly don’t know if I can handle it.” Tears poured down my cheeks, and my stomach hurt even more. “I should’ve taken time off a long time ago. That way, Grammy could’ve seen the world as we planned. But, instead, I worked and sacrificed all that time I could’ve spent with you, Dad, and her. And for what? I’m thirty-four and single, with no hope of starting a family anytime soon. All my old friends from high school are happily married with kids.”
Jensen was no doubt one of them. My only single friend was Nyla, but she had been married once before, so that put her way ahead of me as far as life experiences.My mother placed a comforting hand on my shoulder.
“You can’t compare your life to others, sweetheart. We all have a path, and you chose yours.” She squeezed my arm reassuringly. “Your grandmother was so proud of you, always rambling on to others about your success. You visited as often as you could, and she understood that. Curing people has always been your dream. Don’t ever regret what you’ve done. You’ve saved tons of lives. That right there is a miracle.”
“Still,” I cried, “I’d give anything to be in the Caribbean right now with Grammy.”
