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“And the people here, they’re the best.” Harvey looked at him. “How long are you here for?”
“Not long.” At least that’s what he hoped.
“Too bad. You’re going to miss a most excellent celebration.”
“I hope you have a great time.” Lane stood. “I need to be going.”
“I definitely will.” Harvey smiled. “Maybe you’ll change your mind and stay longer.”
“I don’t think so.” Lane turned and stepped away. He was in no mood to make casual conversation.
“Hey,” the man called out, “you didn’t mention your name.”
Lane would have normally ignored the person, but Harvey seemed like a nice enough guy. He called out over his shoulder, “It’s Lane.”
“It was nice to meet you, Lane.”
Lane waved but kept going. He wasn’t one to make friends easily or to open up about his life. It was better that way. If he didn’t let people get close, they couldn’t hurt him. A lesson he’d learned the hard way.
She was late for lunch.
Josie had gotten caught up in finalizing her plans for the bicentennial celebration. And she was quite proud of them. Between Sandra’s plans and some of her own, it was going to be a week to remember. And it wasn’t only for the guests of the inn but it would be open to the townspeople—or at least as many as they could accommodate.
Josie hurried from the inn to The Lighthouse Café. Why hadn’t she ridden her bike that day? It would have been so much faster. She couldn’t wait to speak to her friends.
A couple of minutes later, she stepped inside the café. She waved to Fred and Martha Williams. And then she waved to Darla and Will Campbell. They were newlyweds and spent part of their time on the island and the rest of their time in San Francisco. She knew all the island’s year-round residents. It was a small island and even smaller community.
Her gaze continued the rest of the way around the spacious dining room. She took in the couple dozen wooden tables and chairs, only about a third of them now occupied. The counter at the back of the restaurant had a few people at it. And then she spotted her friends in one of the booths that lined the wall.
She made a beeline for her friends. Lily Adams owned the Lily Pad, a crafts store. Hannah Walker owned the Elegant Bakery. They’d all been best friends since school. They shared everything with each other.
“Sorry, I’m late.” Josie sat down next to Lily. “You won’t believe the morning I had.”
Her comment elicited interested looks from her friends.
“Hope it was better than my morning,” Hannah said. “My bakery manager quit. She’s getting married and moving to Iowa.” She sighed. “I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
“I’m sorry.” Both Josie and Lily chimed in at the same time.
“Thanks. I’ll get through this. It’s just that interviewing and finding someone new to train is a lot.” Hannah turned to Josie. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to take over the conversation. What’s going on at the inn? Please tell me it’s not closing.”
“Not that I know of.” Josie glanced around to make sure no one was close enough to overhear their conversation. She wasn’t ready for her news to become part of Bluestar’s gossip. She leaned forward and lowered her voice. “Sandra’s long-lost nephew showed up this morning.”
“What?” Their combined voices came out loudly.
“Shh…” Josie glanced around again. A few heads turned in their direction, but they quickly turned back to their coffee and food. “I know. That’s what I was thinking.”
“Where has he been all of this time?” Lily asked.
Josie shrugged. “I don’t know. He did casually mention he’s from the west coast.”
“But I didn’t think Sandra had any living family.” Hannah’s brows pulled together as her lips pursed. “Are we sure he’s legit?”
“Yes. I got some paperwork from Sandra’s attorneys this morning. It appears Sandra had a twin sister who owned half of the inn.”
“Had?” Hannah asked. “As in she’s no longer living.”
“She passed the day before Sandra,” Josie said.
